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Salvation of a Saint

A Detective Galileo Novel

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Salvation of a Saint

By: Keigo Higashino, Alexander O. Smith - translator
Narrated by: David Pittu
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From the author of the internationally bestselling, award-winning The Devotion of Suspect X comes the latest novel featuring "Detective Galileo."

In 2011, The Devotion of Suspect X was a hit with critics and readers alike. The first major English language publication from the most popular bestselling writer in Japan, it was acclaimed as "stunning," "brilliant," and "ingenious." Now physics professor Manabu Yukawa—Detective Galileo—returns in a new case of impossible murder, where instincts clash with facts and theory with reality.

Yoshitaka, who was about to leave his marriage and his wife, is poisoned by arsenic-laced coffee and dies. His wife, Ayane, is the logical suspect—except that she was hundreds of miles away when he was murdered. The lead detective, Tokyo Police Detective Kusanagi, is immediately smitten with her and refuses to believe that she could have had anything to do with the crime. His assistant, Kaoru Utsumi, however, is convinced Ayane is guilty. While Utsumi's instincts tell her one thing, the facts of the case are another matter. So she does what her boss has done for years when stymied—she calls upon Professor Manabu Yukawa.

But even the brilliant mind of Dr. Yukawa has trouble with this one, and he must somehow find a way to solve an impossible murder and capture a very real, very deadly murderer.


Salvation of a Saint is Keigo Higashino at his mind-bending best, pitting emotion against fact in a beautifully plotted crime novel filled with twists and reverses that will astonish and surprise even the most attentive and jaded of listeners.

Crime Fiction International Mystery & Crime Murder Mystery Police Procedural Marriage Detective Exciting
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Continue the series

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A Midsummer's Equation By: Keigo Higashino

Critic reviews

“Narrator David Pittu delivers a flawless and riveting performance. Spellbinding.” —AudioFile

“David Pittu, a stage-trained actor, uses a variety of textures, tones and tempos – and just the hint of a Japanese accent – to give each character a voice of his or her own.” —The New York Times Book Review

“On audio, the work is enhanced by the narration of David Pittu, who is one of the best performers with a broad range and a long list of accomplishments…He is superbly talented, thinking through each character's voice and demeanor. He never trips over difficult Japanese words…The performance is without flaw.” —Reviewing the Evidence

“Pittu reads the mystery, using blunt and confident tones to portray Mashiba and more quavering emotional inflections for Mita…Give this to listeners who enjoyed Higashino's The Devotion of Suspect X.” —Booklist

“David Pittu turns in a stellar reading, deftly transitioning between the principles and providing defining intonations for each. The plot is so intricate it will keep you guessing until the end.” —The Star-Ledger

“Narrator David Pittu gives an impeccable performance, brushed with just a whisper of a foreign accent.” —BookPage

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I loved it so much. I do wish the ending was different e.g. the perpetrator not being found 🙈🙈

fabulous

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I have read several of his books and enjoyed this one but the translation and narration Americanised the story and lost some of the Japanese nuances. The story and characterisation were still excellent but it felt like a film that had been badly dubbed instead of using sub titles and had lost an important part of of its ambience and atmosphere.

The quality of the plot and characters

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This one felt a little too typical. Formulaic, almost. Could imagine it as a network TV show like CSI or something. Not really what I’m looking for. Also, whilst I enjoyed the narrator’s performance, could he not have taken two minutes to go back and listen to his performance in the first novel of this series and maybe maintain continuity in the voices he did for the characters? His new voices for some characters were very jarring - like a character being recast.

Formulaic

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My second Keigo Higashino mystery and Detective Galilieo novel. My admiration for Higashino Sensei's writing grows, as well as my affection for Detective Kusanagi. What I also "like" is that I still dislike Detective Galileo himself - that a pretty unique for me! I also thoroughly disliked Detective Utsumi, so I will be interested to see how her character develops, as I know she appears in future works.
This was a great mystery which couldn't have been pulled off in the average UK home, which added a layer of obfuscation. I guess the only loose-ish end is whether or not Ayane was, in fact, actually infertile, peri-menopausal (albeit early) or just relatively infertile given her age (mid-30s) and the stresses of work pressure and of conceiving within a year. For a man desperate for children, Matiba San really shouldn't have been chasing 30-something women without considering fertility treatments even as basic as ovulation boosters!
I had absolutely no sympathy for the wretched and pathetic apprentice, and half wished for her to be accidentally murderedby the same water/coffee, or accidentally framed for the murder. But that would be wrong. Right?

A great listen!

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Liked the plot and the complexity of the characters very much. The anticipation to see how the killer did it builds up nicely. Narration it's excellent! I will be sure to read/listen more books from Keigo Higashino.

Great listen, can't recommend enough!

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