A review by chrisljm
Journey Under the Midnight Sun by Keigo Higashino

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

This is probably the best mystery (and Keigo Higashino) novel I’ve read so far. 

Journey Under the Midnight Sun is told through multiple POVs and so you get to unveil the mystery alongside different characters. The interchanging POVs and large cast was a bit hard to keep up with, but the storytelling was incredible. Despite the story taking place over a span of 20 years, with Higashino taking you alongside the cultural and technological developments of 70/80s Japan, it never felt like a drag. Every event that happens plays a part in the overall story, and it felt so great seeing it all piece together. The story/characters are fucked up, but the end of every chapter had a way of enticing me to continue. The book was gripping from start to finish. 

The only thing keeping me from giving this 5 stars is that you can definitely tell the female characters are written by a man. And despite how much I enjoyed the story, I completely understand the criticisms of Higashino’s use of sexual assault as a plot point. And if I’m being honest, I was truly enjoying the book until I got to the sexual assault parts, where I then had to pause and accept the fact that this is where Higashino was now taking the story and overlook my issues with that in order to keep enjoying the book. 
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