In the 1960s 17 people die of cyanide poisoning at a large party at the Aosawas, owners of a prominent clinic in an ancient castle city on the coast of the Sea of Japan. The only survivor is their teenage daughter Hisako, blind, beautiful, admired by all, but soon suspected of masterminding the crime.

The winner of the fifty-ninth Mystery Writers of Japan Award for Best Novel, translated here by Alison Watts (Aya Goda, Durian Sukegawa). Seventeen people die from cyanide in their drinks at a party hosted by the Aosawa family. Blind daughter Hisako is the only surviving family member. Many years later, the author of a book about the crime and a detective unite to get to the truths of culprit and motive. A multiple-voice exploration of the psychology of modern Japan.