The Final Curtain by Keigo Higashino - Book Review

The Final Curtain by Keigo Higashino, Giles Murray (Translator)

Series: Kyoichiro Kaga #4

Publication Date: 12th Dec 2023

Genre: Mystery, Police Procedural 

3.7 Stars 

One Liner: A good finale 

Tokyo Police Detective Kyoichiro Kaga collected his estranged mother’s remains a decade ago from a lady who had known her for years. Kaga’s mother left him and his father without much explanation. While Kaga got some answers, he is yet to get the rest. 

Now (2012) in Tokyo, the decomposed body of a middle-aged woman has been found in a bare apartment rented by a man. No one knows who the man is. Meanwhile, there has been another death in the vicinity at the same time and looks like the cases may be connected. 

Kaga wonders if both cases are somehow related to his mother’s life after she left the family to live elsewhere. Can he find the answers at last, or will he have to accept things the way they are? 

The story comes in multiple third-person POVs. This is the last book in the series. 

My Thoughts: 

This is the final book in the 4-book series, with Detective Kaga in the lead. He is an ex-school teacher turned police detective with a penchant for solving crimes and enough tenacity to keep going until he succeeds. 

Like book #3, this one also has Kaga’s cousin Matsumiya, a Homicide detective in another district’s team. I like the dynamics between the two. It borders on distant, but the warmth and companionship between the two is easy to feel. It also helps that both use their brains well. The police may grumble but spend hours of their time and resources in solving the crimes. I quite like this part. 

The book is set in 2012 and refers to the then-devastating earthquake and Tsunami and how it changed the lives of the people involved. The translated version is being released over a decade later, so there are bound to be some differences here and there. 

There’s a list of characters at the beginning, which is quite helpful. The names can be confusing, but that’s bound to happen when we read books from other cultures. No big deal. It’s easy to remember the characters even if we forget the names. They are distinct and have definite personalities, no matter how small their roles. 

The mystery is quite layered and has many twists. New information is revealed in stages, allowing the reader to connect the dots and come up with their own conclusions. Quite a lot happens, and though the case takes time, there’s no dull moment.

The pacing is a bit uneven. The book is 400 pages. While the translation is smooth enough, a few sentences sound odd since I don’t have the necessary cultural background. 

I’m in two minds about the ending. In a way, it suits the series (and Kaga) and ends exactly how it should. However, the HEA-lover in me is not satisfied. Why couldn’t we have a more definite conclusion to the series? Does it mean there’s a possibility of continuing the series someday? Because of how it ends, there won’t be any issues in writing another book or more. 

To summarize, The Final Curtain weaves multiple tracks together and brings them to a satisfying end. A well-crafted mystery that keeps you hooked. 

Thank you, NetGalley and St. Martin’s (Minotaur Books), for the eARC. 

#NetGalley

**

TW: Depression, sexual assault, infidelity