Puppet Master Mohōhan / 模倣犯

【Synopsis】
In this monumental novel, a deranged killer sees himself as the genius scriptwriter, director, and star of a real-life serial mass-murder drama. Offering penetrating psychological portraits of the victims and killer, while also exploring the dangers that inhere when crime turns into theater for the public, the story opens early on September 12, 1996, when a woman’s severed arm is discovered in a trash bin at a Tokyo park. A purse is found in the same location and its owner is identified, but almost as quickly it is determined that the arm does not belong to that person. Multiple murders are suspected as the investigation swings into gear. Using a voice changer, the killer calls the media, claiming credit for the crime. Near panic ensues when another female corpse and a separate set of skeletal remains are delivered in accordance with his word. In November, a fiery car crash results in the death of the driver and passenger, and the body of a man who had been reported missing is discovered in the trunk; the police announce that the two who died in the crash had been friends since childhood and were the killers wanted in the serial murder case. Photos and other items linked to seven murdered women are found and seized in a search of the prime suspect’s home, but police fail to turn up any evidence implicating the man they believe to be his accomplice. In January, a man named Amikawa makes a splash in the media claiming that the alleged accomplice was innocent and the true killer is still at large; he publishes a book touted as revealing the full story behind the crimes. He is another childhood friend of the two dead men—and the true mastermind behind the crimes . . .

(Vol. 1) ISBN 978-4093792646
(Vol. 2) ISBN 978-4093792653