Suspicion by Seicho Matsumoto is an interesting novella centering on whether Onizuka Kumoko murdered her husband, Shirakawa Fukutaro. Shirakawa is a much older man and Onizuka is his much younger second wife who has a past.

I found the book particularly interesting as the story unfolds from the perspective of the journalist, Akatani, who is reporting on the case and also from the lawyers Hayama and latterly Sahara who takes the case and defends Onizuka. It’s interesting to see how the court of public opinion and the reporting of the case ahead of the trial portrayed and demonised Onizuka.

It’s an interesting taut read.

Huge thanks to NetGalley and the publishers, Penguin Press UK, for making this e-ARC available to me in exchange for a fair and honest review.

This is a novella concerning the trial of a woman with a criminal past who is suspected of driving her husband off a pier and drowning him while she swims to safety. A media frenzy ensues and a particular journalist is very critical of her. He ferrets out information from her lawyer. The psychology of the journalist is really the subject of the book.

The positives of the novella are that it sustains the reader's interest and provides an interesting perspective on gender relations and professional occupations in Japan (it was originally published in 1982 but the narrative is nonspecifically timed). The negative of the novella is that the crime element is very bare-bones and there is practically no development in finding clues or revelations.

If readers liked Tokyo Express and Inspector Imanishi Investigates they should know that this is a quite a different book which is more a psychological study than a crime book. If I had been correctly orientated on that score, I would have enjoyed it more.

I am grateful to have received an ARC from Penguin Classics and NetGalley.

Suspicion by Seicho Matsumoto (translated by Jesse Kirkwood)

You can always fall back on Japanese mysteries to give you something unique.

This story follows a trial where Onizuka Kumoko stands accused of murdering her husband, Shirakawa Fukutaro, a man 20 years her senior. The accusation stems from a sizable inheritance and a life insurance policy she had taken out in his name. While Onizuka firmly maintains her innocence, the townspeople and media seem convinced of her guilt, largely due to her past crimes and questionable behaviour.
As the case unfolds, it falls to her defense lawyer to uncover the truth and untangle the layers of suspicion surrounding her.

At just 112 pages, the book moves quickly, and I found the ending both surprising and entertaining.

While it may not have the kind of mind-bending twist I often associate with Japanese mysteries, this was still an engaging and intriguing read. A solid one-time read for when you're in the mood for something short and sharp.

'Suspicion' was a short but highly enjoyable read and an excellent translation. It wasn't the story I was expecting to get from the description (Kumako is barely a character in the story and I'd argue you learn more about her from the blurb than you do throughout the entire book) but I wasn't disappointed at all with the story I did get.

Rather than focusing solely on Kumako and the crime she's accused of committing, the story is told through the actions of the lawyers and journalists involved in the case. As the femme fatale image the media has conjured up for Kumako begins to unravel and it looks as though her innocence may be proven, the story pivots and ends somewhere you won't be expecting.

Matsumoto is clearly an expert at psychological suspense and left me wanting just a little bit more, but arguably the story does end at just the right point. This was my first Matsumoto read but it definitely won't be my last!

Thank you to Penguin Press UK and NetGalley for the chance to read this ARC. This review can be viewed on my Goodreads page at the following link: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7617453092

Suspicion is a masterful psychological noir that explores the darker corners of human nature with precision and depth. Seicho Matsumoto crafts a tense, layered story that slowly peels back the layers of truth, perception and prejudice.

Onizuka Kumako is a striking and complex protagonist, far from a simple victim or villain. Her world of Tokyo nightlife, petty crime and yakuza ties sets a gritty backdrop that contrasts sharply with her sudden marriage to a wealthy widower. When tragedy strikes, Kumako becomes a lightning rod for suspicion and public condemnation.

The book excels in its nuanced exploration of how society judges and how easily assumptions can cloud justice. The relentless media scrutiny and the battle for innocence grip the reader, while the scrupulous defence lawyer introduces a subtle shift that unsettles what seemed certain.

Matsumoto’s prose is economical yet evocative, perfectly suited to the noir atmosphere. The translation captures the tense mood and psychological complexity with care.

Suspicion is not just a crime story but a profound meditation on bias, truth and the fragile line between guilt and innocence. It is a compelling, thought-provoking read that lingers long after the final page.

Read more at The Secret Book Review.

Diverting crime story that was not overly well written but interesting enough to engage me until the end. I found the ending a bit unsatisfying and the overall exploration of media involvement in cases and the court of public opinion to be fairly simplistic. A fun and quick read but not one that will stay with me.

Onizuka Kumako is accused of killing her husband. her colourful life as a hostess and her gang involvement with petty crime has meant that many believe she is guilty without even a trail. Kumako is hounded by the press but when a lawyer takes up her case as a last resort when no one else wants to the true story begins to unravel with tragic consequences.

This was a short but extremely thrilling noir. I was hooked and as the story unfolded I was on the edge of my seat. The novel captured the tense atmosphere and the build up to the explosive ending; 5 stars.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the novel in exchange for an honest review.

Far too brief to get anything remotely satisfying out of this, but for what it's worth, it's still a worthwhile read. Wish it was longer and more. Love the build-up of the tension and conflict laced with a kind of terrific air of mystery but it didn't promise enough, and ultimately the end was kind of anticlimactic. Having read this, I can absolutely understand why Matsumoto's books are so well received, and so well adapted into films. I think I would have enjoyed the narrative better in a different medium - something more more visual and multi-sensual like film . Even though this was written a while back, it doesn't feel dated or awkward to read. All in all , would recommend this for sure.

Suspicion is a sharp, quietly devastating psychological mystery by Seichō Matsumoto, one of Japan’s foremost crime writers. At its heart is Kumako Onizuka, a woman with a murky past who finds herself under public and legal scrutiny when her wealthy husband dies in a suspicious car accident. The case against her is circumstantial, yet damning in the court of public opinion.

Matsumoto masterfully dissects the corrosive power of rumor and prejudice, particularly when directed at women who live outside social norms. The novel’s tension builds not from sensational twists, but from the slow, relentless exposure of character, motive, and bias. Through the defense attorney Ritsuko Sahara — herself a woman defying convention — Matsumoto adds a layer of feminist critique that feels remarkably contemporary.
A mystery that compels the reader to question not just who is guilty, but why we are so quick to assume.

A short but perfectly formed suspense thriller by Seicho Matsumoto. It reminded me a little of Butter by Asako Yuzuki with the femme fatale character being accused of murder and a reporter writing about her... is there a connection there?

Anyway, a nice wee novella to add to your list.

Suspicion
by Seicho Matsumoto
Translated from Japanese by Jesse Kirkwood
Genre: Crime noir, psychological suspense
Pub: May, 2025
Pages: 112
Rating: 4/5


A suspense/legal thriller technically ofcourse, but it's as much a psychological drama as well; the writing is such that I got the feeling of looking at things through an experienced lens through which silent observations are being made since centuries; what's more, the novella made me feel like an observer who must speak little about the observations, because human psychology is a dark entity that must not be spoken about in the daylight.

The novella stops just when I wanted it to go on for atleast a couple more pages, I wanted to see beyond the turn, but Seicho Matsumoto thinks it's enough, so enough it is!

Seicho Matsumoto is credited with popularising detective fiction in Japan, and his works have earned high accolades for his observation in human psychology. Though a slim novella, Suspicion reads like a perfect example of his claim to fame. This being said, now I plan to dive deeper into the author's works.

Kumako has a notorious past, and when her husband dies in a car accident making her a wealthy heiress, suspicion follows that the accident is orchestrated by Kumako.

Newspaper journalist Akitani makes Kumako's case a pet subject of his, and his detailed and dedicated investigation not just on the accident, but into Kumako's past life creates a strong public opinion against her. Everyone is sure that Kumako is a murderer. But Kumako in custody is still a fierce force to reckon with, and she vehemently maintains that she is innocent of her husband's death.

When Sahara accepts to defend Kumako in the court, Akitani feels confident that Kumako will be prosecuted for her crime, because Sahara is a civil lawyer and Kumako's is a highly specialised crime case. But when Sahara devotes himself to the case, asking questions no one has till now, a fear starts growing like a shadow in Akitani's mind; what if Kumako is acquitted, and then she uses her connection with the underworld to take revenge on Akitani for steering public opinion against her? This psychology play is done brilliantly and it brings to mind Guy de Maupassant's skilled plays with psychological triggers and shadows.

How the story ends is not something I expected. In fact when the novella ended, I wondered for a while if I have been left hanging with open threads, because the ending was abrupt, it sprang on me like a surprise and I really wanted to look beyond the bend. But technically speaking, nothing has been left open.

Also, this legal drama is not like others, the legal scenes are mostly in telling, and not seen by readers as they fold out in the court.

All these should have taken away from the reading experience of Suspicion, and to an extent it does too, but at the same time, they add a lot more to the same reading experience. Why, I can't put a finger on. This makes it extremely difficult for me to rate this book, but rate I will. If this was done differently, it would have been a stereotypical legal, suspense drama; it's these 'aberrations', if I may say so, done with such finesse and craftsmanship that sets Suspicion apart after all, making its reading a memorable experience.

My thanks to Netgalley and publisher Penguin Press UK (Allen Lane, Particular, Pelican, Penguin Classics) for sharing with me an ecopy of Suspicion in exchange for an honest review.


Q: Do I recommend Suspicion to my fellow readers?
A: Absolutely, with warning about the abrupt ending.

After falling into a rare reading slump thanks to a previous book that felt more like a sedative than a source of joy, I turned to "Suspicion" by Seichō Matsumoto—my favorite Japanese author—and it was exactly the reset I needed.
It's a short but gripping story about a woman with a shady past who's accused of orchestrating her husband's death. The media jumps on the case, and suddenly, she’s guilty in the court of public opinion before the trial even starts.
I really enjoyed the focus on how media bias can sway justice, and the dual perspective—from the legal defense and the press—was super effective.
The ending was abrupt but felt just right. A short but solid and thoughtful read!

I really wasn't sure what to expect from this book. Matsumoto was a prolific Japanese author, but I hadn't read any of his titles before. The cover gives few clues to the contents.

The plot covers the trial of a woman accused of murdering her husband, but we never see or hear from this woman directly. Instead, we have accounts (and suspicions) from a journalist who has followed the case from the beginning as well as from defense lawyers.

All the facts of the case are very logically presented, as if it's necessary for the reader to know why every piece of information is being shared. You can observe how this style of writing is echoed in a much more recently authored Japanese murder mystery called Strange Pictures by Uktesu, part of the long-standing honkaku genre. Both books are ultimately a bit daft but adequately fun to be credible reads.

The story abruptly ends with a twist, kind of like a Roald Dahl Tales of the Unexpected short story. I initially wondered if pages were missing in my book, but it seems it was truly meant to be a very sudden closing.

Although the book was written in the 1980s and you can feel the date of it, it's still a satisfying enough read if you enjoy Japanese fiction or old-style crime mysteries. I just couldn't give it more than three stars because I felt short-changed with the ending, and there are more suspensefully crafted crime works these days. But, nonetheless a good filler to pass the time on a long journey.

I picked this up on NetGalley as soon as I saw it as I am a huge fan of translated Japanese fiction! Their skills of writing murder mysteries and locked door theories is so different to other thriller/crime books I have read.

This is the shortest translated fiction I have read but is perfect for a 1 afternoon read which is always a great thing as you don’t have to familiarise yourself with what has happened prior.

This story unlike a lot of the translated fiction I have read you know from the start who the suspected murder suspect is and this focuses on the trial and the issues of trials by media. I loved the way this story focused on how preconception’s and the narrative around a case impacts on fair trials and justice - is the media the cause for innocent people being found guilty of horrendous crimes.

You see this story from two sides the lawyers acting to defend the suspect and the media who have already sentenced the suspect to death. In addition you also get those complex theories which you often get in Japanese fiction which changes your views entirely as to what happened that fateful night when Shirakawa Fukutaro died.

Then out of nowhere you are hit with a massive cliffhanger at the end which I am hoping means there is another book to come.

I really enjoyed this book it took a different spin to classic murder mystery books, it not only makes you question what is happening in the story but also how that is reflected into real life. You feel for the characters throughout and at times I struggled to decide who was the enemy!

I would definitely recommend this book and I am really hoping more of Seicho Matsumoto books to be translated in the future.

Thank you for approving my request to read! I loved it.

This novella follows a cast of characters, mainly an ambitious and unscrupulous journalist Akitani, he has gained much recognition for his stories centred around Kumako. Kumako, is a widow to a wealthy man that recently died in a suspicious accident. Akitani exposed her lurid past leaving her reputation in tatters. The story is told through conversations between Akitani and the widow's lawyers and courtroom transcripts. An enjoyable story examining the role of media in people's perception of guilt/ innocence and the pitfalls of ambition without restraint. This novella was translated by Jesse Kirkwood and they did a wonderful job. I would recommend.

Disclaimer: I received this ARC from NetGalley and Penguin Press UK – Allen Lane, Particular, Pelican, Penguin Classics | Penguin Classics in exchange for a free and honest review

"In the gentle autumn sunlight, the cars and people passing in the street looked, to Harayama, like figures in a shadow play. That was how he saw the world."

Seichō Matsumoto's tale is about Onizuka Kumako, a fierce beautiful woman: who isn't afraid to speak her mind. In Tokyo bars, she seduces customers and commits petty crime, using her connections to the local yakuza to get by. She meets Shirakawa Fukutaro, a rich widower desperate for companionship and unaware of her shady past, the two hit it off and are soon married. But one evening their car veers off course, plunging into the harbour and Fukutaro is pulled beneath the waves. Suspected of murder, Kumako is hounded by the press, but repeatedly proclaims her innocence. As pressure from journalists mounts, public opinion is rising against her until a scrupulous lawyer takes on her case and begins to plant the seeds of doubt.

This thriller noir novella takes on the age old battle of public perception and press bias. There is a case that seems to be rooted in murder and fraud, it takes one lawyer to undo the cleverly placed narrative against the accused Onizuka. Throughout different opinions are offered, it takes her defence lawyer to dissect the facts and not focus on Onizula's past alone to put forward a scenario making everyone doubt the truth being sold.

This story was told mainly through the perspective of the journalist. In a traditional mystery there is a detective doing the leg work however here it's a little different making this a unique story. I really enjoyed reading this one.

I really enjoyed this short novella, so cleverly written.
How a main character can dominate a story without ever meeting her is so intriguing. How public opinion, media influence, and prejudices can effect a court case. A case where a guilty verdict will result in a death penalty.
It is also a story of how someone’s image and reputation can have such a profound effect on someone they have never really met.
Really clever and very enjoyable.

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Classics.

Suspicion written by Seicho Matsumoto and translated by Jesse Kirkwood is a tightly written mystery examining the boundary between reality and doubt, exploring social perception and press bias. It centres on a seemingly straightforward case of insurance fraud and murder, where Onizuka Kumako is accused of having killed her husband to claim his life insurance. Matsumoto is a key writer of the Shakaiha subgenre of Japanese mystery fiction, interested as much in social topics as the mystery aspect. In this case the influence of journalism and how it sways public opinion. For this reason the book is recommended for readers who enjoy a social realism to their mysteries and can forgo intricate mystery plots and more classic detective tropes. Suspicion does not feature a detective at all, most of the narrative is told from the perspective of journalist, Moichi Akitani, and deductions are made by civil lawyer, Takukichi Sahara.

This is an atmospheric and psychological courtroom drama and a noir, where we learn of Onizuka Kumako, a charming woman’s story.
She faces societal pressures, prejudices and suspicion. A book about confirmation bias, a character with a strong believer of truth, the truth, and the human pscyhe.

Having read and loved Inspector Imanishi Investigates written in 1961 and Tokyo Express his first novel from 1958 I was interested to read Suspicion a much later novella from 1982. This is very much a psychological novella and concentrates upon a journalist who has written a large number of articles upon a murder suspect with yakuza links. Matsumoto manages to pack such a lot into this novella with the tension and inevitablity of the plotting rising to a crescendo by the end.