Suspicion - Seicho Matsumoto

Suspicion is a short work by Seicho Matsumoto, but one characteristically filled with intrigue and potential in how it explores crime and its impact on individuals and society. In one respect it's a familiar subject, a court case, or at least the build-up to a court case that is already causing concern and speculation even before it reaches trail. The accused is believed to be guilty because of her past record and, to be fair, the case against her doesn't look good. Typically however - as noted in Inspector Imanshi Investigates), Matsumoto considers the wider social context as well as certain cultural issues, but the focus is primarily on the intrigue of the crime mystery.

Kumako Onizuka is accused of murdering her husband Mr Shirakawa for insurance and is being defended by a notable lawyer called Harayama. A journalist who has been following and reporting on the case, Akitani, can't understand why the lawyer is bothering himself with such an open and shut case. Onizuka has well-known connections with a yakuza gang and has previous convictions for fraud, extortion and assault. She has physical charms however and managed to attract wealthy businessman Shirakawa while working as a hostess in a Shinjuku bar. What is most evidently suspicious is that she took out insurance worth 300 million yen and within six months drove their car off a quay, escaping but killing her husband.

Onizuka vigorously protests her innocence, so the lawyer Harayama tries to enlist the help of one of the country's top criminal lawyers as a co-counsel. The journalist Akitani follows this with interest and some concern since his articles have done much to paint an unfavourable picture of her and convince the public of her guilt. Given her reputation, if she does get off she is the type to hold grudges and send the yakuza boys around to make a 'courtesy call'. It's a challenge to any lawyer to get her off though, as they would need to find evidence of innocence, but when Harayama abandons his client du to his own ill health, a new defence lawyer takes a fresh look at the case and finds that there are a few curious features to this case that need to be explored.

Matsumoto is methodical in laying out the case and the implications of the trial, putting everything across clearly. The way this is done is through information presented through the journalist's probing interviews with the lawyers, and it makes sure that all the issues are laid out plainly for the reader. Which is not to say that there aren't other resonances and questions that arise in passing in relation to the justice system and the court of public and media justice. As a short work, Suspicion reminds me of classic US pulp crime fiction of the 40s, having a little bit of a dark edge with morally ambiguous characters. And of course, it delivers a killer punch at the conclusion to wrap the story up neatly.

Reading notes: Suspicion by Seicho Matsumoto is published by Penguin Modern Classics as a paperback and in eBook format. I read a Kindle version provided by the publisher and NetGalley.