Bullet train A novel

Breakneck pacing, masterful character development, and well-timed comic relief set Isaka's pitch-perfect (and seamlessly translated) thriller up for blockbuster status. Yuichi Kimura boards the Shinkansen bullet train determined to murder the psychopath who pushed his five-year-old son from a department store roof. Unfortunately, vigils at his comatose son's bedside have dulled his senses, and his quarry, a young teenager known as the Prince, gets the drop on him. In another car, assassins Lemon and Tangerine have been hired to free brutal mobster Minegishi's kidnapped son and accompany him and a suitcase of recovered ransom money to Minegishi's vacation home. Likable but incredibly unlucky hired gun Nanao is also on the train, retained by Minegishi to steal the suitcase back. Nanao is set to disembark with the suitcase when he's spotted by Wolf, another assassin who's got it in for him. It's a double dose of misfortune, resulting in an accidental killing and a tragedy. The Prince, ever alert for opportunities to create mayhem, senses the stealthy furor around the suitcase and manages to hide it from everyone, creating a twisty, darkly hilarious game of musical chairs that draws out the train's hidden army of assassins and a strong dose of Machiavellian justice.

Set on a bullet train traveling from Tokyo to Morioka (and soon to be a movie starring Brad Pitt), this impressive thriller from Japanese author Isaka (Remote Control) races along, like the eponymous train, at a frenetic pace. In the first of multiple story lines, Yuichi Kimura boards the train, armed with a revolver, in search of the person who pushed his six-year-old son, Wataru, off a roof, leaving the child comatose. When Kimura finds his quarry, the sadistic teen Satoshi Oji, Oji manages to incapacitate the grieving parent with a taser. Oji, who makes it clear he planted clues to lead Kimura to his location, ties his victim up and threatens to have Wataru killed if Kimura doesn't follow his instructions. Kimura's desperate attempts to save himself and his son alternate with other violent plots, one involving the kidnapping of a crime lord's son, another a missing suitcase stuffed with cash, and a third a snake. Isaka keeps the suspense high throughout. Fans of intricate action fiction will be enthralled. Agent: Yuma Terada, CTB. (Aug.)