The Moving Blade - (Detective Hiroshi) by Michael Pronko (Paperback)

About the Book

Detective Hiroshi Shimizu searches for the killer of an old Japan specialist from Tokyo's back alley bars to government offices, anti-nuke protests and an American military base.

Book Synopsis

Peace is a performance. Murder is the encore.

When American diplomat Bernard Mattson is found dead in his Tokyo home-his stomach opened by a Japanese sword-Detective Hiroshi Shimizu is called to the scene. The diplomat's estranged daughter, Jamie Mattson, half-Japanese and half-American, arrives to collect her father's research manuscript-a document powerful enough to reshape U.S.-Japan, and indeed pan-Asian, relations. But the paper has vanished, the house is ransacked, and the killers are still in motion.

Teaming up with his old-school mentor Takamatsu and ex-sumo enforcer Sakaguchi, Hiroshi dives into Tokyo's hidden layers: smoky back alleys, silent temples, diplomatic compounds, and small, hidden bars where loyalty is currency and truth is a luxury. The deeper he goes, the clearer it becomes-this case isn't just about one murder. It's about the invisible blade slicing through Tokyo's corridors of power.

As Hiroshi untangles lies and half-truths stretching from Washington to Shinjuku, he finds himself caught between duty and survival in a city where honor still kills. To bring justice to a man who may not deserve it, Hiroshi must face what justice really means when the system runs on silence.

For fans of Michael Connelly, Tana French, and Tokyo Vice, The Moving Blade delivers a tense, atmospheric crime thriller steeped in Japanese culture, international intrigue, and noir suspense.

In Tokyo, the past is present. And deadly.

Winner of multiple international book awards

Best Indie Mysteries and Thrillers Kirkus Reviews (2018)

Grand Prize Winner Chanticleer International Book Awards Global Thrillers (2018)

Winner Independent Press Award for Crime Fiction (2019)

Gold Award Literary Titan Book Award (2018)

Five Star Honoree B.R.A.G. Medallion (2018)

Gold Award Independent Publisher Awards for Mystery (2019)

Silver Medal Readers' Favorite for Thriller (2019)

In Tokyo, the past is present. And deadly.

Review Quotes

"Nail-biting!"-US Review of Books

"A solid punch to the gut."-Chanticleer Reviews

"One of the year's best thrillers."-Best Thrillers

"Main characters come alive with intelligence, curiosity and imperfections."-Blue Ink Review

"This is a great crime novel."-Crime Fiction Lover