Detective Hiroshi Books In Order

Publication Order of Detective Hiroshi Books

The Detective Hiroshi series is a wonderful series of mystery, suspense, cultural, crime fiction, and thriller stories. It is written by an American-born writer based in Tokyo, Japan named Michael Pronko. The series has won several prestigious awards for its excellent depiction of gripping mystery and intrigue that tend to make the readers remain hooked from start to finish. Michael Pronko began the series in 2017. He has mentioned the lead character in all the books of the series as Detective Hiroshi Shimizu. Hiroshi lives in Tokyo and works as a detective. His area of expertise lies in the investigation of crimes of the white-collar type. Other than depicting intriguing suspense and mystery, the books all follow the life story of Hiroshi and explain how he came to be the way he is. At times, Detective Hiroshi takes the help of his mentor named Takamatsu, and his ex-sumo wrestler friend named Sakaguchi.

The mentor and the former wrestler assist Detective Hiroshi in getting to the bottom of murder mysteries and catching culprits. Very often, Hiroshi is involved in grisly murder mysteries and solving them requires the best of his detecting skills. Some of the other essential characters mentioned in the series include Sakaguchi, Bernard Mattson, Jamie Mattson, Sukanya, Chiho, Michiko Suzuki, etc. A few of the popular literary awards won by Michael Pronko for this series include Beverly Hills International Award, Shelf Unbound Indie Book Award, New Apple Book Award, etc.

The excellent opening given to the Detective Hiroshi series by author Michael Pronko is entitled ‘The Last Train’. It was released by the Raked Gravel Press publication in 2017. This book introduces Detective Hiroshi Shimizu as a hard-working detective, who investigates criminal cases in Tokyo. He is dedicated, passionate, and has got excellent skills to solve cases. Recently, his American girlfriend has dumped him, but it doesn’t bother him much as he is more focused on his work. Hiroshi dreams to visit America and study there. However, he seems quite settled in with his steady job, his half-empty apartment, and his small office. The first mysterious case of the series comes to Hiroshi’s notice when his boss and mentor, Takamatsu, informs him about the grisly murder of an American businessman in Tokyo.

The preliminary investigation suggests that the victim was killed by a woman, whose small glimpse is caught in a security camera. Detective Hiroshi finds it quite odd because women hardly turn out to be murderers in Japan. With further investigation, Hiroshi learns that suicide and homicide appear in Japan’s fast capital city as speedily as its bullet trains. Takamatsu and Hiroshi visit various skyscraper offices and the hostess clubs of Tokyo to look for the killer. It is found later that the killer is trying to move out of Japan permanently by trying to sell insider information in a deal that involves a big amount of money. Hiroshi continues to get closer to her by going deep into the intricate world of Tokyo, an ominous market that deals with the selling and buying of the world’s most expensive lands.

While still investigating the case, Takamatsu disappears inexplicably. Seeing himself alone, Hiroshi seeks the help of his friend, Sakaguchi. Together, they scour the sacred temples, industrial wastelands, and corporate offices of Tokyo. They try to find out where Takamatsu disappeared mysteriously and why the woman was driven to commit murder when she was well-settled and had everything in life. His years spent living in America make Hiroshi believe that insider information can move very fast from leading investment firms to the working world’s bottom. He also knows that the lucrative deals make teenage hostesses and street-level punks sell even their souls to get their small cuts. But, Detective Hiroshi is more determined to cut through the dangers and ambiguities of Japan and catch the murdering former hostess before succeeds in removing the last thorn in her patch, who is none other than Hiroshi himself.

The second volume of the series is known as ‘The Moving Blade’. It was also published by Raked Gravel Press in 2018. This book opens with the killing of a leading American diplomat named Bernard Mattson in Tokyo. His murder leaves behind a lifetime of successful negotiations between Japan and America. Other things that are left behind after Bernard Mattson’s death include a box full of research, a lost manuscript, a missing keynote, and several tangled relations. When Bernard’s alluring daughter named Jamie comes to Japan looking for answers, all she receives are threats. She only receives some respite when Detective Hiroshi is handed over the case and asked to find the truth as soon as possible. Once again, he takes the help of Sakaguchi. The two start searching government offices, back alley bars, and other places they suspect to find some answers about Bernard’s murder. Shortly after, a couple of other dead bodies are discovered. This makes Hiroshi worried and senses the need to catch the killer before he claims the life of the next victim.

Michael Pronko is a renowned and award-winning Tokyo-based author of mystery, thriller, fiction, and travel books and memoirs. He is particularly famous for writing the Detective Hiroshi novels. Pronko is also involved in writing about music and has achieved great success. The things that frequently feature in this book include his take on life in Tokyo and intriguing character-driven mysteries. For his wide range of work, Michael Pronko has received many 5-starred reviews and critics awards. Several critics have labeled his work as a perfect combination of Japanese customs and the hard-boiled-style police procedural of America.

In addition to writing, Michael Pronko also owns and runs a website called Jazz in Japan. This site mainly focuses on the vibrant scene of jazz in Yokohama and Tokyo. Pronko has penned regular columns for many leading magazines and journals such as Newsweek Japan, Jazznin, ST Shukan, The Japan Times, Artscape Japan, etc. Most of his columns feature his take on Japanese art, society, culture, politics, and jazz. Author Pronko was born in Kansas City, Kansas, USA. He holds a degree in philosophy. Throughout his life, Pronko has traveled a lot. He has been into several graduate schools before completing his Ph.D. and settling down in Tokyo, where he works at the University of Meiji Gakuin as an American Literature professor. The area of expertise of Michael Pronko involves teaching music, art, film adaptations, and contemporary American novels. He enjoys writing very much and hopes to come up with many more exciting stories in the years to come. Until then, Pronko is hopeful of getting much more love and support for his books from his fans all over the world.