Rising Sun

To the Japanese business is war by other means. What is the Nakamoto murder and 12 years after this book's writing can it still hold a reader's attention? The answer is yes. Special services is a diplomatic detail in the LAPD. A homicide is reported at the Nakamoto Tower. A caucasian woman has died. Peter J. Smith has been assigned to the Special Services detail for the past six months. An experienced officer, John Connor, tells Smith that a foreigner can never master the etiquette of bowing. The ninety seven floor building had been constructed from prefab units from Nagasaki. In the 1970's 150,000 Japanese students a year were studying in America while 200 U.S. students were studying in Japan. Peter Smith is dealing with Mr. Ishiguro. A very important business reception is taking place and Mr. Ishiguro does not want his guests to be bothered by any aspects of the investigation whatsoever. Every homicide scene has energy. The author states that Japanese people are sensitive to context and behave appropriately under the circumstances. There is a shadow world in New York and Los Angeles and other American cities available only to the Japanese. Two men had already searched the victim's apartment. In Japan every criminal is caught. There is a ninety nine per cent conviction rate. In the U.S. it is seventeen per cent. A crime occurred with the expectation it would not be solved. In Japan scandal is the most common way of revising the pecking order. Officer Smith would like to find a house suitable for raising his daughter but has found that the real estate prices are beyond his means. National cultures clashing create fragility in understanding as does the clash of business cultures. Out of the blue it would seem the two police officers are the subjects of bribery attempts by the Japanese. The solution of the crime is elaborate and laid out with care. All in all the story is very engrossing.

After finishing this book, I let out a big breath, probably the first one in over 3 hours, as I could not stop reading this book for its(no pun intended)breathtaking plot and international intrigue. At its heart, this novel is a book about how Japan is taking over America's economy(there are good examples from Crichton, he has done his research, check the rather large bibliography), and the fact that the Japanese will do anything to control it. As Crichton states many times, Japan's motto is "Business is War", and after finishing this, I cannot help but agree. The story revolves around Lt. Peter Smith and John Connor(haha), who investigate the murder of a beautiful young girl, who was murdered at the Grand Opening of the Nakamoto Building.A great mystery ensues, and even Crichton's lack of detailed descriptions flies by your mind like the pages you are reading. I recommend to read this over the weekend on a soft hammock, just to prove you want fall asleep.Also check out Sphere and Jurassic Park, but do not go anywhere near The Terminal Man.......UGH!

I read this mainly because as a late-comer to the Michael Chrichton list of novels, I read Jurassic Park mostly due to the interest generated by the movie--the book,by the way, was CLEARLY SUPERIOR to the movie--I ended up reading this one as well. This was my 2nd Chrichton novel, and I was VERRRRY pleased with it. On the whole I despise books written in 'first person' but Rising Sun was exceptional because it WAS written this way. Some of the scathing reviews on this book puzzle me, if these people who are so critical of his writing are THAT good at guessing the outcome--AND--got tired of the writing style, maybe THEY shouldwrite a string of best sellers and IF they pull it off, maybe THEN the remarks will have merit. Until then, this book is a GREAT murder/mystery, and a great deal of fun to boot. Kudos to Chrichton...AGAIN.