Abstract

From the acclaimed bestselling author of CONFESSIONS and PENANCE comes a new masterpiece, tentatively titled FRAGMENTS. This time the author focuses her new novel-in-stories around cosmetic surgery, which is currently very popular.

Patients flock around Hisano Tachibana’s cosmetic surgery clinic. Listening to their various problems, Hisano cannot stop wondering about the death of a girl. She delves into the girl’s case and gradually finds out about people’s ugly and urgent yearnings toward beauty, and about their distorted love for their daughters, mothers, and families. The author, as always, tackles without hesitation the very dark side of humanity: why we are obsessed with beauty and ugliness, and why family relationships go awry and get distorted.

Author’s Information

Kanae Minato was born in Hiroshima in 1973. She won the Shosetsu Suiri new writers competition in 2007 for a short story, which was made into her debut novel, CONFESSIONS, and awarded the Bookseller Award in 2009. She writes many novels and stories, including the Edgar-nominated PENANCE and other award-winning masterpieces. Her SNOW WHITE MURDER CASE has sold more than a million copies at Shueisha. She is one of the most popular novelists in Japan today.