# Point Zero - Paperback

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by **Seicho Matsumoto** (Author), **Louise Heal Kawai** (Translator)

**"A master crime writer...Seichō Matsumoto's thrillers dissect Japanese society."--_The New York Times._ A beautifully written mystery novel that takes on the taboo of Japanese prostitution catering to GIs during the American post-war occupation.**

Tokyo 1958, Teiko marries Kenichi Uhara, ten years her senior, an advertising man recommended by an intermediary. After a four-day honeymoon, Kenichi vanishes. Teiko travels to the coastal and snow-bound city of Kanazawa, where Kenichi was last seen, to investigate his disappearance.

She discovers he had been a police officer in Tokyo after the war, keeping watch over _pan pan_ girls, Japanese prostitutes catering to GIs. Some of these women have created a new life in Kanazawa and may have taken extreme measures to hide their past.

**"Do you aspire to be a connoisseur of the best international crime fiction? If so, Seicho Matsumoto's _Point Zero_ should be on your bedside table. Become acquainted with a crime master." _Financial Times_**

### Author Biography

**The Author and the Translator**

**Seichō Matsumoto** (1909-1982) was Japan's most successful mystery writer. His first detective novel, _Points and Lines_, sold over a million copies in Japan. _Vessel of Sand_, published in English as _Inspector Imanishi Investigates_ in1989, sold over four million copies and became a movie box-office hit. Bitter Lemon published his novel _A Quiet Place_ in 2016. **Louise Heal Kawai** comes from Manchester. She has spent the past twenty years Japan and currently lives in Yokohama. Her translations include Daido Tamaki's _Milk_, Tendo Shoko's best-selling autobiography _Yakuza Moon__, and for Bitter Lemon, Matsumoto's A Quiet Place._

**Number of Pages:** 320

**Dimensions:** 1 x 7.7 x 5 IN

**Publication Date:** March 26, 2024

## Details

- **Price:** 23.95 GBP
- **Vendor:** BooksCloud
- **Type:** Books
- **Tags:** Books, Fiction, International Crime & Mystery, Japan, Mystery & Detective, Price Written on Book, Suspense, Thrillers, World Literature

## Variants

| Variant | Price | Available |
|---------|-------|-----------|
| Default Title | 23.95 GBP | Out of stock |

## Images

- Point Zero

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> Source: [Somiibooks](https://somiibooks.com/products/point-zero-paperback)
> Updated: 2026-08-22