Rising Sun (novel)
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| Author | Michael Crichton |
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| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Crime novel |
| Publisher | Alfred A. Knopf |
| Released | January 27, 1992 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) Audio |
| Pages | 385 pp |
| ISBN | ISBN 0-394-58942-4 |
Rising Sun is a 1992 novel by Michael Crichton about a murder in the Los Angeles headquarters of Nakamoto, a fictional Japanese corporation. The book was published by Ballantine Books.
Although a detective/murder mystery novel at first glance, Rising Sun deals with the controversial subject of Japanese-American relations, and questions the premise that foreign direct investment in the high-technology sectors of the United States is beneficial. Throughout the book, the differences between the Japanese and Western mindsets are highlighted, especially in the areas of business strategy and corporate culture.
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[edit] Plot summary
Nakamoto corporation is celebrating the grand opening of its new headquarters, the Nakamoto Tower, in Los Angeles; the office building is awash with celebrities, dignitaries and local politicians. On the 46th floor of the very same building, Cheryl Lynn Austin, 23, is murdered. Lieutenant Peter Smith, the Special Services Liaison for the LAPD, is assigned to this case. He is joined by retired Captain John Connor who has lived in Japan for a while and is thoroughly accustomed to Japanese culture.
The investigation is hampered from the start as the Japanese insist that the opening party, which takes place on the 45th floor, not be disturbed. It soon becomes apparent that evidence from the security cameras has been tampered with, and that the Japanese requested the Special Services Liaison only to delay the investigation. Throughout the book Connor uses his knowledge of Japanese customs, culture and mindset to help Smith solve the mystery.
[edit] Characters in Rising Sun
- Lieutenant Peter Smith — Special Services Officer[1] assigned to this case.
- Lieutenant Tom Graham — LAPD Homicide detective. Graham and Smith were once partners in the LAPD. Tom is on the scene of a murder at the opening party for the new Nakamoto Tower in downtown LA, but some of the Japanese nationals at the event ask for the assistance of the Special Services Liaison -- Lieutenant Smith at the present moment -- and so Tom calls Pete for help.
- Fred Hoffman — watch commander at DHD[2]downtown. After Tom has called, but before actually rolling out, Fred calls Pete and suggests that he get the assistance of semi-retired Captain John because Pete's only been on the job six months and it's a big event.
- Captain John Connor — Semi-retired officer, on indefinite leave. Helped the department solve an important case involving Japanese nationals years before, and was subsequently invited to Japan for private security work for a while, but returned. In the 1960's became the first LAPD officer to speak fluent Japanese, despite LA's status as the largest Japanese city outside the Japan home islands. He is alternately respected and disliked by Japanese who think he understands their culture or by westerners who think he understand all too much and is no longer a loyal American. The night of the murder is the first time he and Pete Smith have met. At Connor's suggestion, they adopt a sempai/kohai (senior/junior) relationship, meaning that Pete is apparently in charge, but upon an agreed signal Connor takes over and Smith fades into the background.
- Cheryl Austin — the murder victim. A Texas-born prostitute, party girl and one-time model in Japan, given to wearing Yakamato dresses[3]. The discovery of her body on a boardroom table on the 46th floor of the Nakamoto Tower, one floor above the high-profile opening bash, is proximate cause of the police presence — and Ishiguro's high-hand playing of the race card has already prevented the crime scene team from taking possession of the crime scene nearly one hour after their arrival.
- Akira Tanaka — an officer of Nakamoto Security, who blithely takes digital camera footage of the crime scene while the police are still being held at bay.
- Masao Ishiguro[4] — a junior executive of the Nakamoto Corporation; Ishiguro, despite speaking faultless American English, is the Japanese person who has called for the Special Liaison, claiming that Graham was behaving disrespectfully to numerous distinguished guests on the floor below where the body was discovered (including the Mayor, 2 US Senators and Pete's ex-wife). Pete quickly discerns that Ishiguro has no need of a "liaison" and is merely obstructing the investigation — suggesting that the dead girl is a "woman of no importance" — but Lieutenant Smith is little more successful than Graham in getting Nakamoto people under control until Connor steps in and uses some Japanese profanity to bring Ishiguro into line. Connor explains later to Lieutenant Smith that he did Ishiguro a favor by playing the out-of-control American, because Ishiguro was being monitored by his real boss who was likewise in the background exactly as Connor was initially.
- Eddie Sakamura — a wealthy Japanese pimp, son of a wealthy man in Japan who owes Connor a favor, small-time drug dealer, and promoter of the interests of his father's business empire in Japan, which are directly contrary to those of Nakamoto. Sakamura was at the party, and made off with a security tape which captured the murder, with the help of Tanaka. He becomes the first murder suspect when he brags about knowing the girl, his picture is found in Cheryl's room, and is later seen present at the scene on the camera (this later is seen to be an alteration).
- Ellen Farley — Assistant to the Mayor, whom Pete Smith has been dating recently, who recognizes the dead girl but is unwilling to identify her.
- Jerome Phillips — junior Nakamoto Security man on duty at the time John and Pete start their investigation, but there's been a change of shift and Ted Cole should have been on shift before him, but Phillips cannot verify that because Cole left early. By engaging Phillips in apparently irrelevant conversation, and squeezing Pete in the shoulder extremey hard to prevent him from interfering, Connor learns that the tapes from the five separate advanced security cameras that were monitoring the murder scene had been switched. They are wireless and high resolution but don't record sound.
- Ted Cole — Smith and Connor track down Cole at the Palomino bar near LAX, where they secretly advise him to stay away from home for a few days, for his safety. Cole advises them, by way of a message on a matchbook cover (as some Japanese bar patrons are eavesdropping) that Nakamoto/Ishiguro stole the security tapes.
- Sen. John Morton — a senator who protests the Japanese industries' influence in America. He turns out to be Cheryl's real lover.
- Professor Sanders — an imaging specialist, he and his student Theresa Asakuma[5] discover a lot about the crime from the security cameras.
- Willy "The Weasel" Wilhelm — an unethical reporter covering the case; he is biased against the police. As Pete takes over the investigation, Wilhelm attempts to blackmail him by asking questions about the way he earned custody of his daughter. It is later revealed that he did this at the urging of Nakamoto personnel.
- Lauren Davis - Pete's former wife and mother of his daughter. Works for the District Attorney. Rarely shows concern for her daughter, and only when Wilhelm calls her does she reveals wishes to have her in custody.
[edit] Film adaptation
The book was adapted into a film, the 1993 release Rising Sun starring Sean Connery as Connor and Wesley Snipes as Smith. Several changes were made in adaptating the story for film. Caucasian Peter Smith was changed to African-American Webster Smith, and Ishiguro became Ishihara.
[edit] Notes
- ^ The novel postulates that Special Service Liaison officers are used for dealing with special situations, such as politicians, high-profile entertainers, and high-profile foreign VIP's who do not speak English. Indeed as the novel opens, Smith is trying to learn some Japanese from a language tape, but his daughter wants him to put a Mr Potato Head back together, and meanwhile still he's watching (not listening to) a Lakers game on TV
- ^ Detective Headquarters Division (not explained in the book)
- ^ She was wearing one at the time of her death, meaning that she paid between $5000 (used) and $15000 (new, not counting trip to Tokyo to get it).
- ^ In keeping with Japanese custom Ishiguro is the family name but usually stated first in a Japanese context
- ^ Theresa is shown as partly black, partly Japanese, and partly disabled, and attracted to Pete Smith, although this is not pursued within the novel (the novel's time frame is only 2 days)
