I enjoy stories translated from Japanese authors and this was enjoyable even though it felt quite long. I do feel you need to appreciate the genre before reading.
Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for this arc in exchange for my honest review

This book was nothing like I thought it was going to be, but I ended up really liking it anyway.

The book sounds like it's going to be a mystery unraveled over many years involving kidnapping and murder and while it has those things, it's really about the inner-workings of a police department in Japan. Who knew I was going to care so much about the bureaucracy and politicking of police officers and their upper management. This is a slow-burn type of book where I felt a lot of the time like I didn't know why we were spending time on a thing, but I enjoyed it anyway.

There were also a lot of details that I felt didn't land as well with a Western audience as it would have with a Japanese audience, particularly around the role of the media and their access to an ongoing investigation. It's a central tension of the story and felt sort of absurd to me, but I think that's just a cultural difference. I could still buy in to why the characters in the story were acting and feeling the way they were.

This was so unlike anything I have read from Japanese crime fiction - would recommend.

I couldn't get into this book at all - I tried twice in case I just wasn't in the mood the first time - and eventually gave up after about 150 pages because life is short and this book isn't.

I didn't give a star rating online because I didn't finish it

Kidnap – child kidnap indeed – ransom demands, a cold case back in contention, murder, pursuit by the press pack, a missing daughter, a career in jeopardy. Got to be exciting, right? Wrong. This must be the most tedious and long-winded crime novel I have ever come across. Over 600 pages of office politics, negotiations with the press, a few attempts to solve a crime. I’m familiar enough with Japanese culture and customs (and names) not to be put off by the very Japanese nature of the book, but I couldn’t get into this one at all. I struggled on because I couldn't quite believe it wouldn’t get better, especially after all the praise and 5* reviews. But it didn’t and by the time all the loose ends got tied up (after a fashion) I’d long lost interest.

This is a sprawling Japanese crime thriller, dense and well plotted, highly readable, but possibly a bit too long. Totally engrossing and enjoyable.

One I just couldn't get into. Maybe I will try to read it again in the future. Only fair that I give it 3 stars until I read it fully.

Unfortunately this one just wasn't for me, I've added a three star rating as I feel it's fairest here - there's nothing exactly wrong with it, but it just didn't hold my interest and it wasn't the book I thought it would be. For those interested in the Japanese Police Force, they may fare better, and I may pick it up at some point again, but for now it's just too slow and drawn out for me.

Six Four is a police procedural with a difference. Mikami, the main character, is a man with high morals and strong ethics. Mikami has been moved from the detective work that he loves to the role of Press Director within a police force that has a strict hierarchy of command where unconditional respect is expected by those with seniority. The story centres around the kidnapping and murder of a little girl some years before. The trail has grown cold, but the crime has come to fore again with the proposed visit of the Police Commissioner to the girl’s family in an attempt to show the public that the police are still involved. Mikami is often caught between his inherent respect for his somewhat corrupt superiors and his desire to do what he believes is right. He has new-found insight into the emotions of the victim’s family as his own teenage daughter has recently disappeared and he is able to view the crime committed from the perspective of both father and policeman. This is an engaging book. Thanks to Farrar, Straus and Giroux and NetGalley for the ARC.

Six Four is the undercover name for the investigation into an unsolved kidnapping in a Japanese city. The prefectural headquarters has been overshadowed by the specter of the crime for 14 years and are now under pressure from Tokyo for other failings within its jurisdiction. The department is reeling from a breakdown of relations with the press and the disclosure of a number of cases of misconduct ahead of a visitor by the police Commissioner when another kidnapping takes place. Press Director Mikami, a former detective who was part of the Six Four investigation, and has been putting together the pieces behind the commissioner's visit finds himself in the middle of the new case. The case has special resonance with Mikami as his own teenage daughter has been missing for months. Yokoyama makes the politics of the police force real, though the detail comes at the cost of the surprisingly slow pace in this thriller.

As other reviewers have said, this is a long book which gets bogged down in minute, irrelevant detail. The plot is actually quite good and if the author had stuck to this I would have enjoyed the book far more, but his concentration on relationships between the different parties involved, media, press, criminal investigation makes for a very stilted style of writing. The main character, Mikami, is engaging enough but he seems to contradict himself at every turn. He examines every situation to the nth degree, looking at it from every possible scenario, seemingly making up his mind but two minutes later saying or doing the complete opposite. If this was just once or twice it may have worked but it's every other page and becomes quite tiresome.
I think this author is clever and imaginative but the book would have benefited from some ruthless editing. I don't mind slow moving plots if it adds to the story but there is too much in this that feels like repetitive padding.
My thanks to Netgalley for this copy.

SIX FOUR.
THE NIGHTMARE NO PARENT COULD ENDURE.
THE CASE NO DETECTIVE COULD SOLVE.
THE TWIST NO READER COULD PREDICT.

For five days in January 1989, the parents of a seven-year-old Tokyo schoolgirl sat and listened to the demands of their daughter's kidnapper. They would never learn his identity. They would never see their daughter again.

For the fourteen years that followed, the Japanese public listened to the police's apologies. They would never forget the botched investigation that became known as 'Six Four'. They would never forgive the authorities their failure.

For one week in late 2002, the press officer attached to the police department in question confronted an anomaly in the case. He could never imagine what he would uncover. He would never have looked if he'd known what he would find

What did I think
While I liked the story ,I just couldn't fell in love with it, it seemed like it was never going to pick up ,the story is kind of slow , and there was times I almost put it down and DNF it, but I didn't I wanted to see what happens . This is a tyt of story that you have to read a few chapters a day , if you like that type of story then this is for you, with that said I would like to give say thinks to NetGalley for giving me a chance at reading Six Four in a chance for my honest opinion.

Six Four is a substantial crime drama set in Japan. I found it to be quite a long road and quite hard work at times, particularly following the large cast of characters. It does however provide an interesting insight into the world of Japanese crime, policing and justice. The characrisation of Mikami was excellent and I felt he was very relatable, I found the narrative to be gripping and engaging and I would definitely be interested in seeing other works by Hideo Yokoyama get an English translation.

This is a really slow book with a distanced feel to it. I couldn't get into it and didn't finish it. I wonder if the problem could be the translation.

Thank you, Netgalley, for the e-review copy.

This is a Japanese detective story with a complex plot and array of characters. Police Superintendent Mikami is assigned as Media Chief for Prefecture D. Several months prior his daughter goes missing. Within the Prefecture there is dissension between administration and the operating divisions. Moreover, the Press is a gangly lot, like fish at feeding time, wanting more information. Word comes that the big boss from Tokyo is to visit and review a past kidnapping (Case 6 4 )that was never solved. Sub-rosa it is a planned takeover of the Prefecture. Mikami’s loyalties are called into question. The novel is a spellbinder and assisted by a good translation. It gives a good glimpse of Japanese police culture. Lots of surprises as the plot comes to an end.

I was given an electronic copy in return for an honest review.

Overall I'd say I liked this, though I started out a two star read the intriguing parts were stronger than the boring bits, so I ended up a three star read. It's a bit trickier to recommend: I don't think readers of typical thrillers or crime fiction or Japanese fiction would necessarily enjoy this, and its bloat, slow pacing, and lack of real action are definitely demerits against it. But I did invest in many of the characters and by the middle was genuinely interested to see how all the disparate threads would pull together, and I couldn't put together the moves and reveals and twists as quickly as Mikami, so Yokohama certainly had me guessing and in the dark until all was finally revealed. I don't know that I'd readily read another novel by Yokohama, but my reading experience for this one ended up pleasant.

Superintendent Mikami, a twenty year police detective, has been transferred to Prefecture D in the role of new Press Director for Media Relations. Undesirable as this new position is to Mikami, he must learn to walk a fine line between the press, hungry for information, and the police desiring good publicity since undermining police tactics in the court of public opinion acts as a deterrent to criminal investigations. Suwa, as Section Chief of Mikami's small department , is a spin doctor who attempts, in tandem with Mikami, to oversee and control timely press releases, as well as maintain anonymity when instructed by the powers that be.

Mikami experiences life changing events when daughter Ayumi disappears. He and wife Minako exist in a sea of silence. Minako refuses to leave the house after having received three suspicious silent phone calls. Perhaps Ayumi is too upset to let her voice be heard by her frantic parents. Mikami's reaction to his daughter's disappearance has manifested itself in sudden attacks of dizziness. Mikami in his capacity as Press Director has been assigned an additional job by the Director of Administrative Affairs. The Commissioner General is coming from Tokyo to oversee a fourteen year old cold case for which the Statute of Limitations for Prosecution will soon expire. A seven year old girl named Shoko Amamiya was abducted, the ransom paid, but Shoko was murdered. Fourteen years have passed and Mr. Amamiya, a successful business owner, feels he has no reason to meet with the commissioner. He knows that mistakes made during the investigation have been covered up. Nothing will come from allowing the commissioner to meet with him and turn the meeting into a photo op. The Commissioner has his own agenda and vision for Prefecture D. Added to Mikami's duties, he must suppress the name of a pregnant woman who caused an auto accident. The woman has ties to the police department. By keeping the press at bay, the journalists retaliate by planning to boycott the commissioner's visit.

This police procedural follows several different story threads, the most important being the cold case of the murder of seven year old Shoko Amamiya. There is give and take between law enforcement and the press, as well as a window into the hierarchy of law enforcement. Author Hideo Yokoyama slowly and meticulously shines a light on character interactions while providing fascinating plot twists that are at times unsettling. "Six Four" is a lengthy, police procedural highlighting the interrelationship between Criminal Investigations, Administrative Affairs and the press coverage of crimes committed. A thoroughly enjoyable, well written tome.

Thank you Farrar, Straus and Giroux and Net Galley for the opportunity to read and review "Six Four".

Translation of a Japanese bestselling crime novel, about a 14-year old kidnapping case that failed epically, and then seemed to re-emerge, bringing havoc to a police bureau outside of Tokyo. Particularly affected is main character Mikami who was an investigator on the initial case, and remains haunted by what he considers the lowest point of his career; by 2002 he's been appointed head of Media Relations, and his teen-aged daughter is currently missing. This book is long, and if you don't have a background in law enforcement or a specific interest in the detailed political inner workings of a Japanese police bureau, you might find it a bit of a slog. But if you are interested in Japanese culture, this offers a fascinating study of the subtleties of Japanese innuendo.

Reading this I'm reminded of deliciously hot cans of coffee from a Japanese vending machine, the security offered by the neighborhood police box via unarmed officers on bicycle, and of how tortuously rigid gender roles are applied in that country.

This is a very hard book to read. Too many characters and at times it just does not make sense. Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced copy in return for my honest review.