{"product_id":"shitamachi-scam-paperback","title":"Shitamachi Scam - Paperback","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp style=\"text-align: right;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/reportcopyrightinfringement.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eReport copyright infringement\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eMichael Pronko\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eIn Tokyo's old quarter, the past doesn't fade. It gets stolen.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eA frail woman is hit by a motorscooter on a quiet street in the \u003cstrong\u003eShitamachi \u003c\/strong\u003edistrict-one of Tokyo's last neighborhoods untouched by the high-rises and commercial sprawl. To Detective Hiroshi Shimizu, it seems more than an accident. And then the money starts to move.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAs Hiroshi digs deeper, he uncovers a slick network of \u003cstrong\u003escammers \u003c\/strong\u003etargeting Tokyo's elderly-con artists draining savings, pensions, deeds, and lives. With his mentor \u003cstrong\u003eTakamatsu\u003c\/strong\u003e, his razor-sharp colleague \u003cstrong\u003eIshii\u003c\/strong\u003e, and the grizzled ex-sumo detective \u003cstrong\u003eSakaguchi\u003c\/strong\u003e at his side, Hiroshi finds that scammers don't only work at the bottom of the heap. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe old Tokyo of Shitamachi-the one with shopkeepers, alleyways, customs, and public baths-is disappearing. \u003cstrong\u003eUrban renewal\u003c\/strong\u003e would beautify Tokyo, but at what cost? What begins as low-level fraud twists into something far darker: a city-wide grift on Tokyo's most expensive currency-real estate.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAs the case unravels, Hiroshi realizes the low-level criminals aren't the only ones cashing in on Japan's aging society. Every lead takes him deeper into the narrow backstreets and fading lives of \u003cstrong\u003eShitamachi\u003c\/strong\u003e, and into the corporate boardrooms and government offices where the powerful work to clear the old to make way for the new. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eShitamachi Scam\u003c\/strong\u003e is Tokyo noir at its most human-a slow burn through the city's forgotten alleys, where modern crime runs on smooth talk, and justice doesn't always arrive in time.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eIn Tokyo, respect for the elderly is fading. Along with their savings. Along with their lives.\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWinner \u003c\/strong\u003eMystery Independent Press Award (2023)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBest of 2024 \u003c\/strong\u003eMystery\/Thriller\u003cstrong\u003e \u003c\/strong\u003eBooklife Prize (2024)\u003cstrong\u003e \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFirst place Category \u003c\/strong\u003eChanticleer CLUE (2024)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFinalist \u003c\/strong\u003eBest Thrillers.com (2024)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFinalist \u003c\/strong\u003eSPR Book Awards (2023)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFinalist \u003c\/strong\u003eChanticleer International Book Awards (2024)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSilver Award \u003c\/strong\u003eReader Views Reviewers Choice Awards\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eGold Award \u003c\/strong\u003eLiterary Titan (2023) \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"Pronko's knowledge of Japanese life is simply extraordinary-with painstaking care, he limns its shadowy contours and ambiguities. An absorbing drama conveyed with incisive intelligence.\"\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003e-Kirkus Reviews\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eShitamachi Scam\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e is the sixth book in the Tokyo-based Detective Hiroshi series by award-winning author Michael Pronko.\u003c\/p\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 348\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.78 x 8.5 x 5.5 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e December 15, 2023\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":43587360292953,"sku":"9781942410317","price":33.98,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0736\/6465\/9545\/files\/mdEMazTDNN9781942410317.webp?v=1783342451","url":"https:\/\/warrenssanctuaryofthemind.myshopify.com\/fr\/products\/shitamachi-scam-paperback","provider":"Warren's sanctuary of the mind","version":"1.0","type":"link"}