This is a 1986 mystery novel set in Kobe, Japan. It follows Inspector Tetsuo Otani and his team as they investigate the hit-and-run killing of one Arab outside the mosque in Kobe and the suicide of another Arab at a hot-spring resort hotel. The novel is filled with nostalgic settings, such as Tor Road, Arima hot-spring, and the Takarazuka Revue, that will resonate with readers who have visited or lived in the Kansai region. Melville's writing style is bursting with prepositional phrases and relative clauses, and he is gently satirical and never snarky about Japanese people and their culture. An interesting aspect of the novel is the unlikely friendship between Officer Hara, a brainy guy, and brawny Officer Noguchi, who calls to mind the folklore hero Benkei.

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