Exceeded 3 million copies sold
A masterpiece that won six mystery awards

Winner of the 52nd Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Award for Arts
Winner of the 55th Mainichi Publishing Culture Award Special Prize
Winner of the 5th Shiba Ryotaro Award
"This Mystery is Amazing!" #1 in 2002
Da Vinci: #1 Book of the Year
Weekly 『Bunye Chunchu』 2001 Best Mystery Masterpiece #1

Miyuki Miyabe, the 'Queen of Mystery Novels' and considered one of Japan's greatest popular writers.


Among her over 50 works, 『Copycat』 is a representative social mystery along with 『Cart』 and 『Reason』.
Since its publication in 2001, it has sold an astonishing 3 million copies in Japan alone and won six awards, including the Mainichi Publishing Culture Award. In Korea, with strong support from readers, it was selected as the number one genre novel of the past 10 years by Aladdin in 2011. This work can be said to be a monumental masterpiece that will remain in the history of mystery novels, both commercially and literary.


The beginning of an unprecedented public murder spree.
What exactly is the criminal's purpose?

A woman's right arm and handbag are found abandoned in a trash can in a park.
The criminal leaks information related to the case to a broadcasting station and harasses the victim's maternal grandfather over the phone.
All of Japan is shocked by the criminal's public boasting of his crimes, and the investigation faces many difficulties.
What exactly is the criminal's purpose?

Miyuki Miyabe is well known for her social mysteries that delve into the social issues surrounding crime.
However, the crime depicted in 『Copycat』 is different from that, a ‘crime without reason’ that has nothing to do with money or resentment.
The perpetrator only kidnaps and murders young women, harasses the victims' families, and taunts the police.
They reveal their crimes through broadcasts and enjoy the massive media attention.
The number of victims increases, but no matter how much you investigate their surroundings, no connection to the culprit is found.
One day, a person who was living an ordinary life is suddenly kidnapped and murdered for no reason.
Anyone can be a victim of a crime, and the victim's family, neighbors, or witnesses can be victims.
Before we know it, people have become spectators of this unprecedented serial murder case, participating in the massive crime drama the perpetrator is creating.
A case with no clues in sight.
… … And then, the turn of events comes from an unexpected place.

The abyss of truth known only to the murderer and the victim

The two people who knew the truth died.
Bodies found in their car, and evidence of murder found in one of the rooms.
The police identify them as the culprits.
But the truth has not yet been revealed.
Who, when, where, why and what happened.
What is known is not the whole story.

Miyuki Miyabe's interest is not in finding the culprit.
Her strength lies in her ability to lead a story, rather than in her tricks, reasoning, and plot twists.
A murder occurs, and a faceless killer approaches the victim's family.
A battle of wits unfolds between the criminal and the police.
The story unfolding in the form of a typical detective novel is only a small part of the overall story of "The Copycat."
The story in Part 1, which was told from the perspective of the victim's family and the police, suddenly takes a turn due to a chance incident, and at the moment when the investigation makes rapid progress, the novel goes back in time to tell the story from the perspective of the suspect in Part 2.
But this is not the whole story.
The story, which has progressed to the end of Part 1, takes another turn in Part 3 with the appearance of a new character.
Readers know what happened and when, but even knowing this, they can't help but wonder what happens next.
That's where Miyuki Miyabe's charm lies.


And those who are left behind live on

Is the real culprit X still alive? The media reacts violently to the new claim.
However, the reality surrounding those left behind is full of unexpected contradictions.
Clues and testimonies scattered like invisible, tiny shards of glass, questions that defy common sense.
The truth will come out someday, but those who disappeared will not return.

The driving force behind Miyuki Miyabe's novels comes from her outstanding descriptions of her characters.
There are a truly enormous number of characters in 『Copycat』.
The police and the criminal are not the only ones involved in the incident.
Victims and witnesses, their families, neighbors, friends—Miyuki Miyabe delicately portrays the individual stories and emotions of each character, making them living human beings.
The incident changes the lives of all those people.
The victim's family suffers from irreparable loss, anger, and unfounded guilt, while witnesses suffer from nightmares and anxiety brought on by the shock of the incident.
The suspect's family also loses their home and scatters, unable to bear the public gaze.
Everyone involved in the incident looks at it from their own perspective, hurts each other, and leans on each other's shoulders.
Miyuki Miyabe's writing style, which makes readers feel their pain and hope as if they were her own, transforms "The Copycat" into a grand human drama, not just a simple mystery novel.

Praise poured in for "Copycat"

Miyuki Miyabe's interest is not in finding the culprit.
Rather, it vividly depicts the modern tragedy of people in a city who had been living peacefully until yesterday suddenly being swept up in an unimaginable disaster.
_Mainichi Shimbun
If you are faint-hearted, don't open this book.
This work is a frightening examination of the ugly inner side of human beings.
_Aladdin Reader Rahula
I can't put the book down.
The moment the truth about the culprit was revealed, the thrill and joy of knowing why the book was titled "Copycat" was unforgettable.
_YES24 Reader Barley