Pathway to Japanese Literature
Discover Japan's stories—across time, across language.
← Back
Twilight ConfessionAuthor: Hamao Shirō
| Original Title | 黄昏の告白 |
|---|---|
| Author | 浜尾 四郎 |
| Genre | Detective & Mystery |
| Author Type | Male Author |
| Summary | In a dim hospital room heavy with medicinal air, celebrated playwright Ōkawa Ryūtarō lies near death after a failed suicide attempt, haunted by guilt and spectral visions of his murdered wife. His only companion is Yamamoto Masao—a physician, childhood friend, and keeper of buried truths. Once a literary prodigy, Ōkawa’s brilliance dimmed under the shadow of rival Yonekura Sanzō’s rising fame and a suffocating marriage to actress Yōko, whose tragic death during a burglary left him shattered. As twilight deepens, Ōkawa confesses to Yamamoto: he allowed the burglar to kill Yōko, driven by suspicions of her infidelity and artistic despair. Yet his certainty unravels into torment—was she truly unfaithful? Is their daughter Hisako even his own? Yamamoto, trembling with unspoken secrets, counters with accusations that twist the narrative further. Their fraught exchange crescendos in breathless revelations, leaving Ōkawa’s final moments suspended between truth and delusion. Shadows of betrayal, obsession, and unspeakable acts linger long after the last gasp, promising a labyrinth of moral decay where love curdles into vengeance and salvation remains eternally out of reach. |
← Return to List← Return to TOP