I’ve read this book countless times.
It’s a miraculous love story born from just three encounters.
At first, you think something like this couldn’t possibly happen, but by the time you finish reading, it feels possible. In fact, you’ll feel like something similar is actually happening somewhere in the world.
Synopsis
- Satoshi Makino is a world-renowned classical guitarist. One day, he meets Yoko Komine, a journalist, and they are deeply attracted to each other.
- Yoko is an international journalist living in France and is engaged. Makino was also at a time when he was feeling unsure about his career as a musician.
- The two exchanged emails and eventually reunited, and Yoko broke off their engagement. However, fate presented them with a test.
- Makino’s manager, Sanae, became jealous and sabotaged their relationship. She tampered with Makino’s phone and sent Yoko a fake break-up message.
- Misunderstanding the situation, Yoko left Makino and married her fiancée. Makino takes a break from music and marries Sanae, but his heart remains unfulfilled.
- A few years later, Yoko divorces, and Makino resumes his musical career. Yoko attends one of Makino’s concerts, and the two meet again.
Review
■Fated Encounter
Do you believe in fate? I think I was a child, but my father once told me that he surprisingly believed in fateful encounters. I remember feeling a sense of joy when I realized he was probably referring to my mother.
Is a human encounter a coincidence or a fateful one? With a population of 100 million in Japan alone, it’s natural not to meet everyone, and even less likely that you’ll encounter many people in your lifetime that could potentially develop into love.
Fate isn’t something that’s appreciated at the time of the encounter, but rather, it’s something that’s appreciated some time afterward.
However, when it comes to Makino and Yoko’s meeting, it feels like fate from the moment they met.
Regardless of the encounter between these two, I think there are times when a man and a woman encounter something that, beyond logic, they become attracted to or become aware of something. Of course, there are times when a relationship develops after that, and times when it ends as a fleeting moment.
It’s easy to explain if it’s a sixth sense.
This story is a love story that began with that sixth sense.
■ A Life as a Great Supporting Actor
Makino and Yoko were the perfect relationship, in the best possible sense of love.
However, Sanae took that away from Yoko through her own efforts.
In this story, Sanae says that Makino is the main character of her life, and that she’s happy to be a supporting character.
These words convey the strength of someone who, through their own efforts, can overcome fate, something that no human effort can hope to overcome.
■ Putting Complex Human Emotions into Words
This is common in Hirano Keiichiro’s works, but I feel he is exceptional at putting human emotions into words.
Reading his works, I find it extremely satisfying, as he articulates my emotions, which I didn’t know how to express, one after another, through words.
