29 May / Prophecy (vol. 3) by Tetsuya Tsutsui, translated by Kumar Sivasubramanian
New readers, take note: Prophecy is a three-part series that needs to be read in order. No shortcuts, no interruptions. To catch up, go back here before continuing further.
The final volume begins in the midst of an emergency call that should never have been made: “There are four of us in the group, myself included,” the caller confesses. “We first met three years ago at a day labor job site …” But before he gives away “our true objective,” he panics, hangs up, and erases any evidence of his presence, at least in the phone booth. The security camera, however, is running … and the hunt quickly resumes.
Paperboy is back online, announcing the next target to be a high-ranking, dirty politician who’s scheduled to make an appearance at a public event the next day. Nelsin Kato-Ricarte reappears on the police radar as the uploader of the latest death threat. In a game of ‘catch me if you can,’ Lieutenant Erika Yoshino is determined to win. One by one, she’s unmasking Paperboy x 4 – but the wild goose chase is nothing like anyone expected. Meanwhile, the as-yet infallible foursome are up to something unthinkable.
Ultimate targets and fatal threats coincide for harrowing results. Even the sharp, savvy Lieutenant didn’t see this coming: so much so that screams of abuse are all she can muster when all is revealed. You’ll be just as speechless, too.
Once begun, the series demands – and deserves – your immediate attention. Make sure you have all three volumes within easy grasp, then go somewhere no one can find you and read straight through. Loyalty, betrayal, desperation, hope, are mixed with illegal immigration, left-behind children, mixed-race perils, unbreakable bonds, to create a volatile, adrenaline-pumping, deftly-plotted shockfest. Catch them if you can, indeed …!
Readers: Young Adult, Adult
Published: 2013 (Japan), 2014-15 (United States)