SALVATION OF A SAINT by Keigo Higashino

We’ve all heard this story, no matter what country we’re from: the husband leaves his wife with whom he doesn’t have any children for the mistress who is already pregnant with him.

Everybody knows that the best market research regarding marriage, sex, and other personal matters is done in the beauty salons. 😆 Throughout my appointments, I had the opportunity to overhear different Romanian versions of the same story: the old husband that is so happy that is going to be a father is generous enough to leave the house to the former wife OR the young husband who is trying HARD (pun intended) to impregnate both the young wife and the young mistress. Except the mistress is quicker than the wife and gets pregnant first, therefore she gets to keep the husband as well.

Although in none of the real-life versions that I have heard, does the husband warn the wife about his intentions as it happens in the novel, “Salvation of a saint”.

Yoshitaka: “If we don’t have a child after one year (of marriage), let’s split up.”

The husband Yoshitaka is frank with his wife Ayane before their marriage. He states from the very beginning that he only wants a marriage with children.

Yoshitaka:  “– If we can’t have children, there’s no point to us being married. Romantic love between a man and a woman always fades with time. People live together in order to build a family. A man and woman get married and become husband and wife. Then they have children and become father and mother. Only then do they become life partners in the true sense of the word. You don’t agree?”

Ayane: “- I just don’t think that’s all marriage is.”

Yoshitaka: “- I do. I believe it quite strongly and have no intention of changing my mind. Which is to say, I’ve no intention of continuing on like this if we can’t have children.”
Ayane: “- Let me get this straight, she said. You don’t need a woman who can’t bear your children. So you’ll throw me out and switch to someone who can? That’s what you’re telling me?”
Yoshitaka: ” – No need to put it so harshly.”
Ayane: ” – But that’s what you’re saying.”

True to his word, after one year of childless marriage, Yoshitaka asks for a divorce. In the end, it did not matter that Ayane was a successful artist who earned a lot of money, it didn’t matter that Ayane was the perfect Japanese wife who took care of her husband every day and hosted excellent dinners for him and his business partners. Most importantly, it did not matter that Ayane loved him truthfully. What mattered most to Yoshitaka was that Ayane did not get pregnant in the first year of marriage, which to his eyes was an unacceptable imperfection.

While reading this novel, I was stunned to learn that the victim turned out to be the husband. In the vast majority of real-life cases, the wife is usually the victim. This turnout of events was even more surprising for me due to the fact that the action is happening in a society that seems to place the man on a high pedestal, while the woman is kneeling at his feet willing to fulfill all of his expectations – at least this was my perception as a tourist in Japan.
I was genuinely impressed with the way Ayane sought revenge against her husband. It was very clever!

Kindle, 2013