Japanese mystery writer Keigo Higashino passed away on July 23 at the age of 68. Following the announcement on Monday, readers in China, his largest overseas market, took to social media to express their sorrow and pay tribute to his literary legacy.

日本推理作家东野圭吾于7月23日离世，享年68岁。周一其离世消息公布后，中国作为他最大的海外受众市场，大批读者纷纷登上社交媒体抒发哀思，缅怀他留下的文学财富。

Soon after the news was announced, Higashino's representative works — The Miracles of the Namiya General Store, Journey Under the Midnight Sun, Malice and The Devotion of Suspect X — entered the top 10 most-searched titles on WeRead, one of China's leading e-book platforms.

噩耗传出不久，东野圭吾的代表作《解忧杂货店》《白夜行》《恶意》《嫌疑人X的献身》悉数登上国内主流电子书平台微信读书热搜榜单前十位。

Higashino began his writing career in 1985 with the mystery novel After School, which won the prestigious Edogawa Rampo Prize. By the time of his final novel, Eternal Memory, which is scheduled to be published on Aug 5, he had authored 106 books.

1985年，东野圭吾凭借推理小说《放学后》斩获极具含金量的江户川乱步奖，自此开启写作生涯。他的收官之作《永恒的记忆》定于8月5日出版，至此一生累计创作106部作品。

By 2023, his works had sold more than 100 million copies in Japan and been translated into 37 languages, reaching readers in more than 41 countries and regions. International sales totaled 68 million copies, with China emerging as his largest overseas market, with sales of nearly 50 million copies.

截至2023年，其作品在日本本土销量破亿，被译为37种语言，流传至41个以上国家和地区；海外总销量达6800万册，其中中国是他最大海外市场，销量接近5000万册。

Chinese publisher Thinkingdom Media, known for its mystery titles, has published 52 of Higashino's books, with combined sales exceeding 23 million copies. The simplified Chinese edition of The Miracles of the Namiya General Store, released in 2014, sold more than 10 million copies within four years, while Journey Under the Midnight Sun sold more than nine million copies.

国内专注悬疑推理书籍出版的新经典文化，一共引进出版了52部东野圭吾作品，合计销量超2300万册。2014年推出简体中文版《解忧杂货店》，四年销量突破1000万册；《白夜行》简体版销量也逾900万册。

In 2017, Higashino earned 22 million yuan ($3.1 million) in royalties from China, surpassing British author J. K. Rowling, creator of the Harry Potter series, to become the country's highest-earning foreign writer that year. He topped the list of the richest foreign authors in China for three consecutive years from 2017 to 2019, with royalties of 42 million yuan in 2018 and 30 million yuan in 2019.

2017年，东野圭吾在中国斩获2200万元人民币版税（折合310万美元），超越《哈利·波特》作者英国作家J.K.罗琳，登顶当年中国版税收入最高外籍作家。2017至2019年，他连续三年蝉联中国外籍作家版税榜榜首：2018年版税4200万元，2019年为3000万元。

Many Chinese readers shared memories of discovering his works and the impact they had on their lives.

无数中国读者追忆初次读到他作品的过往，诉说这些文字给自己人生带来的深远影响。

A reader using the screen name Lakuda recalled first reading Higashino's novels in junior middle school.

一位网名为拉库达的读者回忆，自己初中时第一次接触东野圭吾的小说。

"You have put down your pen, but the gentleness, clarity and empathy you left to millions of readers will remain in the world forever. Thank you for accompanying me throughout my youth," the reader wrote.

读者留言写道：“您已然搁笔，但您留给万千读者的温柔、通透与共情力，会永远留存世间。谢谢你，陪伴我走过整个青春。”

Chinese mystery writer Zijin Chen reposted the news on Sina Weibo, saying The Devotion of Suspect X introduced him to detective fiction.

国内推理作家紫金陈在新浪微博转发了离世消息，表示正是《嫌疑人X的献身》，让他踏入了侦探小说的世界。

"I read it in 2012. It was my first encounter with detective fiction, and it inspired me to start writing my own novels. I'm shocked by the sudden news and feel a deep sense of loss," he wrote.

他撰文：“我2012年读完这本书，这是我人生第一部侦探小说，也促使我提笔开始创作。骤然听闻噩耗，万分错愕，满心怅然。”

Another Weibo user, AnniweianVivian, commented under a China Central Television news post to highlight how Higashino's novels use intricate suspense as a framework while exploring the complexity of human nature through love, hatred, choices and obsession.

微博网友AnniweianVivian在央视相关新闻下留言点评：东野圭吾的小说以精巧缜密的悬念为骨架，借爱恨、抉择与执念，深挖人性的复杂百态。

"I deeply admire Higashino's works, including Mysterious Night and The Miracles of the Namiya General Store, and will always treasure them," the user wrote.

该网友写道：“我由衷喜爱他的《幻夜》《解忧杂货店》等作品，会永远珍藏这份阅读回忆。”

Another reader, Wangdaotie-Barry, thanked Higashino for creating "such profound emotional worlds".

另有网友王道铁·巴里致谢东野圭吾，感念他构筑出一个个意蕴深厚的情感世界。

"Journey Under the Midnight Sun drew me into the world of mystery fiction. Works such as Malice, The Devotion of Suspect X, The Miracles of the Namiya General Store and When the Curtain of Prayer Descends have amazed me time and again," the reader wrote.

这位读者留言：“《白夜行》带我走进推理文学天地，《恶意》《嫌疑人X的献身》《解忧杂货店》《祈祷落幕时》等佳作，一次次带给我震撼。”

tribute /ˈtrɪbjuːt/ n.悼念；致敬；颂词

legacy /ˈleɡəsi/ n.遗产；遗留的财富（文学遗产）