Kazuhiro Uraga

**Kazuhiro Uraga** (浦賀(うらが) 和宏(かずひろ), *Uraga Kazuhiro*), real name **Tsuyoshi Yagi** (八木(やぎ) 剛(つよし), *Yagi Tsuyoshi*), was a Japanese mystery writer, notable for being the fifth winner of the Mephisto Prize.

## Biography

In 1998, Uraga debuted with *The End of Memory*, the first volume of the *Naoki Andou Series*, which won the fifth Mephisto Prize. In the 2010s, his book *She Doesn't Exist* became a bestseller, which led to many of his works being reprinted. He was an avid fan of Yellow Magic Orchestra and had a deep knowledge of electronic music, which was often featured in his work. He was also a fan of science fiction such as *Akira*, and often paid homage to the works of Fujiko Fujio and foreign films, such as those of M. Night Shyamalan.

On February 25, 2020, he passed away of a brain hemorrhage at the age of 41.

## Style

While mainly mysteries, his works usually also include science fiction or coming-of-age plots. In addition, his works also often explore taboo subjects such as incest, homosexuality or cannibalism, and he sometimes makes scathing statements about otaku culture, readers and other fixed groups. He also employs a few elements of metatextuality, often including characters bearing his real name or names based off of it.

## Works

### Naoki Andou Series

#### Season One

The End of MemoryThe Endless ReturningLocked ParadiseAsylumFood ChainAll Is Full of MurderUbiquity
Reprint Covers:

The End of Memory 1st ReprintThe End of Memory 1st Reprint Part 1The End of Memory 1st Reprint Part 2The Endless Returning Part 1The Endless Returning Part 2Locked Paradise Part 1Locked Paradise Part 2

#### Season Two: Hagihara Industries

Knockin' on Heaven's Door: The Hagihara Industries Serial Murder CaseOrdinary World Special World: Queen Assassination
Reprint Covers:

HEAVEN: The Hagihara Industries Serial Murder CaseHELL: Queen Assassination

### Junna Matsuura & Takeshi Yagi Series

Click "Show" to display covers:

The Quiet World of Junna MatsuuraIn The Wake Of Poseidon: A Tale of Fire, Locked Rooms and the Rain ManCURE: Teaching how to Write a Good MysteryTowards Zero: Takeshi Yagi - History's Greatest CaseTakeshi Strikes Back: Goodbye Junna, and Now, Immortal MonsterHymn For The Children: The World's Ugliest ChildAnother Green World: The Fallen Angel and the Golden WitchThe Beginning of The End: The Earthlings' Final CaseBut, We Are Not a Mistake: For the Sake of Our Unborn Children

### Ginjirou Kuwabara Series

Click "Show" to display covers:

Her Blood is MeltingI Was Born for HerI Can't Wish Her LuckUntil the Day She Turns to Ash

### Other Novels

The Prison of SleepShe Doesn't ExistFragileThe Kazuhiro Uraga Murder CaseFlat Earth ProjectDawn of the PhantomNoble Daughter, Cross the Sea of SlaughterThe Ultimate Romance Novel, For YouEnding for Two / Murder in the Halfway HouseThe Red CatThe Tragedy of ifWoman MFifteenth Year of RevengeDescendants of CainThe Tragedy of DeltaMurder City Kawasaki
Reprint Covers:

The Prison of SleepShe Doesn't ExistFragile 1st ReprintFragle 2nd ReprintDawn of the PhantomMurder in the Halfway House

## External Links

* Uraga's Japanese Wikipedia Page
* Uraga's Twitter Account

## Trivia

* The surname of Uraga's real name, Yagi, means "eight trees", while the first name means "strong".
* The surname of Uraga's pen name can be translated as "bay of joy", while the first name is written with the characters for "harmony" and "wide".

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 The End of Memory (in Japanese). Published by Kodansha.
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 The Endless Returning (in Japanese). Published by Kodansha.
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Locked Paradise (in Japanese). Published by Kodansha.
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Asylum (in Japanese). Published by Kodansha.
5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Food Chain (in Japanese). Published by Kodansha.
6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 All Is Full of Murder (in Japanese). Published by Kodansha.
7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Ubiquity (in Japanese). Published by Kodansha.
8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Knockin' on Heaven's Door (in Japanese). Published by Kodansha.
9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 Ordinary World Special World (in Japanese). Published by Kodansha.
10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 The Quiet World of Juuna Matsuura (in Japanese). Published by Kodansha.
11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 The Endless Returning (in Japanese). Published by Kodansha.
12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 CURE (in Japanese). Published by Kodansha.
13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 Towards Zero (in Japanese). Published by Kodansha.
14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 Takeshi Strikes Back (in Japanese). Published by Kodansha.
15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 Hymn For The Children (in Japanese). Published by Kodansha.
16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 16.3 16.4 16.5 Another Green World (in Japanese). Published by Kodansha. Cite error: Invalid `<ref>` tag; name "JuunaMatsuura7" defined multiple times with different content
17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 The Beginning of The End (in Japanese). Published by Kodansha.
18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 18.2 Her Blood is Melting (in Japanese). Published by Gentosha.
19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 19.2 Born for Her (in Japanese). Published by Gentosha.
20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 20.2 I Can't Wish Her Luck (in Japanese). Published by Gentosha.
21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 21.2 Until the Day She Turns to Ash (in Japanese). Published by Gentosha.
22. ↑ 22.0 22.1 22.2 The Prison of Sleep (in Japanese). Published by Kodansha.
23. ↑ 23.0 23.1 23.2 She Doesn't Exist (in Japanese). Published by Gentosha.
24. ↑ 24.0 24.1 24.2 Broken Article (in Japanese). Published by Tokuma Novels.
25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 25.2 The Kazuhiro Uraga Murder Case (in Japanese). Published by Kodansha.
26. ↑ 26.0 26.1 26.2 The Earth Surface Committee (in Japanese). Published by Gentosha.
27. ↑ 27.0 27.1 27.2 Dawn of the Phantom (in Japanese). Published by Gentosha.
28. ↑ 28.0 28.1 28.2 Noble Daughter, Cross the Sea of Slaughter (in Japanese). Published by Gentosha.
29. ↑ 29.0 29.1 29.2 The Ultimate Romance Novel, For You (in Japanese). Published by Tokuma Shoten.
30. ↑ 30.0 30.1 30.2 Ending For Two / Murder in the Halfway House (in Japanese). Published by Shodensha.
31. ↑ 31.0 31.1 31.2 The Red Cat (in Japanese). Published by Shodensha.
32. ↑ 32.0 32.1 32.2 The Tragedy of if (in Japanese). Published by Kadokawa Shoten.
33. ↑ 33.0 33.1 33.2 Woman M (in Japanese). Published by Gentosha.
34. ↑ 34.0 34.1 34.2 Fifteenth Year of Revenge (in Japanese). Published by Gentosha.
35. ↑ 35.0 35.1 35.2 Descendants of Cain (in Japanese). Published by Jitsugyo no Nihon Sha.
36. ↑ 36.0 36.1 36.2 The Tragedy of Delta (in Japanese). Published by Kadokawa Shoten.
37. ↑ 37.0 37.1 37.2 Murder City Kawasaki (in Japanese). Published by Haruki Bunko.