(also published in English as Under the Midnight Sun) is a mystery novel written by Keigo Higashino, first serialized in the monthly novel magazine Subaru from Shueisha from January 1997 to January 1999. The entire volume was published in August 1999 and became a bestseller.

During the serialization, the novel was at first written as a series of short stories representing chronological snapshots of the overall plot line. Higashino modified its structure to make it a single coherent story before publishing it as a single volume. As of November 2005 the book had sold 550,000 copies. However, its sales quickly picked up after the first episode of the adapted TV series was aired. By January 2006 its sales had broken a million. Its sales exceeded 2 million in December 2010.

The novel attracted adaptations, including a stage drama in 2005, a Japanese TV series in 2006, a Korean motion picture in 2009, and a Japanese motion picture in 2010.

Novel summary
The story begins in 1973, with the death of an Osakan pawnbroker, Yosuke Kirihara, under strange circumstances. The investigation, headed by officer Junzo Sasagaki, gradually uncovers Fumiyo Nishimoto, a mother struggling to make ends meet and one of his customers, and her boyfriend Tadao Terasaki, as prime suspects. However, the Osakan police are unable to definitely prove their involvement, and both are eventually found dead; Fumiyo dies in an accidental gas leak in her house, and Terasaki dies in a traffic accident. The story primarily concerns itself with the effects of this incident on two people: Ryoji Kirihara, the pawnbroker's son, and Yukiho Nishimoto, Fumiyo's daughter. The novel avoids directly revealing the two's thoughts to the reader, instead preferring to reveal information second-hand through the viewpoints of multiple other supporting characters whose lives intersect to form a complete picture of the story's events.

Ryoji ends up growing into a moody, sullen and cynical youth who gets involved in a number of shady dealings, such as housewife prostitution rings, computer game bootlegging, hacking corporate programs, and wiretapping. He is shown to be resourceful and intelligent, easily manipulating people into doing what he wants. The novel strongly suggests that he commits multiple murders, including Isamu Matsuura, a former employee of his father's shop who he assists in a videogame bootlegging scheme. These murders force him to assume fake names and run from the police.

Yukiho is adopted by a relative of her father's (changing her last name from Nishimoto to Karasawa) and matures into a beautiful upper-class woman, attracting the attention of multiple men and achieving success in different fields, such as stock trading and opening up a successful clothing store chain. However, many people connected to her suffer from incredible misfortunes, and several characters in the narrative note that there is a hidden dark side to Yukiho hidden beneath the surface.

Throughout the story, Sasagaki shows up multiple times, unable to let go of the unresolved murder and determined to find the truth, even after the case passes the statute of limitations. Twenty years after the incident in 1992, he is finally able to piece together the truth: Fumiyo Nishimoto was prostituting her daughter to Yosuke Kirihara in order to pay the bills, explaining the interest displayed by Yosuke towards the family in the beginning of the story. Ryoji, who was Yukiho's friend, became suspicious after seeing her with his father and followed them to an abandoned building, where he witnessed Yosuke molesting her. In his grief, he killed his father with a pair of scissors. In turn, Yukiho killed her mother by drugging her with sleeping pills and causing a gas leak in her house. Ryoji and Yukiho then developed a close relationship of some sort in order to cope with their grief, using their talents to achieve success and ruthlessly disposing of anyone who got in their way.

Towards the novel's end, Sasagaki is able to obtain evidence linking Ryoji to Matsuura's death. The police wait for him to appear at the opening of Yukiho's second shop on Christmas Day, and discover he is one of the employees dressing up as Santa Claus. Cornered, Ryoji runs to the top of the building and jumps to his death. When asked, Yukiho denies knowing him.

Characters

The son of the victim killed 19 years ago, Ryoji's eyes have been dark and emotionless since the childhood incidence. He loathes getting close with other people. He started to get involved in shady businesses like housewife prostitution rings and game bootlegging when he was a student. He is a very astute man who possesses professional software skills. He loves to use vintage scissors of his since childhood and is very good at paper cutting. (The English translation by Alexander Smith renamed him Ryo Kirihara for reasons unknown.)

A stunning beauty, Yukiho is the daughter of one of the suspects of the pawnshop homicide 19 years ago. A primary school student then, she lived a poor life with her mother. Her mother died in an accident shortly after the murder. Afterward Yukiho was adopted by Karasawa, received a good education, and turned into an upper-class lady with manners and elegance. Her academic grades were excellent, causing a lot of envy. People close to her often fall prey to misfortunes.

An officer in the Crime Investigation Unit of the Osaka Prefectural Police, Junzo was in charge of the investigation of the pawnshop incidence. Over the years of investigation, he grew suspicious of the mysterious events befallen on people close to Yukiho and Ryoji; he has been investigating them since. He likes Seven Stars cigarettes very much.

An officer in the Crime Investigation Unit of the Osaka Prefectural Police, Hisashi was also investigating the pawnshop incidence. He rose through the ranks of the police force in the following 19 years. He is Junzo's coworker as well as his relative.

The owner of the "Kirihara" pawnshop and Ryoji's father, Yosuke was killed 19 years ago. He cared about his son very much. He discreetly had some unusual sexual interests...

Mother of Ryoji, Yaeko became the owner of the pawnshop after her husband died. After the pawnshop was closed due to mismanagement, she opened a small cafeteria. Yaeko knows she is not a responsible mother to Ryoji.

The store manager of the "Kirihara" pawnshop, Isamu knows a lot of secrets about the Kirihara family. He later approaches Ryoji as a broker of unauthorized game software.

Mother of Yukiho, Fumiyo was seen by the police as a suspect in the pawnshop incidence. Soon after the murder, she died from a gas leakage at home. The truth, however, is much darker...

Yukiho's distant relative, Reiko adopted Yukiho after her mother died. She is very strict in teaching Yukiho to behave like a lady.

Ryoji's secondary schoolmate, Yuichi was secretly photographing Yukiho.

Ryoji's secondary schoolmate, Fumihiko had photos about a secret of Ryoji's mother Yaeko. He was later set up and became the suspect of another crime.

Yukiho's university schoolmate, Eriko had a short romantic relationship with Shinozuka Kazunari started by his proposing. She was kidnapped mysteriously later and separated with him. She respected and depended on Yukiho a lot during university days but later became distant. Years later she got married with an ordinary worker. She holds a complex and doubtful attitude toward Yukiho.

TV series

Cast
Takayuki Yamada as 
Yuki Izumisawa as childhood Ryoji
Ayase Haruka as 
Mayuko Fukuda as , (childhood Yukiho before adoption)
Tetsuya Takeda as 
Atsuro Watabe as 
Takashi Kashiwabara as 
 Mitsuru Hirata as 
 Yumi Asō as 
 Kotaro Tanaka as 
 Keisuke Koide as 
 Kei Tanaka as 
 Hiroyuki Onoue as 
 Kaoru Yachigusa as 
 Kaoru Okunuki as 
 Chihiro Otsuka as 
 Momoko Kurasawa as 
 Seina Kasugai as 
 Shun Shioya as 
 Hitomi Satō as 
 Michiko Kawai as 
 Kimiko Yo as 
 Naomi Nishida as

Awards

See also
 White Night (Korean film, 2009)
 Into the White Night (Japanese film, 2011)

References

External links
 Official Site (Japanese TV Series)

1999 Japanese novels
Novels by Keigo Higashino
Japanese novels adapted into films
Japanese crime novels
Japanese-language novels
2006 Japanese television series debuts
2006 Japanese television series endings
Japanese drama television series
Fiction with unreliable narrators
TBS Television (Japan) dramas
Television shows based on Japanese novels
Television shows written by Yoshiko Morishita
《백야행》()는 히가시노 게이고의 소설이다. 슈에이샤의 문예지 《소설 스바루》에 1997년부터 1999년까지 연재됐으며, 1999년 8월에 출판되었다.

연작은 단편으로 연재되고 있지만, 단행본에서는 장편으로 구성하여 다시 간행되었다. 발행 부수는 2005년 11월 당시에는 55만부 정도였지만, 드라마 첫 방송 전후에 매출이 증가, 2006년 1월에 100만부를 돌파. 2010년 12월 현재 200만부를 기록했다.

2005년에 연극으로, 2006년에는 텔레비전 드라마로 만들어졌다. 2009년에는 대한민국, 2011년에는 일본에서 영화로 만들어졌다.

소설 
줄거리
19년 전 (1973년), 오사카에서 일어난 전당포 살인. 몇 명의 용의자가 수사 선상에 떠오르지만, 결정적인 증거가 없는 채 사건은 미궁에 빠진다. 피해자의 아들 기리하라 료지과 용의자의 딸 가라사와 유키호는 각자의 인생을 걸어가는 것처럼 보였다. 하지만 두 사람의 주위에는 이상한 흉악 범죄가 잇달아 발생... 사람의 마음을 잃은 고의 비극을 대서사 스케일로 그렸다.

특징
1973년부터 1992년까지 19년의 세월을 거쳐 많은 사람의 관점과 복선을 그리는 장편 소설. 주인공의 심리 묘사를 최대한 배제하고 있다.

등장 인물

주요 인물 
 기리하라 료지(桐原 亮司): 1973년 전당포 살인사건 피해자의 아들. 타인과 잘 어울리지 않는 음침한 아이였으며, 아버지가 죽은 후 매춘, 게임 프로그램 위조, ATM기 조작 등 범죄에 가담한다.
 가라사와 유키호(唐沢 雪穂): 1973년 전당포 살인사건 용의자였던 니시모토 후미요의 딸. 후미요가 가스 중독 사고로 죽은 뒤 친척인 가라사와 레이코의 양녀가 되었다. 그 후 빼어난 미모와 지성, 양어머니에게서 배운 예의범절 등으로 말미암아 요조숙녀로 성장한다. 그러나 그녀의 주변인물
 사사가키 준조(笹垣 潤三): 오사카 부경 수사1과 소속 형사. 1973년 전당포 살인사건 후 료지와 유키호에게 의심을 품고 그 두 사람을 계속해서 쫓는다.
 고가 히사시(古賀 久志)
 기리하라 요스케(桐原 洋介)
 기리하라 야에코(桐原 弥生子)
 마쓰우라 이사무(松浦 勇)
 니시모토 후미요(西本 文代)
 가라사와 레이코(唐沢 礼子)
 아키요시 유이치(秋吉 雄一)
 무타 도시유키: 유이치와 같은 반인 불량학생. 유이치에게 세이카 여학교의 미야코의 사진을 요구한다.
 기쿠치 후미히코(菊池 文彦)
 후지무라 미야코(藤村 都子)
 가와시마 에리코(川島 江利子)
 소노무라 도모히코(園村 友彦)
 하나오카 유코: 료지의 매춘 손님으로 참여했다가, 도모히코와 내연 관계가 된다. 그러나 도모히코와의 관계 중 갑자기 사망해 버린다.
 무라시타: 도모히코와 같은 학교에 다니는 잘생긴 남학생.
 니시구치 나미에(西口 奈美江)
 에노모토 히로시: 나미에의 연인. 사업가로 위장한 야쿠자로 나미에에게 계속해서 돈을 요구하고 있었다. 나미에가 사라진 후 그녀의 행방을 좇아 료지의 사무실에 들이닥친다.
 가네시로: 료지에게 골프 게임 제작을 의뢰한, 해골처럼 홀쭉한 남자.
 나카미치 마사하루(中道 正晴)
 시노즈카 가즈나리(篠塚 一成)
 구라하시 가나에(倉橋 香苗)
 다카미야 마코토(高宮 誠): 연합 사교댄스 동아리 부부장으로, 부장인 시노즈카 가즈나리와는 같은 학교의 절친한 친구다. 세이조 출신의 거대 지주의 아들. 유키호의 대시를 계기로 연인이 되었으며, 졸업 후 도자이 전기 장치사에서 일하며 유키호와 결혼한다.
 다카미야 요리코, 진이치, 후미코: 마코토의 홀어머니, 외할아버지, 외할머니.
 미사와 지즈루(三沢 千都留)
 우에노 아케미: 지즈루의 동료 파견 직원. 결혼 후 일을 그만둔다.
 나카지마 히로에(中嶋 弘恵)
 이마에다 나오미(今枝 直巳)
 스가와라 에리(菅原 絵里)
 구리하라 노리코(栗原 典子)
 시노즈카 야스하루(篠塚 康晴)
 시노즈카 미카(篠塚 美佳)

 출판 정보 
 한국어판
 백야행 (상): 
 백야행 (중): 
 백야행 (하): 

 연극 
2005년 9월부터 12월까지 극단 스튜디오 라이프에서 2부 구성으로 연극화되었다.

 출연진 
 출연진은 4팀으로 나뉜다.
 기리하라 료지 : 오이카와 켄, 후나미 카즈토시, 이와사키 다이
 가라사와 유키호 : 야마모토 요시키, 카사하라 히로오
 사사가키 준조''' : 소제 카이지

스탭 
 각본·연출 : 쿠라타 아츠시

공연장
제1부 : 키노쿠니야 홀 (도쿄), 우메다 예술 극장 씨어터 드라마 시티 (오사카)
제2부 : 극장 1010 (도쿄), 오사카 후생 연금 회관 예술 홀 (오사카)

드라마 

일본 TBS 방송사에서 제작되어 2006년 1월부터 3월까지 방영되었다. 주인공 기리하라 료지 역에 야마다 다카유키, 가라사와 유키호 역에 아야세 하루카, 사사가키 준조 역에 다케다 데쓰야가 캐스팅되었다.

영화

대한민국의 영화 

 손예진, 고수, 한석규 주연의 2009년 대한민국의 영화이다.

일본의 영화

외부 링크 
  영화 《백야행 - 하얀 어둠 속을 걷다》 공식 홈페이지
  영화 《백야행 - 하얀 어둠 속을 걷다》 블로그
  영화 《백야행 - 하얀 어둠 속을 걷다》 공식 홈페이지(일본 개봉)
 
 

1997년 소설
1999년 소설
일본의 추리 소설
오사카부를 배경으로 한 작품
도쿄를 배경으로 한 소설
1973년을 배경으로 한 작품