not only is 34 an important number in the when they cry series, this book takes place in 2017, meaning that the murders took place in 1983 WHICH IS THE YEAR HIGURASHI TAKES PLACE. also icymi ‘when cicadas cry’ is just a literal translation of higurashi no naku koro ni
at least the plot itself is fairly different (while still being an unsolved murder thriller) but this is egregious
i really wanna just ask the author if she’s read the vn or just seen the anime, going to gatekeep her from the wtc fandom