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1[[quoteright:320:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/after_dark.jpg]]
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3''After Dark'' is a novel by Creator/HarukiMurakami. It was published in 2004.
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5''After Dark'' takes place in Tokyo, from midnight until dawn. It tells the story of five characters: Mari, a nineteen-year-old girl; Takahashi, a trombone-player at an all-night practice session; Eri, Mari's sister who is in a deep sleep; a Chinese prostitute who has been beaten up in a {{Love Hotel}}; and a salaryman working late on a software project.
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7The story weaves through the thin line between dreams and reality, and in the early hours of the new day, both get even less discernible from each other.
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9----
10!!The Novel provides examples of:
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12* AuthorAppeal: [[Creator/HarukiMurakami Murakami]] loves reading. Mari was supposed to spend her entire night (and early morning) reading at a Denny's restaurant. Murakami is also a huge jazz fan. Jazz musicians, music and songs are referenced throughout the entire novel. Also, Takahashi started to play the trombone because of a single jazz piece.
13* DarkAndTroubledPast: Korogi has painful-looking scars on her back and tells Mari that there are people chasing her who will do much worse than that if she's ever caught.
14* DoubleTake: Done by the ''narration'' when [[spoiler: Eri disappears from her room]]
15* ElevatorFailure: When Mari was in Kindergarten, an earthquake caused the elevator she rode with Eri to stop. The lights went off and the two children were stuck in darkness, Eri holding her younger sister in a death-hug and trying to comfort her. Mari says that that was the last time she felt truly inseparable from her sister.
16* TheFaceless: The Man With No Face.
17* FunctionalAddict: Eri is a compulsive pill-popper and Mari says that she's been like that since she was a teenager and shows absolutely no signs of slowing down.
18* GranolaGirl: Mari has hints of this; she doesn't eat chicken salad and is picky about omelettes because of the way chickens are treated.
19* HyperlinkStory
20* LoveHotel: Alphaville.
21* MaybeEverAfter: [[spoiler: Takahashi promises to write to Mari, and she promises to reply. Mari will soon leave for Beijing, China in an exchange-student program.]]
22* MistakenForGay: Happens to Takahashi a lot.
23* MythologyGag: At around 4:09 A.M., Takahashi brings up his motto: "Walk slowly, drink lots of water." [[spoiler:It's something that the bartender J tells the Rat in ''Literature/Pinball1973''.]]
24* OvershadowedByAwesome: Mari's appearance. She's described by the narrator as quite attractive, but no one notices, because her sister is ''breathtakingly beautiful''.
25* PickyEater: Mari isn't exactly a child, but she isn't an adult either. She responds to Takahashi's invitations to eat as not liking the way the food was made or simply not liking the food itself.
26* RecurringDreams: Happens to Korogi and Takahashi.
27* {{Salaryman}}: Shirakawa, though he's a darker example than most as he's also apparently into hiring prostitutes and then beating them if they fail to satisfy him.
28* ScarsAreForever: Takahashi has a scar on his right cheek from an accident when he was young. [[spoiler: Korogi]] also has marks on [[spoiler: her]] back which seem to be made from a branding iron.
29* SeriousBusiness: The narration implies that this is Takahashi's attitude towards milk and apples.
30* SiblingYinYang: Mari and Eri.
31* ThoseTwoGuys: Komugi and Korogi have this dynamic.
32* TitleDrop: When '5 Spot After Dark' is mentioned.
33* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: Mari and Eri, respectively.
34* YouALLShareMyStory: Mari is sitting in a Denny's, reading a book. Takahashi comes in and recognizes her from a double date a long time ago, when she was a replacement for her sister's friend. Takahashi leaves and a woman named Kaoru asks Mari to help her with a Chinese prostitute who has been beaten up. (Takahashi has worked for Kaoru in her LoveHotel before). The man who beat the Chinese prostitute up is actually [[spoiler: Shirakawa]], who may or may not be [[spoiler: The Man With No Face]], who has been watching over Mari's sister, Eri. (He probably isn't)

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