Dale Furutani

This has been on my radar to read for a long time, and I finally decided to buy the e-book and check it out. It's not very long, and is pleasant, quick reading material. Admittedly, I'm an absolute devotee of Sherlock Holmes.

Assuming familiarity with Holmes "hiatus" in Doyle's canon during which the great detective is said to have visited Tibet in particular, the premise of this book works well for me. After Tibet, etc, Holmes stops off in Japan ~1892/3 and is hosted by a doctor (Watanabe) show more who has acquaintances in the British diplomatic community and familiarity with English. During the stay, our detective has some adventures, of course.

I liked the way things were framed, and the viewpoint of the narrator (the Japanese doctor) who is hosting Holmes during his stay. A few of the stories began in ways that reminded me of other Holmes tales (from the canon), but they went in different directions that worked pretty well. There is also a thread involving a neighbor and her daughter that binds the collection together.

The narrative style is quite different from how Watson might have narrated the same events (for example if he had been with Holmes during this journey), and I think the style lends the whole book a feeling of authenticity that I found enjoyable and convincing. show less

Second book in the Samurai series set in medieval Japan.

The main character, Kaze, the masterless ronin, is continuing his search for the daughter of his dead lord. The lord was on the losing side of a battle to determine who would be the next Shogun. His daughter was sold off by a vengeful lord on the winning side. Kaze has been given a duty to find her and rescue her.

In this book the fact that Kaze is a wanted criminal because he was on the losing side comes more to the front, and show more inhibits some of his actions.

He is caught up with a wealthy merchant who is obsessed with his wife, a crazy grandmother on a mission of sanctioned revenge, thieves who are after the merchant, and a mystery about the merchant, his wife, and his enemies.

The book is well written and has interesting information about Japan of that time. The main character is well done. Overall the book is quick, light read. show less

A pretty second rate crime novel in a series by Dale Furutani featuring the Japanese American Ken Tanaka as an amateur detective. But the attraction of this novel( which I bought for 10p second hand from a US based dealer who shipped it within 3 days to the UK for £2.75 - now there's service) is it's descriptions of Tokyo and Kyoto for visitors. Mr Furutani cleverly highlights the cultural differences that Ken Tanaka as a non-Japanese speaker but with Japanese looks and family heritage show more finds on his first visit to the country. I'm thinking of a holiday trip to Japan and this is a good readable enjoyable introduction to some of the things I might find. I found reference to the book on the web site Biblio Travel (http://www.bibliotravel.com/) that lists books geographically by locations that they cover or feature. show less

This book is the last one in the Samurai series.

Overall I enjoyed the series, though it was wearing a bit thin by this book. I read them back to back.

All the books are what I would call light. The strengths are the characters, the setting and the history, culture and lore of the world of the Japanese Samurai.

The problem is the story is rather weak. Because it is the last book in the series the story arc has to finish. Everything that didn't work in the previous books has been pushed into show more this book.

The basic story is that of a masterless Samurai, Kaze, called a Ronin who is the main character. He was on the losing side in the recent war to determine the ruler of Japan. He is unable to kill himself and join his dead lord, lady and his own family, because his lord's lady commanded him to find her young daughter first. The lady has been violated and tortured and dies, leaving the job firmly in Kaze's hands. The daughter was sold off by one of the vengeful winning samurai, and Kaze is tasked to find her and rescue her.

The story of the 3 books is Kaze's journey to find the young daughter. She was 7 when sold and would be about 9 when the series ends. Throughout each book Kaze wanders the countryside looking for her, and as a result ends up involved in multiple problems and mysteries that people have who live in the areas he wanders through. Sort of a medieval Japanese Shane. Kaze is a decent person, and he treats the peasants well, something a normal Samurai wouldn't do. Kaze is very good with a sword, and very smart and tries to have a Zen outlook. In short by the 3rd book he is just about perfect, and you know he isn't going to die/fail his task and it gets predictable and a bit boring.

The predictability problem is compounded in this book because Kaze has come to Edo and the new Shogun is involved. It is very obvious how the story will play out, so it is like reading something that you already have read.

Also the idea of the masterless Ronin tramping the roads of Japan with a 9 year old noble-born, now damaged girl, just doesn't work. What is the point of rescuing her, when he has nothing to offer her ? Not a roof, not a position in society, not a family, or any hope for the future.

Throughout it all Kaze is like a superhero, killing other samurai, thugs, and even ninjas. He is kind, good-hearted, and true to the code of Samurai honor. He falls into mysteries, and solves them easily. By the third book it became a little too pat, a little too contrived.

Still I enjoyed it, but am happy the series has come to an end. show less