A lyrical, engrossing mystery with a fascinating setting., 19 Jun 1999

Kaze is that extreme loner--a ronin--a samurai left masterless after Japan's civil war made Ieyasu Tokugawa the triumphant ruler of Japan. In many ways, Kaze reminds me of a Knight Errant from my own country's history--a medieval knight who wandered in search of adventures--a person of a chivalrous and/or adventurous spirit.

Kaze has a prototype in American mystery fiction also. Remember the quote from Raymond Chandler? "Down these mean streets must go a man who is not himself mean." Kaze fits this description, his "mean streets" being the Tokaido Road, one of the most famous roads in Japanese history.

Kaze is a great swordsman, a terrific strategist, an honest and honorable man who is saved from stuffiness by an appealing sense of humor. I'm really in awe of this character, and of the author's amazing feat in creating such an attractive and intriguing character out of someone who goes around killing people with his sword. In this novel, an interesting and convincing distinction is made between killing and murdering. Kaze would never murder, nor would he kill anyone who didn't deserve it, but he does still manage to knock off a considerable number of bad guys.

Early in the novel, Kaze gets involved in a sword fight. I would not have thought I'd ever be compelled to read every stroke of a sword fight, but I watched the whole thing in breathless anticipation of the outcome. It starts like this: "The new attacker brought his sword down, and Kaze brought his blade up to parry the blow. The sword blades, both finely polished and shimmering silver in the murky light, came together with a tremendous clang, and Kaze was pushed back a step by the combined momentum of the running man and the force of his overhead blow."

Lovely stuff.

The year is 1603 and Kaze is continuing the quest that motivated him in Death at the crossroads --searching for the kidnapped daughter of Kaze's former master and his lady. On the way, he becomes involved in other people's problems and finds himself in great danger The reader also learns more about Kaze's past and his training as a samurai in this book, and an enthralling past it is.

I was interested to learn that a merchant in that period was considered one of the lowest of the low. There's a fascinating character named Hishigawa, a merchant who fancies himself a Samurai. A merchant, by the way, could not kill anyone and get away with it, but a Samurai could.

There's a wonderful scene under a waterfall of Kaze's first meeting with the Lady, and another most subtle and touching scene between the two that creates powerful sexual tension out of one small action on the Lady's part.

There's also an appearance by Elder Grandma, who showed up in Death at the Crossroads wearing a headband with the kanji character for revenge emblazoned upon it. Elder Grandma has attitude and she knows what to do with it! In return for information Kaze wants from her, she demands Kaze's assistance in finding out who killed her grandson, Mototane, which Kaze agrees to do. He is as surprised as I was to find out the identity of the murderer!

This novel, like its predecessor, Death at the Crossroads, is a literary novel with a mystery at its heart. It's not a traditional mystery, yet there is a whodunnit in it, and a truly amazing conclusion. It's also a beautifully written, engrossing tour de force.

I can hardly wait for book three.

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