Mariko Oshiro is the only female detective in the Tokyo police force something that disgusts her new Lieutenant, but she is determined to prove herself she knows she is as good, better really, then the other cops on the department. She certainly doesn’t deserve to be taken off a big case involving a possible cocaine shipment and given a rubbish dead end one in its stead. But she gets stuck with a case involving the theft of a supposedly magicical sword and with its unusual owner the mysterious and elderly Yasuo Yamada. But murders of drug pushers start showing up on the street, murdered by a sword and somehow the big drugs case and her attempted robbery all seem to link up, it almost seems like destiny.What a fascinating book this was! Magic swords and samurai set alongside drugs and modern Tokyo and all blending in together to produce an engrossing and original story.
This is one of the few books that I have read that wasn’t set either in the UK, America, or a fantasy Westernised world, this made the setting new and exciting for me but the huge change in culture could have become very confusing if it wasn’t for the Mariko, she was an essential bridge between me and Japan. Mariko herself was a good lead character, she had the tough female bit going on, not that much different from other heroines I have read about, but likeable none the less.
What I found most enjoyable about this book was the way it switched from the past to the future, mapping the history of the swords and showing the havoc the have wreaked through out time to the unwary. It really added something epic and most definitely magical to the book.
An interesting and absorbing read, I really recommend it and can’t wait to see what happens next in this series.
*ARC provided by publisher
Thanks for the review! I love the sound of this book