Not to mention the fact that when I read the first book I was still a teenager and since then I have read many books. I think at least fifteen years have passed. I read the first book in this series years ago. However, even in the confines of the book, it's at odds with WWII references and the sins of the Japanese fathers chosing the dark side of the force in those critical times when all those centuries of Zen and 'culture' should have helped them make better choices, but didn't. My western mind says it's all bullshit, of course, but what do I know. If there's a thing I'd change, it's the constant cliche comparisons between 'western mind this', 'eastern mind that', where said former mind is all mathematically rational, dry, inpatient, material, practically uncultured, and eastern mind is one with nature, zen, enlightened to the point of not giving fresh sushi about whether it will live or die, because, you know life and death are two faces of the same thing, which is unity of it all. You don't have to understand any single detail, but you will grasp complete picture perfectly when it's done.Īll in all, very satisfying, enjoyable thriller with martial arts theme in the style of the 80's. In a strange way, something like the TV show Billions. but I think I wouldn't be able to push through if I had to sit with it, pausing every two sentences in hopeless attempt to connect the dots.īecause this is one of those books that become clear on their own - eventually - if you give them benefit of the doubt. Stilted, unnatural narration by the computer engine (I hadn't been able to obtain this narrated by human narrator). But you end up with satisfying,Ĭomprehensive understanding of the characters and their reason d'etre. You head is spinning, lines and pages pass until you connect who it even is you're reading about. Numerous characters, their lives 'before' and 'now'.

I can't imagine this book being any different. Epic to the point of being too much, and still.

Eric van lustbader the miko