From Publishers Weekly
Brutal murders linked to an ancient betrayal send late 17th-century Tokyo into a panic. They also spell big trouble for the Shogun's special investigator, Sano Ichiro, in this sequel to Rowland's well-received first novel, Shinju. The killings are made known when the severed heads of the victims are put on public display, in the manner of an ancient custom known as bundori, or war trophy. The victims are descendants of warriors who, more than a century earlier, were involved in the murder of a powerful warlord. As the killings continue, Sano, though hampered in his investigation by his devotion to the warrior-code of bushido and its precepts of silent obedience and service, suspects three of the most powerful men in the Shogunate, including Chamberlain Yanagisawa. Also complicating Sano's quest for the truth is a female ninja in Yanagisawa's power; aiding it are an eager young officer in the Tokyo police and a quirky old morgue attendant. Sano's allegiance to bushido makes him an unexpectedly passive hero, undermining the author's apparent attempt to wed Japanese philosophy to Western mystery-thriller conventions. But the novel reads smoothly and positively smokes with historical atmospherics. Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Library Journal
Part historical novel, part detective story, and part romance, Rowland's sequel to Shinju (LJ, 8/94) features, once again, the samurai detective Sano Ichiro, working for the shogun of the city of Edo in Tokugawa-era Japan. Several questionable plot devices effectively remove the novel from the detective genre, but the story is well constructed and compulsively readable. Sano must track down, virtually single-handedly, a serial killer who is at work in the region and whose motivation is complex, related to events of 129 years prior. The detective's job is complicated by court intrigue, increasingly so as his clues point toward suspects of influence. The richness of the historical detail adds enormously to the novel, and the reader comes away with a highly visual sense of life in feudal Japan. An enjoyable light reading experience, recommended for public libraries and popular reading collections.David Dodd, Univ. of Colorado Libs., Colorado SpringsCopyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Kirkus Reviews
A second case for samurai Sano Ichir, elevated to Tokugawa Tsunayoshi's Most Honorable Investigator after his success in Shinju (1994). Someone is killing the citizens of 17th-century Edo and mounting their heads publicly as battle trophies, bundori. Sano's shogun appoints him to find the killer, but the real power behind Tsunayoshi, his Chamberlain Yanagisawa Yoshiyasu, makes it plain to Sano (though not to their common lord) that he intends to thwart the investigation at every turn, overriding the shogun's command that the Edo police assist Sano and setting Aoi, the mystic and chief shrine commander, to spy on Sano. Sano, gradually realizing that the sensual Aoi--whom he'd been counting on to pass on to him information she garnered from communicating with the souls of the four victims--is not to be trusted, is caught in an impossible situation, since the stringent code of bushido prevents him from criticizing Yanagisawa as a slur on their shogun's judgment. Acting on information supplied by his friends, chief archivist Noguchi Motoori and Edo Morgue superintendent Dr. Ito Genboku--and by the equivocal Aoi as well--Sano traces the executions to a century- old military intrigue. But what is he to do when his field of suspects is narrowed down to Edo's foremost merchant, the Captain of the Guard, a legendary (and formidably protected) concubine, and the treacherous chamberlain himself? Not as rich and resourceful as Sano's striking debut--the demands of bushido are asked to carry too much of the interest- -but Rowland still masterfully evokes the subtleties and contradictions of 17th-century Japan. -- Copyright ©1996, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.


Book Description
It is early spring, 1679, and the feudal Japanese capital, Edo, is beginning to blossom. But along its peaceful, misty streets evil lurks. With one stroke, the favored vassal of the ruling family is decapitated, his head taken for a bundori -- a war trophy.
Sano Ichiro, the shogun's Most Honorable Investigator of Events, Situations, and People, is called to find the culprit. In a city where danger and deceit lie just below the lush surface, Sano must rely on his mind, his instincts, and his noble training in Bushido -- the Way of the Warrior -- to solve this case that could bring him glory...or everlasting shame. Set against a backdrop of sumptuous castles, tawdry pleasure districts, and serene temples, and filled with unforgettable, rich characters, Bundori is breathtaking entertainment.

ANNOTATION

The sequel to the acclaimed novel Shinju again features detective Sano Ichiro as he trails a serial killer stalking feudal Japan. In 1689, an all-powerful shogun controls the state, surrounded by bitter machinations and political intrigues. When an ancient tradition suddenly and brutally reappears, Sano risks everything to bring the killer to justice.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

The year: 1689. The place: Edo, Japan's feudal capital. An all-powerful shogun controls the state, surrounded by bitter machinations and political intrigues. A young samurai and ex-policeman, Sano tries valiantly to follow Bushido - the way of the warrior - in a society whose ancient, noble ways have been all but forgotten. Suddenly, one of those ancient ways reappears: bundori, the war trophy - a severed head, nailed to a plank, offered for public display. Another bundori appears, and then another. As the citizenry panics and the shogun fears for his political life, Detective Sano must risk everything he's learned as a samurai to bring the killer to justice. Will his attempts be foiled by the villainous Chamberlain Yanagisawa? Or will he succeed through the help of the beautiful and mysterious Aoi, a mystic trained in the ninja arts? As it becomes obvious that the killer is one of three powerful men, Sano must reconcile his noble legacy with his duty to the shogun. Will trapping the murderer lead to prestige and glory for Sano ... or to his forced ritual suicide?

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

Brutal murders linked to an ancient betrayal send late 17th-century Tokyo into a panic. They also spell big trouble for the Shogun's special investigator, Sano Ichiro, in this sequel to Rowland's well-received first novel, Shinju. The killings are made known when the severed heads of the victims are put on public display, in the manner of an ancient custom known as bundori, or war trophy. The victims are descendants of warriors who, more than a century earlier, were involved in the murder of a powerful warlord. As the killings continue, Sano, though hampered in his investigation by his devotion to the warrior-code of bushido and its precepts of silent obedience and service, suspects three of the most powerful men in the Shogunate, including Chamberlain Yanagisawa. Also complicating Sano's quest for the truth is a female ninja in Yanagisawa's power; aiding it are an eager young officer in the Tokyo police and a quirky old morgue attendant. Sano's allegiance to bushido makes him an unexpectedly passive hero, undermining the author's apparent attempt to wed Japanese philosophy to Western mystery-thriller conventions. But the novel reads smoothly and positively smokes with historical atmospherics. (Mar.)

Library Journal

Part historical novel, part detective story, and part romance, Rowland's sequel to Shinju (LJ, 8/94) features, once again, the samurai detective Sano Ichiro, working for the shogun of the city of Edo in Tokugawa-era Japan. Several questionable plot devices effectively remove the novel from the detective genre, but the story is well constructed and compulsively readable. Sano must track down, virtually single-handedly, a serial killer who is at work in the region and whose motivation is complex, related to events of 129 years prior. The detective's job is complicated by court intrigue, increasingly so as his clues point toward suspects of influence. The richness of the historical detail adds enormously to the novel, and the reader comes away with a highly visual sense of life in feudal Japan. An enjoyable light reading experience, recommended for public libraries and popular reading collections.-David Dodd, Univ. of Colorado Libs., Colorado Springs

Kirkus Reviews

A second case for samurai Sano Ichir, elevated to Tokugawa Tsunayoshi's Most Honorable Investigator after his success in Shinju (1994). Someone is killing the citizens of 17th-century Edo and mounting their heads publicly as battle trophies, bundori. Sano's shogun appoints him to find the killer, but the real power behind Tsunayoshi, his Chamberlain Yanagisawa Yoshiyasu, makes it plain to Sano (though not to their common lord) that he intends to thwart the investigation at every turn, overriding the shogun's command that the Edo police assist Sano and setting Aoi, the mystic and chief shrine commander, to spy on Sano. Sano, gradually realizing that the sensual Aoi—whom he'd been counting on to pass on to him information she garnered from communicating with the souls of the four victims—is not to be trusted, is caught in an impossible situation, since the stringent code of bushido prevents him from criticizing Yanagisawa as a slur on their shogun's judgment. Acting on information supplied by his friends, chief archivist Noguchi Motoori and Edo Morgue superintendent Dr. Ito Genboku—and by the equivocal Aoi as well—Sano traces the executions to a century- old military intrigue. But what is he to do when his field of suspects is narrowed down to Edo's foremost merchant, the Captain of the Guard, a legendary (and formidably protected) concubine, and the treacherous chamberlain himself?

Not as rich and resourceful as Sano's striking debut—the demands of bushido are asked to carry too much of the interest—but Rowland still masterfully evokes the subtleties and contradictions of 17th-century Japan.