Set in the luscious finery of the samurai court of medieval Japan, this installment in the bestselling series by Laura Joh Rowland, is filled with shocking surprises and suspense as readers are once again allowed access into the world of Sano Ichiro.In September of 1693, the Black Lotus Temple, spiritual center for hundreds of Buddhist nuns, monks, priests, and orphans, is burned to the ground leaving three dead and one orphan running for cover. Veteran samurai-dete...

A samurai is thrust into a world of secrets when a nobleman is murdered in a courtesan's bed in this mystery set in feudal Japan, from the author of Black Lotus ."The mystery is sharp and suspenseful, but, as usual, it's the beautifully re-created feudal Japan—rich in detail but never overloaded with it—that captures our imagination. This series just keeps getting better and better." — Booklis...

Every witness has a different story as a samurai struggles to save his family and his honor when his wife is found at a murder scene in this mystery set in feudal Japan."Rowland's historical detail and graceful prose enhance another solid mystery." — Kirkus ReviewsTokyo, 1698: Sano Ichiro, the samurai detective who has risen to become the shogun's second-in-command, is investigating rumors of a plot to overthrow th...

From an author with "a painter's eye for the minutiae of court life [and] a politician's ear for intrigue," a retelling of the revenge tale of the 47 Ronin ( The New York Times ).Japan, 1703. On a snowy night, forty-seven warriors murder the man at the center of the scandal that turned them from samurai into masterless ronin two years before. Clearly this was an act of revenge—but why did they wait so long? And is there an...

Laura Joh Rowland's thrilling series set in Feudal Japan is as gripping and entertaining as ever with The Shogun's Daughter.Japan, 1704. In an elegant mansion a young woman named Tsuruhime lies on her deathbed, attended by her nurse. Smallpox pustules cover her face. Incense burns, to banish the evil spirits of disease. After Tsuruhime takes her last breath, the old woman watching from the doorway says, "Who's going to tell the Shogun his daughter is dead?...

A samurai and his wife investigate the murder of a concubine at the Shogun's palace in this mystery set in feudal Japan, from the author of The Way of the Traitor —"A fascinating, well-researched, and action-filled costume adventure" ( Library Journal )."Rowland has a painter's eye for the minutiae of court life, as well as a politician's ear for intrigue, so the sleuthin...

"James Clavell meets Raymond Chandler" in this historical mystery featuring a samurai detective as he hunts down his wife's abductors in feudal Japan ( San Francisco Chronicle ).On a whim of the shogun's mother, a procession has left the sweltering heat of Edo, bound for the cooler climate of Mount Fuji. Among her traveling companions are Reiko, the beautiful wife of Sano Ichiro, the shogun's Most Honorable Investigator of...

The award-winning sixteenth Sano Ichiro mystery is "fascinating . . . there are few things as delicious as a good old-fashioned power struggle" ( Oprah.com ).In the wake of a terrifying earthquake, Sano races to solve a crime that could bring down the shogun's regime . . .Japan, 1703. A devastating earthquake has left the city of Edo in shambles—even the shogun's carefully regulated court is teetering on the brink ...

The Fire Kimono is another dazzling historical mystery set in feudal Japan from acclaimed author Laura Joh Rowland.Japan, March 1700. The strife between Sano Ichiro, the samurai detective who has risen to power in the shogun's court, and his enemies has escalated to the brink of war.When a long-buried skeleton with mysterious links to the shogun suddenly comes to light, Sano and his wife, Reiko, who defies social conventions by joining in his investi...

From "a terrific storyteller," a murder mystery set in feudal Japan featuring Detective Sano Ichiro as he hunts a killer in the imperial palace ( Chicago Tribune ).Far from the Shogun's court at Edo, Most Honorable Investigator Sano Ichiro begins the most challenging case of his career. Upon the insistence of his strong-willed and beautiful wife Reiko, Sano arrives with her at the emperor's palace to unmask the murderer—wh...

Riveting and richly imagined, with a magnificent sense of time and place, The Iris Fan is the triumphant conclusion to Laura Joh Rowland's brilliant series of thrillers set in feudal Japan.Japan, 1709. The shogun is old and ailing. Amid the ever-treacherous intrigue in the court, Sano Ichiro has been demoted from chamberlain to a lowly patrol guard. His relationship with his wife Reiko is in tatters, and a bizarre new alliance between his two enemies Yanag...

From the "compelling and lively series," a samurai detective and his sleuthing wife investigate connected murders in feudal Japan ( Dallas Morning News ).May 1695. During a horse race at Edo Castle the chief of the shogun's intelligence service, Ejima Senzaemon, drops dead as his horse gallops across the finish line—the fourth in a recent series of sudden deaths of high-ranking officials. Sano Ichiro is ordered to investig...