A Samurai Never Fears Death

A nice book. I enjoyed every chapter of this book and again 5 out of 5. I recommend this book to anyone who likes mysteries and want to learn more about Japanese culture. (it doesnt focus enterly on Japanese culture but gives you the basic defenation).

I am a retired lover of historical fiction, and this is a youth book, but I loved it nevertheless. (I confess I have also read all of the Harry Potter books.) Good writing for the youth market can be very good indeed, even if the language lacks complexity, because it needs to grab and hold a reader who is likely to lack patience. The authors' "Samurai Mysteries" are extremely authentic, and the youthful hero is easy to like. He is sufficiently complex for adult readers, and the authors' infusion of Japanese history is never preachy or artificial. This is a quick and enjoyable read, and had someone given me a book like this around age 12, I would have been immensely pleased.

In the first book the hero was a 14-year-old boy named Seikei who was born into a merchant family. He was made fun of because of his dream to become a samurai. While on a business trip with his father there was a stolen jewel. Seikei helped a famous Shogun's official named Judge Ooka solve the mystery. Because of his bravery and wit his dream came true and he was adopted by the judge. This made him a samurai. Now, two years later he travels back to Osaka where he was born and visits his brother Denzaburo and his sister Asako. Denzaburo had taken over the family business from Seikei's aging father. The business was prospering. They go to a puppet theater where a narrator was strangled to death right before they arrived. Seikei must uncover the mystery of his death. Later Seikei learns that the theater had been using a play to signal a gang of thieves, telling them what to steal for the merchants who know about their charade. Seikei is shocked to discover that his brother's business is doing so well because he is working with the gang too. Seikei follows clues to the gang's hideout but is attacked and knocked out. When he wakes up he finds himself on a boat with the gang. One of the Shogun's ships spots them and starts chasing. The gang pushes Seikei into the sea in order to escape. The Shogun's ship stops to rescue Seikei. When he gets back to shore he decides to investigate the theater further. When he gets there he hears a voice. Is it a ghost or the killer? Will Seikei survive? If you like Japan, mysteries, samurai, and suspense then you got to read A Samurai Never Fears Death. It is a one of my favorite books!