The Dragon King's Palace

Rating:
Summary: fast paced and exciting -- an enjoyable read
Review: Another exciting and fast paced Sano Ichiro mystery novel! And truthfully speaking, if you're looking for a good historical mystery novel that will keep you at the edge of your seat, you need not look any further than this latest Sano Ichiro installment, "The Dragon King's Palace."

It's June of 1694, and the city of Edo seems to be suffering from the effects of a particularly bad heat wave. In order to escape this stiflingly bad weather, Lady Keisho-in, shogun Tokugawa Tsunayoshi (Japan's supreme military leader)'s mother has decided to mount a 'small' trip to Mount Fuji. And she's decided that Reiko (the wife of Sano Ichiro who also happens to be the shogun's Most Honourable Investigator of Events, Situations and People), Reiko's heavily pregnant good friend, Midori (who is also the wife of Sano's most trusted aide, Hirata), and Lady Yanagisawa (the wife of Chamberlain Yanagiswa, the shogun's second-in-command and Sano's arch enemy) should accompany her on this trip. But en route to Mount Fuji, the party is attacked; the ladies are kidnapped and Lady Keisho-in's entire entourage of servants and guards slaughtered. Who could have mounted such an outrageous attack, and why? Was it some power hungry daimyo trying to show just how weak and powerless the shogun actually is? Or could it be some enemy of the Chamberlain's retaliating for some past wrong? Or could it be as Sano fears, that the Black Lotus sect trying to seek revenge on Sano for having caused the downfall of their once powerful and wealthy sect? Thrown together because of circumstances, Sano and the Chamberlain must put their past distrust and dislike of each other behind them so that they can discover who actually is responsible for the kidnapping as well as mount a rescue of the ladies before it's too late. But even as the two men face the danger and treachery around them, neither is quite ready for the strange and amazing twists that this case will take, or the personal cost that each will suffer...

I finished "The Dragon King's Palace" in one sitting. Fortunately, I had the day off -- a day I had planned to do a lot of weeding! Instead of which I found that I had spent the entire afternoon breathlessly turning the pages, reading along as Sano tried to discover who was behind this outrageous kidnapping and hoping that Reiko did not come up a cropper! What an exciting and suspenseful read this was. Laura Joh Rowland has written a cleverly plotted book that is full of wonderful and rich detail, and that fits in (comfortably) with the past books in this series. I particularly liked that this book really focused on the courage, intelligence and resourcefulness of Reiko. The novel unfolded smoothly, seamlessly and at an incredibly swift pace. All in all, a really good installment in the Sano Ichiro mystery series, and one not to be missed.

Rating:
Summary: Reiko increasingly comes to the forefront
Review: I love the Sano Ichiro series. If you read the books in chronological order (which I highly recommend), you see Laura Joh Rowland increasingly make Reiko her primary character and reduce in role of Sano. Is this a good or bad thing? I guess that depends on your love of the Sano character. I do adore Sano and I've missed the concentration on him in the last couple of novels. By writing Reiko to be a co-primary character, Rowland allows herself a potentially broader range of plot lines. I'm enjoying the mix of male and female threads in the books. I also enjoy the exploration of Reiko and Sano's unusual relationship and a look at how the male and female worlds in medieval Japan interacted.

In this book, Reiko plays a central role and draws heavily on the martial arts training her father provided her. If you don't care for this aspect of the series, you may not like this novel. If you enjoy the spotlight on the Reiko character, you'll love this book.

Rating:
Summary: Reiko increasingly comes to the forefront
Review: I love the Sano Ichiro series. If you read the books in chronological order (which I highly recommend), you see Laura Joh Rowland increasingly make Reiko her primary character and reduce in role of Sano. Is this a good or bad thing? I guess that depends on your love of the Sano character. I do adore Sano and I've missed the concentration on him in the last couple of novels. By writing Reiko to be a co-primary character, Rowland allows herself a potentially broader range of plot lines. I'm enjoying the mix of male and female threads in the books. I also enjoy the exploration of Reiko and Sano's unusual relationship and a look at how the male and female worlds in medieval Japan interacted.

In this book, Reiko plays a central role and draws heavily on the martial arts training her father provided her. If you don't care for this aspect of the series, you may not like this novel. If you enjoy the spotlight on the Reiko character, you'll love this book.

Rating:
Summary: Xena does Japan
Review: In 1682 (actually the Genroku Period Year 7) Lady Keisho-in, mother of the shogun, decides to take a trip. The imperial mother demands Reiko (the wife of Sano the samurai chief investigator), the pregnant Midori (the spouse of Sano's assistant Hirata) and Lady Yanagisawa (the wife of the second-in-command Chamberlain Yanagisawa) accompany her from Edo to Mount Fuji. None of the three invitees want to go, but each feels they must as loyalty demands so. The Dragon King attacks their retinue resulting in deaths of the protectors and the four females incarcerated at a ravaged island palace.

The Dragon King sends a note to the Shogun demanding the execution of Police Commissioner Hoshina if he wants the return of his mother. The shogun assigns Yanagisawa and Sano to work the kidnapping case, but anyone with ambition sees an opportunity to gain favor by rescuing Lady Keisho. Yanagisawa manipulates the situation to his own benefit, as he prefers men to his wife. The clock ticks closer to a demented individual killing harmless women even Midori who just gave birth in captivity.

Though THE DRAGON KING'S PALACE is typical of a historical abduction mystery, the locale and the characters make this novel unique and wonderful. The story line remains fresh though this is Sano's eighth tale because of the insightful look at an era when palace intrigue rivaled Machiavelli and the samurai code rules. Through the actions, reactions, and thoughts of a deep cast, readers obtain a delightful historical investigative tale whose enchanting center is seventeenth century Japan.

Harriet Klausner

Rating:
Summary: enchanting seventeenth century Japanese investigative tale
Review: In 1682 (actually the Genroku Period Year 7) Lady Keisho-in, mother of the shogun, decides to take a trip. The imperial mother demands Reiko (the wife of Sano the samurai chief investigator), the pregnant Midori (the spouse of Sano's assistant Hirata) and Lady Yanagisawa (the wife of the second-in-command Chamberlain Yanagisawa) accompany her from Edo to Mount Fuji. None of the three invitees want to go, but each feels they must as loyalty demands so. The Dragon King attacks their retinue resulting in deaths of the protectors and the four females incarcerated at a ravaged island palace.

The Dragon King sends a note to the Shogun demanding the execution of Police Commissioner Hoshina if he wants the return of his mother. The shogun assigns Yanagisawa and Sano to work the kidnapping case, but anyone with ambition sees an opportunity to gain favor by rescuing Lady Keisho. Yanagisawa manipulates the situation to his own benefit, as he prefers men to his wife. The clock ticks closer to a demented individual killing harmless women even Midori who just gave birth in captivity.

Though THE DRAGON KING'S PALACE is typical of a historical abduction mystery, the locale and the characters make this novel unique and wonderful. The story line remains fresh though this is Sano's eighth tale because of the insightful look at an era when palace intrigue rivaled Machiavelli and the samurai code rules. Through the actions, reactions, and thoughts of a deep cast, readers obtain a delightful historical investigative tale whose enchanting center is seventeenth century Japan.

Harriet Klausner

Rating:
Summary: The first disappointment in the series
Review: This book has the usual political intrigue and sensual moments readers have come to expect from Laura Joh Rowland's novels. However, I came away feeling less than satisfied with this tale and eager to read the next novel in her series. It seemed as if maybe this book is a "bridge" - it wasn't so much a story in itself but was there to set up for future events. I won't spoil it for anyone who hasn't read the book, but for anyone who is following the series, there should be a MAJOR shake-up of political power in the next book. That interests me more than what happened in this book.

Rating:
Summary: Not bad, but...
Review: This book has the usual political intrigue and sensual moments readers have come to expect from Laura Joh Rowland's novels. However, I came away feeling less than satisfied with this tale and eager to read the next novel in her series. It seemed as if maybe this book is a "bridge" - it wasn't so much a story in itself but was there to set up for future events. I won't spoil it for anyone who hasn't read the book, but for anyone who is following the series, there should be a MAJOR shake-up of political power in the next book. That interests me more than what happened in this book.

Rating:
Summary: The first disappointment in the series
Review: This latest in the series is a bummer, with a preposterous plot and some preposterous actions by some of the main characters, including the Shogun and the chamberlain's wife. Hope that the author gets back on track with her next one!

Rating:
Summary: Xena does Japan
Review: Well, this is an ill conceived book. I have to admit, I read only the first 50 pages or so, then skimmed it to see how it ended. Predictably. I love Ms. Rowland's attention to detail and portrayal of life in 17th century Japan, but I have problems accepting characters acting totally out of the cultural norm of the times. The plot itself is silly and the character Reiko increasingly has become a contemptorary action figure with Nancy Drew overtones. If I really enjoyed Xena, I'd watch reruns on TV.