Christine W. (desertglimmer) reviewed on 7/19/2018 + 6 more book reviews

Helpful Score: 1

I. J. Parker writes beautiful but compact prose, this was a fast and fascinating read. The mystery was engaging but not frustrating, though I have suspicions several threads seemingly tied up will unravel and get more complicated in the sequel. I really enjoyed the interactions between Akitada and Seimei and Tora, they make a funny, sometimes grumpy team. Akitada is a very driven and relatable protagonist, though it takes a bit of time to settle in his skin and understand him.

My only quibbles were: 1) how some of the female characters were handled. (Parker presents most of the sexism deftly and bluntly, except for a judgment seemingly shared by author and main character alike that conventionally attractive women are either soft angels or vicious snakes.) That aside, I adored both of the sisters and how they interacted with each other and Akitada's squad and wished they'd get their own book, too.

2) Historical context and culture were glimpses at best. We got the clothes and the temples and stuff, but I felt like I learned more about ancient Japanese culture from Konoha in the Naruto anime than I did from Kazusa.

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