Amazon.com: The Snow Empress: A Thriller (Sano Ichiro Novels): Laura Joh Rowland: Books

From Publishers Weekly
Starred Review. Demonstrating an impressive level of sustained excellence, Rowland's mysteries set in 17th-century Japan form one of the best recent series in the genre. The 12th episode (after 2006's Red Chrysanthemum) delves deeper into the politics of an empire ruled by a figurehead as the background for a compelling and thrilling whodunit. Rowland continues to conjure up new hurdles for her sleuth, Sano Ichiro, recently elevated to the position of chamberlain. His power and integrity inevitably offend more venal politicians, one of whom arranges the abduction of Sano's young son, Masahiro. Sano's quest for the kidnappers coincides with a mission to the remote northern city of Ezogashima, where an insane local ruler is holding the entire community hostage as he searches for the murderer of his mistress, an exotic foreigner known as the Snow Empress. Compelling pacing and well-rounded characters enhance the intriguing plot and will draw in new readers as well as longtime fans. (Nov.)
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Review

“Demonstrating an impressive level of sustained excellence, Rowland’s mysteries set in 17th-century Japan form one of the best recent series in the genre…. Compelling pacing and well-rounded characters enhance the intriguing plot and will draw in new readers as well as longtime fans.”
---Publishers Weekly (starred) on The Snow Empress, chosen as one of the “Best Books of 2007”

"[Rowland's] Japan is a mix of Kabuki theater-like stylized formality, palace intrigue, and physical action that would do a martial arts movie proud." ---The Times-Picayune (New Orleans)

"Abundant historical color and an elegant, controlled style..." ---Kirkus Reviews

“The murder mystery is intricately structured, with many suspects having a variety of motives. Engaging but not especially taxing, The Snow Empress would make a nice book to take along on your next long plane trip.” ---The Daily Yomuiri Online

“Each [book] seems to be better than the last one.” ---Reviewingtheevidence.com

“Consistently fascinating and seductive, The Snow Empress is another top-notch mystery....Rich in historical and cultural details, the intricately designed plot and compelling characterizations will entertain readers who enjoy unusual murder mysteries with exotic settings and provocative premises.”
---Bookloons.com

"Rowland has a painter's eye for the minutiae of court life, as well as a politican's ear for intrigue."
---The New York Times Book Review

"Sano may carry a sword and wear a kimono, but you'll immediately recognize him as an ancestor of Philip Marlowe or Sam Spade." ---The Denver Post

"Blending political intrigue and barbed social commentary, Red Chrysanthemum is a crisply lurid Rashomon mystery." ---Entertainment Weekly

"A careful, beautiful portrayal of a dangerous time in Japanese history...a compelling and lively series."
---The Dallas Morning News

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

Hardcover: 304 pages
Publisher: Minotaur Books (October 30, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 031236542X
ISBN-13: 978-0312365424
Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1.3 inches
Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)

Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (14 customer reviews)

Amazon.com Sales Rank: #313,866 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)
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Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
gold merchant

Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Lord Matsumae, Lady Matsumae, Lord Matsudaira, Chieftain Awetok, Chamberlain Sano, Fukuyama City, Deer Antlers, Captain Okimoto, Lord Matsumac, Lady Smart, Detective Marume, Lady Reiko, Ainu Mosir, Lady Pansy, Fukuyama Castle, Lady Soldier, Fukuvama City, Ladv Matsumae, Edo Castle, Lady Matsumac, Detective Fukida, Fukuvama Castle, The Empress of Snow Country, Honorable Chamberlain

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Customer Reviews

14 Reviews

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3.4 out of 5 stars (14 customer reviews)

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16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars "The truth has many faces.", November 7, 2007

By	E. Bukowsky "booklover10" (NY United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)

The jacket design of Laura Joh Rowland's "The Snow Empress" features a stunning illustration of a bleeding, kimono-clad woman standing in front of a ghostly temple. This haunting image attracts the eye with its beauty and mystery. It is 1699 and in Edo, Japan, Chamberlain Sano Ichiro (the samurai detective) and his wife Reiko are sick with worry when their eight-year-old son Masahiro suddenly disappears. Several months pass. Sano learns that his political rival, Lord Matsudaira, has abducted Masahiro, who is being held prisoner in Ezogashima, a freezing and forbidding island in the north. Reiko leaves her baby girl in the care of a trusted friend and accompanies her husband on a voyage to rescue their beloved Masahiro. When they reach their destination, their ship runs aground in a blizzard. Soon they are confronted by a primitive tribe of barbarians, the Ezo, who warn them, "For your own good, go back where you came from."

Ezogashima is a strange and unsettling place where the normal rules of life do not apply. Lord Matsumae, who is sworn to obey the Tokugawa regime and its shogun, has been governing the southwest corner of this region for the past twenty years. However, ever since his beloved mistress, the bewitching Tekare, was murdered, her spirit has possessed him and he has gradually lapsed into insanity. He will not eat, bathe, or attend to affairs of state until the murderer is found and brought to justice. Although Sano has come to this forsaken outpost solely to find his son, out of necessity he strikes a deal with Matsumae. Sano promises to find out who killed Tekare if Matsumae will guarantee him and his entourage safe passage and will also agree to stop exploiting and oppressing the Ezo. Although Sano and Reiko care only about fate of their son, they make a sincere effort to find Tekare's killer. The pair repeatedly find themselves in danger as they interview anyone who might have knowledge of Masahiro's whereabouts or the circumstances surrounding Tekare's slaying. As in most thillers, the truth is an elusive commodity, since almost everyone lies or bends the truth for his or her own purposes.

I have long been a fan of Laura Joh Rowland because her books have been an entertaining and informative blend of history, romance, intrigue, martial arts adventure, and mystery. However, "The Snow Empress" is a rare misstep for this talented author. The book's plot is far-fetched and disjointed; the characters are one-dimensional; the dialogue is wooden and the characters speak in a vernacular that sounds as if they hail from Brooklyn rather than Japan. The writing is overheated and melodramatic ("She was a human arrow, burning flames at both ends, fired toward a single purpose" is one of many strained metaphors). In addition, Rowland has an annoying habit of overusing exclamation points. "You stay out of this!" "Then prove it!" and "Kill him!" are three examples of many intense and irritating exchanges. As the story progresses, the events become more and more outlandish until, mercifully, Rowland reaches her improbable conclusion. The whole enterprise feels rushed as if the author had been writing on a tight deadline. It is possible that removing the principal characters from Edo, which is Rowland's comfort zone, was a mistake. Even a character as appealing as Hirata, Sano's faithful retainer who is trying to master the mystical martial arts, has little to do here and plays only a bit part in the proceedings. All in all, "The Snow Empress" fails to deliver the excitement, suspense, and atmosphere that Rowland's loyal followers have come to expect.

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8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not Out of the Water Yet, January 17, 2008

By	Hikari (Lima, OH USA) - See all my reviews

In my review of Rowland's last effort, last year's "Red Chrysanthemum", I wondered if this series hadn't jumped the shark, and hoped that the author could rectify her mistakes in the next book. "The Snow Empress" goes a small way toward redeeming her last installment, but I still feel like the shark has a grip on a limb or two. Rowland consistently gets starred reviews, but it seems to me, like Patricia Cornwell, that she is sliding along on her well-deserved earlier reputation and not on current efforts. Later Sano books have suffered from an overambitous scope, and the author indulges that tendency wildly here, dispatching Sano, Reiko, and an entourage to Hokkaido (called Ezogashima in the Edo period), where they are promptly shipwrecked in the briefest, most prefunctory shipwreck in literary history. Rowland writes masterful scenes of court intrigue, but since that's what she's really interested in, she has tendency to rush through her big action sequences. I submit that a fatal shipwreck in icy waters off Hokkaido requires more than half a page to adequately describe, but that's all she gives us, as if any reasonable reader would be satisfied. Her protaganists live, so the great loss of life suffered by all the crew members seems immaterial to her. Also, the author seems to have completely forgotten that she set the evil former Chamberlain Yanigisawa on the loose, having him escape from his island of exile in the last book in a likewise breathless chapter, because I'm nearly done and there's been no mention of him so far.

As Sano has risen from humble police detective to Sosokan-sama and now, Chamberlain, the scope of each book has gotten more and more outrageous, to the point where the author is no longer able to control, or develop all the strands of plot she's got going. I miss the simpler days back when Sano was investigating murders in Edo with his faithful retainer, Hirata. By far the relationship that has suffered the most by Sano's rise through the ranks is that between him and Hirata. Hirata is no more than another appendage of the plot these days, only called upon when his 'dim-mak' training is useful for getting his old friend out of a scrape. Pitiful. This book does succeed in being a bit more interesting than its predecessor due to its focus on the native culture of the Ainu of remote Hokkaido, who were the indigenous people displaced and subjugated by the Japanese. Though Rowland isn't nearly as confident in this milieu as she is navigating Edo society, she deserves kudos for looking for a fresh take on a series that has gotten stale. Now that Sano is Chamberlain, the forward momentum is pretty well stalled out, and I have to still ask: where can she take him from here? As much as I would hate to say goodbye to Sano and his family, perhaps the noblest thing to do would be to wrap this series up with a definitive end. I'm still waiting for any indication that she's got enough ideas to continue this series far into the future. The covers are still fantastic, but the last two installments have not been up to the quality of the earlier novels. If you are are first-time reader of this series, start at the beginning with "Shinju" and "Bushido"--you will see why the earlier books are superior.

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6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Rowland keeps up her excellent storytelling, December 14, 2007

By	armchairinterviews.com (Minnesota) - See all my reviews

Reviewed by Shawn Remfrey

This book took me completely by surprise. After reading a few other reviews on this book, I really wasn't looking forward to it. They made it sound like the book was entirely about politics and the plot summaries were always confusing. I found it to be a great story that left me wanting more. I plan to search for the rest of the this series, both before and after this book.

Set in feudal Japan, it all begins when a young boy, Masahiro, is kidnapped. His parents of course are crazy with worry. Sano, Masahiro's father, works for the shogun. When he is told to go to a distant land to take care of a political problem, he also finds that his son is being held captive there. Both he and his wife, Reiko, journey toward their son.

Meanwhile the place they are heading towards is having severe problems of its own. The ruler of the land has gone completely mad

over the murder of his mistress. He is holding both his own people and the natives of the land captive in hopes of finding her true killer. Through torture and threats, everyone is frightened.

Once Sano and Reiko land, they find things chaotic and are quickly taken captive of the mad ruler, Lord Matsumae. They strike a deal that Sano will find the true killer of Lord Matsumae's mistress in return for their lives and freedom. Thus begins their long journey to find their son and solve a mystery no one else can solve.

The author Laura Joh Rowland is the granddaughter of Chinese and Korean immigrants. She grew up in Michigan where she graduated with a B.S. in microbiology and a Master of Public Health at Michigan State. She resides in New Orleans. She has worked as a chemist, microbiologist, sanitary inspector and quality engineer.

Armchair Interviews says: The Snow Empress is the 12th book Rowland has written in the San Ichiro series.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Still Fascinating
Ms. Rowland's latest Sano Ichiro story is as good as the first, and that is quite a compliment! The characters are fully realized, the settings and period details authentic, and... Read more

Published 2 months ago by NoseInBook

4.0 out of 5 stars Progress, or not?
This book could have been another great update for Sano Ichiro but the author has gone a bit far into the "spirit world" for my tastes. Ms. Read more

Published 5 months ago by Philip D. Griggs

4.0 out of 5 stars Japanese Detective Story
An interesting historic novel set in Hokaido dealing with the Ainu in the Tokugawa period of japanese history. Sano Ichiro at his best.

Published 5 months ago by Galen M. Ozawa

5.0 out of 5 stars Historical Fiction
Ms. Rowland writes a very interesting series of Japan in the late 1600's. I am looking forward to the next book.

Published 7 months ago by Cynthia H. Grossman

3.0 out of 5 stars Not bad...
17thC Japan. Chamberlain Sano Ichiro's eight-year-old son has been kidnapped. A political enemy maneuvers the Shogun to get Sano out of the way by having him sent to Ezogashima... Read more

Published 14 months ago by A. Lee

2.0 out of 5 stars you could skip this one
I read every book featuring Sano Ichiro. This one is the worst. Sano and Reiko's relationship was boring me from the beginning to the end, the weird couple. Read more

Published 14 months ago by Hannah M Smiley

2.0 out of 5 stars Boring and One Dimensional
I have not read any of the other Sano Ichiro novels, but found this one awful. The plot was boring and slow and the characters one dimensional. Read more

Published 15 months ago by Anne B. Duggan

5.0 out of 5 stars Great read!
Make sure you have no other plans when you get this book-totally great and you won't want it to end. One of the best!

Published 17 months ago by J. Mc Campbell

3.0 out of 5 stars Depressing.
Let me start out this review by emphasizing that I have been a longtime fan of Laura Joh Rowland's Sano Ichiro series. Read more

Published 18 months ago by J. Healy

1.0 out of 5 stars A Disappointment
Laura Joh Rowland's latest novel in her Sano Ichiro series is the worst one yet, and one of the worst books I have ever read, period. Read more

Published 18 months ago by Cat

› See all 14 customer reviews...

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