5/5 Fantasy, martial arts, elemental magic in a samurai-like society
This book has been on my to-read list for a while. As a huge fan of James Clavell’s Shogun, I was intrigued by the setting which has an asain-samurai influence, much in the same way as the ‘Daughter of the Empire’ series by Raymond E Feist and Janny Wurts, although this tale is very different and unique from those two offerings.
The Sword of Kaigen is figurative rather than literal. It is no weapon forged of mithril or some other magical metal but a title given to the people of the Kusanagi Peninsula, powerful warriors and defenders who have long protected the Kaiganese Empire. Our tale revolves around the legendary Matsuda family, one of the most powerful of the ancient clans of Kusanagi.
The story is of Mamoru, a 14-year-old boy, who is committed to mastering his family’s fighting techniques and his mother, Misaki, a powerful Theonite (Elementalist) who put aside her youthful passion along with her sword when she married into the family. It is a tale of discovery but both Mamoru and Misaki are on very different journeys. Mamoru wants to be the best fighter he can be and to master the family’s special technique the ‘Whispering Blade’ a blade made of ice so pure it is only a molecule thick and can cut through anything. Misaki yearns for her lost youth and the promise it once held whilst struggling in a loveless marriage. But both their worlds are about to change when an outsider family moves to their remote mountainside. Outsiders who challenge Mamoru’s understanding of the world, the emperor they serve and the enemies they face.
Okay, that is all your getting as a synopsis, if you aren’t intrigued already you should be. This book is wonderfully written and engagingly told from Mamoru and Misaki’s perspective. The world was beautifully rendered in my imagination, an isolated people living in the old ways and observing the ancient customs of their people clashing against the modern technology and society of the rest of the empire and larger world (which we do not see much of).
The Elementalist powers of the Theonites are vividly imagined and brought to life. The story told is both elegant and profound, but equally tragic and at times brutal and sad. It put me through a wringer of emotions and I love that.
There is a question or a few that I had, about the clash of ancient traditions and modern technology. The ultimate destructive power of modern weapons versus swords, fighting techniques and elemental powers seemed out of camber to me. That line from The Untouchables seems particularly apt ‘Don’t bring a knife to a gunfight’. Also, the political motivations of the emperor seem cloudy and ill-considered and illogical not that we get to examine the reasoning in anything other than a peripheral way. These though are small things that bugged me and it is not what carries this story which is the beautifully written characters and wonderfully descriptive writing of Mamoru and Misaki’s story.
Uplifting, at times tragic, this is a tale of discovery. Of lost love found. Of honour and tradition. It is a story which I thoroughly enjoyed from the first page to the last. If this all sounds good to you then why not give it a go? And remember, if you read a book please leave a rating or even a review, especially if you enjoyed it. It is the best thank you you can give an author for all their hard work and it can uplift and make a writer’s day which is usually pretty thankless.
A D Green 