Books I, II: 7.25

The first 15% of pages are a bit slow, with Blackthorne kinda just bouncing between the pit and his boat, but once he makes it to Osaka the first time, things pickup. We get a mini trial scene with him and Toranaga, and some further exposition about the Japanese internal power struggle between the former and Ishido who are vying for power in the council of regents. Additionally, more fascinating power struggles between Catholics and Protestants, and some entertaining violence.

The willingness of all the Samurai to kill honor themselves at a moments notice for their Daimyos is sick.

Translation errors and Blackthorne just being a prisoner getting traded around not knowing wtf is being said around him (only sometimes translated for the readers benefit from the POV of a Japanese speaker) is immersive.

So far it's just been cultural exchange though, and is just very long. It's not boring (anymore), but the first chunk was a slog for sure.

It's also funny that bc Blackthorne is like a foot taller than everyone else he can quite literally big dick (he's better endowed than his peers) all of these samurai with crude implements.

Books III, IV: 8.75

Heating up for sure. The conspiracy, war-posturing, and gravitas of the characters' movement are starting to be realized. Huge payoffs for the depth of the book which abridges very little if you couldn't tell by the page count.

The story is very rich, the language and cultural intersections in particular is probably (obviously) the selling point which is also pretty obvious from the premise garnered in the first few chapters, but it continues to be entertaining enough to turn pages.

It's interesting that Blackthorne is apparently such an adept pilot that he –shipless and crewless– poses such a threat to the Portuguese/Catholic interests which bend over backwards to distance him from the Erasmus and the possibility of training a crew. Presumably he would need a big crew to pilot a ship large enough to threaten the Black Ship, which seems like a "team effort," but Blackthorne's reputation precedes him in this manner, and apparently he's a force to be reckoned with. Foreshadowing hopefully??

Blackthorn wondering, how can I live with this shame is the most samurai response to his understanding of the Gardiner voluntarily being put to death for the good of the community. Very weird that they all agreed to conspire.

Mariko's husband Buntaro is quite the interesting character. Sounds like he sent her away to protect her and then when she came back, she detested him and her allure ruined all other women for him, but she will not sleep with him and she has tainted his son with her corruption and wants to die, but he won't let her.

Book V: 8

This is what we've been waiting for, Anjin to snap, people to die, conspiracies to come to fruition. Some of the most badass scenes happen, but still less than what I'd expect from a work of pure fiction.

Mariko's gesture to betray Blackthorne out of her love for him which supersedes even her loyalty to Japan/Toronaga. The loyalty of her guards.

Overarching pain point with the book is that some sequences are painstakingly burdened (?) by the dialogue which oftentimes requires translation, no matter how seemingly inconsequential. Granted, this is how you breathe life into the dramatized characters within the constraints of a work of historical fiction, but it's not quite good enough to warrant recommendation.

Ninja invasion sequence is crazy cool, more parallels between players/falcons/chess pieces. Toronaga is a boss-ass character.

Anjin commands respect when he expects death (nothing to lose) rather than when he imposes himself to gain victory. This is Samurai

Book VI: 7.25

feels rushed by comparison to the rest of the book. We can see how things will unfold, but all of book three exists for the story to end before the war. Again, despite the content of the book, the nature is the "friends we made along the way." A definitive period piece, rather than a gratuitous work of commercial fiction.

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