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| The Snow Empress: A Thriller (Sano Ichiro Novels) | 
 enlarge | Author: Laura Joh Rowland
Publisher: St. Martin's Minotaur
Category: Book
List Price: $24.95
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Avg. Customer Rating:  10 reviews
Sales Rank: 319578
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 304
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.1
Dimensions (in): 9.3 x 6.3 x 1.3
ISBN: 031236542X
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.54
EAN: 9780312365424
ASIN: 031236542X
Publication Date: October 30, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
Japan, 1699. On a moonlit night in Ezogashima, the northernmost island of Japan, a woman is running through the forest when an arrow zooms out of the darkness to strike her dead. Meanwhile, a world away in the city of Edo, the eight-year-old son of Sano Ichiro, the samurai detective who has risen to power and influence in the shogun’s court, vanishes during a moon-watching party.
When Sano’s political rival, Lord Matsudaira, hints that the boy may be in Ezogashima, Sano’s wife, Reiko, insists on accompanying him on the desperate journey. After an eleven-day voyage through cold and treacherous waters, they arrive at Ezogashima, only to find that Lord Matsumae, distraught at the murder of his mistress, is holding the whole province hostage until someone confesses to the crime. No one is allowed in or out of Ezogashima, and although Matsumae tells Sano his son is there, he refuses to release him.
Sano strikes a deal: He will solve the murder of Matsumae’s mistress if Lord Matsumae will free the hostages and return their son. Soon, however, he and Reiko find themselves caught up in a dangerous scheme that includes clan warfare, jealous husbands, and murderous betrayal.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 5 more reviews...
"The truth has many faces." November 7, 2007
15 out of 18 found this review helpful
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 of myriad examples of the 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.
 Rowland keeps up her excellent storytelling December 14, 2007
6 out of 9 found this review helpful
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.
Not Out of the Water Yet January 17, 2008
6 out of 7 found this review helpful
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.
excellent ate seventeenth century Japanese mystery October 31, 2007
5 out of 10 found this review helpful
In 1699 in Edo, Masahiro, the son of chamberlain Sano Ichiro and his wife Reiko, vanishes without a trace. At about the same time that his parents are aware of his abduction, Shogun Tokugawa Tsunayoshi summons Sano to the palace. There Sano's enemy Lord Matsudaira accuses him of bombing his villa. Sano believes the bombing is a distraction ploy as his odious foe probably kidnapped his child.
Tokugawa sends Sano to the faraway island of Ezogashima, where he is to help Lord Matsumae battle barbarians. Meanwhile Matsudaira confesses that Sano's son has been taken to Ezogashima also. Sano and Reiko accompanied by a small retinue rush to Ezogashima, but meet no cooperation from anyone and almost lose their heads as grieving Lord Matsumae trusts no one since his mistress was murdered; meanwhile his wife mourns the homicide of their daughter. Reiko investigates the murders allegedly committed by the SNOW EMPRESS and the whereabouts of her son while Sano struggles to get through to the apparently insane Matsumae.
Ichiro's twelfth historical mystery is an exciting thriller that once again brings to life late seventeenth century Japan. The story line is fast-paced as Sano tries to stay clam in light of his son's kidnapping and the insanity of the Lord he is supposed to help; he would like to harm Matsudaira for the abduction and remove Matsumae from office. However, his volatile wife does not care one iota about political correctness especially when Masahiro is involved. Although placing the lad on the same island that the Shogun sends the hero to makes it easier on the lead couple to work together, fans of the series will enjoy their latest escapades as the Chamberlain and his wife try to rescue their offspring and struggle with obeying their order to help the insane Lord.
Harriet Klausner
 A Disappointment January 14, 2008
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
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. I am an avid fan, and I loved every other one of her twelve Sano mysteries. "The Snow Empress," however, fell flat. The plot was contrived and boring. There were many cliches and repeated metaphors that made the book drag out. There was also a annoyingly huge error. In chapters 13-15, Sano is supposed to go off with Detective Fukida while Hirata investigates with Detective Marume. However, these two detectives keep switching places with one another, like they can teleport using their mystifing samurai powers. I am glad I did not have to pay money for this book, and I hope her next is better than this horror of a novel.
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