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danielled75's review against another edition
4.0
A MASK OF DESTRUCTION
Detective Sergeant Mariko Oshiro has been promoted to Japan’s elite Narcotics unit—and with this promotion comes a new partner, a new case, and new danger. The underboss of a powerful yakuza crime syndicate has put a price on her head, and he’ll lift the bounty only if she retrieves an ancient iron demon mask that was stolen from him in a daring raid. However, Mariko has no idea of the tumultuous past carried within the mask—or of its deadly link with the famed Inazuma blade she wields.
The secret of this mask originated hundreds of years before Mariko was born, and over time the mask’s power has evolved to bend its owner toward destruction, stopping at nothing to obtain Inazuma steel. Mariko’s fallen sensei knew much of the mask’s hypnotic power and of its mysterious link to a murderous cult. Now Mariko must use his notes to find the mask before the cult can bring Tokyo to its knees—and before the underboss decides her time is up....
Year of the Demon starts off where Daughter of the Sword left off, following Detective Sergeant Mariko Oshiro, recently being promoted to the Narcotics unit. What starts off as a typical drug raid turns out to be anything but normal. A mysterious iron demon mask is stolen from an underboss of a powerful yakuza crime syndicate.
Kamaguchi Hanzo “hires” Mariko to get the mask back with the catch, if she does he will remove the hit that was put out on her (Daughter of the Sword explains why there is a hit on her). Along with doing this search for the mask, Mariko also needs to do a search for her recently stolen sword “Glorious Victory Unsought”. Little does Mariko know that both the mask and sword have a dark history.
This book like the first one follows multiple stories at the same time. The breakdown is very easy to follow.
Heisei Era, the Year 22 (2010 CE) follows Mariko and what is going on in her part of the story.
Azuchi-Momoyama Period, the Year 21 (1588 CE) follows the story of Daigoro Okuma, the Lord of House Okuma, at this point in time he is the owner of “Glorious Victory Unsought”
Muromachi Era, the Year 148 (1484 CE) follows the story of Kaida who is an ama (traditional Japanese free diver, best known for diving for pearls) and her connection to the cult “The Divine Wind” and the iron mask.
There were a few parts of the book that felt extremely slow when it came to getting to the point of what was going on. Other than this one small snafu, I had a great time reading about the history and finding out more about Daigoro and the introduction of Kaida.
One interesting side note I did notice about the 3 main characters in their respective time lines is that each has been dealing with how to live their lives and overcome their obvious handicaps, while facing the naysayers on a daily basis.
This is a great series to check out if you are a fan of Urban Fantasy with a touch of Japanese history and the way of the Samurai.
4/5
Detective Sergeant Mariko Oshiro has been promoted to Japan’s elite Narcotics unit—and with this promotion comes a new partner, a new case, and new danger. The underboss of a powerful yakuza crime syndicate has put a price on her head, and he’ll lift the bounty only if she retrieves an ancient iron demon mask that was stolen from him in a daring raid. However, Mariko has no idea of the tumultuous past carried within the mask—or of its deadly link with the famed Inazuma blade she wields.
The secret of this mask originated hundreds of years before Mariko was born, and over time the mask’s power has evolved to bend its owner toward destruction, stopping at nothing to obtain Inazuma steel. Mariko’s fallen sensei knew much of the mask’s hypnotic power and of its mysterious link to a murderous cult. Now Mariko must use his notes to find the mask before the cult can bring Tokyo to its knees—and before the underboss decides her time is up....
Year of the Demon starts off where Daughter of the Sword left off, following Detective Sergeant Mariko Oshiro, recently being promoted to the Narcotics unit. What starts off as a typical drug raid turns out to be anything but normal. A mysterious iron demon mask is stolen from an underboss of a powerful yakuza crime syndicate.
Kamaguchi Hanzo “hires” Mariko to get the mask back with the catch, if she does he will remove the hit that was put out on her (Daughter of the Sword explains why there is a hit on her). Along with doing this search for the mask, Mariko also needs to do a search for her recently stolen sword “Glorious Victory Unsought”. Little does Mariko know that both the mask and sword have a dark history.
This book like the first one follows multiple stories at the same time. The breakdown is very easy to follow.
Heisei Era, the Year 22 (2010 CE) follows Mariko and what is going on in her part of the story.
Azuchi-Momoyama Period, the Year 21 (1588 CE) follows the story of Daigoro Okuma, the Lord of House Okuma, at this point in time he is the owner of “Glorious Victory Unsought”
Muromachi Era, the Year 148 (1484 CE) follows the story of Kaida who is an ama (traditional Japanese free diver, best known for diving for pearls) and her connection to the cult “The Divine Wind” and the iron mask.
There were a few parts of the book that felt extremely slow when it came to getting to the point of what was going on. Other than this one small snafu, I had a great time reading about the history and finding out more about Daigoro and the introduction of Kaida.
One interesting side note I did notice about the 3 main characters in their respective time lines is that each has been dealing with how to live their lives and overcome their obvious handicaps, while facing the naysayers on a daily basis.
This is a great series to check out if you are a fan of Urban Fantasy with a touch of Japanese history and the way of the Samurai.
4/5
kblincoln's review against another edition
5.0
Aww....this book is just so fun. And so cool. I'm a bit jealous. Because, you know, it's got a female cop in Japan and it's the 2nd book in the series (started out with Daughter of the Sword) and its even BETTER than the first book.
We still have Mariko the Japanese female cop in Tokyo with an ancient sword from Japanese myth trying to take down a bad guy interspersed with historic fictional narratives from prior people who owned her sword.
All the characterization bits I didn't care for so much in the first book got ironed out here. Mariko gets to have a gruff-but-caring mentor, and we get emotional fulfillment with two characters in the historical sections of the book: a lower-level crippled samurai with a huge honking sword trying to save his house from ruin the face of manipulation by the lover of Toyotomi Hideyoshi (one of the 3 unifiers of Japan) and a pearl-diving crippled girl (hmm...methinks I see a theme here as Mariko, our modern time protagonist, also is crippled with a missing finger)trying desperately to escape the prison of her small town on the outskirts of Japan.
And you get very cool and authentic-sounding cop-talk. Cool political strategizing from Daigoro in the historical section, lots of ethical meditations on duty vs. the right path and how far people are willing to go to protect others or get what they want.
But there's also these unexpected and unlooked for bits of beauty and truth:
On Mariko's feelings about trying to be a female cop in a society still bound by gender-separation mentality: "It was the years of perfectionism that did it, the fear of her male counterparts seeing her as a girl instead of a policewoman. That wasn't a big concern with Han, but still, even the little failures burned, lingering, like droplets of hot oil spat from a frying pan."
And on Mariko's aversion to hospitals, a little truth about cancer that Bein snuck in there (I'm a cancer survivor): "He'd been weak for a long time by then, long enough that the daily fear of death had subsided. It was disturbing how quickly a family could return to business as usual even when one of their number lay dying."
And on Daigoro's lieutenant's bald admission of why he followed Daigoro into danger because of Daigoro's adherence to samurai code and duty: "He could give up being a samurai. Put down the burden of his father's sword. Make an obsequious and public apology. Cut off his topknot and go home unmolested. Comfort his mother. Share Akiko's bed. Be there for the birth of his child. He could have everything he wanted, and all he had to do was betray his code. "I can't," he said, near tears. "I can't give up duty. I don't know how."
"That is why I follow you."
So this review is already too long and I haven't even go to the cool ninja-takes-over-small-fishing-village part with Kaida the pearl diver and her fierce desperation not to be limited by her village.
So I'll just briefly mention that most of the main characters at some point meditate on the ethical choices of what they're doing in a self-conscious way that betrays Bein's background as a professor. Some might find that dry, but I liked it.
The only place that made me a bit conscious of the author were a few places where he had male, Japanese characters (Mariko gets a pass because she grew up in the USA) using nicknames and/or metaphors that I thought could have been a little bit more Japanized. For instance: "...and we know there's a new amphetamine on the street called Daishi that's selling like pointy ears at a star trek convention" could have been a bit more "flavored" with the setting by having something like "pink wigs at a cosplay convention" or "furry ears at a Ghibli convention" or what-have-you.
But hey, minor quibble. The rest of the book is well worth your time. Especially if you like historical fiction. ninjas, samurai, or police procedural.
This Book's Snack Rating: Garlic Parmesan Kettle Chips for the solid crunch of police procedure interwoven with the creamy goodness of historical sword-wielding samurai and pearl-divers experiencing moral conundrums
We still have Mariko the Japanese female cop in Tokyo with an ancient sword from Japanese myth trying to take down a bad guy interspersed with historic fictional narratives from prior people who owned her sword.
All the characterization bits I didn't care for so much in the first book got ironed out here. Mariko gets to have a gruff-but-caring mentor, and we get emotional fulfillment with two characters in the historical sections of the book: a lower-level crippled samurai with a huge honking sword trying to save his house from ruin the face of manipulation by the lover of Toyotomi Hideyoshi (one of the 3 unifiers of Japan) and a pearl-diving crippled girl (hmm...methinks I see a theme here as Mariko, our modern time protagonist, also is crippled with a missing finger)trying desperately to escape the prison of her small town on the outskirts of Japan.
And you get very cool and authentic-sounding cop-talk. Cool political strategizing from Daigoro in the historical section, lots of ethical meditations on duty vs. the right path and how far people are willing to go to protect others or get what they want.
But there's also these unexpected and unlooked for bits of beauty and truth:
On Mariko's feelings about trying to be a female cop in a society still bound by gender-separation mentality: "It was the years of perfectionism that did it, the fear of her male counterparts seeing her as a girl instead of a policewoman. That wasn't a big concern with Han, but still, even the little failures burned, lingering, like droplets of hot oil spat from a frying pan."
And on Mariko's aversion to hospitals, a little truth about cancer that Bein snuck in there (I'm a cancer survivor): "He'd been weak for a long time by then, long enough that the daily fear of death had subsided. It was disturbing how quickly a family could return to business as usual even when one of their number lay dying."
And on Daigoro's lieutenant's bald admission of why he followed Daigoro into danger because of Daigoro's adherence to samurai code and duty: "He could give up being a samurai. Put down the burden of his father's sword. Make an obsequious and public apology. Cut off his topknot and go home unmolested. Comfort his mother. Share Akiko's bed. Be there for the birth of his child. He could have everything he wanted, and all he had to do was betray his code. "I can't," he said, near tears. "I can't give up duty. I don't know how."
"That is why I follow you."
So this review is already too long and I haven't even go to the cool ninja-takes-over-small-fishing-village part with Kaida the pearl diver and her fierce desperation not to be limited by her village.
So I'll just briefly mention that most of the main characters at some point meditate on the ethical choices of what they're doing in a self-conscious way that betrays Bein's background as a professor. Some might find that dry, but I liked it.
The only place that made me a bit conscious of the author were a few places where he had male, Japanese characters (Mariko gets a pass because she grew up in the USA) using nicknames and/or metaphors that I thought could have been a little bit more Japanized. For instance: "...and we know there's a new amphetamine on the street called Daishi that's selling like pointy ears at a star trek convention" could have been a bit more "flavored" with the setting by having something like "pink wigs at a cosplay convention" or "furry ears at a Ghibli convention" or what-have-you.
But hey, minor quibble. The rest of the book is well worth your time. Especially if you like historical fiction. ninjas, samurai, or police procedural.
This Book's Snack Rating: Garlic Parmesan Kettle Chips for the solid crunch of police procedure interwoven with the creamy goodness of historical sword-wielding samurai and pearl-divers experiencing moral conundrums
rose_direk's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
wynwicket's review against another edition
5.0
So. Darn. Compelling.
A police officer in modern-day Tokyo reluctantly joins forces with a yakuza to seek an ancient evil demon mask stolen by a mysterious cult that wants to destroy the world.
Meanwhile, in Feudal Japan...
Great storytelling, plenty of history, and a magic sword or two. Also, ninjas.
Keep it coming, Mr. Bein, because you have me more-than-slightly hooked.
A police officer in modern-day Tokyo reluctantly joins forces with a yakuza to seek an ancient evil demon mask stolen by a mysterious cult that wants to destroy the world.
Meanwhile, in Feudal Japan...
Great storytelling, plenty of history, and a magic sword or two. Also, ninjas.
Keep it coming, Mr. Bein, because you have me more-than-slightly hooked.
notdenilol's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
srchief's review against another edition
4.0
Again Mr Bein does an excellent job of mixing history and modern. In 'Year of the Demon', Mariko a police detective must find and stop a sinister plot of a cultist group. The cult is called Divine Wind and has been around Japan for hundreds of years. The cult has a long history with the demon mask and the sword that Mariko holds. As the story progresses there's a nice mix between the historical and the modern. In the historical context we discover more about the history of Inazuma sword and the iron demon mask. In the modern day we follow Mariko as she tries to stop the cult from completing it's plan of destruction - I look forward to book three.
see_sadie_read's review against another edition
4.0
3.5
This is a hard one for me to rate because I didn't read the first ([b:Daughter of the Sword|13542884|Daughter of the Sword (Fated Blades, #1)|Steve Bein|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1334162819s/13542884.jpg|19107175]) and I don't know how many of my complaints are the result of that. For example, I knew Mariko carried over from book one, but until I finished this book and glanced at some other reviews, I didn't realize one of the historical characters does too. Certainly, I followed and enjoyed it, but my largest issue was that I didn't feel like the three plot lines converged in any way, such that I felt like I'd read three partial stories instead on one cohesive whole.
Sure, they all involved the sword and mask, but that's the only connection and surely in the 500 or so years between the events, other people held them too. So, why these particular stories? Kaida's arc seemed especially anchorless. Would this have been different if I'd read book one? Maybe. But since the two books are apparently in the same style, jumping between the past and present, I'm thinking not. I just might have more faith that the plot lines will connect in some future book.
I very much liked the characters. There is some parallels between Mariko and Daigoro's situations and the difficulty of doing the honorable thing. I liked that sex was dealt with very matter-of-factly. The writing is lovely, though a bit repetitive, with some editing mistakes (most notably, I think in some of the dates, as they made no sense). Despite being set in Japan, having a few Japanese words thrown in here and there and people bowing, the narration and dialogue didn't sound particularly Japanese. This was especially notable in the historical dialogue. I liked it and its obvious the author did a ton of research, but it felt very American.
All in all, I suppose I liked but didn't love this book. But I feel like I really aught to have.
This is a hard one for me to rate because I didn't read the first ([b:Daughter of the Sword|13542884|Daughter of the Sword (Fated Blades, #1)|Steve Bein|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1334162819s/13542884.jpg|19107175]) and I don't know how many of my complaints are the result of that. For example, I knew Mariko carried over from book one, but until I finished this book and glanced at some other reviews, I didn't realize one of the historical characters does too. Certainly, I followed and enjoyed it, but my largest issue was that I didn't feel like the three plot lines converged in any way, such that I felt like I'd read three partial stories instead on one cohesive whole.
Sure, they all involved the sword and mask, but that's the only connection and surely in the 500 or so years between the events, other people held them too. So, why these particular stories? Kaida's arc seemed especially anchorless. Would this have been different if I'd read book one? Maybe. But since the two books are apparently in the same style, jumping between the past and present, I'm thinking not. I just might have more faith that the plot lines will connect in some future book.
I very much liked the characters. There is some parallels between Mariko and Daigoro's situations and the difficulty of doing the honorable thing. I liked that sex was dealt with very matter-of-factly. The writing is lovely, though a bit repetitive, with some editing mistakes (most notably, I think in some of the dates, as they made no sense). Despite being set in Japan, having a few Japanese words thrown in here and there and people bowing, the narration and dialogue didn't sound particularly Japanese. This was especially notable in the historical dialogue. I liked it and its obvious the author did a ton of research, but it felt very American.
All in all, I suppose I liked but didn't love this book. But I feel like I really aught to have.
cricci's review against another edition
3.0
This could definitely have been a 4-star, if the copy editor had done a better job. I just can't over look missing or extra words and an incorrect date at the beginning of one section. Otherwise, this novel has history, intrigue, magic, and is quite a door into Japanese culture. I love the way Bein is able to step into the minds of such different characters. Mariko, Kaida, Daigoro, and Shishio are quite different, which also gives this novel great appeal to a variety of readers. My personal favorite is Kaida, followed by Mariko, Daigoro, and Shishio. Kaida's story gripped me as she struggled to free herself from her sisters and her village cage. I love her and Mariko's fierceness. Daigoro is young, but determined, and just as Katsushima stands by Daigoro because of his unwavering loyalty to duty, I do too. Shishio is creepy. I love Bein for creating a character so creepy, I almost don't want to read about him. To me, that is talent. Many authors write about what they know, but to write about something we (probably) don't know, such as a man possessed by a demon mask. That takes imagination. To write about it with such conviction that readers begin to believe in this character. That takes talent. I appreciate this story, the characters, and I can't wait to pick up the third installment (or the prequel). I just wish there weren't so many typographical errors.
charleshb's review
4.0
Good read. Most of the book was set in historical times rather than modern Tokyo. Bein must be setting the stage for future books.
danielled75's review
4.0
A MASK OF DESTRUCTION
Detective Sergeant Mariko Oshiro has been promoted to Japan’s elite Narcotics unit—and with this promotion comes a new partner, a new case, and new danger. The underboss of a powerful yakuza crime syndicate has put a price on her head, and he’ll lift the bounty only if she retrieves an ancient iron demon mask that was stolen from him in a daring raid. However, Mariko has no idea of the tumultuous past carried within the mask—or of its deadly link with the famed Inazuma blade she wields.
The secret of this mask originated hundreds of years before Mariko was born, and over time the mask’s power has evolved to bend its owner toward destruction, stopping at nothing to obtain Inazuma steel. Mariko’s fallen sensei knew much of the mask’s hypnotic power and of its mysterious link to a murderous cult. Now Mariko must use his notes to find the mask before the cult can bring Tokyo to its knees—and before the underboss decides her time is up....
Year of the Demon starts off where Daughter of the Sword left off, following Detective Sergeant Mariko Oshiro, recently being promoted to the Narcotics unit. What starts off as a typical drug raid turns out to be anything but normal. A mysterious iron demon mask is stolen from an underboss of a powerful yakuza crime syndicate.
Kamaguchi Hanzo “hires” Mariko to get the mask back with the catch, if she does he will remove the hit that was put out on her (Daughter of the Sword explains why there is a hit on her). Along with doing this search for the mask, Mariko also needs to do a search for her recently stolen sword “Glorious Victory Unsought”. Little does Mariko know that both the mask and sword have a dark history.
This book like the first one follows multiple stories at the same time. The breakdown is very easy to follow.
Heisei Era, the Year 22 (2010 CE) follows Mariko and what is going on in her part of the story.
Azuchi-Momoyama Period, the Year 21 (1588 CE) follows the story of Daigoro Okuma, the Lord of House Okuma, at this point in time he is the owner of “Glorious Victory Unsought”
Muromachi Era, the Year 148 (1484 CE) follows the story of Kaida who is an ama (traditional Japanese free diver, best known for diving for pearls) and her connection to the cult “The Divine Wind” and the iron mask.
There were a few parts of the book that felt extremely slow when it came to getting to the point of what was going on. Other than this one small snafu, I had a great time reading about the history and finding out more about Daigoro and the introduction of Kaida.
One interesting side note I did notice about the 3 main characters in their respective time lines is that each has been dealing with how to live their lives and overcome their obvious handicaps, while facing the naysayers on a daily basis.
This is a great series to check out if you are a fan of Urban Fantasy with a touch of Japanese history and the way of the Samurai.
4/5
Detective Sergeant Mariko Oshiro has been promoted to Japan’s elite Narcotics unit—and with this promotion comes a new partner, a new case, and new danger. The underboss of a powerful yakuza crime syndicate has put a price on her head, and he’ll lift the bounty only if she retrieves an ancient iron demon mask that was stolen from him in a daring raid. However, Mariko has no idea of the tumultuous past carried within the mask—or of its deadly link with the famed Inazuma blade she wields.
The secret of this mask originated hundreds of years before Mariko was born, and over time the mask’s power has evolved to bend its owner toward destruction, stopping at nothing to obtain Inazuma steel. Mariko’s fallen sensei knew much of the mask’s hypnotic power and of its mysterious link to a murderous cult. Now Mariko must use his notes to find the mask before the cult can bring Tokyo to its knees—and before the underboss decides her time is up....
Year of the Demon starts off where Daughter of the Sword left off, following Detective Sergeant Mariko Oshiro, recently being promoted to the Narcotics unit. What starts off as a typical drug raid turns out to be anything but normal. A mysterious iron demon mask is stolen from an underboss of a powerful yakuza crime syndicate.
Kamaguchi Hanzo “hires” Mariko to get the mask back with the catch, if she does he will remove the hit that was put out on her (Daughter of the Sword explains why there is a hit on her). Along with doing this search for the mask, Mariko also needs to do a search for her recently stolen sword “Glorious Victory Unsought”. Little does Mariko know that both the mask and sword have a dark history.
This book like the first one follows multiple stories at the same time. The breakdown is very easy to follow.
Heisei Era, the Year 22 (2010 CE) follows Mariko and what is going on in her part of the story.
Azuchi-Momoyama Period, the Year 21 (1588 CE) follows the story of Daigoro Okuma, the Lord of House Okuma, at this point in time he is the owner of “Glorious Victory Unsought”
Muromachi Era, the Year 148 (1484 CE) follows the story of Kaida who is an ama (traditional Japanese free diver, best known for diving for pearls) and her connection to the cult “The Divine Wind” and the iron mask.
There were a few parts of the book that felt extremely slow when it came to getting to the point of what was going on. Other than this one small snafu, I had a great time reading about the history and finding out more about Daigoro and the introduction of Kaida.
One interesting side note I did notice about the 3 main characters in their respective time lines is that each has been dealing with how to live their lives and overcome their obvious handicaps, while facing the naysayers on a daily basis.
This is a great series to check out if you are a fan of Urban Fantasy with a touch of Japanese history and the way of the Samurai.
4/5