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sunsoar25's review
3.0
Fun but that ending was kind of ridiculous. I did appreciate the language and culture gets worked into the story decently though.
littletaiko's review against another edition
3.0
Solid first book in this mystery series that features Jim Brodie, part time antique dealer specializing in Asian art and part time detective agency owner. The book takes place in San Francisco and Japan and is filled with lots of tidbits on the Japanese way of life. The fact that the character as well as the author grew up in Japan and has such an understanding of their culture really added to the story. The book probably could have been a bit shorter and there was some repetition in the author's tension building plot devices that got old after a while, but for a first novel it was understandable. Looking forward to the next book.
liberrydude's review against another edition
4.0
This book was quite good with the pace of the narrative and all the ninja stuff. Lots of action as the hero is fighting against guys who make the NSA and SEAL's look incompetent. Can't wait to read the next installment which I hear is very different.
bookbrig's review
mysterious
tense
3.0
Decent thriller-esque mystery. I recently reread Crichton's Rising Sun, and while it's not a bad mystery it reads preeeeety racist. I first read it in junior high, and I had a vague memory of really liking the story because of the Japanese characters. I think it was probably just new territory for me as a reader, so it left a solid impression. This time around it left me rolling my eyes at the didactic THE JAPANESE ARE COMING tone of the story.
Since then, I've been looking for something with a similar mystery/thriller feel that incorporates Japanese culture without feeling too appropriative, and Lancet's book wasn't a bad choice. It has a whiff of exotification, but it didn't set my back up as badly as Crichton's work. I'm still looking for something intriguing enough to really hook me and maybe teach me a bit about US/Japanese business relations though. I feel like the number of thrilling books about business relations is PRETTY LOW, so this is probably a stupid quest, but whatever.
Since then, I've been looking for something with a similar mystery/thriller feel that incorporates Japanese culture without feeling too appropriative, and Lancet's book wasn't a bad choice. It has a whiff of exotification, but it didn't set my back up as badly as Crichton's work. I'm still looking for something intriguing enough to really hook me and maybe teach me a bit about US/Japanese business relations though. I feel like the number of thrilling books about business relations is PRETTY LOW, so this is probably a stupid quest, but whatever.
armeneely's review against another edition
3.0
Very fun crime-thriller. Kinda in the vein of Dan Brown, but definitely better writing, which is still pulpy at times, but still. Had fun reading it, and will definitely check out Tokyo Kill! at some point.
davidwemyers's review
3.0
I felt that this book was very fine. Not "very fine" in the Hemingway sense of "today I drove my Maybach to my round of golf at Pebble Beach then finished the day with a nice meal at French Laundry and it was very fine" but just actually... fine.
The chapters are short, which keeps you turning the pages reasonably well. The author lived for quite a while in Japan and clearly has a pretty good knowledge of their culture, and the plot is fun (I mean, as fun as a plot about a young family being mercilessly gunned down in the streets can be).
There are a couple of eye-rolling cliches, like the author stand in protagonist who's an art dealer/PI that is also (gasp!) a deadly hand to hand fighter - he's a man of many talents to say the least. Also, the final fight scene was straight out of a Cannon action film, and was pretty obviously written in the hope of getting this optioned for a movie. Other than that though, a perfectly fun little read.
The chapters are short, which keeps you turning the pages reasonably well. The author lived for quite a while in Japan and clearly has a pretty good knowledge of their culture, and the plot is fun (I mean, as fun as a plot about a young family being mercilessly gunned down in the streets can be).
There are a couple of eye-rolling cliches, like the author stand in protagonist who's an art dealer/PI that is also (gasp!) a deadly hand to hand fighter - he's a man of many talents to say the least. Also, the final fight scene was straight out of a Cannon action film, and was pretty obviously written in the hope of getting this optioned for a movie. Other than that though, a perfectly fun little read.
laniesweet's review
4.0
While "Japantown" can verge on the unrealistic, it manages to be a good and entertaining novel the whole way through. I certainly enjoyed it quite a bit more than I expected I would.
pvn's review
4.0
I'm combining my reviews for Japantown and Tokyo Kill -- I don't have much to add to the many reviews except that these are pretty good books. Not totally realistic, but a good amount of action and suspense. Recommended for int'l thriller fans. Tokyo Kill is the better of the two.
I really appreciate the copy for review!!
I really appreciate the copy for review!!
gaepe's review
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
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