Laura Joh Rowland, The Assassin's Touch

The Assassin's Touch

Laura Joh Rowland

St. Martin's, Aug 2005, $24.95

ISBN: 0312319002

In 1695 at Edo Castle, Japan, the chief of metsuke (spies) Ejima Senzaemon collapses, falls off his horse and dies while crossing the finish line victorious during a horse race. Lord Matsudaira, cousin to The Shogun, controls the shoguns and albeit runs the military dictatorship; he thinks a homicide occurred probably by the followers of the man he defeated former Chamberlain Yanagisawa. He assigns his trusted aid, the current Chamberlain and former criminal investigator Sano Ichiro who has come along since being a Ronin, to investigate the death of Ejima and three other senior government officials.

Two of the previous three deceased died suddenly in their sleep; the other in a bathtub accident. Sano sees no connection to include the fourth death, but Matsudaira believes a conspiracy to disguise the murders of top officials is occurring. Sano and longtime aid Hirata begins the inquiries that lead to a link to his wife Reiko of a martial-arts adept who seemingly like a ghost uses the mythical dim-mak touch of death to kill his victims without a trace of foul play. If this unknown serial killer is not stopped soon, Sano knows the impact on a government struggling with a counter-insurgence and on his family especially his beloved Reiko.

Though Reiko's involvement seems too gimmicky and convenient, THE ASSASSIN'S TOUCH is a terrific Japanese historical police procedural that as is the case with the nine previous novels in the series provides an astute look at Shogun Japan. The story line is action-packed with strong characters especially the hero and his activist wife while also using seventeenth century tidbits to enhance the plot. Fans of the series will enjoy this latest treasure while newcomers will seek other Sano titles.

Harriet Klausner