After the events of the last book (The Golden Naginata), Tomoe Gozen has laid down her sword and become a wandering nun; however, an attack on a young woman causes her to pick up her sword again. Now somewhat back on the path of Bushido, Tomoe Gozen must once again wander Naippon, the fictional equivalent of Japan, only this time in a battle for her soul. To be honest, this book reminded me of the title of a biography on the John Adams family: “Descent […]

This book was a slight letdown compared to the first one. In The Disfavored Hero, Tomoe Gozen was a strong, kickass lesbian female samurai who was living her life following the Bushido; in this one, she’s on the run from her father because he wants her to get married. Tomoe fights against this until she doesn’t, giving in to filial piety/familial duty becoming unfortunately a stereotypical submissive Japanese wife! And she’s happy about it; so happy that it becomes pretty much her entire personality. The […]

I love when I have had a book on my TBR list for years (15 in this instance), and I actually don’t regret finally picking it up. This was a book I enjoyed from beginning to end, and actually made me want to read the rest of the series. Inspired by a historical figure yet set in a fantastical version of Japan, The Disfavored Hero tells the story of Tomoe Gozen, a female samurai serving a local lord during the time of the Shogun. While […]