From Publishers WeeklyBob Lee Swagger, retired marine master sniper and hero of bestseller Hunter's 1993 thriller, Point of Impact (forthcoming as the film Shooter), returns in this riveting homage to the myth of the samurai. Philip Yano, the son of the Japanese officer who commanded the bunker on Iwo Jima where Swagger's marine father won the Medal of Honor in 1945, approaches Swagger about a missing sword wielded by his father, Hideki, during the battle for the island. The sword turns out to be not just a family heirloom but a national treasure that evokes echoes from the most sacrosanct corners of Japanese history. Yano's search reveals there are those who will gladly kill for the honor it bestows upon the possessor. Plunged into a Japan where honor and loyalty outweigh even one's own life, Swagger finds that an old warrior like himself still has much to understand. While the action builds to the inevitable climax, the joy of the journey will keep readers turning the pages. (Sept.) Copyright Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.From Booklist*Starred * This is the novel Hunter's fans have been waiting for, the book that brings together his father-and-son protagonists: Earl Swagger, World War II hero and hard-nosed cop, and Bob Lee Swagger, Vietnam sniper and, like his father, the kind of guy who can't say no to righteous violence. Until now, Earl and Bob have each starred in their own books, but this time, ingeniously, Hunter brings them together when Bob is contacted by a retired Japanese soldier, Philip Yano, who believes that his father's samurai sword may have wound up in Earl's hands after the war. Bob tracks down the sword, travels to Japan, and presents it to Yanoafter which the Yano family is slaughtered. Bob could walk away, but, of course, he doesn't. Throwing himself into samurai culture, he learns swordsmanship from a master and sets off to avenge the Yanosand, in a sense, his father. Sure, this sounds clichd, but much of Hunter's genius comes from his ability to manipulate archetypesespecially the classic western scenario of the lone avengerdrawing on the almost subconscious pull these themes exert on the reader but always infusing them with multiple layers of complexity. As Bob is drawn into the samurai world, and tension builds to the inevitable confrontation with his adversarya modern samurai seduced by the dark sideHunter simultaneously fuels our need for bloody resolution and reveals the horrors wrought by devotion to honor and duty. But this time he does it with parallel narrativesjuxtaposing the story of Earl Swagger and Philip Yano's father against the contemporary drama and playing off the same themes across generations. This is probably Hunter's most violent noveland that's saying somethingbut violence may have never been more integral to story than it is here. Hunter celebrates the samurai soldier while showing the appalling underside of the samurai way of life and the ideals that drive it. Ott, Bill "This is the novel Hunter's fans have been waiting for....genius." * Booklist * "Compelling, exciting, and satisfying" * Library Journal * "Hunter is a great entertainer, one of our finest practitioners of the classic blood-soaked and propulsive American thriller. With fluid, confident prose he writes big stories of a man, mostly alone, who must go forth for us all and slay the dragon." * Daniel Woodrell, The Washington Post * "Mr. Hunter writes [fight scenes] as well as, or better, than anyone in the business....I have only one major problem with Mr. Hunter: He doesn't write often enough." * Otto Penzler, The New York Sun * "Bob Lee Swagger, retired marine master sniper and hero of bestseller Hunter's 1993 thriller, Point of Impact...returns in this riveting homage to the myth of the samurai....While the action builds to the inevitable climax, the joy of the journey will keep readers turning the pages." * Publishers Weekly * where can i download ebooks for free The 47th Samurai (Bob Lee Swagger Novels)
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. What a read!By Keith BrownmillerIn the humble opinion of this crusty ole Marine, the book started off extremely slow, but having stuck with it, it turned into an intense action packed novel with twists and turns that kept the reader guessing.There were a few passages that could try the more conservative reader, however, if the reader realizes that other cultures have different values than we Americans do, it should pass muster.Outstanding novel, on to ..........0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. OutstandingBy Charles DraboI am reading the series in order all of the previous books were very good ,and so I stated. This one was special ,because of the little girl involved in the plot. Fighting scenes were unbelievable, and the research involved in the Japanese way of life and philosophical principles are remarkable ,as well of the samurai way of life with special mention to the description of the swords. One word ,remarkable.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Never thought swords were this interesting!By Peter HBob Lee Swagger steeps himself, and us, in Japanese Samurai culture....and it's fascinating, without getting so in-depth as to be stultifying. I've seen another reviewer describe this Swagger novel in particular as being "cartoonish," seemingly suggesting that the REST of the books in this series are somehow more valid in a literary sense...but this story was great fun all the way through, in a very distinctively Swaggeresque manner!