Even though these were written for a younger audience, they are still very enjoyable mysteries......
The Samurai and the Long-Nosed Devils (A Zenta & Matsuzo Mystery)by Lensey Namioka
Paperback: 208 pages
Publisher: Tuttle Publishing (September 2004)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0804836086
ISBN-13: 978-0804836081Zenta and Matsuzo are wandering ronin (masterless samurai) with a skill and code of honor unlike the ordinary citizens of Japan. Together the stoic Zenta and carefree Matsuzo fall in and out of extraordinary adventures solving mysteries that leave others baffled.
Zenta loves a challenge, which is why he and Matsuzo volunteered to be bodyguards for Pedro and Father Luis two Portuguese missionaries with powerful enemies. Not only are Pedro and Father Luis feared by many of the Japanese in the area because of their unusually pale faces, long noses, and firearms but they're also in the middle of a tense political battle between the shogun and Nobunaga, the most powerful warlord in sixteenth century Japan.
When Pedro becomes the main suspect in the murder of Lord Fujikawa, one of the shogun's supporters, Zenta and Matsuzo must learn to work with the strange foreigner to prove his innocence while also trying to appease Nobunaga and Fujikawa's men. Who really murdered Lord Fujikawa? Zenta and Matsuzo's investigations lead them to surprising conclusions.
White Serpent Castle (A Zenta & Matsuzo Mystery)by Lensey Namioka
Paperback: 184 pages
Publisher: Tuttle Publishing (September 2004)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0804836094
ISBN-13: 978-0804836098When Zenta and Matsuzo two sixteenth century Japanese samurai arrive at the White Serpent castle they find anything but a warm welcome. Immediately surrounded by a courtyard full of sword-wielding samurai, the two learn that not only is Lord Okudaira dead, but the missing heir to the castle has just arrived to claim lordship over his nine-year-old brother. But who is the legitimate successor?
As Zenta and Matsuzo investigate the maze-like castle, they find more than the haunting cries of the White Serpent ghost a monstrous white creature said to emerge whenever a crisis threatens the castle they also discover jealousy, murder, and a battle for power that neither side is willing to lose. Zenta and Matsuzo are wandering ronin (masterless samurai) with a skill and code of honor unlike the ordinary citizens of Japan. Together the stoic Zenta and carefree Matsuzo fall in and out of extraordinary adventures solving mysteries that leave others baffled.
The Valley of the Broken Cherry Trees (A Zenta and Matsuzo Mystery) by Lensey Namioka
Paperback: 252 pages
Publisher: Tuttle Publishing (April 1, 2005)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0804836108
ISBN-13: 978-0804836104Set in 16th century Japan, Valley Of The Broken Cherry Trees presents an exciting episode in the lives of Zenta and Matsuzo, two honorable ronin (unemployed warriors). Seeking respite at a rural inn, they soon become engrossed in tracking down the person responsible for defacing local cherry trees. Their search quickly places them in the middle of court politics at odds with both of the warlords visiting the area. They embroil themselves in dangerous situations in their efforts to solve the mystery. Added to the suspenseful plot are a multitude of period-specific details that serve to strengthen the authenticity of the tale and display the art and poetry of Shogun Japan, as well as the devious political unrest and martial arts.
Village of the Vampire Cat (A Zenta and Matsuzo Mystery)by Lensey Namioka
Paperback: 224 pages
Publisher: Tuttle Publishing (April 30, 2005)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0804836116
ISBN-13: 978-0804836111When a young ronin returns to the village of his former teacher, he and his companion find it being terrorized by a mysterious killer.
Island of Ogres (A Zenta & Matsuzo Mystery)by Lensey Namioka
Paperback: 224 pages
Publisher: Tuttle Publishing (2005)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0804836124
ISBN-13: 978-0804836128Another in Namioka's entertaining mystery series about Konishi Zenta and Ishihara Matsuzo, ronin (unemployed samurai) whose travels through 16th-Century Japan have landed them in several adventures, all filled with plots and counterplots. This story begins from the point of view of Kajiro, a ronin dissipated by drink, who is traveling to an island on sort of a last-chance assignment: to spy on the commander of the island and report back to the ruling family's chamberlain as to his fitness. No sooner does he arrive than he is mistaken for the more celebrated Zenta by Yuri, the commander's sister-in-law. Brought before Yuri's sister, the commander's wife, it is clear that Kajiro does not fool her at all because, it develops, Zenta himself is concealed in her residence, recovering from a wound. Complications pile upon complications in a byzantine plot involving a mad ex-ruler who inspires a rebellion against his successor; a convent which may or may not contain nuns; the struggle of Matsuzo to escape capture by the rebels so that he can help Zenta; and the growing attraction between Zenta and the commander's wife. The main protagonist, however, remains Kajiro, whose growing love for Yuri is frustrated by his fear of her rejection when she discovers who he really is. Appearance versus reality permeates the plot; no one is exactly who he says he is at the beginning, except for the Samurai heroes. The theme is interwoven into the numerous strands of the plot and satisfyingly worked out at the conclusion. Told with abrupt shifts of point of view and in an elliptical style, this may require some patience from those not familiar with Namioka's work, but, as always, they will be rewarded with an action-packed, full-bodied story with an unusual and fascinating background.
The Coming of the Bear (A Zenta & Matsuzo Mystery) by Lensey Namioka
Paperback: 212 pages
Publisher: Tuttle Publishing (2005)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0804836132
ISBN-13: 978-0804836135Around 1600 in Japan, Zenta and Matsuzo, two lordless young samurai, flee the wrath of a local strongman. Their boat washes them ashore in a strange land that they soon discover is Ezo (present day Hokkaido), where they are taken in by the indigenous Ainu. They become involved in the increasing tension between the Ainu and the Japanese colonists who are trying to gain a foothold on the island. A bear that keeps attacking the Japanese settlement (in the dead of winter when these animals hibernate) becomes the casus belli between the two peoples. Amidst heart-pounding suspense, the two stalwarts courageously solve the mystery of the bear and halt the war. The writing is taut and effective, the plot well worked out, and the major characters convincing, although some minor figures are little more than etched in. Particularly noteworthy is the attention paid to the minutiae of Ainu life, including fascinating details about food, medicine, hunting, self-defense, and religion. Presentation of issues of racial and cultural conflict is done with great sensitivity and as an integral part of this vivid recreation of time and place. More than a mystery, the story will appeal to a wider than usual audience and provide an exciting multifarious adjunct to social studies. On top of all this, it's a real page-turner.
Den of the White Fox (A Zenta & Matsuzo Mystery)by Lensey Namioka
Paperback: 216 pages
Publisher: Browndeer Press/Harcourt Brace (February 1, 1997)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0152012834
ISBN-13: 978-0152012830Who is the White Fox? Is he merely the mysterious, charismatic leader of a doomed political rebellion? Or is he a powerful spirit, taking revenge on the occupying force that desecrated his shrine? And who-or what-shoves Zenta off a cliff on a dark and misty night? Two unemployed samurai in sixteenth-century feudal Japan find themselves engaged in an adventure charged with trickery and political intrigue.
Translate
