|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
AVAILABLE NOW - THE HELL SCREEN (trade paper) Penguin (Click here to order!)
NEW - "You
couldn’t ask for a more gracious introduction to the exotic world of
Imperial Japan than the stately historical novels of I. J. Parker."
Read the whole review
here. "In Parker's hands, 11th century Japan comes alive in radiant fashion. Black Arrow is an exquisite book, suspenseful and action-packed, but also beautiful in its evocative descriptions and loving rendering of its subject." (David Montgomery in CHICAGO SUN-TIMES) "Black Arrow is a terrific mystery with a setting that is unforgettable... Parker's research is extensive and she makes great use of the complex manners and relationships in feudal Japan. At times the scenes may owe a bit to filmmakers such as Akira Kurosawa, but that's no criticism. This is a fine historical detective novel with good characterization and a great setting." (Margaret Cannon in THE GLOBE AND MAIL) (Review of BLACK ARROW)
(Starred Review) "Shamus-winner Parker's fourth
historical Sugawara Akitada novel (after 2006's Rashomon Gate) deftly
combines an action-packed plot with convincing period detail to bring
11th-century Japan to life."
"An elegant, oblique prologue set decades
before the main action finds Death preying on a young woman and her
frolicking baby in a flower-laden forest clearing. Akitada's fourth
adventure, as beautifully written as his first three, keeps his wife Tamako
in the background but adroitly develops his three sidekicks."
"Now comes the first Sugawara Akitada novel, a
rousing, whip-fast story of political intrigue and adventure in
eleventh-century Japan... told with a sure hand and a sharp sense of humor."
"Parker has created a wonderful protagonist in
Akitada, who, bound by tradition, finds himself in conflict with his
benevolent nature. Her ancillary characters... are as vividly drawn." See I.J. Parker's "Death and Cherry Blossoms" at Amazon Shorts! |
 |
 |
||
 |
||
 |
||
 |
||
 |
||
 |
||
 |
||
 |
||
 |
|
|
 His noble family fallen on hard times, Sugawara Akitada works as a minor official in the Ministry of Justice in Heian Kyo, capital of Japan in the 11th century. The post is boring, but there are bills to pay, servants to maintain and a diminished estate to keep up as best he can. However, Akitada also has a sharp mind and an inquisitive nature, both of which get put to the test as he unravels murders and mysteries that carry him from the depths of the most common peasant hovels to the sacred halls of the Imperial Palace itself. Bound not only by his sense of decency and honor, but the strict codes and social structure of Ancient Japan, Akitada must step carefully while gathering clues to solve the puzzles before him. |
 I.J. PARKER won the Private Eye Writers of America Shamus Award for Best P.I. Short Story in 2000 for "Akitada's First Case," published in 1999. An Associate Professor of English and Foreign Languages (retired) at a Virginia university, Parker began research into11th century Japan because of a professional interest in that culture's literature. This led to the first Akitada short story, "Instruments of Murder," published in Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine in October of 1997. Although Parker's multi-lingual background includes a little Japanese, research is done using translations and the help of scholars specializing in the period. Her agent is Jean Naggar. You can contact I.J. Parker at: Heianmys@aol.com
|
|
|
You are visitor
|
|
This web site was last updated on July 4, 2008. All content copyright 2008 by I.J. Parker. Please send comments or questions concerning this web site to the webmaster. |
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY (Review of ISLAND OF EXILES)
