With the death of her older sister and sole sibling, Sen must return home to Himeji and find a husband to marry into the family swordsmith business. Failure ensures her family's craft, honed through generations, will die. Her father's handsome apprentice, Nobuhiro, would seem the ideal choice for a husband and her parents press the issue. Sen rejects this offer as she wants a Christian husband, difficult as the religion is banned. Eschewing her parents' advice, Sen decides to seek out local Christians to find a suitable match.
The prodigal third son of a high-level samurai, Nobuhiro seeks to prove his worth to his harsh father by becoming a great swordsmith. But when his master's daughter begins seeking local Christians, he finds he must protect her from the group of anti-Christians that killed her sister. Despite his growing attraction to her, he believes her devotion to her faith reckless. Yet failure to protect her dooms the family he serves. And falling for a Christian dooms reconciliation with his own father, who must enforce the ban.
Will faith forge love or will it forge death?
My Thoughts:
The Samurai’s Heart by Walt Mussell offers a coming-of-age story for Sen, whose backstory is detailed in The Samurai’s Honor. Sen possesses the same character traits, including a penchant for mishaps, but must now face life as a young woman outside of the protection of a Christian samurai. I enjoyed reading more of her story as she fell in love, attempted to solve the mystery surrounding her sister’s death, and developed into an honorable, mature woman. The novel’s first third had a bit of awkwardness that evened out as the story progressed. With the combination of romance, suspense, and character development, it became harder to pause each time I needed to stop reading!
The Samurai’s Heart brims with beautiful depictions of sixteenth century Japanese culture. This uncommon setting (for a Christian fiction novel) displayed the author’s extensive research and offered fascinating details. I felt immersed in the culture and characters’ lives. Reading occasionally about seppuku (suicide as an honorable act) was saddening but the ritual appears as a practice of that time.
The Samurai’s Heart builds on its prequel, The
Samurai’s Honor, and I recommend reading the books in order. Walt Mussell’s
writing improves with each story and he’s a talented author to watch. I look forward
to his next book.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I was provided a copy of
this book by the author or publisher. All opinions in this review are my own.
