Grade 6-9 Bradford raises the stakes for his blond samurai student in this second installment in the series. Previously shipwrecked after his father was murdered by the ninja leader Dragon Eye, Jack is continuing his training as a samurai at his foster father's school for young warriors. Dedicated to keeping his father's navigational log from Dragon Eye, who has tried to steal it before, Jack hides the book at the castle of the daimyo, where he feels it will be safer.
June 1613. Japan is threatened with war and Jack is facing his greatest battle yet. Samurai are taking sides and, as the blood begins to flow, Jack's warrior training is put to the ultimate test. His survival and that of his friends depends upon him mastering the Two Heavens, the secret sword technique of the legendary samurai Masamoto Takeshi. But first Jack must recover his father's prize possession from the deadly ninja Dragon Eye. Can Jack defeat his ruthless enemy? Or will the ninja complete his mission to kill the young samurai . . .
The fearless, elite warriors of medieval Japan were loyal comrades but deadly foes. Whether foot soldier, samurai or trained assassin, these men were driven by strict codes of honor and bound by deep allegiances of rank, family or religion. This book examines the military lives of four formidable warrior types, covering the samurai and the ninja as well as the experiences of warrior monks and ashigaru foot soldiers, less familiar to western readers.
Sano Ichiro, the Shogun's Most Honorable Investigator of Events, Situations, and People, is back in action in Laura Joh Rowland's latest, The Samurai's Wife. After a heated dispute with his colleague and archrival, Honorable Chamberlain Yanigasawa, Sano finds himself in Miyako, Japan's imperial capital, investigating the mysterious death of Minister Konoe Bokuden. Apparently a victim of murder by kiai, a martial arts technique in which a burst of pure mental energy is concentrated in the voice of the killer, Konoe had been plotting an overthrow of samurai rule.
Japan's legendary and fierce samurai warriors have an unrelenting hold on the public's imagination. The world's most renowned expert on these fierce fighters provides an exceptional, in-depth look at the samurai's unique combat skills and weaponry. Confront charismatic warlords and lone mercenaries as Dr. Turnbull examines battlefield tactics, personalities and practices, finding fascinating comparisons between the samurai and other medieval fare. Rare historic illustrations and specially commissioned paintings by Richard Hook bring you face to face with some of the planet's most terrifying battle scenes.
