The Samurai

Casca #19

by Barry Sadler

Casca Longinus. Cursed by Christ on Golgotha. Condemned to outlive the ages, and wander the globe a constant soldier. Forever fighting and surviving, he must wait for Christ to return. Feudal A forbidden island, where honor is a warrior's prized possession, and his sword a swift and deadly instrument of pride and vengeance. Casca joins forces with the legendary samurai warrior Muramasa. Together they embark on an odyssey of bloody conquest...a journey that ends in the savage fury of samurai against samurai. Read by Gene Engene.

Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction, Adventure

Audio CD

First published January 1, 1988

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

American author, musician and former green beret.

To the general public he is most known for the hit single "Ballad of the green berets"

After his musical career he decided to write a series of novels centered around the character "Casca Rufio Longinius" Who is cursed for piercing Jesus on the crucifix with a spear and is forced to forever remain a soldier until the Second Coming of Jesus Christ.

In the mid 1980s Sadler moved to Guatemala City where he was shot in the head one night in a taxi. He spent 7 months in a coma and died more than a year later.

Reviews

[Phillip Fuller · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a good adventure with action and historical details and was worth the time to read it. What the author failed to realize was a mercenary soldier has no place in the ranks of the samurai because they fight for honor not money. Feudal Japan's samurai chose death over dishonor or getting paid like Casca. Casca reminds me of the African warrior Yasuke who fought alongside samurai and was rejected as a foreigner with no honor at the end. That is what Casca was at the end of the book when they sent him on his way.

[Corey Allen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun shift in the style of storytelling and culture.

[Eric · Rating 1 out of 5]

Third-Worst So Far

This train wreck was terrible, but it was better than the one where the lead barely hesitates before resorting to cannibalism and the one where the author gained a strong interest in male genitalia.

That would make this the third worst book in the series. So far.

[John Cheeseman · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love everything Japanese especially Samurai so have really been looking forward to this Casca but unfortunately it didnt really teach me anything new and the story wasnt that good. For once though the story didnt revolve around Casca but was more about his accomplice who was the best sword maker in Japan and the best swordsman although it never mentioned how he became so proficient at fighting.
There was a bit of a love interest which didnt go anywhere and some historical stuff but i'm not sure if its true or not as it seemed a bit far-fetched. Part of the story also seemed very similar to Shogun by James Clavell.

[Nicholas · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one was different. It's not really about Casca so much as Sadler using Casca as a framing device to tell a story about Muramasa's quest to become a samurai. Very strong Japanophiliac flavor to this one.

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this entry in the Casca series, Casca is found washed up on the shores of Japan by a ronin. They befriend each other and journey across the island in order for the ronin to gain the rank of a samurai.

[Charles · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best Casca books I've read. Casca is really a secondary character here and the plot covers a lot of ground very quickly, but there's a strong heart to this work and a very strong ending. Much enjoyed.

[David · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was another entry that had some interesting moments. The battles were good towards the end, but as with most of these books the story has a large event and then it ends abruptly.

[Bill · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was one of Teddy's books.

The 80's brought us SHOGUN the Mini-Series... and it also brought us Casca: The Eternal Warrior... and by 1988, Casca was visiting Japan.

It's nicely paced and action packed, but spartan... I mean you could go on for volumes of pages about Japan, it is just that beautiful and strange, but Sadler cuts thru most of that and just tells the story; almost rushing.

Certainly educational and a pleasant read.

[Little Timmy · Rating 4 out of 5]

So you just a soldier doing your job. You shove a spear tip into the side of this supposed messiah, except he is the real thing. He curses you to wander the earth till his return. Not bad right, immortality and all. Oh but he also curses you to be a soldier forever at war, never to know peace. This is the story of Casca the Roman legionnaire that stabbed Christ. Forever wandering the earth fighting one war after another. Great adventure series. Very recommended