女系家族

by Toyoko Yamasaki, 山崎豐子, 邱振瑞 (Translator)

老字號棉花批發商矢島商店是代代由女兒相承的「女系家族」，如今這代家中出了藤代、千壽和雛子三個女兒，更讓整個豪門家族的繁盛榮景達到高峰——直到店東嘉藏的驟逝為止。入贅矢島家的嘉藏飽受掌權的妻女們冷淡對待，在臨終前決定報復身為入贅女婿所忍受的屈辱。他並未交代遺囑，只將遺產分配全權委託給大掌櫃便撒手人寰，留下錯愕的女兒們。

統管矢島家內外的長女藤代自視甚高，始終看不起卑微的父親；次女千壽遵從母命招婿入門，與丈夫謀畫家業繼承；三女雛子雖不工於心計，卻因此成為姨母芳子的手下魁儡。就在矢島家爾虞我詐之際，嘉藏生前的祕密情婦文乃竟出現在三姊妹面前。宣稱肚子裡懷了嘉藏骨肉的文乃，會是這女系豪門的最大威脅嗎？

在巨大家產的甜蜜誘惑下，人會如何傷害自己親愛的手足？圍繞在矢島家三姊妹，暴露人性貪婪醜惡、嫉妒愛恨的遺產爭奪戰，就此揭開序幕——

576 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1963

About the author

Toyoko Yamasaki (山崎 豊子, real name Sugimoto Toyoko; 3 November 1924 – 29 September 2013) was a Japanese novelist.

A native of Osaka, Yamasaki worked as a journalist for the Mainichi Shimbun from 1945 to 1959 after graduating from Kyoto Women's University in Japanese literature. She published her first story, Noren (1957), a story of a kelp trader, based on the experiences of her family's business. The following year, she won the Naoki Prize for her second novel Hana Noren, the story about the founder of an entertainment group. A major influence on her writings of that period was Yasushi Inoue, who was deputy head of the Mainichi Shimbun's cultural news desk.

Yamasaki wrote some stories based on actual events. For example, Futatsu no Sokoku is derived from the biography of a Japanese American David Akira Itami, and Shizumanu Taiyō is based on the Japan Airlines Flight 123 accident. Several works of hers were featured in films and television dramas.