Pillow Book of Lady Wisteria

Sano Ichiro #7

by Laura Joh Rowland

In The Pillow Book of Lady Wisteria, Laura Joh Rowland once again has written a book in which "an exotic setting, seventeenth-century Japan, and a splendid mystery...make for grand entertainment" (New York Daily News). In the carefully ordered world of seventeenth-century Japan, the Yoshiwara pleasure quarter is a place where men of all classes can drink, revel, and enjoy the favors of beautiful courtesans. But on a cold winter's dawn, Sano Ichiro--the shogun's Most Honorable Investigator of Events, Situations, and People--must visit Yoshiwara on a most unpleasant mission. Within a house of assignation reserved for the wealthiest, most prominent men, a terrible murder has occurred. In a room that reeks of liquor and sex, the shogun's cousin and heir, Lord Mitsuyoshi, lies dead, a flowered hairpin embedded in his eye, in the bed of the famous courtesan, Lady Wisteria. The shogun demands quick justice, but Sano's path is blocked by many obstacles, including the disappearance of Wisteria and her pillow book, a diary that may contain clues. The politics of court life, the whims of the shogun, and interference by his long time rival, Edo's Chief Police Commissioner Hoshina, also hinder Sano in his search for the killer. Sano's wife, Lady Reiko, is eager to help him, but he fears what she may uncover. When suspicion of murder falls upon Sano himself, he must find the real murderer to solve the case and clear his name.

Genres: Mystery, Historical Fiction, Japan, Fiction, Historical, Historical Mystery, Crime

368 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2002

About the author

Granddaughter of Chinese and Korean immigrants, Laura Joh Rowland grew up in Michigan and where she graduated with a B.S. in microbiology and a Master of Public Health at the University of Michigan. She currently lives in New Orleans with her husband. She has worked as a chemist, microbiologist, sanitary inspector and quality engineer.

Reviews

[Lauri · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very clever installment in the Sano Ichiro mystery series! This time the shogun's Most Honorable Investigator of Events is hot on the trail of a cold blooded killer in Edo's pleasure district. The shogun's heir has been brutally murdered and a famous courtesan has gone missing. Sano's wife and retainers aid in his efforts to find the missing girl and solve the murder, but many enemies conspire to twist the facts to make it seem that Sano himself may be responsible for this crime. With many surprises and plot twists and turns, this one will keep you guessing right up until the last few pages.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great entry in this fun, imaginative mystery series. The cultural elements add a great deal of additional tension to the plot, as the heroic samurai detective is once again forced to work a murder case amidst a backdrop of corrupt politics and moral depravity. Anybody interested in feudal Japan should really enjoy it.

[Gintautas Ivanickas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Septintoji serijos knyga ir pirmas toks nusivylimas. Ne, kartelė savo vietoj – Rowland nešoka aukščiau, bet ir nenusirita smarkiai žemyn. Tačiau su detektyvine dedamąja – bėdos. Negalima taip. Kol Sano ir jo žmona klaidžioja patamsiuose ir užsidirbinėja guzą po guzo, vis atsitrenkdami į kokią kliūtį, mes drybsom ant sofos seniausiai žinodami ir kas kaltas, ir ką daryti, ir netgi kas nužudė siogūno giminaitį. Kažkokių smulkesnių mįslių yra, bet pagrindinė mums jau atskleista. Ok, galima ir šitaip. Bet tuomet autorius turi parodyti mums tyrimo eigą, genialų seklio proto darbą, kaip jis deda dėlionės detales vieną prie kitos, kol susideda paveiksliukas. O ką turim čia? Gal tai padarė Petraitis? – mąsto genialus detektyvas. Apklausia Petraitį, o tas dievagojasi, kad ne jis, bet va, Jonaitis tai tikrai galėjo. Detektyvas sutrikęs. Arba Jonaitis kaltas, arba Petraitis čia gudriai suka uodegą ir pakišinėja kitą. Tada apklausia Jonaitį. Ne aš, dievagojasi tas, bet va, Antanaitis – tai galėjo... Galiausiai, kai tyrimas pasiekia visišką aklavietę, pats apsireiškia liudininkas ir sako nuo pat pradžių žinojęs, kas galėjo, bet va, tylėjo, nes... Nei mums įdomu, kodėl tylėjo, nei ką. Bet bent jau žudiką pagaliau sučiups ir teisybė triumfuos. Tik va, kuo čia seklys dėtas?
Žodžiu, tyrimas – šuniui po uodega. Visas dėmesys dvaro intrigoms, personažų priešpriešai ir ne visada logiškam vidiniam psichologiniam blaškymuisi.
Vos trys iš penkių. Nes tikrai gali geriau. Bet kol kas seriją atidedu. Nes va taip, iš karto, rizikuoti su kitu Sano nuotykiu – nedrįstu.

[Heidi Burkhart · Rating 5 out of 5]

An interesting turn in some events in volume 7 of this very enjoyable series. I am a big fan of these historical fiction books. An extra lovely part of the stories are the descriptions of nature. Just lovely.

[Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sano Ichiro is the shogun's inspector of things, people, and events and as such searches out the truth of what has happened - if he can - and if his upper class enemies allow him. He operates separately from the police and the head of the police is determined to destroy him so he's definitely in a tight situation. The shogun has just had his heir, a cousin, murdered so there is a great deal of nervousness around. The Lady Wisteria of the title is a lady only by courtesy since she is a very expensive prostitute. She disappeared from the room where she was entertaining the shogun's cousin and is therefore a suspect in his death. Sano is hesitant to get too deeply involved in the search for her because he had dealings with her in the past and had arranged for her debt in the entertainment quarter to be paid so that she could leave. What really disturbs Sano is that he has not told his wife about his earlier activity and fears what she will say if she finds out now. Reiko, Ichiro's wife, had acted as his assistant until the Black Lotus case where 700 people died partly because Reiko trusted the wrong person, and she now has little faith in her own instincts. Add in the Lord Chamberlain's wife, who loves her husband but has little hope of having it returned because her husband is deeply involved with the chief of police.
The plot is very complex and goes around in circles with each circle adding another connection, another person with ties to someone unexpected.
Only the chief characters are real people, the others being "a group of soldiers", "his assistants", "her maids" and so on, described by their function. The workings of the Tokugawa regime are a closed book to me so I don't know how accurate her depiction is but it all makes a weird sort of sense and I find it fascinating.

[Lora Angelova · Rating 4 out of 5]

Изключително увлекателна, с завладяващ сюжет, прочетох я на един дъх. Една от най-добрите части, до тук от поредицата.

[Des · Rating 2 out of 5]

Portrayal of feudal Japan is cool but the dialogue and character behavior sounds like modern American. And the plot wasn't compelling enough to keep me reading. I ended up reading a chapter before bed to help me fall asleep...!

[Abi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I gotta stop reading these...

[Pat MacEwen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Number 8 in a series of historical murder mysteries concerning Sano Ichiro, the Shogun's Most Honorable Investigator of Events, Situations, and People. This time the victim stands entirely too close to the ruler of all Japan. Lord Matsudaira Mitsuyoshi is the shogun's cousin and heir apparent. The young samurai has been murdered in the Yoshiwara district, Edo's pleasure quarter. What's worse, the courtesan who was entertaining Mitsuyoshi is an ex-flame of Sano's, the Lady Wisteria, and she has now gone missing. So has her pillow book, containing personal details about all her clients, including Sano. While he contends with Lord Hoshina, his rival at court and head of the Edo Police, Sano must also sidestep the Shogun's orders not to investigate the victim's personal life. Soon enough the investigation expands to include a treasury minister, a minstrel, and a former courtesan responsible for supervising her successors, and then Sano himself. The pillow book does indeed hold some important clues, but which book, for now two have surfaced. Delicately detailed portrayals of the tayu, Yoshiwara's highest class of courtesan, are interspersed with courtroom scenes full of surprises and various intrigues at court involving both men's and women's issues. The plot is tightly knit, and much of it revolves around the question of who will now become the childless shogun's heir.

[Karen-Leigh · Rating 3 out of 5]

In feudal Japan, passion and secrets lead to murder. . . From A Remote, Exotic World. . .
Sano Ichiro, Most Honorable Investigator of Events, Situations, and People, awakens from a turbulent dream into a real-life nightmare. Lord Matsudaira Mitsuyoshi, the shogun's cousin and heir, has been murdered after a night of debauchery in the city's pleasure quarter... Comes A Danger All Too Close To Home. . .
The matter requires Sano's personal attention-more personal than Sano at first imagines. For he soon discovers that Mitsuyoshi's companion for the evening was none other than the alluring Lady Wisteria, a woman whom Sano himself once knew intimately before he was married to his beloved wife, Reiko. But the memory of Wisteria still stirs him, and it is with both dismay and relief that he learns she has vanished along with her pillow book, a diary that may contain valuable clues. The circumstances trouble him, as does the possibility that he and Wisteria might meet again with dangerous consequences. . . In The Pillow Book of Lady Wisteria , Laura Joh Rowland once again has written a book in which "an exotic setting, seventeenth-century Japan, and a splendid mystery...make for grand entertainment" ( New York Daily News ).

[Mia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Before my first trip to Japan, I read some of the books in this series and it came to mind while I was looking at some photos from my travels. This is the seventh book in this series, but I had no trouble understanding the story. Sano Ichiro is a confidential investigator for the Shogun, the ruler of Japan, and he has a serious problem assigned to him. The heir to the throne, Lord Mitsuyoshi, has been murdered while visiting the house of a courtesan, Lady Wisteria, with his body found mutilated by a servant. The woman he was with the night before has disappeared. It seems that she left or was taken in a hurry and the only thing missing is her journal, bound in silk, or in the parlance of the time, her pillow book. Is she a victim or the perpetrator? Sano must act quickly to discover who plotted against the family of the shogun, as this act was not just murder, it is considered treason, and the shogun himself might be a target. Using his agents, his investigative skills, his wife and trying to stay ahead of his rivals who would like to solve the mystery and gain the favor of the shogun, Sano takes on the task with perseverance and determination. The ending is not really a surprise, but it is a good adventure story set in seventeenth century Japan.

[Hannah Seeley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I randomly picked up this book at the library without realizing it was part of a series. Despite it being the seventh in a series, I was still able to enjoy it without advance knowledge of the characters’ backgrounds. If you can start with the first book in the series, I would recommend it, as you might get a better initial look at the characters and their motivations. However, I had no logistical issues with the plot, and I was able to understand references back to previous books because they were contextualized very well. The setting is a great look at Edo and the time of the shogun, and the plot was fast-moving and enjoyable to read.

[Mililani · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was very difficult to find. Another fast moving mystery involving the royal investigator and his sleuthing wife. It becomes clear that there are certain arenas where men are not as effective in gathering information. In this book, the safety of the Sano family is in peril by a very misled character. Twists and turns.

[Lola · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve read enough of this series to see and anticipate the formula but i liked this one pretty well. The pace was good and the plot had twists without too much unlikelihoods. Im still a fan of Sano Ichiro.

[jaroiva · Rating 4 out of 5]

Další fajn oddechovka. Je to spíš románek o smiřování Reiko a Sana po roztržce v minulém dílu, než detektivka, ale to bylo osvěžující.
Tentokrát mi to sedlo mnohem víc než minulý díl.

[Paschalis]

elibrary

[Katheyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

TBA

[Bernice · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very entertaining historical fiction; characters well drawn, good mystery; my first time with this author & I will read more of her books

[Ray · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic book! Enjoyed it from start to finish, a subconscious learning experience into Japanese history and culture.

[Dr Susan Turner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent detective and wonderful rendering of 17th C Japanese ways

[Alex · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent story that will let you keep guessing what is happening! The best one so far of the series in my opinion.

[Michael Wojciehoski · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written, one of the better books in series. Was very frustrated with all the conniving, evil, etc. Not an easy read for me.

[Arlene · Rating 2 out of 5]

Awful.

[Cy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm really confused on what I want to award this book. I'm wavering between three and four stars, and I wish I could just make it easier and give it 3.5, but Goodreads won't let me.

I want to give it the higher number because it's as well written and tightly plotted as any of the previous books in Rowland's long running Sano Ichiro series. The depictions of Feudal Japan are as vivid and colorful as ever, and they evoke the same mixture of intrigue, fascination, and disgust that her novels always have. There's a sense that Sano's conflicts with the corrupt Chamberlain Yanagisawa are going to come to a head soon, and we see Sano and Reiko's relationship begin to heal after the rift created between them during the Black Lotus investigation in the previous novel.

The reason I want to give it Three Stars, however, is the fact that the formula is beginning to wear a little thin by the time this book, the seventh in the series, comes to a close. The murder in this book, that of the shogun's heir-apparent just feels rehashed. The story follows the same pattern we've seen before: Sano investigates, finds his path blocked by corruption in the highest echelons of government and his conflicts with others who vie for the Shogun's fickle favor, and struggles with his sense of duty to his lord versus his need to see justice fulfilled. Unsurprisingly, Sano's enemies in the Shogun's court eventually force him into a do-or-die situation, where his very life depends on solving the case. This is the exact same basic plot we've seen in previous books. There's a very powerful foreboding of something serious happening soon in the clashes between Sano and his enemies in the court, as well as the continuation of Yanagisawa's manipulations with the Shogun, but this sense of anticipation does little to carry the novel through the same paths that are now well-trod in Rowland's Feudal Japan. What keeps the formula from growing noticeably stale in previous outings is that each book carries with it a new and fascinating glance at some aspect of Feudal Japanese society or culture, whether it be religious life (as in the previous outing, Black Lotus), the curious insular world that the Emperor lives in (The Samurai's Wife) or the closed world of the Western traders in Japan (Way of the Traitor). This has relatively little of that. It promises to focus exclusively on the Yoshiwara Pleasure Quarter, an enclave where prostitution is legal and women are sold into a life of it, but there is truly little here that hasn't been covered in-depth across the previous six novels.

It was an enjoyable book, as Rowland's Sano Ichiro books genuinely are. Unfortunately, it truly does feel like a "middle book" in the series: old plots are wrapped up and new ones are hinted at, but it doesn't stand as substantial on its own.

[Alice · Rating 3 out of 5]

At last, we step into the exotic world of the Pleasure Quarter, a place of silks, incense, and music. This book promised many things. While it delivered on the complex characters and gripping mystery, I felt the world building fell flat in this installment, and the pace could be plodding. Nevertheless, The Pillow Book of Lady Wisteria is a fascinating window into the Sanos' life after the trauma of the Black Lotus case.

With the shogun's heir murdered, Sano steps into his past. Wisteria, whom he met in the first book, was with the heir on the night of his death before mysteriously disappearing. Because the Black Lotus case is still fresh, Sano wants to avoid anything that might upset Reiko, so he keeps his past with the courtesan a secret. He spends the novel gallivanting around Edo, trying to figure out where Wisteria could have gone to, but honestly, very little time is actually spent on this.

Reiko shines in this book. Chastened by her mistakes and assumptions in the previous case, she asks her husband permission for everything, and she distrusts everything and everyone. The mind games she plays with herself also affect the reader, as we try to piece together if what she's seeing is a real clue or imagination. She really grows in this book, and she felt more relatable. In addition to the mystery, her perspective includes getting acquainted with Chamberlain Yanagisawa's wife, who is the exact opposite of her husband in every way. Again, Reiko must differentiate between fact and fabrication, and her personal redemption is vindicating.

Honestly, this was one of the more disappoint books in the series. I still rated it 4 stars because the mystery was so compelling, but most of the page-time was spent on Sano and Hoshina arguing. Hoshina has zero tact - a stark contrast from the astute police commissioner in book 5 - and he openly challenges Sano before the Shogun repeatedly. Sano is flabbergasted that he is being challenged so publicly. I found the squabbling frustrating, and I fail to see how any of it makes Hoshina look good.

Additionally, the final frustration was that I was so looking forward to a more in-depth look into the Yoshiwara pleasure quarter, something that Rowland usually handles with aplomb. Instead, we barely dipped our toe in the water. There was a lot of page time dedicated to Sano and Hoshina.

This was one of the sadder books in the series. It's still worthwhile, so I wouldn't skip this, but it was particularly dark, to me because of the themes of love and parenting at play. Keep that in mind as you continue your journey with Sano Ichiro.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another solid entry in one of my favourite series. One thing I really liked about this book were the varying juxtapositions of roles of the main women. Reiko's rare freedom in such a closed, phallic society that cares more about appearance than feelings. Lady Yanagisawa's imprisonment, though her rank should give her more freedom than her shyness allows. Reiko who has a husband that actually desires her, and Lady Yanagisawa, who has a husband that barely acknowledges her existence. Wisteria, living the life of a whore, whose station in life grows bitter seeds of hatred in her, and Midori, trapped between love and her crazy family's wishes.

Though the books take place in the late 1600s in a world so very different than what I've experienced, the characters and their feelings feel almost modern, their problems mirrored even today. Though Lady Yanagisawa's plot to destroy Reiko to steal her good luck is very based in a world that believes in that, I could completely understand her situation, being trapped in a marriage where she feels great love while her husband cares nothing for her. I could also embrace her painful shyness and lack of social graces, being a shy person myself. I can also completely relate with Reiko's fiery spirit. While I may be shy at first, I'm also very independant, and love Reiko for her own shirking of the shackles society's put on her. And what woman can't empathize with Midori, getting knocked up by her man, fearful of how her family will react?

The mysteries of Sano are always also interesting in the fact that he can't use forensics, or any kind of Western means of investigating. Sherlock Holmes didn't have DNA typing, but he wasn't as restricted by the society he lived in as Sano, which makes his cases always interesting. The political scape of The Pillow Book of Lady Wisteria is just as much a character as any of the human ones, and feels just as perilous as any of the swordfigths between samurai opponents.

[Jadetyger Sevea · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm very ambivalant about this series. One the one hand, the historical detail is amazing, and I truly enjoy the main characters. On the other, every book in this series seems to center around a sex crime of some sort, and it would be nice for a change of pace in that regard.

Add in a set of recurring villains who are either massively evil or insane, and the plot of The Pillow Book of Lady Wisteria is almost crushed by the sheer amount of moustache twirling.

That being said, I didn't hate the book. Sano and Reiko really make this series, and the political intrigue within the Shogunate is fascinating.

One thing Rowland does very, very well is paint a vivid picture of Japan in the 1600s. Currying favor and political maneuvering are a part of daily survival. I enjoyed watching the author's chess game unfold.

Sano and Reiko are likable characters, while still being very much a product of their environment.

While Reiko can defend herself admirably, she's far from Xena: Warrior Princess. In the glut of Urban Fantasy ass-kickers, it's nice to see a woman who can be awesome, while still staying true to the time and culture she lives in.

Likewise, while Sano is far from being a saint, he's deeply devoted to justice, and it's clear he loves and values his wife as an individual. In a time where women were considered little more than window-dressing, that's quite an accomplishment.

Thus, I'll be continuing this series. Perhaps the next book will contain a plot more worthy of the protagonists.

[Denise · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really liked this book. I give it 4.5 stars. Lots of layers and I particularly liked the unconventional (at the time) relationship between Sano and Reiko, husband and wife, who investigate together, along with Hirata, Sano's second in command. Hated the time period because of the discrimination and class restrictions, so I tried to put myself into this story as a party to those things, which made it more palatable. Intrigue, lying, twists, turns, manipulations. This book is not for everyone and I found it a bit more difficult to read than others because of the language differences and my unfamiliarity with all of the complexities of the time period. Having said all that, I really found it so interesting and satisfying and would recommend it. [It helped that I have a native Japanese friend who I consulted to ensure that I was picking up the correct meanings in what I was reading.:]

[Frank · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was kind of mixed about this one. While I liked the setting of the story (17th century Japan) and the descriptions of Shogan-era Japan, I didn't quite buy the premise of the Shogan's investigative and police forces. The investigator, Sano, seemed too much like an Agatha Christie-like detective from the 20th century. I kind of doubt that Medieval Japan would employ such investigators/police (I could be wrong). The story itself, about the murder of the next-in-line for Shoganship at a brothel was also rather straight forward and there were really few surprises along the way. There were also a lot of references to the previous novel in the series "Black Lotus" which based on the comments was probably a better mystery than this one. Overall, a moderate recommendation based primarily on the setting and insights into Medieval Japan.

[Kimberly · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the best series I've ever read...I cannot get enough of it! Once again, Ms. Rowland had me at her mercy day in and day out until I was able to finish this book. Finding time to read was somewhat challenging during the past few weeks so it took me a little longer to get through this one, but what an incredible read! The rapturous completion of time well spent nicely coincided with a day at the Honolulu Academy of Arts this past weekend where viewing the art of Utagawa Kuniyoshi punctuated the appreciation of such a delectable, yet dangerous time in Japan's history. On to the next!