Blood Ninja
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- ¥1,300
発行者による作品情報
A boy from a small fishing village must face a new reality after his father is murdered and he is rescued by a mysterious ninja in this heart-stopping first novel in the Blood Ninja trilogy.
Could Taro, a fisherman’s son, be destined for greatness? In the course of a day, Taro’s entire life changes: His father is murdered before his eyes, and Taro is taken by a mysterious ninja on a perilous journey toward safety. Someone wants Taro dead, but who—and why? With his best friend, Hiro, and their ninja guide, Shusaku, Taro gets caught in the crossfire of a bitter conflict between rival lords for control of imperial Japan. As Taro trains to become a ninja himself, he’s less and less sure that he wants to be one. But when his real identity is revealed, it becomes impossible for Taro to turn his back on his fate.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
British author Lake's promising U.S. debut takes three of the most overused ideas in fantasy the boy with a destiny, vampires, and ninjas and combines them into a highly effective adventure. Marked by destiny, Taro has no idea that he is anything but a simple peasant until ninjas murder his father, driving Taro and his mother from their home. Protected and mentored by the ninja Shusaku and accompanied by his best friend, Hiro, Taro must come to terms with the heritage that makes him invaluable to two lords vying for control of feudal Japan, the revelation that the murderous samurai are not the noble heroes he admired, and his unexpected transformation into a kyuuketsuki (a vampire). While the ending sets up an inevitable sequel, the riveting, often gruesome, action and rich, comprehensible mythology should have readers racing through the chapters. Terry Pratchett wrote that clich s are "the spanners and the screwdrivers in the toolbox of language," and Lake uses the story's familiar elements skillfully, combining them into an imaginative and original whole. And, really, with vampire ninjas, how can you lose? Ages 12 up.
