Shibumi (The Nicholai Hel Series)
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4.1 • 17 Ratings
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- $19.99
Publisher Description
Nicholai Hel, born in the ravages of World War I China to an aristocratic Russian mother and a mysterious German father, and raised in the spiritual gardens of a Japanese Go master, survives the destruction of Hiroshima to emerge as the world’s most artful lover and its most accomplished and highly paid assassin. Genius, mystic, master of language and culture, Hel’s secret is his determination to attain a rare kind of personal excellence, a state of effortless perfection—shibumi.
Now living in an isolated mountain fortress with his magnificent Eurasian mistress, Hel faces his most sinister enemy, a super-monolith of espionage and monopoly. The battle lines are drawn: ruthless power and corruption on one side, and on the other, shibumi.
Customer Reviews
A Work Of Genius
This book is incredible because it talks about a stuck up swinger and his hate for Americans from a point of view other than our own American hubris. So necessary to see things from other perspectives so that you don’t get trapped in your own patriotic bubble. I love my country more than any of the dozens of others I’ve lived in, but that’s because I’ve lived in dozens of other countries. 😜
Peaks early
The book peaked early talking about the upbringing and training of the protagonist. After that I found it difficult to side with Nikolai after that because he turns into a stuck up swinger, who talks about how much he hates Americans etc.