This wonderful book immerses the reader once again into feudal Japan, where the unconventional investigator Sano Ichiro must solve a series of horrible crimes while dodging the political intrigue and corrupt dealings that surround him.Rowland capures this era of history brilliantly and paints a wonerfully vivid portrait of Japanese life hundreds of years ago. Her writing is clear and interesting and the story flows nicely with rarely a let-up in the action.The character Sano Ichiro is a rebel - something that Japanese society really will not accept - but he is also someone who is desperate to work within the confines of acceptable behavior in order to honor his family... and often the only way to succeed is to do entirely that which should not be done.The entire series of Ichiro mysteries is well written, but Bundori is one of the more interesting cases! Rowland balances action and suspense with a good deal of authenticity...