Catch the enchantment of 16thC and 17thC Japan, country of the misty mountains, towering castles, (shiro) magical shrines, gods and spirits lurking everywhere to catch the unwary, and that code of honour, of duty at all costs, the life of the honourable samurai. The four stories in this anthology, based on the myths and legends of Edo Japan, of the best of the Samurai era, catch the scent and sense of old Japan.Peasant girl, Chieko, pays the debt she owes to the Lord and Lady who rescued her by using her sense of smell.It might be Hanami - the cherry blossom festival - but Lord Iwasaki's daughter, Yoshie, has to prove that she is truly a samurai's daughter, capable of doing her duty and defending her family.A Lord's beautiful daughter shows her quality when she is kidnapped and waits for rescue and revenge.Eiji is denied the role of samurai, a life he expected and wanted, by the inter-clan manoeuvrings of his honourable father's wife. As a scholar and calligrapher he has achieved renown, but will his father accept this?.He finds out when recalled by his mother to avenge the Wife's attempts to bring her clan into the shiro (castle) and take over the castle and estates.
