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ladydewinter's review
5.0
This time it has to be five stars. I spent all day at work gushing about this - this was so much fun, and so exciting, and Nikolai is the most fascinating character! I enjoyed this a lot, and because there were none of the politically incorrect opinions that made "Shibumi" a little uncomfortable sometimes I enjoyed this even more than "Shibumi", although I would say that "Shibumi" is the better book.
Don Winslow really delivers a worthy sequel here, however. I found it absolutely fascinating to see how the style of the book differed from his usual way of writing, but it is still very obviously a Don Winslow book. It's more action focused than "Shibumi", but still manages to introduce and capture the characters in a way that remains true to the original. In fact, I'm positive it can be read without knowing the original, but personally I think that once you get to know Nikolai Hel you want to read all there is about him, and more (at least that's the way I feel).
I have to say that I read both books at the best time possible - I've been reading a few books with an Asian setting, and these two fit in nicely with my current interests in Buddhism and Asian history and culture. And "Satori" certainly cemented my enthusiasm for Don Winslow. Once I finished a few more books on my to read pile, I get to buy another one of his books. I can hardly wait.
Don Winslow really delivers a worthy sequel here, however. I found it absolutely fascinating to see how the style of the book differed from his usual way of writing, but it is still very obviously a Don Winslow book. It's more action focused than "Shibumi", but still manages to introduce and capture the characters in a way that remains true to the original. In fact, I'm positive it can be read without knowing the original, but personally I think that once you get to know Nikolai Hel you want to read all there is about him, and more (at least that's the way I feel).
I have to say that I read both books at the best time possible - I've been reading a few books with an Asian setting, and these two fit in nicely with my current interests in Buddhism and Asian history and culture. And "Satori" certainly cemented my enthusiasm for Don Winslow. Once I finished a few more books on my to read pile, I get to buy another one of his books. I can hardly wait.
msjenne's review
3.0
Kind of silly, but fun. I still can't figure out why he wanted to write this, though. Was he just a huge fan of the original?
grs909's review
4.0
What a wild ride! From Japan to China to Vietnam - plenty of spies, assassins, shady characters and underhanded dealings. Don Winslow does an excellent job of carrying on in Trevanian's footsteps and is fast becoming one of my favorite authors.
slcansian's review against another edition
5.0
Everything I did not like about Shibumi was taken out and replaced by rich narrative. An excellent follow-up/prequel to the Trevanian work and recommended if you enjoy Nikolai hel as much as I do.
darwin8u's review against another edition
3.0
This is pure candy. Not Winslow's best. Professional fanfiction and a bit cliched, but it is what it is. I'll review more tomorrow.
jenne's review against another edition
3.0
Kind of silly, but fun. I still can't figure out why he wanted to write this, though. Was he just a huge fan of the original?
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