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katstuy's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
girish0731's review
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
My inspiration to read this novel was due to the manga Vagabond and a book-tuber recommendation.The philosophy and development of a character through his life is done so well that it deserves its appreciation to be a classic.
But like classics usually have an issue of long windedness and supporting characters of being not much fleshed throughout but abruptly changing towards the end was kinda jarring.
Overall this was a spiritual and incredibly positive journey in the overall than its little flaws.
But like classics usually have an issue of long windedness and supporting characters of being not much fleshed throughout but abruptly changing towards the end was kinda jarring.
Overall this was a spiritual and incredibly positive journey in the overall than its little flaws.
unklekrinkle's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
informative
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
starskx's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
djc2323's review against another edition
Read the reviews and gave it a try. After a few hours of reading I couldn’t get into it. The plot jumps from one place to another with no real explanation of what’s going on and the writing style (might be a translation issue) is very bland. The main character was very unlikeable to me and Is kind of horrible to a few of the characters in the book. Also was put off at the very beginning of the book by the translator or author feeling the need to down on and spoil half of Shogun.
katja_weinert's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Enjoyed the audiobook but wish i had had a character list as there are so many people to keep track of
xuaeyaqonavosoi's review against another edition
4.0
o jezu, coz to byly za emocje... ogolnie cala serie oceniam jako naprawde dobra, ale pod koniec nie moge ukryc swojego zalu wobec tej nieszczesnej relacji glownego bohatera z tsu, ktora caly czas jest tak naprawde zbednym dodatkiem. fajnie, ze to nie byl romans, bo nie lubie kiedy romansowe rzeczy wysuwaja sie w tego typu ksiazkach na pierwszy plan, ale to ich "uczucie" jest tak z tylka, ze w pewnym momencie zaczelo mrozic. juz by lepiej bylo jakby byli po prostu dobrymi przyjaciolmi, bo ona sobie dla niego doslownie marnuje zycie a przez caly ten czas jedyna sytuacja gdzie musashi zdradzil sie z jakimis glebszymi uczuciami wobec tsu byl moment, kiedy ja prawie zgwalcil w 4. tomie :'). no i na koncu dziewczyna i tak jest na tyle bliska smierci, ze nawet gdyby mial nastapic jakis ciag dalszy to nie bylaby "przeszkoda" na drodze samorozwoju bohatera. poza tym matahachi przechodzi w koncu jakas rzeczywista przemiane i wyjmuje mozg z dupy, chociaz kiedy zobaczylam, ze ma dziecko z akemi to sie prawie udlawilam. ja przez caly ten czas bylam przekonana, ze oni mieli relacje bardziej ziomkowska, biorac pod uwage to, ze wczesniej matahachi byl utrzymankiem matki dziewczyny. nawet kiedy udawali malzenstwo nie zauwazylam nic, co mogloby sugerowac, ze robiliby cos wiecej niz tylko udawanie. no po prostu szok. ciezko mi okreslic czy jestem z tego rozwiazania zadowolona, bo z jednej strony to swieckie zycie jakos lepiej do niego pasuje, a z drugiej strony przywyklam juz do myslenia o nim jako o nawroconym ze zlej sciezki zycia mnichu. przemiana babki sugi wydaje mi sie troche zbyt out of character, ale z drugiej strony to jest ten typ osoby, ktory jak sobie cos wymysli, to daje z siebie 100% niezaleznie od tego jak bardzo klociloby sie to z logika/wczesniejszymi przekonaniami. co do pojedynku ze sasakim kojiro moge powiedziec jedynie tyle, ze jest mi zal, ze to ostatnia scena i dalej nie ma juz nic, ale z drugiej strony to dodaje takiego uroku legendy i nie trzeba juz czytac jak przez wiele kolejnych rozdzialow babka sugi przepisuje sutry o milosci rodzicow i jak musashi sieje ryz. seria miewala swoje slabsze i lepsze momenty, ale ogolnie uwazam, ze warto ja przeczytac chocby z uwagi na ciekawe tlo historyczne.
squiddish's review
There were so many things I did not like about this book. The writing, which may be a translation issue, was bland and stiff. Dialogue and descriptions are often clunky and interesting. The few times we actually got sword fighting, it was well done, but he left so many fights off screen I was starting to wonder if I was even reading a book about a samurai.
The real problem? The women in this book are cardboard cutouts at best, and a tool for the author to heavy handedly get a weak plot across through assault and glorification. Otsu, our "love interest" is annoying, but pure and angelic and can do no wrong. Akemi, the foil, is simply there to be an example of who Musashi isn't going to love; a task accomplished by consistently putting her through abusive situations in a way that leaves you wondering if it's the characters or the authors justifying their place.
If the book was just boring, it would have been fine.
But it wasn't; it was also incredibly disrespectful to women (if we can even call them that given how poorly they were characterized) and used assault as a plot point just to show which woman we should be rooting for. Historically accurate depictions of gender differences are fine; explaining and justifying these sorts of things and then including them to excess is a bit far.
The real problem? The women in this book are cardboard cutouts at best, and a tool for the author to heavy handedly get a weak plot across through assault and glorification. Otsu, our "love interest" is annoying, but pure and angelic and can do no wrong. Akemi, the foil, is simply there to be an example of who Musashi isn't going to love; a task accomplished by consistently putting her through abusive situations in a way that leaves you wondering if it's the characters or the authors justifying their place.
If the book was just boring, it would have been fine.
But it wasn't; it was also incredibly disrespectful to women (if we can even call them that given how poorly they were characterized) and used assault as a plot point just to show which woman we should be rooting for. Historically accurate depictions of gender differences are fine; explaining and justifying these sorts of things and then including them to excess is a bit far.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual harassment and Rape
intake_cinema's review against another edition
adventurous
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.5
wheelerwerks's review against another edition
5.0
An excellent book, but do not expect western pacing or plot structure.