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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
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