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bobbo49's review against another edition
challenging
informative
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Whew. Another massive tome in which the characters on all sides are intimately drawn and relationships developed with each other and their opponents, as the history of the time - Japan in the 1860s - is unraveled. The main characters are related to English and French businesses operating in Yokohama, as America enters a civil war and the demand for Asian trade increases. At the same time, the native Japanese are struggling to regain control of their country through their shogunate. The foreigners - Gai-Jin - compete and battle each other for power and control of the trade, and simultaneously struggle against the Japanese to maintain control of the country and its commerce. And in the midst of this historical saga, numerous interpersonal relationships are developed and unspooled. A bit longer than necessary, but overall, a very good, informative read.
crowmaster's review against another edition
2.0
After more than a year I have finally finished this book. I am disappointed in this book. I enjoyed the 1st 300 pages of the book and than the story became too complex to understand. I believe that this book should have been separated in a trilogy of books because than the story would be more easy to comprehend since there is too many pov changes in the story and too many plot lines going on. Overall 2.5 stars.
tomtomthedondon's review against another edition
challenging
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.75
forever_amber's review against another edition
5.0
Отдавна вече се убедих, че за Джеймс Клавел няма какво да се пише. Безсмислено е, напълно излишно. След роман като "Гай-джин" каквото и да кажеш, ще е плоско и безсмислено. И макар да не ми се стори невероятен като "Тай-пан", е просто всепоглъщащ. Чудя се какво ли тогава ще ни предложи "Търговска къща"?
robyn161's review against another edition
1.0
I'm afraid that like most of the other reviewers here I just had to abandon this one mainly because of a lack of focus on any central character. I was listening to the audiobook version which was 50 hours long, I got 20 hours in and had to abandon it. Virtually nothing happened in 20 GODDAMN HOURS!! Shogun is one of my favourite books but unfortunately this reads like bad fan fiction or a really early first draft of Shogun. So much needless description about nothing and the way it flits from character to character to character you have no real time to become invested in anyone.
blackestclovers's review against another edition
3.0
Decent enough book but man it dragged in places. It was hard to want to finish it, frankly. But overall, still good but still not better than Shogun.
dweintrop's review against another edition
3.0
first 900 pages were really good, but Clavell doesn't wrap up 80% of the plot lines he created and spends the last 300 pages wrapping up the plots that i enjoyed the least. this book could have been two really good books but instead turned into one long book that lacked a conclusion.
mkpatter's review against another edition
3.0
OK, so this book was on crack in (mostly) the most delightful, soap opera-y way. I pretty much had no idea what was going to happen because ANYTHING COULD HAVE HAPPENED. I want to give this 4 stars but for one thing, and those who have read this book know exactly what I'm talking about -- Angelique/Ori. First of all, let me say that I appreciate how Angelique turned out to be way smarter than anyone would have suspected, which was awesome. But her irresistible vagina DID get kind of annoying. I actually did think the women in this book were pretty well written, and Clavell definitely understands the mindset of both sets of people really well. BUT OMG WAS THAT ORI THING COMPLETELY PROBLEMATIC OR WHAT!? Like, so many problems with that. I won't go into them. Oh and also the ending was really weird and abrupt and weak.
jeffstevens's review against another edition
1.0
I am putting this down. I don't care about any of the characters, I find every single one of them somewhere between insufferable and maddening.
I might pick it up another time.
I might pick it up another time.
ogybuns's review against another edition
2.0
Finally! I finally finished Gai-Jin. Phew. The two-star rating is simply because this book does not measure up to the previous two. It was more confusing, slower-paced, and just generally less compelling, particularly the Japanese side of the story. What I've heard from others is that this is the weak link in the Asian Saga series, so I'm looking forward to reading the next installment and seeing how it improves.