The Tokaido Road: A Novel of Feudal Japan

by Lucia St. Clair Robson

So lonely am I
My soul is a floating weed
Severed at the roots

This is how Lady Asano has felt since the forced suicide execution of her father. Adrift in a dangerous world, Lady Asano vows to avenge her father's death and restore his name to honor. to do so, she will have to travel the Tokaido Road.

Lucia St. Clair Robson is renowned for her beautifully written and carefully researched historical novels about the American Indian: The Washington Post proclaimed Walk in My Soul "a richly detailed, rousingly good story" and The Kirkus Reviews praised Light a Distant Fire for its "brilliant word-portraits of memorable characters." Now, Robson has turned her remarkable storytelling gifts and her passion for historical accuracy to a place and time that have been long close to her heart, feudal Japan.

As the novel opens, Lady Asano has transformed herself into Cat, a high-ranking courtesan, to support her widowed mother. Yet Cat's career is temporary; the powerful Lord Kira's campaign against her family is continuing and she must find Oishi, leader of the samurai of the Asano clan, weapons master, philosopher and Cat's teacher. Cat believes he is three hundred miles to the southwest in the imperial city of Kyoto.

Disguising her loveliness in the humble garments of a traveling priest, Cat begins her quest. All she has is her samurai training - in Haiku and Tanka poetry, in the use of the deadly six-foot weapon, the naginata, and in Japanese Zen thought. And she will need them all, for a ronin has been hired to trail her.

The ronin, a lordless samurai, is Tosa no Hanshiro. His weapon is the traditional longsword, a two-hundred-year old Kanesada blade. But he will find cunning adversaries in cat and her faithful traveling companion Kasane. A peasant girl, Kasane is simple, her poetry a little crude. But her devotion to cat runs deep.

Both picturesque and tragic, filled with the grand poetry, chivalrous love, and rollicking goings-on of the era, The Tokaido Road is a stunning achivement by a novelist writing at the peak of her considerable powers.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Japan, Fiction, Historical, Romance, Adventure, Asia

513 pages, Hardcover

First published January 30, 1991

About the author

Lucia St. Clair Robson has been a Peace Corps Volunteer, a teacher and a librarian. Her first historical novel, RIDE THE WIND, appeared on the New York Times best seller list, and in 1983 received the Golden Spur Award from the Western Writers of America. Since then she has written seven more novels set in a variety of times and places. Kirkus Reviews wrote, "Few novelists working today have a better grasp of early American history than Robson.""

Reviews

[Charmayne · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a very pleasant surprise for me, I loved this book and I have reread it several times. I might have to add it to my list of need to read again books now that I've brought it out of the dust. I have always loved Japan and this was a very colorful and detailed book about feudal Japan. I love history lessons any time they are interesting to read, this one was. The love story between the two main characters was beautiful. Danger, adventure, revenge, swords, true love, what more could you ask for? :-)

[Mikki · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ever been so down on your luck after your father was politically assassinated that you went and sold yourself to a brothel as a high-class courtesan to hide from his enemies? Me neither (my dad is just just fine, thanks!), but Lady Asano, otherwise known as Cat, has recently fallen from grace in those exact circumstances and figures she doesn't have anywhere else to go.

A dish of poisoned blowfish and a dead client shatter her life as a courtesan at the House of the Carp. Once again, Cat is on the run from her father's enemies. She flees up the Tokaido Road to seek refuge with her father's old retainer. Her enemies jump to conclusion that she's rousing a rebellion, and send droves of soldiers after her. It's one girl against an entire army.

What follows is an exciting tale of subterfuge and suspense, as the ever-resourceful Cat dons disguises and takes up her naginata to protect herself from those seeking to claim the bounty on her head. With wit, skill, and sheer luck, she proceeds to make fools of the soldiers sent after her. As she blends in with the colorful characters travelling Tokaido Road, she crosses paths with Hanshiro, a ronin warrior, rogue mercenary, and also a total babe. He's hunting her as well, not realizing they'd already met several times along the way, which was AGONIZING for me because I was just like muttering "GET TOGETHER ALREADY" every five minutes. As he follows tales of her exploits down the Tokaido road, he finds himself switching sides, dedicating his sword to her mission and falling completely in love AND IT'S GREAT.

It also has genderbending shenanigans! My favorite kind of shenanigans! Hence, read on, Macduff!

(Full review here)

[John Simmons · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. My wife got it years ago and read it several times. The cover and blurbs for it made me think it was a romance novel so I never picked it up. When I was looking for a book that was in the vein of Shogun (one of my favorites), Tokaido Road kept popping up. So, since we already had it, I decided I would give it chance.

Within the first chapter or two, I was hooked. The detail and the storytelling combined to keep me enthralled. About halfway through the book, I decided to go ahead get the Epub version so I could read it on my tablet (my preferred way to read, now).

Taking place 100 years after the events in Clavell's Shogun, I think Tokaido Road makes a great successor as it shows the outworking of the things we see just starting to be put in place as Shogun ends. I can foresee reading Shogun followed by Tokaido Road in the future.

By the way, while there is a love story (or two) hidden in the plot, this is not a romance, but a mainstream novel. I like the characters enough to want to visit with them again in the future.

[Shari · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book to read if you are interested in learning about Japan during the Edo period. The author actually lived in Japan, carefully researched the time, and traveled the Tokaido Road itself. The story is filled with fascinating details about how the ordinary people of the time lived - their day-to-day activities, food, traveling, method of worship and many others. The blurb on this copy read like a Harlequin romance, but the story is very far from it. It is actually based on a true story. And the author created an exciting story in the travels of Cat, Hanshiro and Kasuze.

[Ashley Marie · Rating 2 out of 5]

The audiobook narration was godawful. I may reread my physical copy eventually but after awhile it just seemed like a lot of nothing. "Travel" books tend to have this repetitive quality about them that authors really have to fight against in order to make things interesting, and I wasn't super-invested in any of it.

[Cheli · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was rich, lush, and well researched. It pulled you into a complicated family drama, but was action packed. The romance was beautiful, but not soppy. It was a long read, but I hardly noticed and when I finished it I wanted more! I suggest it for anyone who likes historical fiction and intricate detail. A must read for new adult women, because it was both empowering and sexy!

[Jindra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hard to put down - and, my goodness, I can hardly wrap my head around the complicated rules of 17th century Japan! Thoroughly researched, gripping, and very interesting.

[Ky · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have very mixed opinions on this book. I found a lot of it rough to get through, while I appreciated the immense amount of detail and research and writings on every small detail of life, clothing, customs, food, buildings, etc. It felt at times like I was reading a visual guide to Edo Japan rather than an adventure story. I love history, I predominately read fantasy and history. But this skirted the lines a bit for me of being too over descriptive. I love good description, I adore Tolkien, and love getting lost in other worlds and times, but this was still too much for me. I can highly recommend this book to anyone wanting to get lost in this time period, see the sights, smell the smells, experience every part of it. But I found the plot itself lacking and the descriptions a bit too inconsequential and heavy. By the end I did enjoy all of our main characters and I don't regret reading it, perhaps on a re-read where I'm really craving that feeling of getting lost in just description I'll enjoy it more.

[Priya · Rating 2 out of 5]

This proves that while I might teach Asian history and quite enjoy reading about history (in real life), novels about East Asia are not for me. For a story based on a real life event (and one that has been represented in song/theatre/film multiple times), this novel had nothing much that was new to add. Maybe it was revolutionary in its time (1991) but, 20 years later, it's not aged well. The first 100 pages or so plod along, much like Lady Asano (or Cat). The last part picks up a bit but, by then, you've either abandoned this or fallen asleep.

Also, what is it with protagonists who exemplify every single characteristic that we readers know about Japan? Cat is a samurai (in training? learning?), knows poetry/literature/art, uses various weapons, AND is trained in Zen Buddhist philosophy.

On the plus side, descriptions of the place (and culture) are great and I had a fair few words I enjoyed looking up on Google afterwards (one of the best parts of reading books, as far as I'm concerned). I'd still recommend a good history book or even a set of diaries over this.

[Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

"The Tokaido Road" is, at first glance, a road trip wrapped around a tale of revenge . . . and a beautiful one, at that.

Lady Asano, nicknamed "Cat," is a gorgeous, refined daughter of a samurai lord who was betrayed and forced to commit suicide. We first meet Cat, who has been forced to work as a courtesan thanks to her family's disgrace, as she stares at a dead "client," who died eating a poisoned dish meant for her. Within moments, Cat uses her ingenuity to escape her brothel and begin her journey down the Tokaido Road, which shall end with her death -- either by her failure, or by her own hand after her success.

Along the way, Ms. St. Clair Robson throws the reader back into feudal Japan, untarnished by Western influence (although there is an entertaining scene where the Japanese vie to catch a glimpse of the "orangutans," which were the red-headed Dutch traders who had very limited access to the Japanese mainland). Robson does a masterful job of putting the reader inside the Asian mind, where poetry transcends all, and the mournful beauty of a landscape can be the transcendant moment of a lifetime.

Other writers would have been tempted to make "The Tokaido Road" into a chop-socky action piece. To be sure, Cat is an expert with the Japanese sword/spear, the naginata, and we see her use it to lethal effect. We also see the ronin, Hanshiro, swordsman extraordinaire, mete out lethal justice with "Barber." But it is a mark of Robson's appropriate restraint that Hanshiro's most powerful demonstration of swordsmanship is used to prevent a swordfight, rather than win one.

Hanshiro is one heck of a character, by the way. A masterless samurai, Hanshiro is charged by the holder of Cat's courtesan contract to track Cat down. Initially convinced that this is just another hum-drum assignment, the noble Hanshiro eventually sees through the fog of Cat's various disguises and counterfeits to see the steel-strong will and razor-sharp mind behind the gorgeous facade, and he falls in love with Cat even before they have their first conversation. As unbelievable as this poorly written review makes that plot line, Robson pulls it off masterfully, again by placing us so well inside the thoughts, values, and motivations of these characters.

We also get to meet Kasane, the peasant girl who latches on to Cat with a zeal that is at first annoying, but soon is cherished. Kasane's home-spun simplicity is charming, and her love-letter romance with the star-struck Traveler brings any number of smiles.

Structured around the journey along the Tokaido Road, the major highway in Japan, the book undeniably has an episodic feel, as minor characters make brief appearances and depart, but most leave quite an impression.

Robson also shows the harsh world of feudal Japan, where peasants and farmers live on a razor's edge between sustenance and starvation, and samurai are always struggling to maintain honor when disgrace is always lurking. Robson is unflinching in her depiction of this long-lost Japan, and this unyielding focus creates moments of great sadness as well as great triumph.

This story is a parallel story to the famed "47 Ronin" story, in which forty-seven ronin plotted to avenge their betrayed lord, and, in one night, killed their lord's betrayer and then committed ritual suicide. In "Tokaido Road," Cat's father is the betrayed lord, and Cat's plot of vengeance runs parallel to that of the 47 ronin. In perhaps the only weak point of the book, Cat is ultimately more of an observer to the act of vengeace rather than a participant. After all this woman has been through, she deserved to take it herself.

But, as one of the wiser characters in the book says, courage means living when it's time to live and dying when it's time to die. For Cat, the answer to that question denies her certain opportunities, but opens up others.

Cat is not a character to be forgotten, and "Tokaido Road" is a book that should be read.

[Robin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This historical novel was a mixed bag. It had the best sense of place of any Westerner-penned novel about feudal Japan I've read and the characters were appealing, but its length and incredibly slow pace as well as the relatively unexciting plot hurt an otherwise appealing book.

This book was incredibly well-researched. I'm fairly well-versed in the Edo period and fluent in Japanese, and I could find very few nits to pick. The author demonstrated such a broad grasp of Japanese history that I was surprised to find out that her other books are set in historical America. I was pleased to see samurai Japan faithfully brought to life, and everything seemed authentic.

While I thoroughly appreciated the detail that went into the book, there were also times where it was overkill. Much of the detail explained at length for Western reader's benefit described facets of life that a Japanese character of the time would've found unremarkable, and probably could've been safely glossed over.

The plot was also slightly disappointing. It's sort of a prequel to the Loyal 47 Ronin historical incident, which all Japanese people are intimately familiar with through theatre, film, and novels. The basic premise involves a revenge plot against the conniving samurai Lord Kira, who provokes rival Lord Asano into drawing his sword while in the Shogun's estate, a capital crime. After Asano's death, 47 of his retainers lie low for a couple years before avenging their former lord in a bloody, dramatic fashion. That's the historical tale, but this book focuses on Asano's fictional illegitimate daughter Cat. Hoping to round up her father's remaining loyalists and prepare for vengeance, she escapes from the brothel she works at and makes an epic journey along the eastern sea route (the eponymous Tokaido) to her father's fief. Her journey is mostly entertaining, but the book reads almost like an unabridged travelogue, with no detail spared. Several colorful characters drift in and out, but most are largely inconsequential to the narrative. Without giving too much away, her journey concludes in a less than triumphant manner, and the actual Loyal 47 Ronin revenge saga is resolved in about a dozen pages, with our heroine relegated to the sidelines. If you're familiar with the story through film and history books that's not a critical flaw, but those less of a background in Japanese history might feel slighted by the abrupt resolution.

While plot and pacing were a little on the weak side, I did enjoy the characters. Cat is beautiful, brave, and determined, but those qualities are balanced out by arrogance and occasional episodes of pettiness and imperiousness. Ronin bounty hunter Hanshiro lives up to the archetype while still avoiding becoming a cliche. He seemed like the kind of character Kurosawa's favorite leading man Mifune Toshiro would play. Peasant girl Kasane is a gullible bumpkin, but her loyalty and fundamental kindness endear her to both Cat and the reader.

Overall this book was a bit of a slog. Rich in detail, but meandering and overly long. I enjoyed the world it presented and the characters appearing within, but probably a third of the book's length was extraneous. I'd recommend it to fans of Japanese history and samurai, but those with only a passing interest in these topics would probably find this book frustratingly slow.

[Theresa · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Tokaido Road
by Lucia St. Clair Robson
The Tokaido Road is a break for Lucia St Clair Robson from her adventures in the American Revolution, and the American tragedy of the Trail of Tears. The Tokaido Road is a dynamic story showing the ideology of Feudal Japan. The complex characters and use of imagery, poetry, and art bring to life the noble Japanese spirit. I will add this as another in my collection to be placed with Memoires of a Geisha, Life of a Geisha, and the tale of Genji, the tale of Murasaki.... The Tokaido Road is traveled by Cat the daughter of Asano Takumi-no-Kami, a young girl surviving after the death of her father the best she knew how, by first turning to a Geisha herself to pay for her mother’s place a nunnery, and to wait out the time until her father’s retainers would avenge his tortured spirit. The plots of her father’s enemies force her into a deceptive world of traveling down the Tokaido road, using many guise and intellectual ploys not only to find safety in Edo, but find the ability to wish those who would avenge her father well on their late night revenge. Cat's courage provided her not only life, but brought the loyalty of those who interacted with her on the road, not only her closest friend, older sister, and servant in Kasane, but her husband and loyal protector in the samurai Hanshiro.

[Lady Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

I finished it and instantly wanted to re-read it. Absolutely got lost in this one. You can smell the food, feel the cold, see the landscape, and hear the brass of the pilgrim bells. It's so well described without being excessive- this is probably one of the main reasons I enjoyed it so much. The character's journey along the road and within herself are well paced. It felt fresh and not a retelling of a standard heroine formula. The humor was spot on. The tension between characters and situations was well played out. A few times I couldn't turn the page fast enough to see what happened next. The introduction of side characters had just enough detail and story make them feel necessary to advancing the plot without going too deep. Once I read it a again there might be a one or two characters I wish we got more from or some closure but initially very pleased. Once I was on the road with Cat, I didn't want to put it down.

[Lolo]

I gave up on this half way through.. honestly it all started rather fascinating and stayed like that until page 120 and then I began to skim the pages. I think the main problem was my lack of general knowledge concering the history of feudal Japan. Also after reading some of the reviews on goodreads I found that I wasn't the only one struggling with the unwarranted length of this novel. One benefit came out of this: I will start reading some more books about this era in Japan. I really found it interesting.

[Antonio · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decepcionado. Otra versión de los 47 ronin desde la perspectiva de una posible hija ilegítima que se propone venganza... estoy exagerando, pero la mitad del libro son descripciones de la ropa de los diferentes personajes que aparecen en el libro y poemas japoneses que los protagonistas comentan entre si...

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful book. I learned about it because it received a high rating on Smart Bitches http://www.smartbitchestrashybooks.co... but it took until almost the end for me to determine why it might be considered a romance novel.

Lady Asano, aka Cat, escapes her life as a courtesan and takes to the Tokaido road to travel to find her Sensei and seek his help in avenging her father's death. She is chased by her father's enemies and a ronin (former samarai) sent be the house where she worked. Along the way she pick up a side kick while kicking ass at every turn.

The novel is filled with beautiful descriptions - I could envision each step of the route. The author incorporates Japanese poetry throughout to help build out the character. The only stumbling was the English dialogue, when written without the poetry, was pedantic at times and did not feel like the words of a fuedal era courtesan. Don't be scared by the length of this book - the quick paced action make it a breeze to get through.

[3GirlsMom · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not sure what my fascination is with feudal or just slightly post-feudal Japan, but the Floating World is fascinating. In this story, the heroine Cat does more than float. She's well-trained in swordsmanship and in the duties of the daughter of a disgraced father. She undertakes her own vendetta and hurries along the Tokaido road in pursuit of Lord Kira who is responsible for her father's death. As in any road story, from Chaucer onward, the fellow travelers become the story. Some aim to prevent her from reaching her goal, and others abet her plans. The story moves along fast as Cat does. We soak in the details of the customs of the time, the living conditions of the poor, the rain-soaked dark roads and the travails of the pilgrim. Ms. Robson's prose enlightens and entertains. Not much more can be asked of such a book.

[Jacqie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like historical fiction, but I think this book just hasn't aged especially well. I'm usually all for description, but this book actually managed to be too granular in description of dress, setting, etc, even for me. The characters felt very distant- I couldn't really empathize with them, although they sometimes did interesting things.

You'd think the theme of a young woman impersonating a man to escape a brothel in order to avenge her father would be exciting, but the book seemed very slow paced, and when I put it down I didn't want to pick it back up.

[Marceline Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

This has been sitting around for ages but I finally read it and enjoyed it a lot; it’s a retelling of the famous 47 ronin tale of old Japan. It has clearly been meticulously researched for realism so it’s a nice look into Japanese customs as well as an epic tale. I wonder if they made it into a film.

[Jonathan Lupa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Things this book made me do:
1. Order a copy of Musashi's Five Rings.
2. Read poetry.
3. Not get any sleep until I finished.

This is an absolute joy to read... neither too thick, nor too thin. Well paced, in a wonderful setting.

[Rebecca Huston · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sadly, this one I could not finish. No matter how hard I tried, I just could not get into this one.

[Marty Nicholas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Picked this up off the bargain table. Sat around for ages...Excellent, Well written, based on the 47 Ronin tale.

[Janine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I chose this book as part of my personal book challenge for May 2021 to read books featuring Asian Pacific Heritage themes but found it also fit two other book challenge prompts I’m doing: read a book starting with the letter “T” and a book featuring an historical event I knew little about. This book certainly included that. Based on a true event in the rule of the fifth Tokugawa shogunate (roughly a period lasting between 1688 to 1703), this is the tale of the avenging of the death Lord Asano Takumi-no-Kami by his 47 Ako followers who after completing this task were sentenced to commit seppuku. The story centers on a fictional daughter, Cat, (a nickname she is given in the geisha house she goes to after having to sell herself when her father’s property is confiscated by the evil Lord Kiro) and she is left penniless m). It covers her journey from Edo to Kyoto to set the revenge in motion. The journey is filled with many adventures in warding off the evil Lord Kiro’s henchmen who are trying to kill her. On the journey she is followed Hanshiro, a ronin hired to return Cat to the geisha house) who grows to admire her courage, offers himself in service to her and, of course, falls in love with her. The revenge plot is interesting (no spoilers here). But the issue of the Ako ronin’s loyalty raised per the author “the issue of civil law versus a higher imperative” (page 513) and unfortunately civil law overruled the moral imperative of revenge. However, these men were so greatly admired by the people that they were considered great heroes and even today their graves on the outskirts of Tokyo are still visited. The story is filled with beautiful poems and interesting detail about the life, mores and customs of that period of Japanese history - about which I knew relatively little (though having read some of the Laura Joh Rowland’s Sano Ichiro detective series which takes place in the same time period, I could appreciate Robson’s detail). Long but interesting read.

[Megan Olsen · Rating 4 out of 5]

So many random things to say. In no particular order...

I was a little intimidated when I saw how long this book was (I listened to it, and the audiobook was 20 hours and change), and I went in wondering if it would drag. That was not the case. There are many suspenseful and interesting adventures going on, and one or another of these kept bringing me back. There was one place, about 70% through, where I got a little bored with their extended adventures on the road, but I also think I was a little afraid to keep reading bc I didn't want one of the main characters to die, and it seemed like the plot was heading that direction. I get a little wound up when I'm reading!

The author's research and attention to detail was amazing, particularly her use of ancient text and poetry. The nuances of meaning that she understands and is able to communicate through the characters' extended poetry conversations -- that was nothing short of incredible. How does an author research enough to recreate that -- did she time travel and study the culture a as guest??

I liked that Kat is a strong character -- arguably the most powerful in the novel. I like that she mentors the girl she rescues and helps her become independent, capable and confident.

One thing that was a little hard to swallow at first was Honjiro's budding love for Kat. Maybe because the [female] narrator voiced him in a mock-low kind of a grumbling voice. I admired and respected him, but I personally didn't fall in love with him because he was voiced like that.

Readers should be aware of a few explicit scenes. Let's just say....descriptive.

I'd recommend it, but with the warning that it is long, and maybe don't get the audiobook -- just for the sake of Honjiro's voice. :)

[Tom Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Tokaido Road by Lucia St Clair Robson. Promoted as a Japanese erotica and martial arts novel, I would question the claim of erotica, as it just wasn’t there. However, martial arts fans will enjoy all the action. This is feudal Japan, probably in the 1400s. When her father fails to bribe the official, Lord Kira correctly, he is removed and his name pulled from record. He commits suicide, which is the only thing left for him to do. However, his daughter wants his named revenged. Kinume Asano, known as Cat, and her mother have no way to survive, so Cat sells herself to a pleasure house. But Lord Kira is keeping an eye on her, and serves her a blowfish not properly prepared. Her client eats the fish and dies, but she knows it was meant for her. She changes clothes with the dead man and escapes. Now she must travel the Takaido Road to reach her sensei, Lord Asano’s samurai, and her master. The story is Lady Asano’s journey down this long and dangerous road, the adventures she has, and the friends she meets along the way. Of course, Lord Kira has his samurai harassing her along the way, but they don’t know that Cat is a master samurai also, and she makes them look like fools. However, the journey is hard and dangerous, and the companions she meet teaches her many things, like how to be humble, and trust in others. Even love comes hard for her, until she discovers how others see her, and are willing to suffer hardships for her. This was an exciting read, and I felt there could be only one ending to the journey. I kept dreading the final page, knowing it could only end one way. I will say no more, as I would give the end away, but I encourage readers to read this yarn to the last page. The action and adventure will keep you turning the pages. Highly recommended.

[Ryan Baxter · Rating 5 out of 5]

You know that one question you are so often asked: If you were stranded on a deserted island, what is the one item you would choose to have with you? Call me crazy, but a copy of The Tokaido Road would be at the top of my list. Every book Lucia St Clair Robson has written is a gem, but The Tokaido Road is a brilliant-cut diamond. There are so many facets to this story and they all sparkle.

I can’t think of another work of fiction that has so drawn me into its world, that has so delighted me with its characters, that has so enthralled me with its adventures, that has so dazzled me with its scope. The book is a constant surprise. And every aspect of the book strikes just the right note. The book resonates when all these notes are combined to create the most marvelous melody.

This is quite simply a spiritual journey for the 19-year-old Cat where she steps outside of her previously sequestered and privileged world to comes face to face with the raw reality of life for the majority of Japanese commoners. And Robson brings this world alive as Cat traverses the Tokaido Road itself from Edo (Tokyo) to the far reaches of the south. You don’t want this adventure to end, but when it does, the climax is right on target.

And yes, I have read the book multiple times. It is that good.

[Denise · Rating 3 out of 5]

Retelling the classic story of the 47 ronin through Lord Asano's (newly invented) daughter, this historical novel was a pleasant surprise in many ways. The extensive research that went into writing this book is evident in the wealth of detail that enlivens the setting in feudal Japan, the protagonist who started out fairly unlikable (to me, at least) grew on me more and more over the course of her journey once she started forming relationships with her newly found companions, and I enjoyed the romance component of the story a lot more than I expected. However, at times it got bogged down in too much excessive detail, with the pace slowing to a crawl. I also wasn't too thrilled with the ending - after spending the entire book building up this strong protagonist with her weapons skills and thirst for revenge, surely Robson could have found something for her to do in the final showdown rather than relegating her to no more than a bystander as others did all the fighting?

[Wendy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not for me.

This is a "road story" that plods.

A high-born courtesan escapes her pleasure house to avenge the political assassination of her father.
Lady Asano, "Cat" is our protagonist: beautiful, dainty, knows poetry/literature/art, is trained to use various weapons, has studied Zen Buddhist philosophy, gets the better of three samurai in battle, you get the drift, eye roll. So implausible as to be laughable. And she is impersonating a man, and her voice does not betray her? Puhlese.

This story does not capture the imagination or stir the senses, at least, not my senses. It drags, it is predictable, and every stereotype of Japanese life is what we have to wallow through. Derivative in the extreme.

Given the premise of a courtesan escaping a brothel by impersonating a man, out to wreak vengeance, you'd think this would be an exciting read. But it is not, it drags and I found that I was not invested in the success of her mission or any of her characters.

No, no, no.

[Ellen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall I enjoyed this novel. Some of the pros: the character development (especially for the main character and her main companion) is great. Another plus, the book is very well researched, and the use of poetry throughout the book is beautiful.

The cons: The writing is lush to the point of slowing the story way, way down. Its not too bad once you get into it, but at over 500 pages, it could have lost a bit of the descriptions. Probably the biggest con though is that St. Clair Robson gives her character a false goal. At the end of the story (which again is 511 pages) instead of doing anything, she sits back and watches as everybody else does things. While it doesn't ruin the book, it does make for an ending that feels like it is lacking.

A good book, but not one I plan to keep in my personal collection.

[Rolland · Rating 4 out of 5]

Being a great fan of Clavel’s Shogun I expected Tokido to be similar.
Instead we are introduced to seemingly hundreds of characters with difficulty keeping track of them. We were given the main character Cat Osano (not her full name that consisted of 10+ names). Anyway Cat is a badass who was a trained samurai looking to avenge her father requiring her to travel the length of tokaido road. Meeting lots of people. Learned a lot about Japan in the seventieth and eighteenth centuries. A very complex society with lots and lots of rules.
I expected more from Cat, she delivered a lot of thought provoking philosophical poetry.
By the end I was expecting a little more but didn’t get it.