Even Bodies Fall From Trees

by Walt Mussell

The time is December 1863. At age 17, Carlotta Wren, daughter of shipping magnate Randolph Wren, has her life planned as the future wife of Peter Ashford, son of the U.S. Deputy Consul to Japan. However, when the Japanese arrest her father for gun smuggling at the time of the family’s arrival in Yokohama and then both her parents disappear, Carlotta is left to care for her 9-year brother, Wesley.

Adjusting to life in the Yokohama foreign settlement is challenging enough, but when a Japanese citizen is murdered and Carlotta’s father implicated, Carlotta must deal not only with missing parents but also a murderer bent on revenge, in a city that makes the American West look like an afternoon picnic.

87 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 15, 2014

About the author

Walt Mussell lives in the Atlanta area with his wife and two sons. He works for a well-known corporation and writes in his spare time. Walt primarily writes historicals, with a focus on Japan, an interest he gained in the four years he lived there. Other titles include The Samurai's Heart, The Samurai's Honor, and A Second Chance. He does Japanese history videos in social media, gives lectures on Japan’s Christian Century to churches and civic groups, and has been a guest discussing Japan’s Christian history on SiriusXM’s The Catholic Channel. Check out his website at waltmussell.com.

Reviews

[Sally Kilpatrick]

Lots of world building in this one, and I look forward to seeing what Mussell does next. He's taken the premise of Stephanie Bond's Body Movers and transferred the characters to 1860s Japan. What would happen to Carlotta and Wesley if they'd been abandoned at that young age in a different country and a different time period?

What I really like is that this is a great way to learn about Japanese culture through a story. My favorite character, hands down, is Hannah.