Sujata Massey

[Miss Shelf]

I'm reading "The Typhoon Lover", really like it so far and wonder if anyone's read any books in the Rei Shimura series?

 

[funes]

I read Zen Attitude a couple of years ago. I don't really remember much about it other than the barest essentials of the plot. I don't think that I disliked the book, but evidently, it didn't make much of an impression.

 

[Miss Shelf]

I finished the book last night and I really liked it, so much that I ordered the first three in the series from my local library. I like how Rei is conscious of looking older (at just 30!!) , and grows to accept it. The last line of the book is "...and because I finally understood that my own winter years were nothing to be afraid of."

This is not, however, the focus of the book-Rei has been barred from entering Japan because of an earlier incident, and she is offered a job by the government to go to Japan legally and find out if her former lover is actually in possession of a priceless treasure that was looted from a museum in Iraq after the fall of Saddam's government. In the process, she becomes embroiled in a mysterious death and in her quest to find out the truth, she uncovers both the whereabouts of the priceless object and the answer to the mysterious death, at some peril to herself. This opens the way for further government jobs, although her job description falls short of "agent".

The book is fast-paced and well written, and kept me turning pages, which is sadly unusual for me these days. I am glad I found a series that piques my interest.

 

[funes]

That certainly sounds interesting. I read Zen Attitude largely because the plot has something to do with an antique chest of drawers (if I remember correctly). But, I read it fresh off running through Jonathan Gash's "Lovejoy" mysteries, which seemed to me to be more directly connected with the antique trade.
If you haven't read any of those, you might want to think about it; though, if your interest is primarily in the fact that the main character is a woman, Lovejoy might seem like a bit of a Neanderthal.

 

[StillILearn]

Enticing posts here. I'll be keeping my eyes open for this author.

 

[Miss Shelf]

It's really refreshing to find a series where the female protagonist isn't described as stunningly beautiful, never makes a mistake, etc etc. Rei is clothes-conscious, but not to an extent that detracts from the story-I've read books with well-conceived female characters but was turned off by endless descriptions of what the character was wearing.

 

[funes]

It's really refreshing to find a series where the female protagonist isn't described as stunningly beautiful, never makes a mistake, etc etc.

Yes, that can be quite annoying. Like you, I would much rather read about a fallible, believable character. You might enjoy, if I remember correctly, a few books by Marianne MacDonald (Smoke Screen, Ghost Walk, and Death's Autograph) which feature Dido Hoare. She is book dealer with a habit of getting enmeshed in murder.
At any rate, I seem to remember that Dido is a very pragmatic type of woman who isn't perfect, just accepts the fact, and gets on with her life.

 

[Miss Shelf]

Thank you for the recommendation! I'll see if my library has them.

 

[Miss Shelf]

I've been working my way down the list of all of Ms. Massey's books. I just cannot get over the consistency of the writing, I haven't come across a stinker yet. (I have two to go). I find the information about Japanese culture fascinating, and Rei's struggle to incorporate her American/Japanese heritage. I've slowed down my reading because I will feel bereft when I finish all the books and have to wait for the new one to come out.

 

[Champagne]

I'm really liking these books, not just because of the plots but because of the cultural information and the tensions between Rei's western and Japanese heritage. I've got "Girl in a Box" on order from Amazon and am hoping the quality of the series is sustained. I'm looking forward to seeing her write one of her novels in a geisha setting; I hope this is long enough after the Memoirs of a Geisha movie that it won't look as though she's jumping on the bandwagon.