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Content snapshot
Flag an inaccuracy →What's in this book, at a glance — five things readers want to know before they start.
Violence
Some
Feudal warfare; torture; ritual suicide (seppuku)
Language
Barely any
Mild period language
Sexual Content
Some
Sexual relationships; concubinage as a cultural institution
Substance Use
Barely any
Sake; the culture of feudal Japan
Emotional Intensity
Some
Themes of cultural immersion, loyalty, and the transformation of self
What this book is about
Clavell's 1975 epic follows John Blackthorne, an English pilot, who is shipwrecked in Japan in 1600 and becomes entangled in the power struggle between rival daimyo. A gripping historical novel of cultural collision, loyalty, and transformation. Features violence (feudal warfare, torture, ritual suicide), sexual content, and period brutality. For adults.
Notes for sensitive readers
Reader-flagged moments and themes that may affect your experience.
Feudal violence and torture
Sexual content
Ritual suicide
Reader Verification
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