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Start giftingRashomon Gate
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Learn moreA riveting historical mystery set amid the exquisite ritual and refined treachery of eleventh-century Japan.
Sugawara Akitada is the son of impoverished nobility toiling at a low-level job in the Ministry of Justice. When an old friend, Professor Hirata, asks him to investigate a colleague’s blackmail, Akitada takes leave of his stultifying job for a temporary post at the Imperial University. There he finds gossip and rivalry abounding. A young girl is murdered. An old man mysteriously vanishes, and the Emperor declares it a miracle. Plunging into a labyrinth of conspiracy among the court’s most esteemed nobles, Akitada must step carefully while gathering clues to the puzzle before him.
A fascinating investigative procedural . . . goes down as smooth as a cup of sake with an appropriately powerful kick in the end.”–San Francisco Chronicle
I.J. Parker was born and educated in Europe and turned to mystery writing after an academic career in the U.S. She has published in Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, winning the short story Shamus award in 2000. The Akitada series, about an eleventh century Japanese nobleman/detective, now consists of fourteen titles plus a short story collection. The books are available in print, audio format, and on Kindle and are translated into twelve languages.