John Donohue - Deshi (2005)
John Donohue's Deshi is an excellent tale of clashing cultures, an exquisitely flavored and nuanced mystery featuring college professor/martial arts expert Connor Burke, a character whose background mirrors the author's own.
As in Donohue's first book, Sensei, Burke is asked by the New York City police to help them investigate a difficult case. This time it's the murder of a Japanese-American whose death seems to have something to do with a missing inka, a traditional Japanese scroll indicating accomplishment or enlightenment.
At the behest of his sensei (teacher), Burke also becomes involved with a lama who has fled oppression in his native Tibet but is still in danger. Is it possible that the two cases are related?
Although the publisher of Deshi (Japanese for student) bills the novel as a "martial arts thriller," it is much more than that. True, it has its share of action and suspense, but Donohue's story is also one of insight and reflection, written by an author who understands the dichotomy between East and West and uses that knowledge to flavor his already compelling prose.
Posted by David J. Montgomery in Book Reviews | Permalink
