Another exceptional novel by Winslow, which I remembered about half way through,, that I had already read many years ago. I didn't want Solange to die, but her character would have been extremely dificult to maintain, being the mysterious Cobra assassin. a real page turner. ( )

Don Winslow has done a good job in writing a prequel to one of my favorite books, Shibumi by Trevanian. Nicholas Hel is the child of a Russian aristcrat and Asian father, who fits in neither world. He is rescued from jail with an offer to find and kill an enemy of the U.S. Then, of course, he has to battle many adversaries to achieve his goal, which include punishing the men who tortured him for euthanizing his Japanese mentor. ( )

What a wild ride! From Japan to China to Vietnam - plenty of spies, assassins, shady characters and underhanded dealings. Don Winslow does an excellent job of carrying on in Trevanian's footsteps and is fast becoming one of my favorite authors. ( )

I received the book for free through Goodreads First Reads.

Don Winslow's novel Satori, which is based on deceased author Trevanian was so good that I now want to track down every novel of T's just so I can see how the story line's character evolves. ( )

Now, THIS is what I thought "Shibumi" was going to be like! All respect to Trevanian for creating Hel, but thanks to Winslow for using him correctly! This story comes after Nicholai has killed Kishikawa-san, his father figure, and is in prison for doing so. He makes a deal to get out, then his adventure begins in Japan, proceeds to China, and then ends up in Vietnam. (for me, China was my favorite part!) He has lots of people coming and going into his life, and he struggles to find out who is friend, who is foe, and who the heck Cobra is! All the while playing a dangerous game of Go in his mind! Nice, fast paced book with lots of action, suspense, and twists! I'd love to read another one of these - from Winslow! ( )