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The Samurai Detectives: Volume 1

By Shotaro Ikenami
Series: The Samurai Detectives
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Brief Description
Shogun meets Sherlock Holmes! Over 24 million copies have been sold of this beloved samurai adventure. It has been half a year since Akiyama Daijiro became a samurai; half a year since he left his father Kohei - the wisest swordsman in the land - to... Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
$3000
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Shogun meets Sherlock Holmes! Over 24 million copies have been sold of this beloved samurai adventure.

It has been half a year since Akiyama Daijiro became a samurai; half a year since he left his father Kohei - the wisest swordsman in the land - to set up his own blade school by the cool of the river. Ever since, amid the swaying bamboo groves, he waits patiently for his first disciple.

But his serenity is soon disrupted by the visit of a mysterious samurai with an unhonourable offer: in exchange for a vast sum of gold, he must attack and injure the daughter of the Shogun's most senior counsellor. Troubled by the proposal, Daijiro, alongside his father and Mifuyu, a female warrior without match, soon set out into the underworld of Edo-era Japan to uncover the conspiracy, before quickly finding themselves embroiled in a series of increasingly perilous adventures.

Widely considered to be the greatest work by Shotaro Ikenami, the master of Japanese historical fiction, The Samurai Detectives is a twisting, page-turning portrayal of one of the most intriguing, evocative periods in the history of Japan.

Series: The Samurai Detectives

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  • The Samurai Detectives: Volume 1
    Shogun meets Sherlock Holmes! Over 24 million copies have been sold of this beloved samurai adventure. It has been half a year since Akiyama Daijiro became a samurai; half a year since he left his father Kohei - the wisest swordsman in the land - to set up his own blade school by the cool of the river. Ever since,...
    By Shotaro Ikenami
    Paperback
    $3000
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • The Samurai Detectives: Volume 2
    Return to the world of The Samurai Detectives, the multi-million copy bestselling series of thrilling adventure and inscrutable mystery. In the months since their last perilous quest, a fragile calm has settled over Edo. Daijiro dedicates his days to training the first pupil of his quiet riverside dojo, while his father Kohei—a famed swordsman whose name still inspires awe—drifts through...
    By Shotaro Ikenami
    Paperback
    $3000
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • The Samurai Detectives: Volume 3
    Pre-order
    The Samurai Detectives: Volume 3
    The Samurai Detectives are back! The multi-million copy bestselling series set in the dark heart of old Japan. Late spring settles over Edo with a deceptive gentleness - soft rain, a drifting haze, the first warmth of summer. But it is not only fallen blossom that gathers in the streets and woodland of Edo city - there too a terrible...
    By Shotaro Ikenami
    Paperback
    $2800
    Pre-order
    Out 24 Nov 2026

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781405975766

Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 30 October 2025

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Penguin Books Ltd

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 15.0mm

Width: 129.0mm

Height: 198.0mm

Weight: 194g

Pages: 272

Collections

Best Sellers at Book Hero Classic Fiction Classic General Fiction Comfort Reads Crime & Thriller Fiction General Fiction Historical Crime & Mystery Historical Fiction In Stock Books In-Stock Fiction Books Literary Fiction New Release Fiction Penguin Books Police Procedural Series: The Samurai Detectives Shotaro Ikenami

About the Author

Shotaro Ikenami (1923 - 1990) was a bestselling Japanese author famed for his multi-million copy selling series of historical fiction novels. Over his lifetime, he won the Yoshikawa Eiji Literary Award and Naoki Award for popular literature. Over a dozen of his works were adapted for film and television, and his work remains exceptionally popular in Japan.

Also by Shotaro Ikenami

View all
  • The Samurai Detectives: Volume 2
    Return to the world of The Samurai Detectives, the multi-million copy bestselling series of thrilling adventure and inscrutable mystery. In the months since their last perilous quest, a fragile calm has settled over Edo. Daijiro dedicates his days to training the first pupil of his quiet riverside dojo, while his father Kohei—a famed swordsman whose name still inspires awe—drifts through...
    By Shotaro Ikenami
    Paperback
    $3000
    In Stock
    Ships Monday
  • The Samurai Detectives: Volume 3
    Pre-order
    The Samurai Detectives: Volume 3
    The Samurai Detectives are back! The multi-million copy bestselling series set in the dark heart of old Japan. Late spring settles over Edo with a deceptive gentleness - soft rain, a drifting haze, the first warmth of summer. But it is not only fallen blossom that gathers in the streets and woodland of Edo city - there too a terrible...
    By Shotaro Ikenami
    Paperback
    $2800
    Pre-order
    Out 24 Nov 2026

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