Play Audiobook Sample
Child of Vengeance: A Novel Audiobook
Play Audiobook Sample
(4.00) - 1 listener ratings
Quick Stats About this Audiobook
Total Audiobook Chapters:
Longest Chapter Length:
Shortest Chapter Length:
Average Chapter Length:
Audiobooks by this Author:
Publisher Description
A bold and vivid historical epic of feudal Japan, based on the real-life exploits of the legendary samurai Musashi Miyamoto. Japan in the late 16th century was a land in turmoil. Lords of the great clans schemed against each other, served by aristocratic samurai bound to them by a rigid code of honor. Bennosuke is a high-born but lonely teenager living in his ancestral village. His mother died when he was a young boy, and his powerful warrior father Munisai has abandoned him for a life of service to his Lord, Shinmei. Bennosuke has been raised by his uncle Dorinbo, a monk who urges the boy to forgo the violence of the samurai and embrace the contemplative life. But Bennosuke worships his absent father, and when Munisai returns, gravely injured, Bennosuke is forced to confront truths about his family's history and his own place in it. These revelations soon guide him down the samurai's path—awash with blood, bravery, and vengeance. His journey will culminate in the epochal battle of Sekigahara—in which Bennosuke will first proclaim his name as Mushashi Miyamoto. This rich and absorbing epic explores the complexities of one young man's quest while capturing a crucial turning point in Japanese history with visceral mastery, sharp psychological insight and tremendous narrative momentum.
Download and start listening now!
“A brilliant piece of historical fiction—loaded withtreachery and betrayal—that pulses with life. This one is going to find an honored place on many a keeper shelf. It’s a must read debut from an exciting newvoice.”
— Steve Berry, New York Times bestselling author of The Columbus Affair
Quotes
-
“A fascinating, exciting book, beautifully observed. Kirk avoids clichés at every turn, and creates characters of great depth. An absolute gem.”
— Conn Iggulden, New York Times bestselling author of Genghis: Birth of an Empire -
“Bravo! The keenest and most vivid evocation of the inner life of the East since James Clavell’s Shogun.”
— Steven Pressfield, New York Times bestselling author of Gates of Fire -
“Kirk proves himself a worthy samurai novelist…showing feudal Japan as a complex culture in which cunning and poetry are indispensable, and death and vengeance unavoidable.”
— Publishers Weekly -
“This historical debut rips along at the speed of a deftly wielded, flashing katana sword...educational, engrossing, and just plain fun.”
— Library Journal (starred review) -
“Kirk presents seventeenth century Japan as a world imbued with stately rituals, unshakable principles, and a rigid moral code…sure to be compared to Clavell’s work in its superb depiction of samurai culture.”
— Kirkus Reviews -
“This is the book I’ve been waiting for! Razor sharp samurai action coupled with a brutally realistic vision of life in sixteenth century Japan—a real find.”
— Anthony Riches, author of Wounds of Honour
Child of Vengeance Listener Reviews
-
—
peter , 3/14/2015
About David Kirk
David Kirk is the author of Child of Vengeance. He first became interested in Japanese history when his father gave him a copy of James Clavell’s Shogun. Years later, he would be inspired to write his dissertation on samurai cinema. Kirk now lives in Japan, where he now works as an English-language teacher.
About Mark Bramhall
Mark Bramhall has won the prestigious Audie Award for best narration, more than thirty AudioFile Earphones Awards, and has repeatedly been named by AudioFile magazine and Publishers Weekly among their “Best Voices of the Year.” He is also an award-winning actor whose acting credits include off-Broadway, regional, and many Los Angeles venues as well as television, animation, and feature films. He has taught and directed at the American Academy of Dramatic Art.