Lady Joker: Volume 2: The Million Copy Bestselling 'Masterpiece of Japanese Crime Fiction'

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It’s kind of fascinating in the details of Japanese behavior and culture but it’s incredibly slow and labored - as well as just long! There Jeff Cook, who has clearly done well for himself, recounts how, about 20 years earlier, the course of his life was changed when he rescued a drowning stranger from the Pacific ocean. This second half of Lady Joker, by Kaoru Takamura, the Grand Dame of Japanese crime fiction, concludes the breathtaking saga introduced in Volume One. Watching a sort of psychological chess game with men who have nothing to lose makes this a great read to sink your teeth into.

LADY JOKER, VOLUME 2 | Kirkus Reviews

Consists of 3 parts and was told alternatingly in between characters, Lady Joker revolves around a team of 5 men with different backgrounds, life struggles and resentment to meet and plan to kidnap the CEO of a Japan's largest beer conglomerate and asking for a huge sum of ransom from the company's corrupt financiers. The story itself is good if a bit of a struggle from a Westerner's position (so much of the plot hinges on a corporation agreeing to pay out 2 billion yen in 1994 value just so it won't be revealed that they may have shown prejudice in not hiring a young man) but is very interesting as a cross-section of Japanese society.It is slow (and apparently there are four volumes) and much of this first book is leading up to the events that form the end section of this volume and set up the next. With respect to the audiobook, actor Brian Nishii has narrated a wide range of titles and has a golden, resonant voice that was a pleasure to listen to. At the center is a moral reckoning for Shiroyama, who’s forced to reevaluate his life and corporate tenure, eventually seeing the synergy in the personal, social, and political.

Lady Joker, Volume Two Download [PDF] [EPUB] Lady Joker, Volume Two Download

Set in the 1990’s in Japan, this novel is a crime story where a ragtag group of disenfranchised and marginal members of society conspire to kidnap the president of the largest beer company in the country for the purpose of extorting large sums of money from its coffers.However, if you want your crime with a heavy dose of social commentary then you will relish this novel. This modern masterpiece of literary fiction, has plenty of Japanese customs, traditions, and preconceptions in it.

Lady Joker, Volume 2 by Kaoru Takamura, Paperback | Barnes

Tbh I got bored of all the minute details after a while, especially when the CEO was going on and Of course, the discourse is about the corruption of modern society and especially the 'free enterprise' system and the conflict that presents in Japanese culture where loyalty and integrity often demand conflicting conduct necessitating a final denouement. In part, it is a look at the focus on business and how that effects the people who work for the business, in this case beer company and how it impacts various people. Here is a quick description and cover image of book Lady Joker, Volume Two written by Kaoru Takamura which was published in December 1, 1997.Brooks places the epicenter of the Bigfoot war in a high-tech hideaway populated by the kind of people you might find in a Jurassic Park franchise: the schmo who doesn’t know how to do much of anything but tries anyway, the well-intentioned bleeding heart, the know-it-all intellectual who turns out to know the wrong things, the immigrant with a tough backstory and an instinct for survival. Like any worthwhile fiction, there are no heroes and villains here, only complex people driven (I’d say) to overcome that pervasive sense of dukkha, each in their own way. The story is told through their multiple points of view adding to the intricate picture of life in Japan. They have kidnapped the CEO of Japan’s largest beer company to extract blood money from the company’s corrupt financiers. Lady Joker volume 2 follows the investigation into the kidnapping over the course of the following year.

Lady Joker: Volume 2 (Paperback) - Waterstones Lady Joker: Volume 2 (Paperback) - Waterstones

By the time Steve arrives, with his wife, teenage son and the other guests hard on his heels, she has disappeared, leaving only a trail of detritus. There are long passages where the characters are reflecting on their lives and the decisions they have made. It is the perfect mix of plot and characterisation I both wanted to finish it but also didn’t want it to end. It's like trying to review Infinite Jest after 600 pages, or in fact The Pale King would be a better comparison as there are long stretches in Lady Joker where it seems like the author is deliberately trying to bore you.Admirers of intricate crime fiction, which both engages the intellect and offers insights into the hidden parts of a society, will hope for further translations of this gifted author’s work. Takamura has written a novel with interesting characters that resemble all different parts of society, and an incident that all spurred from a corporation's past misdeeds. Married wine merchant Steve, in lust with the embarrassingly younger Summer, flies her out to a hired villa for some adulterous sexy-time a week before anyone else arrives. when attacked on a matter that concerns their reputation and credibility a company will generally pay-up". Kaoru Takamura created this work back in 1997 in Japan but it’s only been recently (2021 and 2022) where us English speaking folks have our own translated version to enjoy.