Satori

I loved "Shibumi" but thought it odd that Trevanian told Hel's story from the beginning of his life and the near end of his life...but there's was very little of the middle. Don Winslow has written a great story of Hel's life after his imprisonment, very close to the voice of Trevanian.

I bought this book hoping it would a continuation of Shibumi. NO! The book is interesting to read but cannot be compared to Shibumi at all. Still, for those who love Shibumi, it would be interesting to read this book.

i like don winslow, Savages was great as was Power of the Dog. however, this book was terrible and although i liked Shibumi, i felt this prequel was exceptionally dull and didnt generate any interest for me whatsoever.

At one point in Satori, the word satori is defined as "to see things as they really are." It's easy to see the novel for what it really is: an old school thriller. It isn't sophisticated or terribly imaginative, but its throwback plot is fun. Satori begins in 1951 with the release of Nicholai Hel (the protagonist in Trevanian's Shibumi) from American custody in Japan. Hel is given a new face, a new identity, and an assignment: to assassinate Yuri Voroshenin, the Soviet commissioner to China. In preparation, Hel is coached in the accent of southern France by the lovely Solange. The first half of the novel follows Hel into China as he pursues his mission. The second half takes him through Southeast Asia and into Saigon where, dodging foreign and domestic killers, he becomes entangled with the mysterious Operation X. Along the way, Hel manages to take on the Russians, the Chinese, the French, the Viet Minh, the Mafia, a Vietnamese crime organization, the Vietnamese emperor, and an assassin known as the Cobra.

Although I liked Satori, several things troubled me about the novel. The characters are caricatures: Voroshenin and the head of the Chinese secret police are cartoonish sadists while Nicholai Hel is the most honorable assassin ever envisioned. Every character in this novel has a story and every story is a cliché: the woman who spies for the French Resistance by selling her body to German soldiers; the woman who gives her body to a Russian officer to save her home from confiscation; the Russian and Chinese officers who torture for pleasure; the intelligence officers waging turf wars; the intelligence officer working for his own (rather than his government's) purposes; the journalist/informant who is a slave to gluttony -- all are familiar characters. The plot depends upon Voroshenin coming to a conclusion that is unsupported by evidence, logic, or the reasonable exercise of intuition. The discussion of Zen philosophy is cheesy. Every now and then the story is slowed by a dull lecture about the evils of communism. The fight scenes are too similar to each other and there must be a half dozen occasions on which Hel is saved from harm by his "proximity sense" (something he apparently borrowed from Spiderman). The women in this novel who aren't selling their bodies to men are being tortured or abused. As I said: old school.

If the novel is so flawed, why was I unable to tear myself away from it? The answer, I suppose, is that Winslow pushed all the right buttons. The story is like comfort food: predictable but tasty. The plot may be formulaic, but it's a good formula: a story in which betrayal is everywhere, challenging both Hel and the reader "to see things as they really are." When the novel turns to action (which is fairly often), the pace is relentless. The ending, while contrived, contains a satisfying twist. Fans of old school thriller writers like Forsyth and Trevanian should like Satori, even if the novel doesn't quite reach the standards set by those writers. I liked it enough to give it a weak four stars.

At first I thought that the book was well-researched, magnificently plotted, and exhilarating. HOWEVER the ending of this "novel" is so disappointing that I had to research the author to try and figure out why he would write such a truly bad ending. It's literally literary suicide. Yes, it is THAT BAD. I was disappointed to find out that the characters in this book does not belong to Don Winslow. This novel is based on another novel, Shibumi, and most of the "facts" was already in place by the original author, Trevanian.

Winslow uses the main character from Shibumi, Nicolas Hel as his own. Hel can kill with a single blow from his deadly hands but have only actually killed once, out of love for his Japanese Samurai Master. Hel plans his every move in life based on the Asian Go-board strategy. Born of an aristocratic Russian mother and a German nobleman, and raised by a Japanese samurai, Hel is fluent in six languages, handsome, smarter than most people who ever lived, and has some kind of supernatural power of "proximity sense" that allows him to know when danger is near.

Hel's assassination of his Japanese Samurai master lands him in captivity of the "Americans". During his captivity he is tortured and used for Medical experiments by an agent named "Diamond". The Americans makes a deal with Hel for a new life, and part of the deal is the identities of everyone that ordered him tortured and that actually tortured him. The Americans wants him to undertake a suicide mission of assassinating a Russian target. Hel learns the identity of the target as the Russian Communist who humiliated his mother and robbed him of his inheritance.

The Americans hire a French "tutor", a concubine, a french whore named Solange to teach Hel to become his cover, Michel Guibert, the playboy son of a French arms dealer from the South of France. Solange teaches him everything from Southern French cuisine, "inside" info that only a native from the South of France would know, up to how to make love like a Frenchman". Nicolai agrees to undertakes a suicide mission to regain his freedom from the Americans. Nicolai falls hard for Solange and she becomes his only reason for living. He only dreams of successfully completing the mission iin order to be with her. With a wicket twist Winslow turns Solange from a mere whore-for-hire into the very successful and much feared assassin, named "The Cobra" who in a slight twist, happens to be hired to kill Nicolai.

Then comes the FAIL: Winslow turns around and kills Solange off like a common hooker. Seriously??? 100-some chapters and Nikolai's reason for living is DEAD!?? You have GOT to be kidding me?? Personally my first thought was that the author must hate happiness. BUT based on the fact that this was not even his character in the first place, it makes sense that Winslow would not have the sense to know that the main character cannot exist without Solange. I will never, ever, ever as long as I shall live read anything that this man writes, not even a shopping list! VERY DISAPPOINTING!!!!!

In Shibumi, Trevanian’s masterwork, readers are introduced to Nicholai Hel, both being given his complex history as the son of a former Russian Countess, who fled the Reds during the 20’s to Shanghai, and there raised a son who eventually learned the martial arts and the game Go in Japan, and Hel’s later years as a retired recluse in the Basque provinces on the border of France and Spain. Trevanian, however, left a large gap in Hel’s history, specifically what happened to Hel between being incarcerated as a young man in an American prison and becoming the world’s greatest assassin for years prior to his retirement. Sartori fills in part of that lengthy gap. It was a project actually started by Trevanian’s daughter and literary executor, who sought out a writer to the task and was an idea floated to and sanctioned by Trevanian before he died.

Winslow does an absolutely fantastic job in Sartori, channeling Trevanian’s feel for the character of Nicholai Hel, much as Max Collins channeled Spillane’s spirit in completing the Mike Hammer series or that Lin Carter or L Sprague De Camp did in channeling Robert E Howard’s spirit.

What Winslow offers the reader here is a focused story about the events surrounding Hel’s release from prison and his first job as a super-assassin. Winslow weaves Hel’s history into the story and creates a terrific novel that simply captures the essence of Hel and respects Hel’s spirit.

The story focuses on China in the early fifties as conflicts with the Soviet Union begin to emerge and the America begins arming the French in their battle against the Viet Cong. To do a job in Red China, you need someone who can speak Mandarin like a native and understands the culture. Hel, who grew up in Shanghai, was perfect for the job.

I highly recommend Sartori as a terrific thriller by itself and a welcome addition to the Nicholai Hel legend.

Nicholas Hel the most dangerous man alive.
In literature anything can happen and often does. Satori is a prequel written by novelist Don Winslow to Trevanian’s cult classic Shibumi. I remember reading Shibumi in 1979, during one of my long international airline trips and thinking how Nicholai Hel reminded me so much of Shogun’s John Blackthorne. I liked both characters immensely. Somehow I missed when Satori was initially introduced but after stumbling on Mr. Winslow’s The Power of the Dog and realizing he had written a prequel to Shibumi, I couldn’t wait to read Satori. I was not let down in the least and simply cannot understand some of the less than stellar reviews. Boy, some people are a tough crowd and an even tougher sell. In short, I think Mr. Winslow did a terrific job of capturing the essence of not only the protagonist Nicholai Hel but also the Zen spirit in which Trevanian wrote Shibumi.
It’s 1951 and the world’s most dangerous man begins his journey. Held in solitary confinement by the American military for killing a Japanese war crimes General, Hel is offered a deal if he will do a “job” for the CIA: Kill a notorious Soviet Union Commissioner working in Communist China. Job successfully accomplished, Hel becomes a most wanted man and is on the run from both the communist Chinese and Soviets. Agreeing to take arms to the revolutionary Viet Minh, Hel makes his way through southern China, Laos and into Vietnam ending up in pre-American involved Saigon (1952). Along the way he meets a colorful cast of characters putting his life in continuous jeopardy. The most dangerous man alive survives numerous attempts on his life while he fights off Corsicans, Russians, Chinese, French Foreign Legion, and Americans. In the end battered and bruised and losing the French beauty Solange, the love of his life, Hel somehow makes it out of Vietnam alive.
Excellent character development. Mr, Winslow does an admirable job of keeping Nicholai Hel very close to Travanian’s original character. I enjoyed the dwarf character De Lhandes enormously—he added that creative spark of wit and reminded me of Brad Thor’s dwarf character the “Troll”.
No gratuitous sex, violence or language. Interesting early Cold War genre writing.
I liked this book. Mr. Winslow is an excellent writer. The early Cold War period was a dreary time of post WWII rebuilding and change. Mr. Winslow does a superb job of keeping it lively and entertaining. Well done—5 Stars. *I hope this is not the end of the enigmatic Nicholai Hel??

This is a rollicking good book, independent of Shibumi, one that you will hurry home to pick up, and finish quickly.

The other reviewers here have some valid points about the depth of the characters, dialogue, technology and other attention to detail around the period, which is the early 1950s post war Asia. These flaws are small and do not in any way detract from a really good spy story. The pace, the drama, the intrigue and the style of the dialog and humor will bring back pleasant memories for Trevanian fans.

It's not Trevanian nor was it intended to be, per the author. It was supposed to be a tribute, and it is a very competent one. I think a reader's enjoyment of this book will depend upon managing personal expectations, much like going to a local venue to see a cover band. Obviously you can't see the Doors or the Ramones or Sinatra or Elvis because they no longer exist. You can, however, see dedicated professionals perform their songs. When these covers are well done, in the same style and spirit as the original, it's a fun experience. That is what you'll find in Satori.

I sincerely hope that there are more Hel adventures to follow this one.

Before reading this I had not heard of the book " Shibumi" or of the author Trevanian. It seems that in the US the book was something of a cult classic with more than two million copies sold and that the author also wrote bestsellers like the "Eiger sanction" and was something of an eccentric.
Satori is a prequel to it and is written by Don Wislow who is a respected crime writer. I have read a few of his books and have greatly enjoyed them.

This starts with the hero being released from a Japanese prison in 1951 by the American authorities who want him for a secret mission. He is an intriguing character, a westerner who was raised in China and Japan.

The beginning of the book is quite well handled and there are plenty of plot twists and turns. The author seems to have done a lot of research through occasionally it can read like a travel guide. The Hero is extremely interesting and many of the other characters are well drawn. The game of Go is frequently mentioned and the way that the hero thinks of how real life events relates to the game is interesting though again it can get a bit contrived and forced.

Unfortunately the hero is just too ridiculously good at killing, escaping from tight spots and well basically everything. Some of the actions scenes can be ludicrous with the hero
frequently Killing people with one blow. It is quite amusing at first but then gets dull. The author often displays a lack of real inventiveness.

The writing can be inconsistent with some passages of the book being rather meandering and others being very rushed. Having some chapters being only a paragraph long seemed pointless and annoying.

I could easily have given this book two stars but have given it three because it is different and original. It is just a shame that it is a real missed opportunity.

I like Don Winslow. I liked Trevanian and "Shibumi." So it was with some expectation that I approached "Satori."

It starts well and reminds us of why "Shibumi" was such a rush-- Trevanian's economical and snarky, know-it-all style is there, and the combination of the philosophical/East and the brutal/West lays the groundwork for a good thriller. Then it falls apart. I'm a champion disbelief-suspender and enjoy all forms of genre fiction (including comic book heroics), but Nicholai Hel's exploits here beggar belief. A Doc Savage pulp is more credible. Especially egregious is Nicholai's "proximity sense," which is whipped out more and more as the book progresses-- Spider-Man got nothing on Nicholai. And a gambling scene is beyond the pale: there's luck and then there's trillion-to-one luck. Guess which Nicholai possesses?

A note: Nicholai's CIA contact is under USIA cover and, according to the book, has been for some years. The book takes place in 1952. USIA was established in 1953.

This is a noble failure. Winslow should stick to his own style and his own characters.

Trevanian's novel Shibumi is one of my favorites. I've read it twice and am always astounded at the strength of the writing, the memorability of each scene and especially the engrossing main character, Nicholai Hel.

I picked this book up off the library shelf because of its' striking design, but when I saw "A Novel Based on Trevanian's Shibumi" I knew immediately what my next book would be.

This story is a prequel to Shibumi and explores many ideas which were hinted at in that book. As a fan, it was a pleasure to discover how and why Nicholai Hel became such a fascinating character. The only problem this book has is trying to live up to its' astounding predecessor. I don't know why Trevanian himself never wrote a sequel, perhaps he intended to. Even Don Winslow, the author of Satori, admits trying to top the original to be a fools errand. But that doesn't mean that he didn't go ahead and write a great book anyway, and while it doesn't best its' source material it sure as hell earned a spot on my bookcase next to it.

After reading several of the other reviews, I felt the need to add one of my own.

First, Satori is "based upon Shibumi". At no time does Winslow claim to be Travanian.

Shibumi was and is a book in it's own class. I read Shibumi in high school and it did have an effect on me and my outlook of the world.

Satori did not.

That is not to say that Satori is bad, for it is not. It is quite good. Just keep in mind that it is NOT Shibumi but is rather fan fiction of the highest order.

The novel starts out during the Korean conflict with Hel imprisoned by the Americans. The first few chapters serve both to layout the initial arc of the story as well as to (re)introduce Nicholai Hel to the world. It is done quite well.

As the story unfolds, Hel encounters the Americans as well as a French lady named Solange. Solange serves to introduce him to French culture as well as serving as a plot device to help explain some recurring Buddhist philosophy.

The novel then moves to China and from there the action really starts to heat up.

I'll include no spoilers, but just add that Satori is a fine read on it's own. It is also a fine tribute to Shibumi.

After reading Satori I have decided to investigate other books by Winslow.

All in all Satori is a very good book with a few "oopsies" such as mentioned by another reviewer where instant communication from Beijing to Washington was not possible in the field in 1952 but the communication is required for the plot and to further explain the relationship between several characters and as such is a forgivable faux pas.

Excellent book, read it but read Shibumi as well.

I read about 60 action/adventure/mystery novels a year, among other books, and have been for 20 years. Consequently, I have exhausted all the books by the best-known authors and now am forced to look for authors new to me. I picked up this one, expecting it to be mundane because I hadn't heard heard of Don Winslow before.

I was very pleasantly surprised. This is a gripping, fast-moving book, interesting and exciting to the end. I will look for more books by this author. If you read this, Mr. Winslow, keep cranking them out!

I glanced at a few other reviews. One criticism was that the characters were too exaggerated, the plot unrealistic. OK, but good fiction must exaggerate characters and plots, otherwise we are just reading about ourselves, our friends, and ultimately our own lives in a different setting. How boring. Name me one good action thriller in which the characters and plot are not exaggerated, and I'll buy you a steak dinner at the Ritz. Fortunately, you don't know who I am, but it doesn't matter anyway, because you won't be able to find such a book.

I enjoyed this book, having read Shibumi years ago. Nicholai Hel is one of the more unusual characters out there. This is probably one of the few books set in Asia in the early fifties that I have read, so that made it more interesting.

Had this book kept up the pace that it reached towards the middle of the story, it would have been one of the greatest books I have ever read. There were a few pages where I was literally reading "with bated breath". Most of the time though I didn't have that "turn-the-page" feeling.

There were a few loose ends left at the end of the book. Hopefully this isn't the last we have heard from Nicholai Hel.

Very entertaining and educational, if you pick up on the whole Russia-influence-on-China theme that underpins the main plot. Characters are well developed and plucky.

I love all the references to Chinese cuisine and landmarks.

The story itself is captivating and engaging as Nikolai, as his alias, goes off on the dangerous mission he needs to complete to regain his freedom.

The only reason it is not a 5-star rating is that the story tends to drag a bit in places, but it is really not egregious.

Admirable attempt at a Trevanian style book, but the problem lies with the story. The author tries to do way too much in this book, practically taking 2 or 3 book ideas and melding them into 1, leaving me both wanting more in parts but a lot less in other parts. The story was anti climactic and loses you half way in. Left me with mixed feelings but slightly on the side of thinking I would have been better off not reading this book.

Satori,sudden awareness,also defined as seeing ones own nature.This is the goal of Nicholai Hel, as he struggles to avoid the complex web he fines himself entangled in.
The prequel to Trevanians Shibumi.
To tackle a character as complicated and unique as Nicholai Hel was a brave undertaking and done fairly well by Winslow.Though their different styles come through he none the less captures the essence well.
A very good read.

Seeing this book in bookstore led me to first read Trevanian's book it was based upon. WOW, mistake. I was so smitted by the first book this book had a hugh problem matching that standard. He was trying, and got approval from heirs of Trevavian which is good. If only I'd not read it so fast afterwards I think I'd have been more into this work.

The Americans have incarcerated twenty-something Nicholai Hel for over three years for assassinating his mentor. He is kept in solitary because his jailers fear his skills as an expert at the "naked kill" and his "proximity sense" of danger.

In 1951, the CIA offers him a deal. He kills the Soviet Union's Commissioner to China Yuri Voroshenin in exchange for his freedom and an opportunity to enact vengeance against those who brutally assaulted him while he was in prison. Though he realizes this is a suicide mission and does not to trust the Americans to enforce the contract, he accepts the terms. Able to speak several languages, Hel receives some training on how a French arms dealer would live, and meets and is attracted to Solange. In his guise as Michel Guibert, he assassinates the Soviet official in Beijing. Trying to escape Mao's China leaves Hel betrayed, but he makes it to French occupied Vietnam, where war seems imminent.

With an obvious nod to Trevanian's classic Shibumi, Don Winslow tells of the salad days of Hel with some insight into his heritage, almost three decades before he comes out of retirement. The story line is fast-paced and loaded with action, deaths, action, sex, and Go theory. A sort of rookie gunslinger James Bond, fans will enjoy this historical thriller, but never quite catches the tongue in cheek underlying humor of the original.

Harriet Klausner

Don Winslow's "Satori" is based "Shibumi," which was written over three decades ago by the late Rodney William Whitaker under the pen name Trevanian. "Satori," a term derived from Japanese Buddhism, means "sudden enlightenment" or seeing a situation as it really is. The novel opens in Tokyo in 1951. Twenty-six year old Nicholai Hel has endured three years of solitary confinement in an American prison. He is understandably cynical, since his captors beat him so badly that his features were deformed; he will need plastic surgery to restore his appearance. The Americans release him on the condition that he pose as a French arms merchant and assassinate a prominent political figure in China.

The opening of "Satori" is splendid. Nicholai is a hero that we can readily embrace. He is "brilliant, unflappable, and a trained killer," a man with few ties who has suffered terribly and has no loyalty to any particular country. Yet he is not without resources. He speaks six or seven languages and displays "preternatural self-possession, a calm that was almost condescending, confidence that crossed the line into arrogance." His ancestry is Russian and German, but he was influenced greatly by his mentor, a Japanese general named Kishikawa. The blonde, green eyed Hel is "European in appearance" and "Asian in substance." Not only is he an accomplished martial artist who can disable his opponent with ease, but he is also master strategist and a student of "the impossibly complicated and nuanced board game 'Go.' " One of his most valuable assets is his "proximity sense" that warns him when danger is near. Although Hel normally keeps his emotions in check, he carries a torch for a beautiful and erotic woman named Solange.

This is a complex tale with a large cast of characters, most of whom are self-serving villains who would gladly sell their grandmothers to the highest bidder. A case in point is an American, Major Diamond, who is "unimaginative [and] brutal, his prejudices undisturbed by thought or education." Another standout is Kang Sheng, the sadistic head of the Chinese secret police whose methods of torture are uniquely barbarous. Nicholai undertakes what soon seems to be a suicide mission. He is playing a dangerous, high-stakes game that will have significant political ramifications. To survive, he will have to fend off countless assailants, including powerful and ruthless people such as the aforementioned Diamond. He despises Hel and wants him dead and buried as soon as possible.

As the book progresses, Winslow introduces a number of extraneous elements into the narrative, such as a chatty and hedonistic dwarf. The second half of the manuscript could have benefited from judicious editing. In particular, the last one hundred pages or so, in which Nicholai visits Saigon before the fall of the French Colonial regime in Vietnam, is somewhat bloated and slow-moving. Hel is pursued by so many killers (Corsican, French, American, and Vietnamese) that we need a scorecard to keep track of who is doing what to whom and why. With its strong beginning, this should have been a thrilling adventure from start to finish. As it stands, "Satori" earns a marginal recommendation because of its undeniable strengths: exciting scenes of hand-to-hand combat; a tough, resourceful, and versatile protagonist; and evocative descriptions of exotic locales at a time when the most powerful countries in the world were involved in what was destined to become a lengthy cold war.

Don Winslow's SATORI has been described in a number of corners (including one occupied by the author himself) as a prequel to SHIBUMI, the much beloved espionage novel by Trevanian. Following its publication in 1979, many readers clamored for a sequel from Rodney Whitaker, the man behind the Trevanian pen name. None was forthcoming, and Whitaker's passing in 2005 appeared to close the door on any such possibility.

SATORI is far from a sequel, and I wouldn't call it a "prequel" either. It would fit nicely within the boundaries of SHIBUMI as a flashback, given that it focuses on some of the hidden years of Nicholai Hel, the mystic and assassin who has captivated audiences for three decades. SATORI deals with the period of Hel's life from his imprisonment for the murder and liberation of his mentor to his initial revenge through his escape from Southeast Asia in the early 1950s.

Winslow accomplishes an impressive task, taking a work that is much beloved and heavily studied, and constructing an addition to it. He does so in his own style but stays strongly and deliberately true to the characters, settings and situations that have gone before. While both novels are properly considered to be espionage thrillers, the subtext of both is revenge, pure and simple.

SATORI opens in post-World War II Tokyo, with Hel newly liberated from three years of solitary confinement and torture at the hands of the United States. His freedom is offered with a quid pro quo. Hel is the master of a form of combat known as the "naked kill," and his mission, should he decide to accept it, is to travel to Beijing in the guise of Michel Guibert, the playboy son of a French arms dealer who is trying to prove himself as a serious adult. Once there, Hel is to insinuate himself into the company of a highly placed Russian Communist aiding the Chinese and assassinate him without the act being traced back to the United States. In return, Hel will receive his freedom and the names and addresses of Major Diamond, the man who ordered his torture, as well as those who assisted Diamond in carrying it out.

Hel discovers, though, that the world of politics and espionage is much smaller than he might have imagined, when he learns the identity of his Russian target, the man who humiliated his mother and robbed him of his inheritance. In preparing for his undercover role, he is schooled by Solange, an exquisite beauty who he ends up wanting yet cannot have. Once his schooling ends, Hel is dropped into a world of treachery and double-dealing that he can only navigate by relying upon his own mystic background. He turns increasingly to the classic game of Go, which is about strategy more than anything else. It contains in its playing the truths that are his only constant, even as betrayals --- expected and otherwise --- confront him at every turn.

Those familiar with SHIBUMI will delight in the attention that Winslow pays to the most minor details in SATORI --- we learn, for example, where Hel acquired his interest in climbing --- and to the return of a number of characters from the original work, most notably Bernard De Lhandes. But it's certainly not a requirement to have read SHIBUMI to appreciate Winslow's faithful creation of the hidden history that Trevanian left unrevealed, one that in places equals the quality of the source work itself.

--- Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub

Shibumi was a great book. Satori not as much. Very short chapters which makes for easy time when on the go. But I was much disappointed. When I finished the book it just seemed as if something was missing.

this prequel to the great "shibumi" is okay to read and to be finished anyway, but the main characters were not well developed. so far, anything related to anything about china and the chinese, well, just read funny. the french woman later turned out to be the ultimate assassin, such twist and transformation were just felt contrite and awkward. there were great moments among chapters yet quite confusing and forgettable. obviously, don winslow might consider making this "satori" into a series like that great "rain" series. he's okay to try, we'll see if the 2nd bidding would become more convincing.

The book jacket likens the hero to Bond and Bourne, he's not. "Hel" is more like a cartoon character who should be wearing a superman costume. There are so many out to get him that it's difficult to keep count! But due to his incredible, and I do mean incredible, martial arts he's invincible all the while allusions to an esoteric game come and go(no pun intended) which distract from the storyline. I kept reading hoping I would find some reason to even care what happened to the characters, but alas, no satori.

I couldn't finish this book - transparent characters with little of what made Trevanian great (irony, wit, interesting characters, insightful observations of humanity, a beautiful cynicism, lovely prose, interesting women). I want to remember the Hel from Shibumi not this cookie-cutter younger version of Hel. Perhaps I expected too much. My advice - don't spoil your Trevanian experience with this book.

I couldn't finish this book - transparent characters with little of what made Trevanian great (irony, wit, interesting characters, insightful observations of humanity, a beautiful cynicism, lovely prose, interesting women). I want to remember the Hel from Shibumi not this cookie-cutter younger version of Hel. Perhaps I expected too much. My advice - don't spoil your Trevanian experience with this book.

My husband and I have been Trevanian fans for many years and we read all his books with great pleasure.

While I think it was nice to continue with Mr. Hel in this book ... the author set himself up against a MUCH better writer than he. Perhaps next time he should create his own characters and avoid such an unflattering comparison.

Meh.

Don Winslow is an enigma. He has written the best Audiobook I have listened to, in The Power of the Dog. This one is however among the worst. Attempting to pick up Trevanian's thread is a hard ask and Winslow doesn't come close. A plot my 10YO could unravel, with wooden dialog and one dimensional characters. It is hard to believe this is the author of "The Winter of Frankie Machine"

I love Winslow (especially Savages) so I read Satori before I read Shibumi...I liked it. But when I read it again immediately after I finished reading Trevanian's novel I came to this conclusion; Satori is to Shibumi as Marley and me is to White Fang...

I like don winslows writings, a lot, but this................... was truly dreadful. The longer the book went on, the worse it got. The final 50,60,70 pages read more like a childrens fantasy novel. I stayed with it until the bitter end and I was soooo glad when it was over, finished. Definitely, not one of his best and,in fact, it does a great disservice to some of his other works.

Shibumi is one of my favorite novels of all time. Nuanced, thought-provoking, even spiritual. I read it again before I dove into Satori.

The author of this pot-boiler does not understand Trevanian's take on shibumi, Go, sex, "naked kill", or Hel's "proximity sense". He misses Trevanian's wonderful political sense and his provocative take on class and breeding.

I was annoyed as well by Winslow's staccato style. Trevanian's languid pace was soothing in a spy novel. Winslow's short chapters seem nothing more than an attempt to thicken the book.

The estate of Trevanian should be ashamed of themselves

The most crazily entertaining book I've read in a long time. I went back and re-read the original Shibumi. These books are crazy fun. He found a clever gap in the story in the novel and filled it in with this book. So clever. Renewed my faith in reading as a pure otherworldly escape plan.

I have read everything by Don Winslow but couldn't finish this. The main character, Nicholas Hel, is wooden and devoid of color. His main love in the book, Solange; is also a weak character; a prostitute/nurse employed; for no apparent reason by the CIA, to restore Hel after surgery. The plot; He is let out prison by the CIA to murder a Russian in China; is totally without credibility or reason. Winslow, Winslow; what are you doing here?

I admire those reviewers who gave the book 100 pages before giving up on it: After wincing at 2 major errors in Japanese and several minor ones in French, I arrived at the discussion where Hel is being prepped in his new identity as a Frenchman from Montpellier. The discussion involves where in Montpellier one can go to buy "good wine at a price." The last time I was in Montpellier you could get "good" wine (definitely better than average) for about 25 cents a litre at any wine cellar if you brought your own bottle; excellent wine was about 5 bucks, estate bottled. In other words, you can't swing a cat without hitting "good wine at a price" in Montpellier. If Winslow wants to put on pretensions, he should try going to the places he writes about instead of relying on Wikipedia. I'm moving on to an author who knows whereof he writes. (And btw, Don: One doesn't sip "cha-no-yu"; one performs it. Details, details.}