The Hell Screen

By: I. J. Parker

Narrated by: Roy Vongtama

An exotic mystery set in 11th-century Japan....

Akitada is on his way to the bedside of his dying mother when bad weather forces him to take refuge in a temple whose central treasure is a brilliantly painted hell screen. Perhaps its violent imagery influences his dreams: that night he is awakened by a terrible scream.

It's only after Akitada returns to his family and a scene of domestic unhappiness and scandal that the significance of that cry becomes clear. For while he slept, a woman was murdered, and now he must find her killer, even if it means looking very close to home.

©2008 I. J. Parker (P)2008 Books on Tape

Critic reviews

"Elegant and entertaining....Parker has created a wonderful protagonist in Akitada....She puts us at ease in a Japan of one thousand years ago." (The Boston Globe)
"Akitada is as rich a character as Robert Van Gulik's intriguing detective, Judge Dee." (The Dallas Morning News)

The Hell Screen

I wish I had read this one in order.....UGHHHHH. This one is set when Akitada takes a job in the far north, and the trials the family endures while up there. But, this is a very good novel featuring this family and his retainers.

probably the best one in the series

gruesome horror, but better character development than others. ends positively. narrator's regional accent was distracting.