A classic spy novel from the bestselling author, Trevanian, about a westerner raised in Japan who becomes one of the world’s most accomplished assassins.Nicholai Hel is the world’s most wanted man. Born in Shanghai during the chaos of World War I, he is the son of an aristocratic Russian mother and a mysterious German father and is the protégé of a Japanese Go master. Hel survived the … survived the destruction of Hiroshima to emerge as the world’s most artful lover and its most accomplished—and well-paid—assassin. Hel is a genius, a mystic, and a master of language and culture, and his secret is his determination to attain a rare kind of personal excellence, a state of effortless perfection known only as shibumi.
Now living in an isolated mountain fortress with his exquisite mistress, Hel is unwillingly drawn back into the life he’d tried to leave behind when a beautiful young stranger arrives at his door, seeking help and refuge. It soon becomes clear that Hel is being tracked by his most sinister enemy—a supermonolith of international espionage known only as the Mother Company. The battle lines are drawn: ruthless power and corruption on one side, and on the other . . . shibumi.
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Read this years ago. A sexy Bourne before there was Bourne.
This is one of the best books ever written, IMHO. The characters are interesting and believable, the action and suspense come in waves and there are life lessons to be learned. “Shibumi is understanding, rather than knowledge.”
Shibumi by Trevanian. Nicolai Hel the world’s greatest assassin.
This is literally – **literally** – a life-changing book. There is life before Shibumi, and life after. It has shaped me as a teenager, as a young man, as a middle aged fart, and as a writer.
Read it 20 years ago and reread recently. Very entertaining
Great story.
Excellent t period piece of japan and Asia during / after WW2.
Protagonist is an intellectual / warrior embodying the best of Asian attributes.
Those liking chess/ GO / marital arts may like this book. I did
Fictional characters having brains, and using them; who’d a thunk it? Refreshing…
Why can’t they write books like this anymore. An attempt by a really good author to actually write a satirical over-the-top super crime fighter novel turned into a really good tome with suspense, great characters, wonderful suspense. Clearly written without an eye for future serialization, and that makes this book so much fun.
An outstanding, unusual book. Pure delight to read and get lost in. I was sorry to reach the end of the book.
The highest paid assasin, Nicolai Hel, lives according to bushido and plans his moves like a game of Go. High in the mountains of Basque country in France he is something of a local hero and the native Basque are fiercely loyal to him. If you enjoy a good spy novel this will appeal to you. Trevannian is a master story teller and will bind you in a spell of fiction that will haunt you long after the final page.
This is one that will keep you up late, trying to follow the twists and turns.
One of the most riveting books I have ever read! I remember it over a lifetime of being an avid reader.
This book is one of those that I re-read.
This is the 2nd or 3rd time that I’ve read this book. I hope to read it again in another 3 or 4 years.
Overall an interesting plot. Too much detail regarding cave explorations.
Outstanding ..still pertinsnt in today’s world. Historic info outstanding.
I read this book many years ago and one scene has haunted me ever since, to the point that I’ve often wished I’d never read the book. However, that being said, I must say it was an incredible story and I would recommend it.
Love all of Travanian’s books. All are exciting and lots of twists and turns.
Shibumi is one of the most unique, extraordinary, one-of-a-kind masterpieces I have ever read. Published in 1979, it may seem a bit dated by now, but Nichaolai Hel, the protagonist, is one of the most unusual beings you will ever meet. I am reading it for the fourth or fifth time right now!