In the months since their last perilous quest, a fragile calm has settled over Edo. Daijiro dedicates his days to training the first pupil of his quiet riverside dojo, while his father Kohei – a famed swordsman whose name still inspires awe – drifts through an uneasy retirement, his razor-sharp mind too restless for leisure. But such peace never lasts long in the shogunate.

One chill autumn night, Kohei is set upon by a band of tsujigiri – lawless ‘street slashers’ who test their blades on the innocent. To his astonishment, the gang’s leader proves to be no mere rogue, but in fact one of the most important officials in the land. What begins as a chance encounter soon blooms into a deadly game of pursuit, vengeance and, finally, siege, as father and son are dragged into the city’s pitch-black heart. Other adventures soon follow, including the task of bringing to justice their most evil adversary yet, a villain of monstrous proportions . . .

The second instalment in Shotaro Ikenami’s bestselling historical fiction series, The Samurai Detectives: The Killer on the Streets is a perfectly coiled mystery as well as a profound portrait of honour and justice in the twilight of the Shogun’s world.

Translated by Yui Kajita