Review: Jisedai by Daniel P. Riley

Jisedai by Daniel P. Riley

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I expect a lot from the books I read. I have become the type of reader who reads critically as well as for enjoyment and reading critically has led me to often find issues with whatever I consume. Even if I enjoy a story, if I feel a problem has detracted enough from that enjoyment, I start deducting stars from my final rating of the book I’m reading. This is why most of my ratings come out as four stars and not five. This simply means that I enjoyed it, but it didn’t wow me.

But you know what? For once, I’ve found something different, a good different. Because I must admit that I finally enjoyed something enough to say, this is it! I’ve finally found something that I enjoyed so much that I am giving it five stars!

This entire story hooked me from beginning to end!

As per the usual with me, we need to give this a summary before we go into more of me divulging my thoughts. Let’s do it!

Summary

We open in Shinjuku. Gabriel is a samurai with nanotech technology repairing him every time he goes into battle, rendering him an incredibly dangerous opponent who has sworn to work and kill for the Holy Eight. Hana is a young girl whose life has been a nightmare, and she will do anything to get out of the horrible situation she finds herself in. When she is given a chance to escape, she crosses paths with Gabriel, who knows that protecting the young girl will put him in direct conflict with his brothers of the Holy Eight.

Still, something about the young, innocent Hana makes Gabriel want to help her deep down. Will he be able to save her and protect her and himself from the Holy Eight?  

Thoughts

This was a different experience for me than usual. Normally, I have major problems with books that deal with one conflict after the other moving at breakneck speed. I don’t have an issue with the action itself, I have an issue with there never being a chance to slow down, breathe, and build character.

But here’s the thing. I think we see who Gabriel is, who Hana is, through the action that does occur. Because Gabriel is always protecting Hana, it is what he has chosen to do. And Hana refuses to leave him and has grown to care about him and worry for him whenever something bad happens to him. There’s one scene in the story where Gabriel needed care from others. Hana never left his side through all of it. We can see that she is scared for him, but her compassion overpowers her fear.

As for Gabriel? There is one fight he gets into where his opponent repeatedly mocks his relationship with Hana. Gabriel, in response, completely goes all out in the fight that follows, showing no mercy. I think that that tells me more about him than I would know if Riley had just come outright and said, “Gabriel had grown to care about Hana.” He didn’t have to. I could see it through what the character did. And that is the biggest plus for me with this book – the way their relationship is shown and how it grows is the heart and soul of the story!

Characters

Gabriel

I admit, I had to warm up to Gabriel. He’s kind of cold in the beginning and a little too eager to jump into a fight. That said, once he and Hana meet, I saw a different side of him that I absolutely loved. Like I mentioned in the previous section, it becomes obvious that he grows to care about someone else.

I think that’s when I really started rooting for him. I also loved the small detail where the old man Hasegawa (more on him in a minute) compares Gabriel to the Archangel in front of Hana. I loved that scene especially, and I’ll talk more about it when I discuss Hasegawa.

I must talk about the Holy Eight before I close this section. I didn’t think about it until the end of the book, but it’s heartbreaking seeing Gabriel’s own brothers go to war with him. I like that Gabriel’s not afraid to stand up and protect Hana, but the fact that it’s against the only family he’s ever known is heartrending. He gives up all he has for this young girl and the impact it has on him is obvious. The fact that he admits that it’s no longer safe for either one of them going forward shows that he knows he’s crossed that line, and he can never go back to what was before.

Hasegawa

I liked Hasegawa a lot. The fact that he was willing to help Hana and Gabriel right off the bat by letting them stay at the old church was very nice, giving them food and allowing them to stay as long as they needed to. The compassion was a breath of fresh air after Gabriel and Hana running into conflict with literally everyone they met, because the Holy Eight had eyes everywhere.

I also really enjoyed that he indirectly helped Gabriel deal with the Holy Eight. Seeing him use his past military experience to protect both Gabriel and Hana without hesitation was amazing, and I loved that – even though he’d only known both a short time – he immediately jumped into action when he saw them in danger!

I mentioned earlier that there was a scene where Hasegawa compared Gabriel to the Archangel Gabriel in front of Hana. This was one of the few moments where the story got to slow down and show them truly bond. We know from the beginning of the story that all the Holy Eight members were given names related to the Archangels, but it was something that Hana was not aware of, so to see Hasegawa teach her something about her protector’s name and the significance behind it was incredibly heartwarming!

Structure

The structure of this story is interesting, and I’m trying to think about how to describe it. Riley opens the story by describing the world briefly, but not long after we’re introduced to Gabriel, he gets into a fight. This sets up his status as a killer, and we start to see hints of what the Holy Eight is and the power they have over Gabriel. All of this creates the tension that will carry the story.

I like that, interspersed between Hana and Gabriel running, we see the setup of what’s behind the Holy Eight. We get a scene with their leader learning about Gabriel and Hana having fled Shinjuku, and it sets up what follows perfectly. I knew right away when I read that scene that something big was coming. It conveyed exactly what it needed to, and because the brothers were always following Gabriel throughout the book, that scene was impossible to forget! Riley basically told us that what Gabriel had feared would happen if Hana stayed with him had already occurred, and the tension went up significantly.

I think the reason I like something like this so much is because often, when there’s a setup with a bigger threat behind a smaller threat, the bigger threat is not seen, or is kept hidden, until the very end. This is used to keep the suspense up, but I hate that setup, because we get no knowledge of who’s being faced and it’s more annoying than suspenseful. Because I saw the Old Man earlier in the book, the very last scene in the story has me curious and concerned. What’s going to happen next? What on earth is he planning?

Writing

I was thinking a lot about how I was going to approach this section. I’m not very good at describing someone’s writing. That said, I do have something to say about it, so bear with me. Because this book is so action-packed, I was actually thinking a bit about my favorite story of all time once I’d finished it, because said story got called out for the violence and people thought its intended audience were young children. Anyway, in this story, the author would approach a fight scene like a sports commentator, highlighting what the enemy is doing wrong and why the main character he’s following was able to get one up over on them.

The way Riley approaches a fight scene is different. He goes by every move that is significant and illustrates the cause of the effect he is aiming for. For example, if someone is crossing weapons with another character, he will describe the pressure coming from one side as one person works to overpower the other and then shows why it did or did not work and what resulted.

Moving on from the action, how he builds each setting is incredibly unique as well. The way he opens the first scene in Shinjuku sticks out to me as a really strong opening. He opens with a simple, striking sentence that introduces Gabriel as what he was before he met Hana, painting him as a dangerous individual. He goes on to paint this world of Shinjuku where no one is safe from the Holy Eight and why. It’s beautiful and sets up tension regarding the group. Even before we see them, they’re frightening and intimidating!

Conclusion

In the end, I really, really enjoyed this. It was gripping all the way through, and I loved every second of it! The characters, the story, the stakes, all of it stuck with me and made me care about what was happening. I can’t think of a single thing to criticize. I think the only thing I will say is that I hope Riley won’t leave this as a standalone. The last scene in the book hinted at something more, something bigger going on, and I hope it will be explored down the road.

So, I usually end my reviews with whom I would recommend what I’m reviewing to. I think this story would fit an audience that likes a story full of action, but also has heart to it that is sweet and leaves the reader with a message of hope despite bad situations that occur. At the heart of it, this is a story about a relationship between a young girl and her protector, and that’s where the heart of it is. I can’t recommend it enough!