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About the Book

About the Book

Snakeskin Shamisen



From SUMMER OF THE BIG BACHI to GASA-GASA GIRL, Naomi
Hirahara's acclaimed novels have featured one of mystery fiction's
most unique heroes: Mas Arai, a curmudgeonly L.A. gardener,
Hiroshima survivor, and inveterate gambler.

Few things get Mas more excited than gambling, so when he hears
about a $500,000 win --- from a novelty slot machine! --- he's torn
between admiration and derision. But the stakes are quickly raised
when the winner, a friend of Mas's pal G. I. Hasuike, is found
stabbed to death just days later. The last thing Mas wants to do is
stick his nose in someone else's business, but at G.I.'s prodding
he reluctantly agrees to follow the trail of a battered snakeskin
shamisen (a traditional Okinawan musical instrument) left at the
scene of the crime...and suddenly finds himself caught up in a dark
mystery that reaches from the islands of Okinawa to the streets of
L.A. --- a world of heartbreaking memories, deception, and
murder.

© Copyright 2011 by Delta, a division of Random House,
Inc.

Snakeskin Shamisen
by Naomi Hirahara

  • Publication Date: April 25, 2006
  • Genres: Fiction, Mystery
  • Paperback: 272 pages
  • Publisher: Delta
  • ISBN-10: 0385339615
  • ISBN-13: 9780385339612