Samurai Death Cult: The Dark Side of Bushido

It's a extremely good perception into the darker factors of the Samurai and a pleasing counter balance to their present day appearance in entertainment.This hardback book is straightforward and direct, it has a fantastic presentation and is of an high-quality considering its price, while still delevering the maximum critical and intellectual content.The fantasies of Bushido (a 20th century literary fable) combined with the haiku and kabuki tradition fall short compared to the authentic merciless, bloodthirsty and ruthless way of lifestyles of the Sengoku period Samurai.While this is the sole viewpoint explained in this book, it is not a "woe is Japan" book, but serves more as a "Dark Chapter" to all the books over Japan, Samurai and Japanese culture written, including the other books by the author Antony Cummins, to give the enthousiastic reader a more complete picture of Japanese history and its influence on the 20th and 21st century of Japanese culture.All by all a must have in your collection.

Exellent bite sized book about dark side of samurai culture. This book gives a more balanced and realistic image of samurais and their culture. Samurais weren't asian knights in their shiny armor. Real samurai was a much more richer and nuanced character. After all ,they were humans too and humans can be a real monsters.

Wow! The grim reality of Samurai culture! Love it! Violence, magic, faith, etc., supported by historical sources. Nice illustrations and photos in there. This book was difficult to put down. Great stuff! Highly recommended!

Great insight into the darker aspects of the Samurai and a nice counter balance to the popular image. Definitely worth a read.

If you're an everyday-Joe with an interest in Samurai history, probably loved The Last Samurai and the chivalric nonsense, you will rate this book 11 out of 10. It's a no-holds-barred look at what the Samurai were really like, from tough child soldiers to some pretty horrific acts.It's all written like one of his videos, clever but down-to-earth (which I like a lot) but he does sometimes repeat himself and there are a few errors. I'd have given it an extra star if it had been better edited and the photos were large and clear enough to see better.I'd recommend it to the everyday-Joe but for someone who's studied Samurai history there's little more than what is a great chat with the likeable Antony Cummins.