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162 voters

The Best Books About Samurai

Updated July 17, 2019 363 votes 162 voters 37.2k views19 items

List of best books about samurai, including jacket cover images when available. Though many readers think of Clavell's Shogun as the premiere samurai novel, there are many other fantastic books about the legendary Japanese swordsman of feudal Japan as well. All these popular books on Samurai are sorted by popularity, so the highest rated books are at the top of the list. This well-researched Samurai bibliography includes out-of-print titles and generally contains the most popular, famous, or otherwise notable novels - fiction or non-fiction - about Samurai. If you're looking for a list of top books on Samurai then you're in the right place.

The list you're viewing has a variety of books in it, like The Snow Empress and The Way Of The Traitor. There are also many books by Laura Joh Rowland, including the Sano Ichiro series. You should be able to answer the question, "What are the best books about Samurai?" after checking out this list.

This greatest Samurai book list contains various bits of information, such as the author's names and what genre the books fall under. Most of these Samurai books can be bought on Amazon with one easy click.

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20
Musashi
Eiji Yoshikawa
First Published: 1935
Subjects: Japan
Genres (Book): Historical fiction, Fiction, Historical novel
Musashi is a Japanese novel written by Eiji Yoshikawa. It was serialized in 1935 in the... more
2
51
8
Shogun: A Novel of Japan
James Clavell
First Published: 1975
Subjects: Shogun, Adventure, Japan, History
Genres (Book): Historical fiction, Fiction
Shōgun is a 1975 novel by James Clavell. It is the first novel of the author's Asian Saga. A... more
3
15
3
Cloud of Sparrows
Takashi Matsuoka
First Published: 2002
Subjects: Japan, History
Genres (Book): Historical fantasy, Fiction
Cloud of Sparrows is the first historic novel by author Takashi Matsuoka featuring the... more
4
20
10
The Samurai
Anthony J. Bryant
First Published: 1989
Subjects: Samurai, Asia, Japan, History
Genres (Book): History
The Samurai (1989) is a history text written by Anthony J. Bryant for Osprey Books' history... more
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12
4
Autumn Bridge
Takashi Matsuoka
First Published: 2004
Subjects: Women, Japan, History
Genres (Book): Historical fantasy fiction, Fiction
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9
4
Taiko
Eiji Yoshikawa
First Published: Kodansha International
Subjects: Japan, Japanese History
Genres (Book): Biographical historical fiction
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7
3
The Way of the Traitor
Laura Joh Rowland
First Published: 2012
Subjects: Police procedural, Police, Samurai, Japan, History
Genres (Book): Mystery, Fiction
The Way of the Traitor (1997) is a novel by Laura Joh Rowland and the third entry in the Sano... more
8
13
13
47 Ronin: The Classic Tale of Samurai Loyalty, Bravery and Retribution
John Allyn
First Published: 2018
Subjects: Japan, History, Samurai
Genres (Book): Mythology & Folk tales, Japanese literature
9
5
4
Gai-Jin
James Clavell
First Published: 1993
Subjects: 19th century, Adventure, Japan, British Cuisine, History
Genres (Book): Historical fiction, Fiction, Novel
Gai-Jin is a 1993 novel by James Clavell, chronologically the third book in his Asian Saga,... more
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6
8
Samurai (Warriors of History)
Caroline Leavitt
First Published: 2006
Subjects: Samurai, Asia, Japan, History
Genres (Book): History
Samurai (2006) is a book written by Caroline Leavitt as part of the Edge Books "Warriors of... more
11
4
2
The Samurai's Garden
Gail Tsukiyama
First Published: 1996
Subjects: Japan, Japanese History
Genres (Book): Novel
The Samurai's Garden is a 1996 novel by American author Gail Tsukiyama. Many consider it to be... more
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2
3
The Samurai
Shusaku Endo
First Published: 1980
Subjects: Samurai, Japan, History, Mexico
Genres (Book): Historical fiction
The Samurai is a novel by Japanese author Shusaku Endo first published in 1980. It tells a... more
13
0
4
Sam Samurai
Jon Scieszka
Subjects: Samurai, Time travel, Japan, History
Genres (Book): Speculative fiction, Children's literature, Fiction
Sam Samurai (2004) is a book by Jon Scieszka and Adam McCauley and is an entry in the Time... more

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4
6
The Snow Empress
Laura Joh Rowland
First Published: 2007
Subjects: Espionage, Samurai, Japan, History
Genres (Book): Suspense, Mystery, Fiction
The Snow Empress is a 2007 mystery novel written by Laura Joh Rowland, set in the Genroku of... more
15
0
7
The Blade of the Courtesans
Keiichiro Ryu
First Published: 2008
Subjects: Historical thriller, Thriller, Japan
Genres (Book): Historical fiction, Literary critiscm
16
4
6
Black Lotus
Laura Joh Rowland
First Published: 2001
Subjects: Police procedural, Police, Samurai, Japan, History
Genres (Book): Suspense, Historical fiction, Mystery, Fiction
Black Lotus (2001) is a novel by Laura Joh Rowland and the third entry in the Sano Ichiro... more
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2
7
Frank Miller's Ronin
Frank Miller
First Published: 1983
Subjects: Samurai, Comics
Genres (Book): Fantasy, Fiction, Speculative fiction, Humour
Ronin is a comic book limited series published between 1983 and 1984, by DC Comics. The series... more
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4
10
Red Chrysanthemum
Laura Joh Rowland
Subjects: Samurai
Genres (Book): Suspense, Mystery, Fiction
Red Chrysanthemum (2006) is a novel by Laura Joh Rowland and the eleventh entry in the Sano... more
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2
8
The Pillow Book of Lady Wisteria
Laura Joh Rowland
First Published: 2002
Subjects: Samurai, Japan, History
Genres (Book): Fiction
The Pillow Book of Lady Wisteria is a book by Laura Joh Rowland.... more