"The heir to the magnificent English trading company, the Noble House--the direct descendant of the first Toranaga Shogun battling to usher his country into the modern age--a beautiful young French woman forever torn between ambition and desire--Their lives intertwine in an exotic land newly open to foreigners, gai-jin, torn apart by greed, idealism, and terrorism. Their passions mingle with monarchs and diplomats, assassins, courtesans and spies"--Amazon.com.