The Truth Behind Young Samurai
Young Samurai is a fiction, a made-up story, but a great deal is based upon or inspired by historical fact:
• Did you know that there was a real English Samurai in the C16th? Find out more…
• Did you know that Masamoto is based upon the legendary samurai Miyamoto Musashi? Find out more…
• And that Tomoe Gozen, the famous female samurai, really existed? Find out more…
• Or even that the Niten Ichi Ryu was an actual sword school in Kyoto in the C16th? Find out more…
Author’s Note
Disclaimer as printed in the front of all Young Samurai books:
Young Samurai is a work of fiction, and while based on real historical figures,
events and locations, the book does not profess to be accurate in this regard.
Young Samurai is more an echo of the times than a re-enaction of history.
Like many fiction authors (e.g. Bernard Cornwell), I have used history as a backdrop for my story. I’m not attempting to be a historian as I’m not writing a historical non-fiction text (though I’ve read loads during my research!), as a result many facts have been adapted to fit the plot (history buffs, you have been warned!).
My intention from the very start was to create a thrilling action-adventure that was believable because it was based on facts. But, at the same time, was not ruled by them. I have made ‘History’ a springboard for my story - not a straitjacket - in the vein of Lian Hearn’s wonderful Across The Nightingale Floor.
So I hope everyone can enjoy reading Young Samurai for what it is – an exciting adventure story set in a fictionalised historical Japan.
Chris
Click here for additional readers’ notes on use of the word ‘gaijin’ and the naming of the characters.