Award-winning and extremely talented author Blue Spruell invites adults young and older to this historical fantasy adventure of warlords, swords, and mythical beasts from old Japan. Taro is a lovingly written coming-of-age story featuring a lively cast of characters and fantastic adventures.
The author expertly combines and reimagines three old Japanese folk tales into this captivating story about Samurai, life, betrayal, war, bravery, friendship and love.
I am absolutely fascinated by adventures set in Japan, no matter the format. From books like Shogun, Musashi or the more recently released Detective Hiroshi series of mysteries by award-winning author Michael Pronko, or his essays about Tokyo titled Beauty and Chaos, to video games such as the Yakuza series or the PlayStation exclusive Ghost of Tsushima, I’m thrilled by the exotic culture, by the people and by their stories.
4-time Voice Arts Award Finalist, Audible Narration Contest Winner, classically-trained stage actor, fully-equipped producer, and waffle chef Steve Marvel does an absolute fantastic job of bringing to life all the characters and the events in Taro.
He delivers a perfectly balanced performance, reading swiftly, switching seamlessly between the characters and assigning each of them unmistakable voices or accents. The narrative experience is elevated thanks to the great way in which Steve Marvel handles specific Japanese words.
So, I can tell you that I absolutely loved Taro and I hope to see more such novels released by Blue Spruell! Well written, imaginative, easy to follow and immediately immersive, I highly recommend this award winning adventure of epic proportions to anyone and everyone who loves Japan or wants to fall in love with it!