2023 HFC Five-star award for Historical Fiction. In the heart of sixteenth-century Japan, where loyalties are tested and fragile alliances are pushed to the brink, Kampuku unfolds the riveting tale of Ishida Mitsunari, a young samurai rising through the ranks in service to the renowned warlord Toyotomi Hideyoshi. A shrewd tactician and accomplished tea master, Mitsunari becomes the target of a shadowy network of spies, determined to end his life since childhood. Upon Hideyoshi's shocking and sudden demise, Mitsunari finds himself entangled in a web of intrigue to determine the future heir. Mitsunari faces the ambitions of Tokugawa Ieyasu, a formidable rival warlord who is scheming to seize control. Determined to safeguard Hideyori, whom Mitsunari believes to be the legitimate heir, he orchestrates a desperate bid to thwart Ieyasu's ascent to power. The ensuing epic battle shapes the destiny of Japan. Kampuku is a tale of honour, deception, and the relentless pursuit of destiny...

2021 HFC Gold Medal Winner for Historical Fiction An epic tale of intrigue, betrayal, and revenge, set in the turbulent era of sixteenth-century Japan. Sakichi is a provincial Samurai boy who reluctantly becomes ensnared in a conspiracy by a Shogun determined to reclaim his power. It is within this developing turmoil that events emerge to forever shape Sakichi’s life. With his life now shattered, Sakichi discovers that he is adopted, and his biological mother is a ruthless assassin, who is determined to prevent him from discovering the true identity of his father. With such high stakes at play, Sakichi’s life is placed in grave danger. Rival factions compete with each other to assassinate him and his mother before he discovers the truth. Should the identity of Sakichi’s father become common knowledge it would not only threaten the rule of a powerful war lord but plunge the nation into greater turmoil and bloodshed. Acclaim for An Age of War and Tea “This book is one for...