I don't want to give a set star rating to review this book because the contents are controversial, but it is worth reading if you can stomach it. The Rape of Nanking is a very well known book and this book is a fictional account from the Japanese side of the war. I think I'd liken this book to Oppenheimer in the sense that it shows the opposite side of war crimes (ie., from the POV of the people doing war crimes), but this book is more realistic than Oppenheimer in the sense that none of the war criminals are likeable or propped up, and practically all the Japanese people in this book are awful. You do not feel any sympathy for any of the people in this book except for the victims. This is pretty phenomenal for a Japanese author and I was not expecting it. A very decent read, but I do not want rate it.