Chronically underemployed Japanese-American sleuth Rei Shimura has taken a freelance gig with a Washington, D.C., alphabet agency that just might have ties to the CIA. Her mission, should she choose to accept it, is to go undercover as a clerk in a big Tokyo department store. It's a risky assignment, but it also gives Rei a store discount that allows her to freely indulge her shopaholic tendencies.

Meanwhile, she's listening in on private conversations, crashing a conference, and fending off the unwanted advances of a couple of the store's executives who seem fascinated by her navel ring. When her cover is blown, Rei is in big trouble. Suddenly she's neck-deep in something very nasty, and it will take all her resourcefulness and unorthodox methods to survive a determined killer.

YOU ASK FOR MY NAME, THE REAL ONE, AND I CANNOT TELL. IT IS NOT FOR LACK OF EFFORT.
In 1930, a great ocean wave blots out a Bengali village, leaving only one survivor, a young girl. As a maidservant in a British boarding school, Pom is renamed Sarah and discovers her gift for languages. Her private dreams almost die when she arrives in Kharagpur and is recruited into a secretive, decadent world. Eventually, she lands in Calcutta, renames herself Kamala, and creates a new life rich in books and friends. But although success and even love seem within reach, she remains trapped by what she is . . . and is not. As India struggles to throw off imperial rule, Kamala uses her hard-won skills--for secrecy, languages, and reading the unspoken gestures of those around her--to fight for her country's freedom and her own happiness.

Japanese-American Rei Shimura is a 27-year-old English teacher living in one of Tokyo's seediest neighborhoods. She doesn't make much money, but she wouldn't go back home to California even if she had a free ticket (which, thanks to her parents, she does.) Her independence is threatened however, when a getaway to an ancient castle town is marred by murder.

Rei is the first to find the beautiful wife of a high-powered businessman, dead in the snow. Taking charge, as usual, Rei searches for clues by crashing a funeral, posing as a bar-girl, and somehow ending up pursued by police and paparazzi alike. In the meantime, she manages to piece together a strange, ever-changing puzzle--one that is built on lies and held together by years of sex and deception.

It's tough to keep cool when the heat is on Japanese-American Rei Shimura finally has a life to be proud of in Tokyo: running her own antiques business and living with her Scottish lawyer boyfreind. But when Rei overpays for a beautiful chest of drawers, she's in for the worst deal of her life. The con man who sold her the "Tansu" is found dead, and like it or not Rei's opened a pandora's box of mystery, theft, and murder.Only Rei sees the "Tansu" as the key. It will take a quick wit, fast feet, and above all a "Zen Attitude" for Rei to discover what a young monk, a judo star, and an ancient scroll have in common, and why her own life hangs in the balance."You can't find a better guide to the mean streets of Japan than Rei Shimura!... An excellant new series from a very talented writer."--Marcia Muller A" People" magazine "Page-Turner of the week" "Sly, Sexy, and Deftly done."-- "People" Sujata Massey is an exciting new author published by HarperPaperbacks. Massey's first novel, "The Salaryman's Wife," has just been nominated for the prestigious Anthony Award. Massey's second novel, "Zen Attitude," also featuring Rei Shimura, a 27 year-old Japanese American English teaching living in Tokyo, will be out in June 1998.Q: How did you conceive of the plot for "Zen Attitude?" A: I had the good fortune while living in Japan to spend time teaching in Kamakura, a wonderful small city that flourished in the twelfth through fourteenth centuries when it was the seat of Japan's shogun rulers. During this time, many Zen temples and monasteries were built. I have visited many of them and had the pleasure of meeting several Zen priests and their families. Iwas drawn to write a story that combined this picturesque setting, family dynamics, and some of the tenets of the Zen Buddhist faith. To learn more about the religion while I was writing the book, I spent some time in Zen training at a Japanese-established Zen monastery in New York.Q: How has Rei changed since "The Salaryman's Wife?" A: Rei's career as an antiques buyer has blossomed and is the linchpin for the plot, which involves a trail of disastrous events that result from one unlucky antique purchase. Rei is also involved in a committed relationship with a boyfriend who is going through some tensions that are tough for her to deal with. I think Rei has become a stronger, more secure person, but she still has some doubts about her ability to understand Japanese people and culture. When a killer comes too close for comfort, she escapes to the woods where there are hazards a Tokyo girl would not normally encounter.Q: What role does the search for personal identity play in "Zen Attitude" and how do you think it has changed since your first novel, "The Salaryman's Wife?" A: In "The Salaryman's Wife," Rei was struggling to find her place in Japanese society. Now she's got a promising new career and a cushy apartment, but she can't help wondering when she'll make enough money to really support herself, and whether living with someone who pays the rent makes her a "kept woman." Rei also deals with the issue of sibling rivalry when she sees a battle for family assets take place between two young members of a priestly Zen family. A similar conflict appears in her own life when Hugh Glendinning's bother appears for an unexpected extended visit to Tokyo. Rei learnsa lot about what makes a family by the time "Zen Attitude" draws to a close.Q: What are some of the main themes that are essential to "Zen Attitude?" A: I titled the book "Zen Attitude" to reflect my curiosity about whether it's right to simply accept things as they happen. Rei has to decide whether this is a good attitude for her'or whether she should fight destiny'as the mystery plays out. This book also reflects my interest in the changing role of women in Japan. Rei makes friends with Akemi Mihori, a straight-shooting, feisty judo practitioner who refuses to get married. Akemi is contrasted with her mother, Nana Mihori, who is a very traditional woman devoted to the preservation of Japan's historic buildings and the cultural arts. Q: Can you tell us about your upcoming projects? Will Rei Shimura play an important role in your next book?A: I'm working on a third mystery to be published in April 1999 that will explore the world of ikebana, or Japanese flower arranging. I have studied ikebana for five years, so I'm relishing the chance to meld cherry blossoms with a puzzling murder. The novel will feature Rei and bring back some old friends from The Salaryman's Wife including Richard Randall, Mr. Waka, and Rei's Aunt Norie and Cousin Tom.Interested readers can find The Salaryman's Wife in their bookstores now. Sujata M

Chesapeake Crimes 3 is the latest installment of the Agatha- and Anthony-award-winning Chesapeake Crimes series.

"The Chesapeake Bay area is home to strong winds, joys, and fears, where you lock your doors at night in the cities and probably should lock them in the countryside, too, especially after reading this anthology. [It] gave me 15 reasons to wish I had not moved to the Midwest. And for the folks who are still living in this supposedly mild-mannered region, all I can say is, enjoy the weather, but watch your back." -- Sujata Massey

A young woman with a foothold in two cultures, Rei Shimura has gone wherever fortune and her unruly passions have led her throughout her chaotic twenties. Now, after the streamers for her thirtieth birthday celebration have been taken down, the Japanese-American antiques dealer and part-time sleuth finds herself with an assignment to find and authenticate an ancient Middle Eastern pitcher that disappeared from Iraq's national museum.

The piece is believed to be in the hands of a wealthy Japanese collector, whose passion for beauty extends to Rei herself. But when a devastating typhoon hits Tokyo, Rei is trapped with the object of her investigation--and with much much more than the fate of an ancient pitcher at risk.