Yamada Monogatari: To Break the Demon Gate

• Yamada no Goji is a minor nobleman of ancient Japan who has lost everything ― except a single purpose: keep a promise to the woman he loved. In order to fulfill his vow, all he has to do is fight a horde of demons and monsters, bargain with a few ghosts, outwit the sinister schemers of the emperor’s court, find a way to defeat an assassin who cannot be seen, heard, or touched ― and change the course of history. Fortunately, Yamada specializes in achieving the seemingly impossible, so he is sure in some way to succeed...if he doesn’t drink himself into oblivion first.

Richard Parks is an ex-pat Mississippian now living in central New York. He collects Japanese woodblock prints but otherwise has no hobbies since he discovered that they all require time. His fiction has appeared in Asimov's SF, Realms of Fantasy, Lady Churchill's Rosebud Wristlet, Fantasy Magazine, Weird Tales, and numerous anthologies, including Year's Best Fantasy and Fantasy: The Best of the Year. His work has been a finalist for both the World Fantasy Award and the Mythopoeic Award for Adult Literature.