Literary Fiction
A young Dutch clerk navigates love and danger in 1799 Nagasaki, where East meets West in a web of deceit and forbidden desire.
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A young Dutch clerk navigates love and danger in 1799 Nagasaki, where East meets West in a web of deceit and forbidden desire.
About
Details
The year is 1799, the place Dejima in Nagasaki Harbor, the “high-walled, fan-shaped artificial island” that is the Japanese Empire’s single port and sole window onto the world, designed to keep the West at bay; the farthest outpost of the war-ravaged Dutch East Indies Company; and a de facto prison for the dozen foreigners permitted to live and work there. To this place of devious merchants, deceitful interpreters, costly courtesans, earthquakes, and typhoons comes Jacob de Zoet, a devout and re...
What's Inside
will contain mild spoilers
Romance & sex
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Moderate romantic tension; some implied sexual content with courtesans, not graphic.
Violence & gore
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Moderate violence; some intense scenes of conflict and physical harm.
Profanity
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Minor use of strong language; infrequent and contextually appropriate.
Substance use
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Minor references to alcohol use; not a central theme.
LGBTQ+ Rep.
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No evidence found in available sources.
Religious content
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Minor religious themes; protagonist's devout background mentioned briefly.
Magic & witchcraft
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No fantasy magic or witchcraft depicted.
Occult / demonology
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No real-world occult content depicted.
Political content
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Moderate cultural and colonial tensions; East-West power dynamics explored.
Self-harm / suicide
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No evidence found in available sources.
Abuse & suffering
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Major themes of systemic suffering, coercion, and exploitation in a confined setting.
Other
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No information found.