Subduction

"Shimoda is a consummate storyteller" — Booklist

"Shimoda skillfully weaves (these) tales into the narrative, revealing how past events "continue to affect the island, like aftershocks." Earthquakes are an apt metaphor for the social disruptions on the island, and Shimoda links modern earthquake science, ancient Japanese myths on the origin of earthquakes, and an unforgettable cast of characters to create a suspenseful, richly illustrated novel." — Publishers Weekly

"Husband and wife team Todd and Linda Shimoda’s skills blend seamlessly together to make Subduction a hauntingly beautiful and highly unique novel. The author’s prose and illustrator’s talent give the book a tone and quality that is both rare and memorable." — ForeWord

"Subduction heaves with a splintered brilliance I could only appreciate after rejoining the parts inside my imagination. Each section slides or grinds along another, but the final whole is a work that stayed with me for weeks afterward." — The Japan Times

Subduction is a timely, seductive mystery set on a tiny, earthquake-plagued island. Endo, a young physician unjustly charged with a patient's death, is banished to the island to care for the few remaining elderly residents. Determined to remain on their crumbling island and resuscitate their defunct fishing industry, the aging islanders plot against all outsiders. After a mysterious death and attacks on Endo and fellow newcomers, he discovers why the islanders don't wish to leave: years ago, jealousies, lust, and violence ripped apart their lives, and the wounds haven't healed. The aftershocks of the islanders' past, as well as Endo's own troubled history, replay violently in the present just as a massive earthquake strikes.

Exquisitely designed with L.J.C. Shimoda's artwork throughout, Subduction also features a sixteen-page illustrated retelling of the myth of Kashima, the god who controls a giant, thrashing catfish that causes earthquakes. The myth offers clues to the mysterious motives of the island's denizens.