In By the Sword Jack hires on to find a stolen samurai sword -- a katana. The victim can't go to the authorities because in 1955 his father stole the sword from the Hiroshima Peace Museum. The blade had survived the atomic explosion there, but not without damage -- it is pocked and pierced with numerous small holes. Yet even in such ruined condition, it holds its cutting edge. It becomes an object of fierce desire, for it was fashioned by the renowned ancient swordsmith, Masamune. An ideogram on the hasp identifies it as his fabled lost sword, the Gaijin Masamune.

Jack soon learns that he's not the only one looking for it.

Hank Thompson (from Bloodline) has had recurring dreams about the sword and sends his Kicker followers in search of it.

The fanatical Kakureta Kao cult (from Black Wind), displaced from its homeland to an abandoned building on toxic ground near the Staten Island landfill, will kill to possess it.

The chairman of a huge Japanese holding company (Kaze Group from Legacies) wants it for his collection. He sends Hideo Takita and three yakuza to retrieve it.

And then there's the original thief, identity unknown, who has decided to keep it for himself.

The body count rises steadily as the sword changes hands time and again, and Jack must find a way to manipulate and maneuver the rival groups into a showdown that will allow him to spirit the blade away.

Of course, nothing goes as planned -- for anyone.

By the Sword is the most frenetic and deadly Repairman Jack novel yet.