A young samurai stuck at the bottom of the hierarchical order attempts to rescue his childhood sweetheart from an evil clan lord after learning of a plot to kill her and her infant child. Bunshiro Maki is a skilled swordfighter who's lethal with a blade, yet still can't rise through the ranks of the system. After his father is accused of plotting against his clan and forced to commit ritual suicide, his longtime love Fuku is sent to Edo to become the clan lord's concubine. A few years later, Fuku has bore the clan lord a son. When Maki learns that the clan has hatched a plan to kill Fuku and her son to secure succession to the throne, he recruits two childhood friends to help thwart the diabolical plot.

善描人生百態的日本第一小說家！作品引起日本千萬上班族的共鳴！ 某日的清晨，文四郎在河畔邊解救遭蛇咬傷的鄰家女孩，一段發生在江戶時代淡淡戀情於是沿著溪流緩緩展開。面對友情、不幸的命運、忍耐與戀情的鍛鍊下，少年藩士文四郎在充滿希望之中採取行動，企圖找出自己生存價值的證明。其逐漸成長的姿態，很難不引人莫以名狀的悲嘆與動容。 作者藤澤周平擅長透過出身卑微的武士，將小人物的喜怒哀樂刻劃得淋漓盡致，其深刻細膩的淡淡描述卻糾結人心，使得即使是數百年前與今日截然不同的武士世界，依舊仍能引起現代讀者的共鳴，尤其更能貼近終日惶惶鬱悶的上班族心情。《黃昏清兵衛》、《隱劍鬼爪》等作品改編成電影後，激起了藤澤周平熱，因為每個人在書中都可以找到貼近自己際遇的角色。 倘若要說《蟬時雨》是時代小說的話，應該稱它為新時代小說。而且是本質煥然一新的小說。文無贅字，流暢優美，清麗玲瓏。構思宏偉，人物細膩，具有獨特的美與魅力。

本书收录八个短篇。主人公都是武士时代的上班族，每天到藩城里工作，下班回家还得搞些副业补贴家用。藤泽周平擅长透过出身卑微的武士，将小人物的喜怒哀乐刻画得淋漓尽致，人、情、景清淡细腻却纠结人心，即使发生在数百年前的武士世界，依旧引人共鸣。