In the middle of the 16th century, Hideyoshi, a power hungry warlord sets out to destroy the Momochi clan. He sends his war commander in search of the clan's hidden gold only to find that two daggers are the key to the hiding place of the treasured gold. Spanning decades, the quest for the missing daggers takes Shiranui through war and ancient tradition.

The crook Ray Elliot, whose former partner Jack is under a five-million-dollar contract, believes in statistics and runs a risk assessment and managing business; actually a front for a company that provides alibis to adulterous people that cheat their mates. He does not accept giving alibis for crimes and he has just hired the alluring Lola to be his assistant. When Wendell Hatch, the reckless son of his wealthy client Robert Hatch, accidentally kills his masochist date Heather in a kinky S&M game, Ray breaks his rules to protect his own name and hire some guys to clean the bedroom and vanish the body. Sooner Ray has many problems to resolve: the police are on his tail trying to find a clue about the disappearance of Heather; her jealous Mexican-American boyfriend wishes revenge against the murderer; Wendell is upset because Ray told his father about the crime; Robert is angry and hires the hit-man Mormon to kill Ray, but the killer spares him to chase Jack. When the jealous Mormon ...

An unknown middle-aged batter named Roy Hobbs with a mysterious past appears out of nowhere to take a losing 1930s baseball team to the top of the league in this magical sports fantasy. With the aid of a bat cut from a lightning struck tree, Hobbs lives the fame he should have had earlier when, as a rising pitcher, he is inexplicably shot by a young woman.

James Sveck is a lonely youth in the summer before he goes off to college at Brown University. Apart from hanging with his grandmother, James prefers solitude. The story is told in first person narration, which helps give an intimate inside view of James as he works through his life at the therapy sessions which his parents insist he goes to. We learn about James's past and present through the stories he tells.