Lian Hearn 
Blossoms and Shadows 

From the author of the multi-million-copy selling Otori series, Blossoms and Shadows is a compelling tale of women and men, love and war, and the rise of a nation.It is Japan, 1857. The age of the Samurai is ending and a new Japan is about to be born. For those caught in the middle the times are unsure and turbulent, as new beliefs clash with long-held traditions.Tsuru is a young woman with a secret ambition to become a doctor. Caught up in the politics of these unstable times, she will be forced to make some difficult choices. And when war comes, Tsuru’s struggle to be treated as an equal will take her onto the battlefields