Lian Hearn Brilliance

Hearn, Lian: Brilliance of the Moon: Tales of the Otori, Book Three, Riverhead Trade 2005 ISBN: 1594480869
1594480869 Very Good

Clean, tight. Minor shelf wear. Slight creasing to spine. Lian Hearn's third installment in the Tales of the Otori series Brilliance of the Moon brings a mystical and violent conclusion to the saga of Takeo Otori as he fulfills his destiny to reclaim the Otori lands. At the climax of Grass for his Pillow, Takeo's passion for his beloved Kaede was finally realized with their secret and forbidden wedding. As spring approaches, Takeo and Kaede prepare for war and embark on a campaign to reclaim their respective realms. But just when victory seems certain, Hearn characteristically uproots her characters with unseen treachery and the two lovers are again separated. Takeo must summon courage from his conflicted heritage as he marches towards his destiny. The fates of other Otori characters are also determined in a succinct and magical finale. Paperback 8 x 5.1 x 1.1 inches

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Lian Hearn. Heaven's Net is Wide (The Tales of the Otori). Riverhead Trade, 2008
1594483329 From Publishers Weekly Set in a brutal and breathtaking feudal Japan, this lyrical and moving prequel to Hearn's Tales of the Otori and also the fifth and final entry in this epic chronicle of ruthless warlords and ill-fated love (after 2006's The Harsh Cry of the Heron), focuses on the early life of Otori Shigeru, the young heir to the Otori clan. Raised in a strictly hierarchical society that reveres loyalty and honor, the adolescent Shigeru witnesses firsthand how treachery and duplicity play an integral role in the deaths of thousands of Otori warriors, the bloody annihilation of his family and, inevitably, his complete and utter degradation. As a dispossessed heir, Shigeru finds strength and retributive inspiration in the teachings of his former mentor, warrior-monk Matsuda Shingen, and in his illicit relationship with the resourceful Lady Maruyama, whose life has also been devastated by the Tohan. Equal parts historical fiction, high fantasy and revelatory Taoist fable, the now complete Tales of the Otori is a saga to be treasured. (July) Copyright ? Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From The Washington Post Reviewed by Elizabeth Ward Nobody should need to ask who the Otori are by now. Scions of an imaginary, quasi-Japanese feudal clan, they've made a big splash in the small realm of literary fantasy since Lord Otori Shigeru first hove into view in Across the Nightingale Floor (2002). That book, which plunged readers into an exceedingly violent, rivetingly elegant world, was followed in short order by three more, all with equally poetic titles: Grass for His Pillow, Brilliance of the Moon and The Harsh Cry of the Heron. The Otori found themselves with a following. There's been talk of a movie. Now, "Star Wars"-like, the series gets a prequel. This is good news across the board. Fans of the noble Shigeru, who was gruesomely dispatched at the end of Nightingale, should get a kick out of being transported back several decades to witness his childhood, youth and romance with winsome Lady Maruyama, as well as the battle of Yaegahara -- the Otori's Waterloo -- which casts its shadow over the entire series. Readers who forgot about Shigeru after his adopted son, Takeo, took center stage, will be jolted into a fresh understanding of Takeo's troubles. And those who wouldn't recognize an Otori if they fell over one have the satisfaction of knowing that if they enjoy Heaven's Net Is Wide, they don't have to wait around for the rest of the saga. There is, in fact, much to enjoy. Lian Hearn (a pseudonym for Gillian Rubinstein, a British-born Australian who made her reputation with fantasies for younger readers) is a serious student of Japan. She has lived there, immersed herself in its history and culture and reportedly learned its difficult, elliptical language. That pen name is surely a nod to the ultimate Japanophile, a 19th-century writer who became a Japanese citizen, Lafcadio Hearn. Her feeling for the place and its past is apparent here, as in all the books, in numerous little touches: "the drone of the cicadas, the constant sound of summer," winter roads icy underfoot, fermented bean paste and foaming green tea, lantern-hung boats and silk-smooth temple verandas, bush clover and camellias, and the ever-looming "plum rains." Even if, as Hearn insists, neither the setting nor the period of the Otori books represents an actual historical era, the customs and traditions, landscapes and seasons are those of Japan. And she has gotten them right. Not just the pretty stuff, either. Hearn doesn't shy away from old Japan's dark side. Early on in Heaven's Net, a master stonemason is sealed alive in the parapet of his own magnificent bridge to placate a river god. Members of "the Hidden," a persecuted, Christian-like sect, are suspended upside down above fires and ever-so-slowly roasted to death. Heads and limbs fly: Young Shigeru "was amazed at how easily the blade slid through clothing and flesh, how it whipped back and cut again.

Paperback, New

[SW: lian hearn,]

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Lian Hearn: Brilliance of the Moon, Episode 1: Battle for Maruyama (Tales of the Otori, Book 3) Firebird 2006-05-04 ISBN: 0142406236
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BRAND NEW! Ships fast! Paperback

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Lian Hearn: Brilliance of the Moon, Episode 2: Scars of Victory (Tales of the Otori, Book 3) Firebird 2006-05-04 ISBN: 0142405949
0142405949 New

New. Contains very slight shelf wear (like you would see in a major chain store). Very nice copy. Looks like an interesting title! We ship daily, provide personalized customer service and want you to have a great experience purchasing from us. Thank you for your consideration. Paperback

[SW: Varia]

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