"Tales of the Otori - Book One"

"By the time the snow melted, Tomasu, the half-wild boy who roamed the mountain and read only its animals and planets, was gone forever. I had become Takeo, quiet, outwardly gentle, an artist, somewhat bookish, a disguise that hid the ears and eyes that missed nothing, and the heart that was learning the lessons of revenge."

What grand, enticing expression! It's been a long time since this reader has been so excited about a new fiction series. Set in feudal Japan, the novel opens quietly into the world of Tomasu, a member of the secret sect, the Hidden. A page later the fires and murders begin that transform Tomasu into an orphan who commits an unforgivable offense. About to be captured, Tomasu is saved by Lord Shigeru, the leader of the Otori clan. Shigeru and others see a mysterious likeness in the boy, and Tomasu is adopted as Takeo Shigeru. While he is being taught the necessary martial arts for a nobleman, his adopted father and teachers discover Takeo possesses the mysterious powers of the Tribe, a secret group of warriors.

Takeo quickly becomes part of the plot to revenge the death of his family and Shigeru's brother. While the tale may sound typical, and it certainly is, Hearn (actually a pseudonym for the children's author, Gillian Rubenstein, an Oxford language graduate now living in Australia) deftly draws the reader into an evenly paced story of intrigue and exquisite romance. Bloodthirsty revenge is never glorified but given its rightful place in a society that honors reverence for one's kin and demands payment for murder. Nobility and integrity of character, as well as its despicable opposite, are palpable in the descriptions and actions of every scene.

This is one of the finest tales and should draw global fans. While other reviewers have immediately tried to compare and contrast it to other recently popular fiction, this reviewer believes ACROSS THE NIGHTINGALE FLOOR remarkably stands on its own merit as superb fiction that will be loved by young and old readers alike.

Wonderful, Ms. Hearn!

Reviewed by Viviane Crystal

Reviewed by Viviane Crystal
Courtesy Crystal Reviews
Posted December 26, 2002

Summary

Every now and then a novel appears, completely unlike anything that has appeared before. Across the Nightingale Floor is such a work-a magical creation of a world beyond time.

Set in an imaginary, ancient Japanese society dominated by warring clans, Across the Nightingale Floor is a story of a boy who is suddenly plucked from his life in a remote and peaceful village to find himself a pawn in a political scheme, filled with treacherous warlords, rivalry-and the intensity of first love. In a culture ruled by codes of honor and formal rituals, Takeo must look inside himself to discover the powers that will enable him to fulfill his destiny.

A work of transcendent storytelling with an appeal that crosses genres, genders, and generations, Across the Nightingale Floor is a rich and brilliantly constructed tale, mythic in its themes and epic in its vision. It is poised to become the most captivating novel of the year.