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jodiesbookishposts's review against another edition
5.0
This is a trilogy that has been sat on my shelves for years. I read Across the Nightingale Floor when I was a teenager, I can’t remember when I read it first but I then bought the sequel Grass For His Pillow straight after and I never finished it. Then, much much later, I found the third and final book in a charity shop and bought Brilliance of the Moon. Again I tried to reread the series but never finished. I made it my mission this year to do it. I was not putting it off again. So I decided to marathon it. No excuses.
It’s not that I didn’t enjoy the series. In fact, it was the opposite – I loved this series. I think why I never finished it the first time round was how many characters there were. Every time I picked up the next book it was like trying to reremember everything. It is definitely a trilogy to marathon.
The story focuses on Takeo, an orphan boy from a remote village in a fictional world with similarities to Feudal Japan. He is adopted by Lord Otori from the Warrior Class. He is taken from his quiet life into a world of intrigue. But Takeo’s past is not as it seems, he has unique gifts, gifts that make him a desired assassin. When Takeo is claimed by the mysterious Tribe, he has to chose between the families who have a hold on him. From the other perspective we have Kaede, a young girl, a hostage of a warrior lord. She is sent to be married, but Kaede too is hiding secrets. Desiring her is deadly. When Takeo and Kaede meet, there already twisted fates collide.
It’s hard to describe a trilogy without any spoilers. Each new book brings with it new challenges and each is a fresh new story. It sits well as a series. The tension is pumped up with each new installment.
Taeko and Kaede are great protagonists in their own right. They both raise issues in society still relevant today – gender, religion, class. It is done in a way that doesn’t feel preachy and it develops with each book.
It is sometimes a tragic story and it’s beautifully lyrical and has that air of a Japanese painting. It is elegant and indulgent in a good way. There is a great sense of place to the story and the world building is rich and detailed.
This was worth the wait. I’m glad I finally finished it.
It’s not that I didn’t enjoy the series. In fact, it was the opposite – I loved this series. I think why I never finished it the first time round was how many characters there were. Every time I picked up the next book it was like trying to reremember everything. It is definitely a trilogy to marathon.
The story focuses on Takeo, an orphan boy from a remote village in a fictional world with similarities to Feudal Japan. He is adopted by Lord Otori from the Warrior Class. He is taken from his quiet life into a world of intrigue. But Takeo’s past is not as it seems, he has unique gifts, gifts that make him a desired assassin. When Takeo is claimed by the mysterious Tribe, he has to chose between the families who have a hold on him. From the other perspective we have Kaede, a young girl, a hostage of a warrior lord. She is sent to be married, but Kaede too is hiding secrets. Desiring her is deadly. When Takeo and Kaede meet, there already twisted fates collide.
It’s hard to describe a trilogy without any spoilers. Each new book brings with it new challenges and each is a fresh new story. It sits well as a series. The tension is pumped up with each new installment.
Taeko and Kaede are great protagonists in their own right. They both raise issues in society still relevant today – gender, religion, class. It is done in a way that doesn’t feel preachy and it develops with each book.
It is sometimes a tragic story and it’s beautifully lyrical and has that air of a Japanese painting. It is elegant and indulgent in a good way. There is a great sense of place to the story and the world building is rich and detailed.
This was worth the wait. I’m glad I finally finished it.
petitebookshelf's review against another edition
3.0
Había olvidado que esta saga era tan salvaje y sangrienta :O
Odio a Takeo, es un ser detestableeee y me carga la forma en que relata sus deseos sexuales, amigo relaja la calentura
Odio a Takeo, es un ser detestableeee y me carga la forma en que relata sus deseos sexuales, amigo relaja la calentura
tzurky's review
2.0
The deus ex machinas are getting really annoying. Every single one of the books follows the same pattern of slowly building interesting storylines with lots of tension between the characters and then a quick, neat resolution of every single one of them within 10 pages by a miraculous event or series of events. Too convenient and it cheapens all the suffering and character development that took place beforehand.
So why the two stars? Because I liked the storylines and the characters, with the exception of the main character. And while the beginning was, as always, slow and boring, the build-up was pretty good.
The fights are incredibly badly written though. Huge armies are supposed to clash together here and there is almost no description of any fighting at all. The fighting begins and ends in the next sentence, which is pretty lame, given how central it is to the plot. The same is true of the ninja fights.
Also, the ramblings on peace, and religion and such are pretty annoying. I get that she is trying to give the main character some depth but he is one of the most badly written characters I have ever read. Every single other character has more depth and personality than him. He basically stumbles his way through everything, pushed along by the plot into every decision that is necessary for its progression, decisions that are so contradictory and out-of-character that he is not left with much character to speak of. He is stupid or smart as the plot demands, kind and innocent like a baby or ruthless killer as the plot demands, madly in love or completely unconcerned with his wife or recklessly bold and cowardly and defeatist. Unbelievably annoying.
So why the two stars? Because I liked the storylines and the characters, with the exception of the main character. And while the beginning was, as always, slow and boring, the build-up was pretty good.
The fights are incredibly badly written though. Huge armies are supposed to clash together here and there is almost no description of any fighting at all. The fighting begins and ends in the next sentence, which is pretty lame, given how central it is to the plot. The same is true of the ninja fights.
Also, the ramblings on peace, and religion and such are pretty annoying. I get that she is trying to give the main character some depth but he is one of the most badly written characters I have ever read. Every single other character has more depth and personality than him. He basically stumbles his way through everything, pushed along by the plot into every decision that is necessary for its progression, decisions that are so contradictory and out-of-character that he is not left with much character to speak of. He is stupid or smart as the plot demands, kind and innocent like a baby or ruthless killer as the plot demands, madly in love or completely unconcerned with his wife or recklessly bold and cowardly and defeatist. Unbelievably annoying.
eacolgan's review
4.0
i liked the ending to this series a lot. i thought it was a little abrupt; the action seemed to wind down in the last thirty pages, following through the resolution of takeo's story without giving the same amount of resolution to kaede's; but it was a great book nevertheless. i love lian hearn's writing style so much, it's stunningly beautiful and she really has a way of driving the plot while switching between two narrators that i love. her characters are wonderful, too; i feel strongly for both her narrators and even many of the non-narrating characters stick with me after i put the book down. i just wanted more from this book, but it was still a beautiful and satisfying end to the trilogy.
lu_ise's review
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
pillywiggin's review
5.0
This is one of my favorite series of all time. This is the 4th time I have read this book.
drdearest's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
bridge_enginerd's review
2.0
This book actually used the phrase “fight like a man.” It was also extremely fragmented and felt very much like an “oh crap, I told them I’d give them a trilogy” book. The end felt extremely rushed and unsatisfying.
macau21's review against another edition
challenging
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
minzmaus's review against another edition
adventurous
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.5