Across the Nightingale Floor - Softcover

Lian Hearn

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0330446967 ISBN 13: 9780330446969

Publisher: Pan Childrens, 2006

Synopsis

Lord Otori, Takeo, and Takeo's new teacher Kenji set off to meet Kaede, a fifteen-year-old girl chosen as the future Lady Otori by a group of political collaborators. Takeo is still trying to come to terms with knowing that, through the father he never knew, he is one of the Tribe - a group of mysterious, ninja-like assassins who have allegiance to no one. When Takeo and Kaede first meet, they are drawn to each other, and without speaking a word, fall in love. But events are doomed to pull them apart, and soon they are each thrust into a battle for their lives. 'Quite simply the best story of magic, love, sex, revenge and suspense to have come this way since Philip Pulman' - Amanda Craig, Independent on Sunday

About this title

Review:

The debut novel of Lian Hearn's Tales of the Otori series, Across the Nightingale Floor, is set in a feudal Japan on the edge of the imagination. The tale begins with young Takeo, a member of a subversive and persecuted religious group, who returns home to find his village in flames. He is saved, not by coincidence, by the swords of Lord Otori Shigeru and thrust into a world of warlords, feuding clans, and political scheming. As Lord Otori's ward, he discovers he is a member by birth of the shadowy "Tribe," a mysterious group of assassins with supernatural abilities.

Hearn sets his tale in an imaginary realm that is and isn't feudal Japan. This device serves the author well as he is able to play with familiar archetypes--samurai, Shogun, and ninja--without falling prey to the pitfalls of history. The novel fills a unique niche that is at once period piece and fantasy novel. Hearn unfolds the tale of Takeo and the conflicting forces around him in a deliberate manner that leads to a satisfying conclusion and sets the stage for the rest of the series. --Jeremy Pugh

About the Author:

Lian Hearn studied modern languages at Oxford University and worked as a film critic and arts editor in London before settling in Australia. A lifelong interest in Japan led to0 the study of the Japanese language, many trips to Japan and culminated in the writing of the Tales of the Otori.

About this edition

• Publisher: Pan Childrens
• Publication date: 2006
• ISBN 10: 0330446967
• ISBN 13: 9780330446969
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 276