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Tales of the Otori, by Lian Hearn
Sep. 10th, 2018 11:33 pmThe Tales of the Otori books were the first books I ever read in English. I remember that it took me several chapters to figure out what "to bow" means and I was very proud when I got it. So there's definitely a nostalgia factor there, which makes it harder to evaluate the books now.
The original trilogy is a fairly typical coming-of-age story + adventure + romance with lords and ninjas in a weird fantasy-Japan. The main characters are teenagers who fall deeply in love at first sight *rolls eyes*, there's a lot of "honor!!" stuff going on, and the plot is okay/good at times but in the end resolves more by deus ex machine than the main characters' competence. I did love many minor characters, the characters torn between different loyalties, especially the Muto family, and later on Takeo struggling with different ways of life. Kaede, the heroine, had a lot of potential but I was disappointed by how little was realized. Another plus: several queer characters, including a bi hero.
And then there's "The Harsh Cry of the Heron," the sequel set sixteen years later. I've wanted fix-it fic for it ever since I finished it, and the reason why I reread the series now is because I decided to finally request it for Yuletide. Fingers crossed. (Now if only I could decide which characters to request.)
"Harsh Cry of the Heron" doesn't have a very happy ending – hopeful, but unexpectedly dark. When I read it the first time I absolutely hated it, and it seemed so random and cruel. This time I realized how much of the characters' ill fortunes were a result of their own actions, some more at fault (Takeo!) and some less (Taku) but even the seemingly random events had their logic. Characters are flawed and that's human, and it was already apparent in the original trilogy and it makes sense how things developed. It was frustrating that the good guys seemed less competent than the bad guys, but I think a lot of it was just because of what was highlighted for the plot/plot necessity. (Waiting sixteen years to contact the Emperor was incredibly stupid, like, what the fuck.) The book has a huge cast (and sometimes struggles with balancing it, and with the pacing.) I really hated the villains, good job with that, and I liked many characters and got invested in them. Overall I found the book very compelling.
What I hated were the occasional implications that love and sex and marriage and children make women weak, wtf. And that in a book with so many great female characters. Though Kaede deserved so much better, both from her husband and from the author. Also, I could imagine that some people would appreciate some content warnings, like for sexual abuse of children.
( More spoilery details )
(And then there's "Heaven's Net Is Wide," the prequel to the trilogy, and I only remember it being extremely boring so I didn't even bother rereading it.)
The original trilogy is a fairly typical coming-of-age story + adventure + romance with lords and ninjas in a weird fantasy-Japan. The main characters are teenagers who fall deeply in love at first sight *rolls eyes*, there's a lot of "honor!!" stuff going on, and the plot is okay/good at times but in the end resolves more by deus ex machine than the main characters' competence. I did love many minor characters, the characters torn between different loyalties, especially the Muto family, and later on Takeo struggling with different ways of life. Kaede, the heroine, had a lot of potential but I was disappointed by how little was realized. Another plus: several queer characters, including a bi hero.
And then there's "The Harsh Cry of the Heron," the sequel set sixteen years later. I've wanted fix-it fic for it ever since I finished it, and the reason why I reread the series now is because I decided to finally request it for Yuletide. Fingers crossed. (Now if only I could decide which characters to request.)
"Harsh Cry of the Heron" doesn't have a very happy ending – hopeful, but unexpectedly dark. When I read it the first time I absolutely hated it, and it seemed so random and cruel. This time I realized how much of the characters' ill fortunes were a result of their own actions, some more at fault (Takeo!) and some less (Taku) but even the seemingly random events had their logic. Characters are flawed and that's human, and it was already apparent in the original trilogy and it makes sense how things developed. It was frustrating that the good guys seemed less competent than the bad guys, but I think a lot of it was just because of what was highlighted for the plot/plot necessity. (Waiting sixteen years to contact the Emperor was incredibly stupid, like, what the fuck.) The book has a huge cast (and sometimes struggles with balancing it, and with the pacing.) I really hated the villains, good job with that, and I liked many characters and got invested in them. Overall I found the book very compelling.
What I hated were the occasional implications that love and sex and marriage and children make women weak, wtf. And that in a book with so many great female characters. Though Kaede deserved so much better, both from her husband and from the author. Also, I could imagine that some people would appreciate some content warnings, like for sexual abuse of children.
( More spoilery details )
(And then there's "Heaven's Net Is Wide," the prequel to the trilogy, and I only remember it being extremely boring so I didn't even bother rereading it.)
