111 Book Review: Heaven’s Net Is Wide
Heaven’s Net Is Wide
by Lian Hearn
Before she sat down to write the Tales of the Otori series, Lian Hearn must have played a high-stakes game of Taboo in which the guess-word was “Japan” and the taboo words were: ninja, samurai, shogun, Kyoto, and Buddhism. She’s still playing, y’all.
This book is billed as a prequel, but you should start here if you’re new to the series. It’s the story of Otori Shigeru as he comes of age and learns to take the bitter with the sweet. You’ll be moved by piercing beauty intermingled with such sorrow. At the end, it’s not that I was crying, it’s just that all of this water got on my face.
TL;DR: Basically, it’s A Game of Thrones, but in Japan and more beautiful (which explains so much about my Japanese in-laws).
My rating: 10 out of 11 Horse Genealogies, Which Are 100% On The Final Test
Get it here:
- IndieBound (print, U.S.)
- Better World Books (print, worldwide)
- Apple Books (electronic)
- Google Play Books (electronic)
- Scribd (audio)
Oh, you liked it? Well then, try: Across the Nightingale Floor (the next Tale of the Otori)
Part of The Tales of the Otori: Heaven’s Net Is Wide | Across the Nightingale Floor | Grass for His Pillow | Brilliance of the Moon | The Harsh Cry of the Heron
