Heaven's Net Is Wide

A Prequel to Tales of the Otori

By: Lian Hearn

Narrated by: J. Paul Boehmer, Julia Fletcher

Length: 17 hrs and 49 mins

Publisher's summary

As Tolkien's The Silmarillion is to The Lord of the Rings, Liam Hearn's Heaven's Net Is Wide is to Tales of the Otori. This is the back story fans have been yearning for.

Set before the Tales begin, Heaven's Net recounts the life of Lord Otori Shigeru, the series' spiritual warrior-godfather and the adoptive father of the Tales' Takeo. We learn about Shigeru's training in the ways of the warrior and feudal lord; his relationship with the Tribe of mysteriously powerful assassins; his fateful meeting with Lady Maruyama, who would become his secret lover; the battle of Yaegahara, where his father is killed; and other turning points that shaped the Tales. The first four volumes gave us only glimpses. Now we are treated to rich detail and more of Hearn's fantastical Japanese world.

Gripping and bewitching, Heaven's Net is a new beginning and a grand finale; a story of monumental battles, supreme loyalty, triumphant love, and heartbreak. It ends just before Across the Nightingale Floor begins, bringing the Otori epic full circle.

©2007 Lian Hearn. Recorded by arrangement with Riverhead Books, a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc (P)2007 HighBridge Company

Critic reviews

"Equal parts historical fiction, high fantasy and revelatory Taoist fable, the now complete Tales of the Otori is a saga to be treasured." ( Publishers Weekly)

Sequel exploitation

I had such high hopes for this book after listening to the excellent " Across the Nightingale Floor" unfortunately this is written like a Harlequin novel.

Fantastic

Wonderful "listen". Beautifully written.

Knowing more made me like it less

I was a huge fan of the previous books in the series, so when I saw the opportunity to learn the backstory through this book, I jumped on it.

I completely agree with the other reviewer who suggested you read the prequel AFTER you've read the other books. Actually, I would recommend you read the others and just skip this one. I did not find it nearly as interesting as the others, particularly Nightengale.

Lian Hearn seems on a mission to say, "Oh, I forgot to tell you, they're Christian!" Over and over and over. Why? I didn't need it. It became a real distraction for me and overall, ruined my reading.

I don't recommend the book. Yes, I learned some things. But I got a lot more that I didn't want and wasn't interested in.

Just filled in the gaps...

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

Had I known to listen to this first before the tales of the Otori would of made the story more enjoyable.

What was most disappointing about Lian Hearn’s story?

Nothing insightful, or new came out of this story. It was filled with gaps while I hoped to gain new insight into the characters. Granted the character development was deep in this story, but that is all this story is. Although it was interesting to learn about a six year old Gemba, it felt like just plugs. Nothing significant actually happens or any interesting surprises. I was left disappointed not caring about the details given for the explanation that could of been crafted in seconds of thought, unlike the trilogy which may have taken a long time to craft such a tale.

Have you listened to any of J. Paul Boehmer and Julia Fletcher ’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Good, they were great.

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

Disappointment for sure.