Across the Nightingale Floor

Tales of the Otori, Book One

By: Lian Hearn

Narrated by: Kevin Gray, Aiko Nakasone

Length: 8 hrs and 25 mins

Publisher's summary

A tour-de-force novel set in ancient Japan filled with passion, fantasy, and feuding warlords. The first volume in the highly anticipated Tales of the Otori trilogy.

Sixteen-year-old Takeo's village has been massacred by an evil warlord, and he is about to be slain by the men who murdered his parents and neighbors. At the last moment, his life is saved by a nobleman, who claims the boy as his kin and begins his education.

But nothing is as it seems. Takeo discovers that he has rare powers that are useful to those around him. As he grows into manhood, he must decide where his loyalties lie: with his noble master and adoptive father; with the Hidden, a secret, spiritual sect whose beliefs are forbidden; or with the Tribe, the assassins and spies who consider him one of their own.

A story of treachery, political intrigue, and the intensity of first love, set in a world ruled by formal ritual and codes of honor, Across the Nighingale Floor crosses genres, generations, and genders to captivate fans of all ages.

Don't miss the rest of the Tales of the Otori series.

©2002 Lian Hearn (P)2003 HighBridge Company

Critic reviews

"The novel fills a unique niche that is at once period piece and fantasy novel." (Amazon.com)

Fantastic

I will have to respectfully disagree with the other reviewers who did not like the narrators. This is a Japanese tale, so their voices are calm, gentle- it fits well for this tale. They are also far from "robot-like", there are definite inflections, and separate "voices" for different characters. One quality I look for in a good narrator is the ability to get lost in the telling of the story, without being distracted by inconsistencies in character voice inflection or odd noises made by the narrator. I easily got lost in this tale. So much so that I had a hard time putting down my iPod to pause from the book.

The tale itself is delightful, poetic and vivid. It is technically a fantasy, but I found it also romantic and full of political intrigue. A very well done story. I'm looking forward to listening to the second book.

Enjoyable narrators

I was interested in this book but was put off by the reviewers who did not like the narrators. I finally did listen and I have to disagree with the the negative reviews, especially as regards the female narrator. She sounds as if she may actually be a Japanese speaker and her inflections, pacing, and articulation are precise but convey the appropriate emotion, as well. I enjoyed both performances very much.

The book itself was absorbing and enjoyable. I had a slight problem with the ocassional lapses of the author into 20th century colloquialisms which broke the illusion of feudal-era Japan, but I look forward to reading the next books in the series.

Light entertainment

This book was fun to listen to, although it is entertainment rather than literature. I know virtually nothing about Japanese history prior to the 20th century, so I have to wonder at the accuracy of the historical and cultural setting. A glaring example of questionable background information are the various comments about unfair taxes. These comments "read" like 20th century USA Libertarianism. The author can reasonably assume we have a basic grasp of feudalism and abuse of power, but the juxtaposition of taxes and Japanese feudalism leaves me with more questions than answers. Absent further explanation, the issue of taxes adds nothing to the story. I can't help wondering whether Mr Hearn is tossing political plugs into his story, like product placements in a movie.

As other reviewers have commented, we are left hanging at the end of the story. I presume this is to leave us craving the sequel - kind of like watching an episode of ER and wondering what will happen to Julianna Margulies and George Cloony next week, same time, same station. Still, I plan to listen to both "Grass for his Pillow" and "Brilliance of the Moon," because this book was fun despite its flaws, and I have to say that I like Takeo and want to know how the rest of his life turns out.

I enjoyed Aiko Nakasone's reading. Kevin Gray left me confused, at times, as to who was speaking.

Fantastic

I am hooked. The readers are great. Both have very appropriate, soothing voices to listen to. The story kept me spellbound and I look forward to the times I can listen to the story. I will definitely get the other books in the series.

Falls Short

The author failed time and again to develop story lines that might have made this a spectacular book. The story line suggested by the name of the title was carefully developed and created high expectations in the reader, but in the end the "Nightingale Floor" story line spins off and becomes irrelevant to the climax. After the story played out, I could only say, "Huh?" I'm not sure I will go on to read the next books in the series.

Slow Starting, lots of tea drinking

While I didn't dislike this book, I didn't get into this book nearly as much as some of the others I have listened two which had similar ratings. I found that the main characters were not that likable compared to some of the minor characters. Kenji and lady Shirakawa's maid seem like much cooler people than the whiney Takeo. Lord Shigeru is supposed to be this great guy but he doesn't do much.
Years ago I had read Jame Clavell's Shogun, and really enjoyed it, so I though I would like this book. But although this book held my interest, it just only just barely did so. I would not recommend this book to people simply looking for an entertaining listen. For those who are interested in stories about historical japan, this may be a good choice as the narrators did a very good job, and the story might very well appeal to those with such an interest.

Great story!

There weren't many unexpected twists, but the character development more than made up for it. You really find yourself emphathizing with Takeo and others. The narrator does a fantastic job in putting feeling and uniqueness behind each persona. There is some sex and violence in this story. It's done tastefully, but I wouldn't recommend it for younger readers. The only difficulty I had was distinguishing the names of the different characters when hearing them in audio format. Because all the names are foreign to me, it was hard at first to remember which of the similar sounding names belonged to which characters.

Wow! Ninjas & Samurai in a Fantastic World

4.5 stars. I had a ton of fun listening to this book! It?s basis in historic medieval Japan sets a strong foundation for an intricate fantasy world in which warlords battle for dominance. Characters are diverse, bound by honor or willing to do whatever it takes, many use deceit and cunning, others brute force and terror tactics. An ancient mysterious clan of people called the Tribe, masters of subterfuge, uses their meta-human powers to shift the balance of power among the warlords. The charisma, vileness and personalities of the characters shine through and hone the sharpness of their excitement and pleasure, their pain and loss. Gripping, Enthralling and Tragic!

The story is told from the perspective of each of the two main characters, Takeo and Kaede. This makes for a very intimate experience with each of these people, knowing their every thought, sensation and feeling. I loved following Takeo through his self realization of his buried talents and the unfolding of the huge role he would play in the world after growing up in such a sheltered small town. The end of the story left me feeling unfulfilled and wanting more. Fortunately, this is the first book in a trilogy.

I liked the fact that this book used two readers, one for each of the characters whom the story follows (male for the voice of Takeo, female for the voice of Kaede). My only objection would be that I didn?t particularly enjoy the female reader. She reads slowly, to the point where she is annoying and her intonations do not fully capture the passion and suspense of the moments. The male reader is very good.

hard to put down

This book isn't the best I've ever read (or listened to), but it's impossible to put down. It suffers from a common problem of long build-up and quick resolution. The characters are well-developed, but some disappear so abruptly at the end of the book, it's unclear why so much time was devoted to them in the beginning. The narrators are generally good, and it's nice to have two voices. The female narrator is sometimes a bit annoying though - she often sounds as if she's talking to 5-year-olds or ESL students - very s-l-o-w and clear, waaayyy too clear. Still, I couldn't stop listening (literally), and enjoyed every moment of it. I would definitely recommend this.

Enchanting

The plot, characters and the reader combine to make this an enchanting story. I did not want the end to come. I would listen to almost anything by the same author and/or reader. Totally engrossing.

Sharon