Tales of the Otori

[Hosakawa Tito]

I just picked up two books, of a three part trilogy, authored by Lian Hearn. I haven't started on them yet, still reading another book. The setting is in Medieval Japan. First title, "Across the Nightingale Floor"; Second title, "Grass For His Pillow"; Third title, "Brilliance of the Moon". Has anyone here read them yet?

[Templar Knight]

I have read ''Across the Nightingale Floor'' - its a good read. The black-walled fortress at Inuyama.

[frogbeastegg]

Yes, I've read all three shortly after their respective UK releases.

Across the Nightingale Floor grabbed me; I read it in one sitting and re-read it several times that year. I haven't gone back to it in the two years since then.

Grass for his Pillow disappointed me; I read it over two days and never touched it again.

Brilliance of the Moon took me an entire week to read and I had to drag myself along; I doubt I shall touch it again.

I'm not sure if it is me, or if the books really do decline sharply. Ever since I started to get decent at writing fiction myself I have grown very critical; right now it is impossible for me to read any work of fiction and not find myself saying "I wouldn't have done that ...". I no longer enjoy reading as much as I did a year ago.

With that in mind: After a good start the series went banal and overly simple, relying on standard, boring, overdone cliches. Cliches can be great if handled either well or differently; these were not. I could predict the plot a mile off, and the characters ceased to grow. I also ceased to have any interest in either plot or characters midway through book 2. The writing itself is ok, but I felt I was reading a children's book instead of a book that supposedly aims at all age groups.

[Hosakawa Tito]

Thanks for the critiques. I'm almost ready to start with this trilogy, though it sounds like the author should have quit after the first book. I usually don't reread books, so if I don't feel these deserve to be part of my personal library I will just donate them to the local library in town.