Map Of The Otori

"heaven's net is wide" by lian hearn

For the uninitiated, Ms. Hearn’s Tales of the Otori can be best described as ‘historical fantasy’ and takes place in the Three Countries , a medieval setting that borrows from both Japanese history and mythology. Of the former, a feudal society is in place with each fiefdom governed by a certain clan, which in itself is divided into certain castes like the warrior class, farmers, peasants, and merchants, while the women are a victim of male dominance and the religions are influenced by Buddhism & early Christianity. For fantasy lovers, the series features the Tribe , a secret organization of warriors/assassins/spies who are based on ninjutsu (ninja) and possess superhuman abilities such as invisibility, projecting a phantom image, the Kikuta sleep, and super hearing. As far as the story, the plots usually feature themes of tragic romances, honor, betrayal, vengeance, deception, fate, inheritances, religion and politics that can be found in different forms of oriental storytelling. Finally, regarding the writing, Ms. Hearn’s prose is eloquent and beautiful; the worldbuilding is vivid, meticulously researched and realistic; and the storytelling is both intimate & epic. ”. In between, readers will get to intimately know the heir to the Otori clan—watching Shigeru grow into a man, experiencing his loves & joys, suffering his defeats & tragedies, learning from his mistakes, meeting his friends, alliances & enemies, and watching his plan for vengeance unfold. Of the larger story, “ Heaven’s Net Is Wide ” and getting to experience the expanded version of his story—getting trained by Matsuda Shingen , falling in love with Lady Maruyama , the tragic Battle of Yaegahara , the fate of his concubine Akane , befriending Muto Kenji , putting together the list of Tribe members, the death of his younger brother Takeshi , et cetera—was especially gratifying.