The Harsh Cry of the Heron

June 12, 2006
Australian writer Gillian Rubinstein, writing as Hearn, concludes her bestselling Otori fantasy epic (Across the Nightingale Floor
, etc.) with another magical tale of life and death in feudal Japan. Thanks to his enlightened leadership, 15 years of peace and prosperity have passed since Otori Takeo united the Three Countries, but his enemies continue to plot their revenge—including the Tribe, a ninja-like group of assassins, and the duplicitous Lord Zenko, one of Takeo's retainers. Perhaps the greatest threat, however, is the prophecy of a holy woman that Takeo will die only at his son's hand; his only son, an unacknowledged bastard, is being raised by his sworn enemy Kikuta Akio, the head of a Tribe family. With his beautiful (and legitimate) daughter and heir Shigeko by his side, Takeo must navigate these treacherous shoals to save his lands and his legacy from destruction. Hearn seamlessly fuses fact and fantasy to create a sprawling, bewitching realm of magic. There's enough background in this fourth installment that a new reader will have no problem following along, and fans will be heartened to know that this "Last Tale" will be followed in 2007 by a prequel.

July 1, 2006
The Otori saga concludes in this gripping novel, set in the years after the previous book in the series, " Brilliance of the Moon" (2004). Otori Takeo has brought peace to the Three Countries and rules them with a benevolent but firm hand; however, his old enemies still bear him malice and continue to plot against him. Lord Arai joins forces with Takeo's bitter brother-in-law, Zenko, hoping to bring down Takeo, while the emperor of the region has dispatched a deadly warlord to attack Takeo, who knows there is only one person who can kill him: a prophecy has decreed that only his son can end his life. While Takeo and his wife, Kaede, only have daughters, Takeo does have a child that Kaede doesn't know about, 16-year-old Hisao, who has been raised by Lord Arai to hate Takeo. To ensure his daughter Shigeko's reign, Takeo decides to try to make peace with the emperor and even offers Shigeko's hand in marriage to the warlord Saga. The Otori saga gets better with each book, and this is the most absorbing entry in the series, complete with intrigue, magic, romance, and action. A perfect final chapter to the story that began in " Across the Nightingale Floor" (2002). (Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2006, American Library Association.)