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    Grass for His Pillow: Tales of the Otori Book Two
    Grass for His Pillow: Tales of the Otori Book Two
    Grass for His Pillow: Tales of the Otori Book Two
    Audiobook9 hours

    Grass for His Pillow: Tales of the Otori Book Two

    Written by Lian Hearn

    Narrated by Kevin Gray and Aiko Nakasone

    4/5

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    About this audiobook

    A New York Times Notable Book of the YearBook II of the internationally best-selling Tales of the Otori trilogy, a sweeping saga set in a mythical, medieval Japan.In Book I of the Otori trilogy, Across the Nightingale Floor, Lian Hearn created a wholly original, fully-realized fantasy world where great powers clashed and young love dawned against a dazzling and mystical landscape. Nightingale was named a New York Times Notable Book of the Year, one of Book magazine's best novels of the year, and one of School Library Journal's Best Adult Books for High School Readers.In this second tale, we return to the story of Takeo-the young orphan taken up by the Otori Lord and now a closely held member of the Tribe-and his beloved Shirakawa Kaede, heir to the Maruyama, who must find a way to unify the domain she has inherited. In a complex social hierarchy, amid dissembling clans and fractured alliances, there is no place for passionate love. Yet Takeo and Kaede, drawing on their unusual talents and hidden strengths, find ways both to nurture their intense personal bond and to honor the best interests of their people.Like its predecessor, Grass for His Pillow is a transcendent work of storytelling-epic in scope, shimmering with imagination, and graced in equal measure with rapturous writing and exhilarating action.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHighbridge Company
    Release dateAug 11, 2003
    ISBN9781598873139
    Grass for His Pillow: Tales of the Otori Book Two
    Author

    Lian Hearn

    Lian Hearn studied modern languages at Oxford University and worked as a film critic and arts editor in London before settling in Australia. A lifelong interest in Japan led to the study of the Japanese language, many trips to Japan, and culminated in the Tales of the Otori series.

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    Reviews for Grass for His Pillow

    4/5

    42 ratings25 reviews

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    • 5/5
      The sequel to Across the Nightingale Floor, and just as great. This series is compulsive reading for me -- I just can't put these books down!
    • 4/5
      It's only three months since I read the first part of this series, but I still ha a bit of a tricky time getting back in the saddle with this one. The plot of “Across the nightingale floor” was straight enough, but it clearly involved a lot of characters. Even with the lists of family lines and connections in the beginning of this book, it took me a while to get the hang of it again.This, the second volume of the Otori saga, is more clearly a book in a series than the first. Where “Across the nightingale floor” was a concluded story – although pointing forward – this feels much more like a book of transport, building up for the third part. And since it’s not as well constructed, it also feels just a little flatter. *Spoiler alert here*I was somewhat disappointed in the part about Takeo’s life among the Tribe, where it felt like Hearn wasn’t really comfortable in handling the setup she built at the end of book one. Takeo’s storyline doesn’t really gain it’s momentum back until he decides to go with his Otori heritage. And even then it’s clearly overshadowed by Kaede’s much more interesting dilemmas, trying to stay on top of her clan as a woman and balancing the fine line of pleasing the dangerous Fujiwara. The best scene in the whole book for me is the reception held by Kaede and her sisters, where they scare one of Arai’s knights shitless with their cold indifference. All in all, I would have preferred more Kaede chapters, I think. The love story between Takeo and Kaede also loses it’s balance a little bit, and sometimes falls from high-strung sentimental into the puddle of mushy mush.*End spoilers*Still, there’s a lot to like here. Fast, page-turning action and a solid world-building, juggling many interesting characters, a non-squeamish way of handling cruelty, a proto-feminist viewpoint and a nice balance of fantasy and history. I have high hopes the orchestration will pick up again in the next part.
    • 4/5
      Second in the series, the characters learn and grow, looking forward to the last in the series.
    • 4/5
      Engrossing continuation of the Otori story. A scary but fascinating alternate universe peopled with strong characters. Compelling.
    • 4/5
      Book Two of Tales of the Otori. Takeo and Kaede, their friends and allies, and their more interesting and important enemies and rivals have lots more trouble and suffer through far more interesting times than they can feel that they deserve. Told in alternating sections from Takeo's viewpoint and from Kaede's, they are seemingly irrevocably separated from each other. Kaede returns home to her father's house, to find that her mother is dead and her father has been a terrible manager and that she must wrest the management of the estate from him or she and her younger sisters will starve. Takeo is snatched away from the uncle he has come to love and respect, carried off by the Tribe which he has come to regard as being as morally reprehensible as his father ever did. Survival is a serious challenge for each of them; being reunited is barely even a hope.

      Still very good; I'm waiting for the third volume.
    • 4/5
      While I loved the first of the series, this one was a bit slower. As it is with most trilogies I guess, the second book develops the characters and story... this held true. It was enjoyable, but not the same. I look forward to the next book.
    • 4/5
      Fabulous continuation of the series. Less gripping than the first book, but...
    • 4/5
      I am usually reluctant to read the second book in a series because it often doesn't read as well as the first. Thankfully, this is not the case with this series of books. "Grass for his pillow" is just as beautifully written as "Across the nightingale floor" as it continues to follow the lives of Takeo and his beloved Kaede. Can't wait to see how it's all going to end, I am expecting a stunning finish so I hope I'm not disappointed.
    • 4/5
      The sequel to Across the Nightingale Floor, set in an alternate medieval Japan, picks up a few months following that book. Takeo has reluctantly left the love of his life, Kaede, and gone with The Tribe, his father's people, as part of a deal he made with them to allow him to avenge Otori Shigeru who had rescued him from certain death in the first book and become his adopted father. The Tribe claimed him due to his father having been a Tribe assassin who'd run away from that life.In this book, Takeo, whose special talents and heightened senses surpass that of most of the Tribe's people, is being trained as an assassin, but the elders don't trust him, nor does he trust them. He believes his destiny lies elsewhere, but he's obligated by the agreement he'd made, to stay, until his heightened hearing reveals to him that he'll be killed on an upcoming mission. He escapes, instead, and sets out on a journey to claim Shigeru's domain from Shigeru's deceitful uncles and unite the many lands of the island realm.Meanwhile, Kaede has returned to her home to find her mother dead, her father a step short of madness, and the estate in disarray. Though it goes against the laws of society for a woman to act like a man, she sets out to unite her family domain with that of her recently deceased kinswoman's, and the book follows these parallel story threads until Kaede and Takeo meet again, setting up the action for the final book of the trilogy.This is a fully realized realm, with well-drawn characters, young people who make mistakes yet believe in their cause. The writing is plain and crisp and the book rarely lags. I've just started reading the next one and can't wait to read the fate of Takeo and Kaede.
    • 4/5
      See Across the Nightingale Floor.
    • 4/5
      This book is like the Matrix II - filler. details that you need to know, but aren't really exciting enough to make a full book about. It goes into the politics of the tribe somewhat and you learn more about Takeos background and why Shigeru chose him as a son. The story also follows Kaede as she begins to claim her inheiritance and learn how to rule in a men's world.
    • 2/5
      More of the same in the Otori series. Nice period pieces in feudal Japan, nice very light fantasy, but very little new or provocative.
    • 4/5
      As good, if not better, than the first. Hearn continues with her story of love, war, duty, and acceptance. I can't wait to read the next...
    • 3/5
      Follow-on to Across the Nightingale Floor (book 1 of "Tales of the Otori". Picture Harry Potter in feudal Japan... Well, a little more sophisticated than that, but similar magical realism.
    • 4/5
      Second book in the Otori series (third including Prequel) tells of Takeo and Kaede after the death of Shigeru and the death of Iida. The tale is intriguing and well written so the reader is constantly wanting to continue and learn more.
    • 3/5
      I really enjoyed the first two books in this trilogy, set in Japan, which tell the story of two lovers, each with great power and heir to a large dominion, who are swept along by forces they cannot always control. These books contain mystery, intrigue, love, war, and tradition. The author’s style of writing makes you taste, smell, and feel Japan.
    • 5/5
      This book picks up the thread pretty much immediately after the end of the first book in the series, Across the Nightingale Floor. This one has more of a dual thread running compared to the first one, however; in that one, Kaede and Takeo may have started off separately, but everything basically entwined together in one plot. Here, each of them has their own set of trials and their own story, and the book feels the richer for it.Again, it's set in the Three Countries, but now, Kaede is trying to hold together her lands, and Takeo is learning more about his inheritance and working out how best to live his life. The plotting is still complex and fairly surprising, and the writing is still sharp. The only thing to dislike about the book is that it really feels like it's meant to be a companion to the one after it; lots is left up in the air, to a greater degree than at the end of book 1. But it's still quite good, and I'm enjoying the series thus far.
    • 5/5
      A great middle book in the "official trilogy". Middle books so often fall down when compared to the other books, and while I didn't adore this book as much as the second one, I can't comment on comparison with the third book until I've read it. I did indeed love the this book, the development of Kaede and Takeo's relationship in this book was well crafted and their reactions felt real and believable. Hearn's world is brilliantly crafted, and his characterizations continue to be fantastic and realistic.
    • 5/5
      2nd in series, the continuing tale of the youthful lovers kept apart by politics and honor in Lian Hearn's alternative feudal Japan. The narration is compelling and kept me listening despite how depressed and without expectation of satisfying futures both characters (and landscape) seemed to be in the first part of the story. The rich descriptions of place, well-rounded secondary characters, the determination of Kaede and the evolving magical skills and resolving identity issues of Takeo were counters to the initial mood and in the end I found it a very satisfying listen and I can't wait to start #3.
    • 5/5
      As this was the middle book of the terrific Otori series, I expected little more than tidying up loose ends from the previous book and setting the scene for the next. Luckily I was very wrong. Great pace, plot and characterisation as before. The writing by Lian hearn is of superb quality and flows beautifully. These stories are a pleasure to read; swift and exciting!
    • 4/5
      Book 2 of tales of the Otori was an almost seamless continuation of the original story. The supernatural nature of the main character made for a great (if not predictable) plot device.
    • 5/5
      I almost never re-read books, but I read this one twice and loved it equally both times. The second installment of the Tales of the Otori Trilogy, Grass for His Pillow alternates between two linked stories: Lord Otori Takeo's quest to avenge the death of his adopted father and Lady Shirakawa Kaede's struggle to reclaim her domain in spite of traditions that deny women power. In the first book, the characters felt like puppets manipulated by the demands of the plot, but in this one, they are three-dimensional human beings. Takeo is intriguingly torn between his pacifist upbringing, his longing for vengeance and the requirements of the tribe of ruthless assassins who have adopted him. Kaede, meanwhile, believably transforms from a political pawn to a powerful woman without becoming a cliched "girl power" character, making her one of my all-time favorite female characters. Both of these characters, along with an interesting supporting cast, struggle through a suspense-filled plot that kept me turning pages long after midnight. At times, reading this book was like watching a good horror movie: being able to guess exactly what was coming kept me glued to my seat, unable to tear my eyes away. Perhaps some people would say the book is predictable, but for me, this only intensified the suspense. This is an excellent choice for readers seeking a good escape on a Sunday afternoon -- just beware that you'll have to dash to the bookstore to buy the third installment as soon as you've finished this one.
    • 4/5
      Is it often, or even always, true that the second book is more satisfying than the first, in a series? We know the characters (unless you are reading George R.R. Martin), we know the setting, and we've got some of the plot under our reading belt. This second book definitely was satisfying. I became more attached to the main characters and their story, I learned more fascinating details about their world. I don't know whether to describe this book as set in medieval Japan, or not as it is fiction. But the author definitely has done her homework and the books are full of interesting, and picturesque, details making me feel as if I were there hearing the noises, seeing the scenes. But even though the environment is completely different than the one where I live, nevertheless, I was very identified with the main characters and am completely cheering for them.
    • 3/5
      This is the second book in the Tales of the Otori series by Lian Hearn. This book picks up where the first left off. Takeo leaves Kaede for training under the mysterious Tribe; whose supernatural abilities Takeo has inherited from his father. As his training concludes, and he is asked to take out certain missions, he must ask himself if his loyalties will lie with the Tribe or with the Otori? Kaede meanwhile is left on her own to return home and see what state her family is in. Kaede struggles to consolidate her power and claim the inheritance she was left in a world that is run by men.This was a fitting second book for this series. It moved along at the steady, descriptive pace of the second book. Although for some reason I found myself getting bored while reading this book. The lush descriptions, while detailed, didn't bring the book to life in the way I hoped they would. I had a little trouble understanding some of the stupid decisions made by Kaede and Takeo along the way. Despite these misgivings, if you liked the first book you must read the second book. It is very much in the same style of the first book and continues the story of Kaede and Takeo. This book definitely builds to a climax preparing you for the war and conflict of the third novel.
    • 4/5
      At the end of Across the Nightingale Floor, Takeo was kidnapped by members of the Tribe, a clan of murderers who are intent on making him one of theirs. Having inherited an uncommon number of exceptional gifts from his father, he is of great value to them. Here we find Takeo at first fighting them off and attempting to flee, without success. They eventually wear him down and he gives his word that he will stay with the Tribe, even as his heart yearns for Kaede. But Takeo is soon wrapped up in the harsh and difficult training that is required of him and even takes on a lover. Meanwhile, Kaede makes her way back to her family's estate to find that it has fallen in a state of disrepair and poverty. Her father, who has fallen prey to mental illness since Kaede's mother's death, is unable to fulfill his duties and after many attempts and cajoling, she eventually convinces him to teach her skills which are only known to men so that she can take over the running of the estate and secure an army to realize great plans ahead.Takeo and Kaede's individual struggles were interesting to observe, as is the evolution of both characters from inexperienced youths to committed and driven adults. But I can't say I quite as taken with this book as I was with the first one. That being said, the groundwork is set up for what promises to be a thrilling ride in the third book.