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Across the Nightingale Floor: Tales of the Otori Book One Audiobook
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(4.00) - 14,065 listener ratings
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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 Nightingale Floor crosses genres, generations, and genders to captivate fans of all ages.
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"Across the Nightingale Floor has amazing worldbuilding that you can't help but be drawn into. The plot is intriguing, the characters are interesting, and it's different from anything I've ever read. The first one was the best for me, as it started to get a little slow and convoluted as it went on."
— Ithlilian (4 out of 5 stars)
Across the Nightingale Floor Listener Reviews
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" I got a bit more than halfway through it. It felt like it was inexorably plodding to a certain action, and while I suspect that things may have turned out differently than the main characters were planning for, the journey to get there was plodding and telegraphed and not interesting enough. "
— Sarebear, 2/13/2014 -
" The premise was interesting, but I couldn't get over the heavy diagesis. "
— Eveningstar2, 2/11/2014 -
" awsomeness love assasins magic what else do you want "
— Mojocus, 1/27/2014 -
" This and the following books in this series are lyrically beautiful tales and wonderful reading experiences. "
— Dottie, 1/26/2014 -
" It was a fun read--dramatic, romantic, action... "
— Candice, 1/22/2014 -
" A wonderful blend of myth and fiction, very readable and remarkably entralling. I want to find the remainder of the series NOW! "
— Deirdre, 1/9/2014 -
" pretty entertaining story about a feudal Japanese society with every plot element you'd expect from the genre: wars between clans, ninja-esque characters, marriages used to seal alliances, etc. "
— angi, 1/9/2014 -
" Great, now dropped back to read prequel "Heaven's Net is Wide" "
— Mary, 12/27/2013 -
" The first novel in this three-book series is the best of the three. Fast-moving with good character development and some nice details of pre-Meiji Restoration Japan. It's kind of a samuri version of the new Kung Fu movies like Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon or House of Flying Daggers. "
— Mark, 11/30/2013 -
" I really enjoyed reading this book. However all the names were very confusing at first but then you just knew who everyone was. I thought this book was very interesting and fun to read. It was mysterious and I just wanted to know more. "
— Jo, 11/23/2013 -
" I read "Across the Nightingale Floor" the first time many years ago and thought it was.. ok. When I read it again some years later it was suddenly so much better. Suppose you have to have an interest in different cultures to really enjoy the book. "
— Elise, 10/28/2013 -
" Ryan, you need to read these. "
— Marsina, 9/21/2013 -
" Excellent!! Had bought this cheap during Border's close-out sales and didn't know what to expect. Totally enjoyed it!! "
— Dianne, 9/4/2013 -
" like poetry in motion "
— Jb, 7/11/2013 -
" Just One Word Sugoiiiiiiiiiiiiii,, keren banget ceritanya "
— Phia, 4/18/2013 -
" Could not get into it. Didn't like the main hero. The setting didn't feel very authentic. "
— Anoolka, 9/9/2012 -
" Great beginning, but for two such strong and opinionated main characters the whole love at first sight just didn't work for me, and it lost momentum after about quarter of the way, but a relaxing and refreshing story. "
— Mahesh, 9/2/2011 -
" This is one of my favourite series. Beautifully written and you fall for the characters almost instantly. You're definitely cheering for the goodies and booing for the baddies! Love, tragedy, honour, loyalty, family, heirarchy and class/caste systems, fighting, magic - a real page turner. "
— Lucy, 7/10/2011 -
" One of those beautiful books that you can read a million times and still adore every page and every sentence. "
— Cicci, 6/25/2011 -
" I read it lastnite! Couldn't sleep before it finished hehehe... "
— En, 5/24/2011 -
" Really easy read. I wish the ending was different for the sake of the characters but it was very fitting and i will definately read the next book in the series. "
— Laura, 5/18/2011 -
" It was not bad - nicely written, however, it was a bit uneventful and didn't manage to grab me. It did depict the Japanese culture well but somehow the story was lacking to me. "
— Tsveta, 5/6/2011 -
" Three stars only because I have little patience for love stories. Everything else about this story was creative and well told, but the love story got in the way of the rest of it for me. "
— Carina, 4/29/2011 -
" Action-packed from the beginning with characters that could have been lifted out of a (superior) manga series. The story unreeled like anime in the back of my mind. And even though I did NOT LIKE THE ENDING I still can't wait to read the next volume... "
— Renfrew, 4/25/2011 -
" Read it in one day. So, really good, a bit predictable, too short, but it's the first in a series. "
— Stacey, 4/24/2011 -
" I listened to this on audiobook while I did yard work. An easy, interesting listen but nothing to go crazy about. I see there are several others in the series so I may read them if I'm looking for something quick. "
— Diana, 4/22/2011 -
" Different than my usual, curious how the rest of the series can live up to the first. "
— meghan, 4/17/2011 -
" Wishing I had book two and three... "
— Genevieve, 4/5/2011
About Lian Hearn
Lian Hearn, a pseudonym for the writer Gillian Rubinstein, was born in England, currently lives in Australia, and has had a lifelong interest in Japan.