Tales of the Otori

Tales of the Otori is a series of historical fantasy novels by Gillian Rubinstein, writing under the pen name Lian Hearn, set in a fictional world based on feudal Japan.

In 2020, two new books were published in a sequel series called Children of the Otori, Orphan Warriors and Sibling Assassins.

The books follow a young warrior named Takeo in his struggles to avenge his adoptive father, escape the legacy of his biological father, and pursue the love of his life in the midst of an enormous power struggle involving dozens of clan lords and thousands of warriors.

The Hidden are persecuted throughout the Three Countries for their beliefs, and in the opening chapter Mino is destroyed by the warriors of Iida Sadamu, Lord of the Tohan Clan.

Shigeru's uncles, hoping to rid themselves of their popular and powerful nephew, send him to Iida's capital city of Inuyama, ostensibly to be married to a young princess from a different clan named Kaede.

Takeo strikes a deal with them and escapes them, but he arrives too late: Shigeru is betrayed and killed, Iida ultimately perishes at Kaede's hand after attempting to rape her, and the country is overrun by the army of Arai Daiichi.

These conflicts drive his actions throughout the trilogy, placing him at odds with the Tribe, the Otori Lords, and the armies of Arai Daiichi.

For a more detailed synopsis, see the individual entries for each novel: Sixteen years later, Takeo is ruler of the Three Countries, and has three daughters: Shigeko, and twins Maya and Miki (the latter two have inherited tribal skills from their Kikuta bloodline).

At the crucial moment Hisao freezes; Akio takes the gun, which explodes in his hands, killing himself and fatally wounding Maya.

Takeo, acknowledging that it is his time, holds a knife in Hisao's hand and falls upon it, ensuring the prophecy of his death is fulfilled.

Shigeko enters into a treaty with Saga, whose army defeats Arai Zenko, and she will marry him as part of the bargain to ensure peace.

Otori Shigemori perishes, but Jato, the ancestral sword, finds its way to his son Shigeru, via a member of the Tribe, Muto Kenji.

Under the guise of a simple farmer, he secretly compiles records on the Tribe, assisted by Muto Shizuka, and conducts a covert relationship with Maruyama Naomi.

For this purpose, the opening chapter is set as year 0, which has the side effect of making these numbers equal to Takeo's age at the time.

In some very rare cases, some Kikuta members are ghost masters, and have the ability to communicate with the spirits of the deceased, as well as commanding them.

[2] The Guardian regarded the books as a departure from Hearn's earlier writing as Gillian Rubinstein, and commented positively on their density of allusions and focus on "the intricacies of Japanese society".

[4] The violence in the novels was however critiqued by The New York Times, which described the third book Brilliance of the Moon as "blood-soaked" and "a by-the-numbers combat epic".