Lord of the Darkwood (Tale of Shikanoko Series #3)

by Lian Hearn

Overview

Shikanoko, at what should be a warrior’s hour of greatest triumph, turns his back on those around him, in mourning for a secret love . . .

The Spider Tribe, spurned by their guardian, explore the extent of their powers and ruthless ambitions . . .

Hina, who alone knows the whereabouts of the true emperor, has to forge a new identity of her own. No one must ever know that she is Kiyoyori’s daughter . . .

As the traditional powers navigate weakness and disarray, old spirits and new figures enter the epic battle for the Lotus Throne . . .

In Lord of the Darkwood, the major players of The Tale of Shikanoko are forced to deal with the consequences—expected and unexpected alike—of their past reckless actions. Each of them strives to achieve their destiny, but so far the paths they have followed seem to have done nothing but provoke Heaven’s displeasure.
Profound betrayal, powerful magic, hidden identities, startling violence—these have made the weave of The Tale of Shikanoko so engrossing as it has played out across the sumptuously imagined, beautifully described world of Lian Hearn’s medieval Japan. But the story is now twisting towards its final resolution. Can peace ever come to the Eight Islands?

The Tale of Shikanoko, Book One: Emperor of the Eight Islands (April 2016)
The Tale of Shikanoko, Book Two: Autumn Princess, Dragon Child (June 2016)
The Tale of Shikanoko, Book Three: Lord of the Darkwood (August 2016)
The Tale of Shikanoko, Book Four: The Tengu's Game of Go (September 2016)

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780374536336
Publisher:	Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Publication date:	08/09/2016
Series:	Tale of Shikanoko Series , #3
Pages:	240
Sales rank:	486,175
Product dimensions:	5.00(w) x 7.40(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Lian Hearn is the pseudonym of a writer—born in England, educated at Oxford, currently living in Australia—who has a lifelong interest in Japan, has lived there, and studies Japanese. She is the author of the bestselling series Tales of the Otori.

Editorial Reviews

"Brutally thrilling historical fantasy"- Herald Sun

From the Publisher

2016-05-17
The third installment of Hearn's four-part series about mythical medieval Japan offers a relatively less violent hiatus while characters recover from—or succumb to—the emotional, spiritual, and political upheavals they survived in the previous episodes (Dragon Child, 2016, etc.) before they confront their destinies in the final volume.Yoshi, the hidden emperor, is now a teenager ensconced with a band of acrobats and in love with Kai, who is carrying his child. He both recognizes and fears his destined role as emperor. Yoshi's supporter and the series' hero, Shika, who went from orphaned noble's son to outlaw to avenging warrior with supernatural powers in the previous volumes, is now hiding in the Darkwood mourning the death of his great love, the Autumn Princess, and unable to remove the magical deer mask created for him by a sorcerer. Without Shika's guidance, the superhuman brothers of the Spider Tribe, born to the sorceress Lady Tora, have grown into semihuman adults whose lack of feelings makes them frighteningly amoral and powerful. The Miboshi clan's Lord Aritomo, who supports the false emperor Daigen, mourns his closest friend Takaakira, who died after announcing that Yoshi should be emperor. Takaakira had loved and protected Hina, daughter of Lord Aritomo's enemy, the Kuromori lord. Having escaped death herself, Hina's journey becomes the heart of this novel as she interacts with most of the novel's other characters either directly or indirectly. Still a child, Hina comes under the protection of Lady Fuji, who runs the pleasure boats and took in Yoshi and Kai in the previous novel. Lady Fuji hides Hina in a temple for women where the Abbess turns out to be Shika's mother. Though Hina, who had a childhood crush on Shika, does not meet him in this novel, there are hints that their relationship may become pivotal. While this volume lacks the action sequences and high drama of its predecessors, Hearn continues to explore issues of fate, love, moral failure, and moral redemption through characters both archetypal and heartbreakingly believable.

Kirkus Reviews