Name: The Goddess Chronicle
ISBN: 9781838857585

Natsuo Kirino

On an island in the shape of a teardrop live two sisters. One is admired far and wide, the other lives in her shadow. One is the Oracle, the other is destined for the Underworld. But what will happen when she returns to the island? Based on the Japanese myth of Izanami and Izanagi, The Goddess Chronicle is a fantastical tour de force about ferocious love and bitter revenge. The Myths series brings together some of the world's finest writers, each of whom has retold a myth in a contemporary and memorable way. Authors in the series include Karen Armstrong, Margaret Atwood, A.S. Byatt, David Grossman, Natsuo Kirino, Alexander McCall Smith, Philip Pullman, Ali Smith and Jeanette Winterson.

The Goddess Chronicle

In a place like no other, on an island in the shape of a tear drop, two sisters are born into a family of the oracle. Kamikuu, with creamy skin and almond eyes, is admired far and wide; Namima, small but headstrong, learns to live in her sister's shadow.

Raised in her beautiful sister's shadow on a mystical island, headstrong Namima is ordained to guide the spirits of the dead to the underworld while her sister becomes her family's next oracle, a fate that guides her from her first experience of love to a scalding betrayal.

Nico J

I guarantee the reason I did not enjoy this novel as much as her other works is because an expectation has been formed in her usual mysteries and dark noir. Deeply impressed by the normal "feel," this novel felt jarring not only because of its differences, but what I was searching for in the nooks and crannies of her prose that I felt were lacking. Much more straightforward in voice and prose, it is a new twist on the oft-repeated tales of Japanese mythology and figures that are brought up in Japanese history as often as their modern stories. Perhaps the translation muffles the magic of the stories, but it felt flat in places; however, in others it blossomed well, emotion charged into short, quick phrases. 

Having read every other work by Kirino that has been translated into English, I was hoping this would prove to earn a spot on my bookshelf. I'm torn: I prefer complete collections of an author and this is novel is not "bad," but perhaps my expectations bogged it down while reading because her crime fiction and knowledge of Japanese society, and nuances in relationships, particular women, is what always captured me. This novel marched duly on, repeating the underlying theme that is prevalent in her novels, but did not delve into the WHY.

It is a solid book, but I am hoping her short stories are better, if I can ever get hold of a copy. Additionally, I heard great things about the novel "IN" but alas, not translated into English or any language I would know except Japanese, which I'm not well-versed in to the point at which I can read a full length novel.

The Goddess Chronicle

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