Author(s): Natsuo Kirino

Novel | Translated fiction | Japan | Dystopia, Science Fiction and Fantasy

A fantastical retelling of the Japanese myth of Izanami and Izanagi from the internationally bestselling author of Out.

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.

Review: Kirino's retelling is a taut, disturbing and timeless tale, filled with rage and pathos for the battles that women have to fight every day, battles which have, apparently, existed from the moment of creation -- TAN TWAN ENG * * Guardian * *
Daring and disturbing . . . [Kirino is] prepared to push the human limits of this world . . . Remarkable * * Los Angeles Times * *
Lyrical, with an impelling storyline that demands attention . . . a compelling tale, with foundations in an allegory-rich fable that more than deserves its rejuvenation * * Independent on Sunday * *
A dark and lovely feminist retelling of the Japanese creation myth * * NPR * *
Enthralling . . . In telling Namima's story, the author reworks the ancient tale of Izanami and Izanaki into one of female solidarity and determined strength . . . Natsuo Kirino eloquently reveals that far from being the weaker sex, women shoulder responsibilities that men are not strong enough to bear * * Washington Independent Review of Books * *
An eerie tale of joy and sorrow, light and darkness, love and vengeance . . . Dark and elemental, it's the perfect kind of tale for Kirino's pen . . . a tantalising introduction to an unfamiliar creation myth * * The Idle Woman * *
In her wildly far-reaching tale of relations between gods and men, men and women, life and death, darkness and light, Natsuo Kirino tells a peripatetic, global, and truly satisfying love story of how it is to be human -- STELLA DUFFY
It is one of the most unexpected and playful novels to emerge from Japan in recent years . . . a triumph. In its boldness and originality, it broadens our sense of what modern Japanese fiction can be * * Telegraph on Real World * *
Be prepared for a book utterly unlike anything we are used to in crime fiction * * Independent on Real World * *
Got my heart beating * * Daily Telegraph on Out * *

Author Biography: Natsuo Kirino is a leading figure in Japanese crime fiction. A prolific writer, she is most famous for her 1998 novel Out, which received the Grand Prix for Crime Fiction, Japan's top mystery award, and was a finalist (in translation) for the 2004 Edgar Best Novel Award.

Rebecca Copeland is a professor of Japanese literature at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, where her research and teaching focuses on women, gender and translation studies. She also translated Kirino's 2003 novel Grotesque.