Name: The Goddess Chronicle
ISBN: 9780802121097

Natsuo Kirino

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.

The Goddess Chronicle

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.