cloudweaver's review against another edition
3.5
I would advise you take notes on the basic plot outline and characters, doing this made it much easier and more enjoyable to follow
afreema3's review against another edition
4.0
Well now that I've read Volume 5 I have no clue when I will get to read Volume 6 because my local library only had volumes 1-5. Anyway, I feel like I enjoyed this volume a little bit more than Volume 4, but I still felt confused at times with characters and the language, but the story itself is starting to catch up with the first volume which is nice to see. I am a tad upset that I do not know when I will get to pick up Ooku again considering I do like the story even with all my complaints.
kamreadsandrecs's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
emeraldreverie's review against another edition
4.0
Wonderful. Soap opera level drama, height of intrigue, beautiful art. Just keeps building up the story and background. Love it!
misssusan's review against another edition
4.0
one of the most interesting things about ooku is that despite first appearances it's not about a matriarchy or a straightforward flip of current gender roles
in fact, in terms of how it deal with gender it makes me think of the world wars
i'm no expert but if i recall correctly both wars saw women moving more visibly into the public sphere out of war time necessity
this didn't mean gender constraints disappeared but that they became more malleable for a time
and that the post-war period saw pushback in a desire to return to 'normal'
and the interesting thing about ooku is that the plague acts as a similar change agent
because for all that women rule publically as a shoguns in the series they are still subject to the same restrictive ideas of womenhood as their predecessors
and i think i get the point of tsunayoshi now because her story is all about that
she's both clever and politically savvy but she's constantly told that her only duty is to produce a heir
not particularly surprising that would make her cruel then. she parallels her mother iemetsu but she lacks the support her mother received in arikoto
after seeing ietsuna and tsunayoshi i'm pretty excited to get back to yoshimune tbh, she's even more a breath of fresh air compared to the shoguns who ruled before her
4 stars
in fact, in terms of how it deal with gender it makes me think of the world wars
i'm no expert but if i recall correctly both wars saw women moving more visibly into the public sphere out of war time necessity
this didn't mean gender constraints disappeared but that they became more malleable for a time
and that the post-war period saw pushback in a desire to return to 'normal'
and the interesting thing about ooku is that the plague acts as a similar change agent
because for all that women rule publically as a shoguns in the series they are still subject to the same restrictive ideas of womenhood as their predecessors
and i think i get the point of tsunayoshi now because her story is all about that
she's both clever and politically savvy but she's constantly told that her only duty is to produce a heir
not particularly surprising that would make her cruel then. she parallels her mother iemetsu but she lacks the support her mother received in arikoto
after seeing ietsuna and tsunayoshi i'm pretty excited to get back to yoshimune tbh, she's even more a breath of fresh air compared to the shoguns who ruled before her
4 stars
notthatlibrarian's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
directorpurry's review against another edition
4.0
If you thought the previous volumes were wild, get ready for a RIDE. I've seen a lot of comments likening this to a soap opera and I dont disagree.
nwhyte's review against another edition
2.0
http://nwhyte.livejournal.com/1996879.html[return][return]There were a couple of stories I liked here - Stephen Baxter's "Last Contact", and Keith Brooke's "The Accord" (which I note were also the two picked by Gardner Dozois for his annual collection) - many which didn't especially grab me, and one awful attempt to channel Kurt Vonnegut by Mike Resnick and David Gerrold.
morningstar1993's review against another edition
4.0
Way better then the last volume. It gave me a soap opera vibe.
Newts, graphic novel
Newts, graphic novel
nonesensed's review against another edition
5.0
The flashbacks to previous female shoguns continue, and we're slowly but surely catch up with "present day". Intrigue and tension abounds!
I reaaaally need to buy this series. It's great, but at this point there are so many characters it would be helpful to check back with previous volumes (that I've returned to the library). Still highly recommend this!
I reaaaally need to buy this series. It's great, but at this point there are so many characters it would be helpful to check back with previous volumes (that I've returned to the library). Still highly recommend this!