The Heavenward Path

Read The Heavenward Path Storyline:

    Two years after the events of Little Sister,
Fujiwara no Mitsuko finds herself cursed by ghosts and bad luck. The furious
spirit of a dead king demands she keep a forgotten promise, and he gives her a
series of impossible tasks to complete. If she fails, the spirit will punish her
by handing her over to the Lord of the Dead.
    Desperate, Mitsuko again turns to the mischievous
shape-shifter Goranu for help. By his side, she journeys through a landscape of
Japanese myths and legends made real, and through his lessons in the Way of the
Tengu, she gradually learns to think for herself.
    But it turns out the ghost's demands are the least of
Mitsuko's problems. In return for his help, Goranu makes a demand of his own.
And Mitsuko promises to fulfill his wish, even though to do so may mean Goranu's
death.
    
***
    
    From School Library Journal
    Fifteen-year-old Fujiwara no Mitsuko, the fourth daughter
of a powerful noble family, is about to be betrothed to an 11-year-old prince
whether she likes it or not. In 12th-century Heian Japan, Mitsuko is not free to
follow her heart, either to pursue the study of Buddhism or her growing
relationship with Goranu, a shape-shifting tengu who has come to her aid in time
of need. Even as political forces are directing Mitsuko's future, supernatural
forces affect her present life when an evil ghost demands retribution for an
unkept promise. Although this novel is a sequel to Dalkey's Little Sister
(Harcourt, 1996) and refers back to events in that story, it stands on its own
as an interesting fantasy and an even more interesting glimpse into a long ago
and far away time and place. It is embellished with characters and customs from
Japanese history and folklore, from the Shinto and Buddhist religions, and from
the lifestyles and events of the period. Haiku-like verses introduce each
chapter and are interspersed appropriately in the text as well. Readers nurtured
on folklore and fairy tales from around the world will enjoy this well-told
tale, while romantics will appreciate the affection growing between Mitsuko and
Goranu. The book ends with the possibility of several different futures for
Mitsuko, and with definite room for yet another sequel.
    
***
    
    From Kirkus Reviews
    Pulled in different directions by her heart and by family
duty, a daughter of the noble Fujiwara clan also has an angry ghost to appease
in this busy sequel to Little Sister (1996). Two years after Mitsuko
entered the land of the dead in search of her sister's soul, ominous dreams
remind her of her vow to repair a small shrine in which she once took refuge. At
the same time, her father announces that Mitsuko is to marry an 11-year-old
prince. She once again calls on Goranu, the mischievous, immortal shape-changer
who fell in love with her. Exchanging insults and tart retorts, the two grow
closer as Mitsuko faces a dragon, the shrine's vengeful kami (spirit), and a
host of other supernatural beings. Under Goranu's tutelage, Mitsuko learns how
to use her wits, and by the end has overcome the treacherous kami, helped
engineer the prince's marriage to her sister, and even met Lord Emma-O in the
Court of the Dead. More than most sequels, this story relies on knowledge of its
predecessor. Dalkey supplies a glossary and historical postscript, but readers
unfamiliar with the first book will miss nuances in characters and
relationships, and have only a sketchy picture of the 12th-century locales and
social patterns. Together, however, the two novels combine a courageous
teenager's well-articulated escape from the limits and preconceptions forced on
her by a rigid, highly structured upbringing with a colorful, not altogether
earnest, series of encounters with powerful beings from Buddhist and Shinto
lore.