Fuyumi Ono (小野 不由美, Ono Fuyumi) is a Japanese novelist who is best known for writing the Twelve Kingdoms (十二国記, Juuni Kokuki) series, on which a popular anime is based. Her name after marriage is Fuyumi Uchida (内田不由美, Uchida Fuyumi), but she writes under her maiden name.
Ono was born in Nakatsu, Ōita, Kyūshū in 1960. She graduated from Ōtani University in Kyōto with a degree in Buddhist Studies, and in 1988 was employed by the publisher Kōdansha. Her debut story is titled Sleepless on Birthday Eve.
Ono is married to Naoyuki Uchida (内田直行, Uchida Naoyuki), a mystery novelist who writes under the pseudonym Yukito Ayatsuji (綾辻行人 , Ayatsuji Yukito).
Before she started work on Twelve Kingdoms, Fuyumi Ono wrote The Demonic Child (魔性の子), a horror novel about a boy from another world. She later worked certain events from this novel into the Twelve Kingdoms series. Short stories set in the various kingdoms include: Kasho, Toei, Shokan, Kizan and Jogetsu. In February, 2008, the first new Twelve Kingdoms short story, Hisho no Tori (丕緒の鳥) was published in Shinchosha's Yomyom magazine.
According to an interview at the Anime News Network, she is "currently rewriting a girls' horror series (she) wrote long ago."
"I've got to stand on my own two feet before I can fancy myself a shoulder to lean on." "That's not it. Helping others is how you find your footing in the first place." "You think so?" "Undoubtedly."
If you're a fan of the anime (aka. the greatest Japanese tv series ever to exist ... personal opinion) then you've probably wondered what would've happened if the show wasn't cancelled or, more likely, is it worth investing your time reading the books.
The sixth book is, unfortunately, the weakest in the series, but still worth checking out just so you can know what happens with Youko and Taiki after the events in the anime (and meet the King and Kirin of Han!-they're awesome). You'll need to get through some repetitive dialogues and identical flashbacks for a couple of hundred pages, but the last 30% is where the story really picks up and the main action happens.
Is it worth it? Short answer - probably yes (as long as you're a fan of the show).
I am extremely disappointed by this book. I love the Twelve Kingdoms series and was looking forward to the story of the kingdom of Tai since book one. This was not what I expected and I highly doubt it had anything to do with the translation. It was way too repetitive and nothing happened...nothing! I had to wait till chapter 36 for some "action" to start taking place and even then, nothing happened.
Going in, I thought I would get a fun story to explain what happened to Taiki and the daring rescue to get him back.
Did I get that?
No. No I did not.
This book can be summed up in two words. Talking. Flashbacks.
That is right. More than 2/3 of this story is flashbacks. And not even good flashbacks but long, boring, drawn out ones that really should not be there. Yes, I do want to know what happened to Tai. No Risai, I do not want to know all of the politics involved after Taiki's disappearance.
It was quite painful to sloosh through. I think the book would have worked better if those scenes had happened in the here and now instead of stuff that explained the past.
The scenes with Youko were good and the ending scenes were great, just for the fact that something was happening.
Yeah, overall, not very happy with this one. :/ Next one is promising though! Since I accidentally started reading it, haha.
Like some of the other reviewers here, the first half...actually more like 60-70% of the book seems like an endless loop of speculation as to what happened in Tai but AFTER you get through that (starting in Part 5), the book really picks up speed and becomes just as awesome as the previous iterations*. I was unsure if I wanted to finish the book after reading the negative reviews here but I pushed through it and was pleasantly surprised. You get wormholes, magic stuff, backstabbing, a missing person's mystery, and a sprinkle of violence! I definitely dont think this book is for everyone, but if you have patience I'd give it a try for yourself.
*note: In the Yoko series, I've only read volume 1, 4, and now 6
Like most of the Ono's work I truly enjoyed reading this lovely piece. I'm Lookig forward for the new book and I hope it will be a final chapter of Taiki's story. Still no word of it.
Tasogare no Kishi, Akatsuki no Sora = The Shore at Twilight, the Sky at Daybreak. Google Translate translation of the book summary, updated slightly: Half a year after Gyousou ascended the throne, the kingdom began to rebuild with great force. However, the king who went to suppress the rebellion did not return, and Taiki, who was shocked by the bad news, suddenly disappeared. Worried about the country heading into ruin after losing its king and kirin, the General risks her life to visit the Kei Kingdom and ask for aid. Kirin from all over the world gather in Yoko Keio's wish to save the kingdom. What will happen to Taiki?
I just finished re-reading Eugene Woodbury's translation of this book. I started it one night, and it was so good that I stayed up all night last night to finish it. I highly recommend this book to any fans of The Twelve Kingdoms series.
Up next: Hakugin no Oka, Kuro no Tsuki (Hills of Silver Ruins, a Pitch Black Moon).
A very slow start and a few misses. The first half of the book feels very slow, focusing on showing us two things: a present that doesn't move because characters are waiting to learn what happened, and a past that isn't that exciting because the present already shows us how we got here. It's similar to the two-plot dynamic in book 3, but in that book both stories were very compelling, while in this one both feel like context. The story truly starts after the middle of the book.
That said, the story is as good as always and the characters feel alive and relatable. I would have liked to see more of Taiki's life and having him as protagonist for a few chapters during the climax, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. I cannot wait to get to book nine to read the end of this. But, for now, on to book seven.