Synopses & Reviews
Set in the perfectly realized world of imperial tenth-century Japan,
The Book of Loss is a gripping novel of sexual jealousy at court.
A renowned storyteller and lady-in-waiting to the empress, the narrator is locked in a bitter rivalry with another woman for the love of a banished nobleman. Forced to observe the complex rules and social hierarchies of court life, she finds herself caught in a trap of her own making. Her machinations reach such a pitch that they threaten to undermine the rule of the emperor himself. She records her plight and her acidulous observations of courtly life in her diary. Her voice is unforgettable--both foreign and utterly modern. Her sense of loss is unbearable, her love is all-consuming, and it will push her to the extremes of rivalry.
Offering the intimate seductions and betrayals of Dangerous Liaisons and Memoirs of a Geisha, The Book of Loss takes the reader into the farthest reaches of desire, where passion rules and jealousy leads to unthinkable acts.
Review
"Jedamus's prose, like a prolonged Haiku, captures the Japanese obsession with subtle natural detail...A finely wrought depiction of turbulence."
-Kirkus Reviews
"Jedamus...skillfully evokes the elegant aesthetic and elaborate pageantry of the Heian period, particularly in the book's fascinating glossary."
-Publishers Weekly
About the Author
Julith Jedamus was born in Boulder, Colorado, and has a background in art history. For the past ten years, she has lived with her family in London. This is her first novel.