RIVER OF STARS

In this return to the world created in UNDER HEAVEN, romance, political intrigue, military conflict, and barbarians at the border are at work in twelfth-century China. Narrator Simon Vance weaves the story of a young man who becomes a strong military leader and a young woman who challenges the norms of society by being educated and self-assured. Vance's skill with long passages of description and explication is put to good use here. His tone is nostalgic and introspective as the characters spend much of their time musing about the empire portrayed in UNDER HEAVEN, as well as events 400 years earlier. J.E.M. © AudioFile 2013, Portland, Maine [Published: OCTOBER 2013]