After the early death of her philandering husband, Etsuko moves into her father-in-law's house, where she numbly submits to the old man's advances. But soon she finds herself in love with the young servant Saburo. Tormented by his indifference, yet invigorated by her desire, she makes her move, with catastrophic consequences.

A story of a frustrated, confined woman who becomes lost in a psychological maze of her own creation - a labyrinth of jealousy, loneliness and longing. Etsuko is a trapped woman who lays traps for others... After the early death of her philandering husband, Etsuko moves into her father-in-law's house, where she numbly submits to the old man's advances. Meanwhile she develops feelings for the handsome eighteen-year-old servant Saburo. Tormented by his indifference, yet invigorated by her desire, she makes one last, catastrophic bid for his attention. 'A sensuous, absorbing study of overriding obsession' Kirkus 'One of the outstanding writers of the world' New York Times

Details

ISBN13: 9780099530275
Format: Paperback / softback
Number of Pages: 208
Edition:
Publication Date: 01 Feb 2010
Publisher: Vintage Publishing
Publication City, Country: London, United Kingdom
Dimensions (cm): 19.7(H)x12.8(L)x1.2(W)152
Weight (gm): 152

Author Biography

Yukio Mishima was born into a samurai family and imbued with the code of complete control over mind and body, and loyalty to the Emperor - the same code that produced the austerity and self-sacrifice of Zen. He wrote countless stories and thirty-three plays, in some of which he performed. Several films have been made from his novels, including The Sound of Waves, Enjo which was based on The Temple of the Golden Pavilion and The Sailor Who Fell From Grace with the Sea. Among his other works are the novels Confessions of a Mask and Thirst for Love and the short story collections Death in Midsummer and Acts of Worship. The Sea of Fertility tetralogy, however, is his masterpiece. After Mishima conceived the idea of The Sea of Fertility in 1964, he frequently said he would die when it was completed. On 25 November 1970, the day he completed The Decay of the Angel, the last novel of the cycle, Mishima committed seppuku (ritual suicide) at the age of forty-five.

Reviews

Japan's foremost man of letters * Spectator *
Thirst for Love contains all of the elements that make Mishima a compelling, disturbing writer * Columbus Dispatch *