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The Mills of the Gods
A HARROWING SUPERNATURAL ADVENTURE, FULL OF COLOR, DRAMA, AND ROMANCE, AS ONLY TIM POWERS CAN DELIVER
PARIS, 1925
HARRY NOLAN is an expatriate American, making a meager living as an illustrator for a low-paying magazine, but his life is upended when he is assigned to illustrate an anonymous article about the death of a god—because a centuries-old French brotherhood, the Sauteurs, are determined to suppress the story the article tells. The Sauteurs have burned the magazine’s office and killed the editor, and Nolan has the only surviving copy of the article. The author turns out to be a local writer named ERNEST HEMINGWAY, who—at first—tries to distance himself from the article and its lethal consequences.
VIVI CHASTAIN is a rootless 19-year-old orphan who sustains herself by betting on horse races—aided by the spirit of the man she was in a previous life. But now that old identity is crowding her consciousness, threatening to push her own precarious identity into oblivion. It was her alcoholic occasional “stepfather” who told Hemingway the story about killing a god, and the Sauteurs are now aware of the story—and of her.
The SAUTEURS maintain their identities past death through controlled reincarnation—when members die and are reborn, the brotherhood finds their newborn incarnations, kidnaps them, and raises them in special nurseries, where they can fully resume their previous lives. Vivi escaped from one of these nurseries when she was six years old, and so her previous identity has not yet consummated his possession of her. The Sauteurs want that consummation to happen—soon.
GERTRUDE STEIN is the hub of literary and artistic Paris, and knows many of the city’s supernatural secrets. She has written a book that appears to be nonsense but which can be used to deflect the kind of psychic assault that threatens Vivi, and she becomes a Merlin-like mentor to Vivi and Nolan—
—who find themselves reluctantly thrown together as hunted fugitives. Their struggles to evade the murderous Sauteurs and free Vivi from her increasingly intrusive previous self lead the pair to a mysterious hermit who lives in the towers of Notre Dame cathedral, and the haunted catacombs under Paris, and a confrontation with the Roman goddess Cybele in an other-worldly temple on an island in the Seine. In pursuit of a secret painting by PABLO PICASSO, they learn that the god whose death the Hemingway manuscript describes is Moloch, the child-devouring Phoenician god mentioned in the Bible—and that the Sauteurs make sacrifices to Moloch to maintain their reincarnations.
From the narrow streets and rooftops of post-war Paris to, finally, a supernatural battle between gods in a remote village in Spain, Nolan and Vivi contend with forces natural and supernatural, enemies living and dead, and ultimately find themselves pitted against the god Moloch himself—at peril of their eternal souls.
The Mills of the Gods is a harrowing supernatural adventure, full of color, drama, and romance, as only Tim Powers could tell it.
At the publisher's request, this title is sold without DRM (Digital Rights Management).
PARIS, 1925
HARRY NOLAN is an expatriate American, making a meager living as an illustrator for a low-paying magazine, but his life is upended when he is assigned to illustrate an anonymous article about the death of a god—because a centuries-old French brotherhood, the Sauteurs, are determined to suppress the story the article tells. The Sauteurs have burned the magazine’s office and killed the editor, and Nolan has the only surviving copy of the article. The author turns out to be a local writer named ERNEST HEMINGWAY, who—at first—tries to distance himself from the article and its lethal consequences.
VIVI CHASTAIN is a rootless 19-year-old orphan who sustains herself by betting on horse races—aided by the spirit of the man she was in a previous life. But now that old identity is crowding her consciousness, threatening to push her own precarious identity into oblivion. It was her alcoholic occasional “stepfather” who told Hemingway the story about killing a god, and the Sauteurs are now aware of the story—and of her.
The SAUTEURS maintain their identities past death through controlled reincarnation—when members die and are reborn, the brotherhood finds their newborn incarnations, kidnaps them, and raises them in special nurseries, where they can fully resume their previous lives. Vivi escaped from one of these nurseries when she was six years old, and so her previous identity has not yet consummated his possession of her. The Sauteurs want that consummation to happen—soon.
GERTRUDE STEIN is the hub of literary and artistic Paris, and knows many of the city’s supernatural secrets. She has written a book that appears to be nonsense but which can be used to deflect the kind of psychic assault that threatens Vivi, and she becomes a Merlin-like mentor to Vivi and Nolan—
—who find themselves reluctantly thrown together as hunted fugitives. Their struggles to evade the murderous Sauteurs and free Vivi from her increasingly intrusive previous self lead the pair to a mysterious hermit who lives in the towers of Notre Dame cathedral, and the haunted catacombs under Paris, and a confrontation with the Roman goddess Cybele in an other-worldly temple on an island in the Seine. In pursuit of a secret painting by PABLO PICASSO, they learn that the god whose death the Hemingway manuscript describes is Moloch, the child-devouring Phoenician god mentioned in the Bible—and that the Sauteurs make sacrifices to Moloch to maintain their reincarnations.
From the narrow streets and rooftops of post-war Paris to, finally, a supernatural battle between gods in a remote village in Spain, Nolan and Vivi contend with forces natural and supernatural, enemies living and dead, and ultimately find themselves pitted against the god Moloch himself—at peril of their eternal souls.
The Mills of the Gods is a harrowing supernatural adventure, full of color, drama, and romance, as only Tim Powers could tell it.
At the publisher's request, this title is sold without DRM (Digital Rights Management).
304 pages, Hardcover
Published December 2, 2025
36 people are currently reading
132 people want to read
About the author
Tim Powers
138 books1,764 followersTimothy Thomas Powers is an American science fiction and fantasy author. Powers has won the World Fantasy Award twice for his critically acclaimed novels Last Call and Declare.
Most of Powers's novels are "secret histories": he uses actual, documented historical events featuring famous people, but shows another view of them in which occult or supernatural factors heavily influence the motivations and actions of the characters.
Powers was born in Buffalo, New York, and grew up in California, where his Roman Catholic family moved in 1959.
He studied English Literature at Cal State Fullerton, where he first met James Blaylock and K.W. Jeter, both of whom remained close friends and occasional collaborators; the trio have half-seriously referred to themselves as "steampunks" in contrast to the prevailing cyberpunk genre of the 1980s. Powers and Blaylock invented the poet William Ashbless while they were at Cal State Fullerton.
Another friend Powers first met during this period was noted science fiction writer Philip K. Dick; the character named "David" in Dick's novel VALIS is based on Powers and Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? (Blade Runner) is dedicated to him.
Powers's first major novel was The Drawing of the Dark (1979), but the novel that earned him wide praise was The Anubis Gates, which won the Philip K. Dick Award, and has since been published in many other languages.
Powers also teaches part-time in his role as Writer in Residence for the Orange County High School of the Arts where his friend, Blaylock, is Director of the Creative Writing Department. Powers and his wife, Serena, currently live in Muscoy, California. He has frequently served as a mentor author as part of the Clarion science fiction/fantasy writer's workshop.
He also taught part time at the University of Redlands.
Excerpted from Wikipedia.
Most of Powers's novels are "secret histories": he uses actual, documented historical events featuring famous people, but shows another view of them in which occult or supernatural factors heavily influence the motivations and actions of the characters.
Powers was born in Buffalo, New York, and grew up in California, where his Roman Catholic family moved in 1959.
He studied English Literature at Cal State Fullerton, where he first met James Blaylock and K.W. Jeter, both of whom remained close friends and occasional collaborators; the trio have half-seriously referred to themselves as "steampunks" in contrast to the prevailing cyberpunk genre of the 1980s. Powers and Blaylock invented the poet William Ashbless while they were at Cal State Fullerton.
Another friend Powers first met during this period was noted science fiction writer Philip K. Dick; the character named "David" in Dick's novel VALIS is based on Powers and Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? (Blade Runner) is dedicated to him.
Powers's first major novel was The Drawing of the Dark (1979), but the novel that earned him wide praise was The Anubis Gates, which won the Philip K. Dick Award, and has since been published in many other languages.
Powers also teaches part-time in his role as Writer in Residence for the Orange County High School of the Arts where his friend, Blaylock, is Director of the Creative Writing Department. Powers and his wife, Serena, currently live in Muscoy, California. He has frequently served as a mentor author as part of the Clarion science fiction/fantasy writer's workshop.
He also taught part time at the University of Redlands.
Excerpted from Wikipedia.
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
January 8, 2026
”Trust the cat. They see past fate.”
~Alice B. Toklas
This should have been EPIC! My favorite, living speculative fiction author writes an occult/mystery/adventure tale set in 1920s Paris, complete with significant appearances from Gertrude Stein, Alice B. Toklas, Earnest Hemingway, Sylvia Beach and Pablo Picasso. Powers uses details like Hemingway’s famous stolen manuscripts as a plot device of this hidden, occult history (nice!). The evil occult mystery at the center of the plot draws heavily on my very favorite of Powers short stories, The Way Down the Hill. And there are magical cats! (Magical Cats!)
With all these elements, The Mills of the Gods should have been a masterpiece. Instead, this novel that I have been eagerly anticipating for months barely rises above meh. How is that even possible?
First, the book feels rushed, like it is simply an initial draft, not much past the idea phase that got published as is. The characters are seriously underdeveloped, particularly the protagonist, American expat Harry Nolan. There is simply nothing there to draw me in to him. He neither stands out as particularly talented nor as seriously flawed. The entirety of his backstory is he fought in the Great War, nothing left for him back home in America, stayed in Paris as a loner. That’s it. No more depth. He doesn’t even resonate as a stereotypical Everyman. He’s just a stick figure through which we can view the plot. Compare this to the protagonists in Powers’ masterpieces like Last Call or Declare, who have seriously deep backstories integral to those books plots, as well as significant flaws that complicate and add depth. That is what I expect from Powers, and why his writing here is so disappointing.
Nor was Powers’ protagonist the only underdeveloped character here. Earnest Hemingway just came across as some gruff, cynical guy — any gruff, cynical guy. And none of the villains were fleshed out enough to fill out their menace, despite the amazing hook that they belonged to a tribe of vampiric immortals who perpetuated their own existence by displacing the souls of small children, commandeering their bodies, lifetime after lifetime.
There were a couple of positive things about this novel. Powers seemed to have a feel for Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas, and they do come across as eccentric, interesting characters who are oddly tune in to Paris’s occult underground. And the heroine, Vivi Chastain, a young woman literally marked as a young child to be prey to the body-stealing immortals, but who escaped and continued to fight off possession, Vivi had some depth. But her story suffered both from the fact that the nefarious villains chasing her were not adequately fleshed out, and that the leading man she was paired with in the adventure was such an underwritten nonentity.
Had this novel been written by someone unknown to me it might have hit much differently. I might have seen the creative ideas as a sign of great promise and judged the rest less harshly. But Powers is not unknown to me. As I said, he is my favorite, living writer of speculative fiction. Several of his books are on my all time favorites list. I have reviewed 26 novels, novellas, and short story collections of his previously here on Goodreads. I had anticipated this novel for over a year. I expected so much more, and was majorly disappointed. Two and a half disappointed stars, rounded up for what could have been.
~Alice B. Toklas
This should have been EPIC! My favorite, living speculative fiction author writes an occult/mystery/adventure tale set in 1920s Paris, complete with significant appearances from Gertrude Stein, Alice B. Toklas, Earnest Hemingway, Sylvia Beach and Pablo Picasso. Powers uses details like Hemingway’s famous stolen manuscripts as a plot device of this hidden, occult history (nice!). The evil occult mystery at the center of the plot draws heavily on my very favorite of Powers short stories, The Way Down the Hill. And there are magical cats! (Magical Cats!)
With all these elements, The Mills of the Gods should have been a masterpiece. Instead, this novel that I have been eagerly anticipating for months barely rises above meh. How is that even possible?
First, the book feels rushed, like it is simply an initial draft, not much past the idea phase that got published as is. The characters are seriously underdeveloped, particularly the protagonist, American expat Harry Nolan. There is simply nothing there to draw me in to him. He neither stands out as particularly talented nor as seriously flawed. The entirety of his backstory is he fought in the Great War, nothing left for him back home in America, stayed in Paris as a loner. That’s it. No more depth. He doesn’t even resonate as a stereotypical Everyman. He’s just a stick figure through which we can view the plot. Compare this to the protagonists in Powers’ masterpieces like Last Call or Declare, who have seriously deep backstories integral to those books plots, as well as significant flaws that complicate and add depth. That is what I expect from Powers, and why his writing here is so disappointing.
Nor was Powers’ protagonist the only underdeveloped character here. Earnest Hemingway just came across as some gruff, cynical guy — any gruff, cynical guy. And none of the villains were fleshed out enough to fill out their menace, despite the amazing hook that they belonged to a tribe of vampiric immortals who perpetuated their own existence by displacing the souls of small children, commandeering their bodies, lifetime after lifetime.
There were a couple of positive things about this novel. Powers seemed to have a feel for Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas, and they do come across as eccentric, interesting characters who are oddly tune in to Paris’s occult underground. And the heroine, Vivi Chastain, a young woman literally marked as a young child to be prey to the body-stealing immortals, but who escaped and continued to fight off possession, Vivi had some depth. But her story suffered both from the fact that the nefarious villains chasing her were not adequately fleshed out, and that the leading man she was paired with in the adventure was such an underwritten nonentity.
Had this novel been written by someone unknown to me it might have hit much differently. I might have seen the creative ideas as a sign of great promise and judged the rest less harshly. But Powers is not unknown to me. As I said, he is my favorite, living writer of speculative fiction. Several of his books are on my all time favorites list. I have reviewed 26 novels, novellas, and short story collections of his previously here on Goodreads. I had anticipated this novel for over a year. I expected so much more, and was majorly disappointed. Two and a half disappointed stars, rounded up for what could have been.
February 19, 2026
Sigh.
Really wanted to love this one, given the inclusion of a few of my literary faves (Hemingway and Gertrude and Alice) and magical cats and ancient god versus ancient goddess. Tim Powers is usually so good with historical magical fiction! Unfortunately this story just doesn't hit for me.
Much of the fault of my lackluster experience has to lie with the audiobook narrator, who read in a kind of "newsies" voice that I found irritating from the start. He also did that thing of overpronouncing all the French street and building names that grates on my nerves. And the accents he did for all the characters did not sit well with me either.
The actual story is interesting but I didn't really feel drawn to any of the characters, and consequently did not really care what happened to them. Catholicism somehow becomes a main character as well. I know Powers is a devout Catholic, but it doesn't usually take such a front and center role in his stories. I found it disorientating and offputting.
I hate to think that Powers has lost his edge, but it's hard not to imagine that he could have written a much better book with this plotline and these characters ten or fifteen years ago.
In the plus column: it's a fast read, the characters of Hemingway, Gertrude and Alice are well done and fun (note that Picasso also appears, but I did not like his characterization at all), there are plenty of magical cats, and the big magical battle is exciting (and completely over the top, as Powers magical battles tend to be)
In the end though, the negatives won out for me. I won't caution anyone AGAINST reading it, but I would not want someone to form an opinion about Tim Powers based on this book.
Really wanted to love this one, given the inclusion of a few of my literary faves (Hemingway and Gertrude and Alice) and magical cats and ancient god versus ancient goddess. Tim Powers is usually so good with historical magical fiction! Unfortunately this story just doesn't hit for me.
Much of the fault of my lackluster experience has to lie with the audiobook narrator, who read in a kind of "newsies" voice that I found irritating from the start. He also did that thing of overpronouncing all the French street and building names that grates on my nerves. And the accents he did for all the characters did not sit well with me either.
The actual story is interesting but I didn't really feel drawn to any of the characters, and consequently did not really care what happened to them. Catholicism somehow becomes a main character as well. I know Powers is a devout Catholic, but it doesn't usually take such a front and center role in his stories. I found it disorientating and offputting.
I hate to think that Powers has lost his edge, but it's hard not to imagine that he could have written a much better book with this plotline and these characters ten or fifteen years ago.
In the plus column: it's a fast read, the characters of Hemingway, Gertrude and Alice are well done and fun (note that Picasso also appears, but I did not like his characterization at all), there are plenty of magical cats, and the big magical battle is exciting (and completely over the top, as Powers magical battles tend to be)
In the end though, the negatives won out for me. I won't caution anyone AGAINST reading it, but I would not want someone to form an opinion about Tim Powers based on this book.
December 23, 2025
"Though the mills of God grind slowly; Yet they grind exceeding small;
Though with patience He stands waiting, With exactness grinds He all."
There’s an argument to say that Tim Powers should never stray far from his tried-and-true formula of literary hidden histories: famous poets and authors involved in supernatural shenanigans. He’s done romantic poets beset by vampires; pre-raphaelites also dealing with the undead; the Brontës beset by werewolves… and now it’s all this.
But if he did that, we would have no Stranger Tides, no Fault Lines series and no Declare. You could argue that in a lot of his best work, he is writing a secret history based on real people and events. The more detailed the research, I think, the better the resulting novel. In this one, The Mills of the Gods, just published, we’re in 1920s Paris with the Lost Generation.
Let’s deal with the heffalump in the room first: that cover. It looks trashy, as have a lot of his recent book covers. It needn’t be so. The “cover” of the audiobook version is better. And if you were willing to stump up for one of the limited editions, you might get something quite classy.
But if like me you get the paperback or kindle edition, you’re stuck with the trashy one. A pulpy cover needn’t be bad.
The problem with the Mills of the Gods cover is… what am I looking at? Is it supposed to be the male and female protagonists? Because that’s wrong. Vivi, in the book, is frequently described as having blonde or “straw coloured” hair. And if the guy is Nolan, I dunno where that hat came from. And if it’s supposed to be Hemingway… well, where’s the moustache?
Anyway, rubbish cover. What’s the book like?
We’re in Paris, 1925. There’s no F Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald, but there is Hemingway, Gertrude Stein, Alice B Toklas, Pablo Picasso, and supernatural shenanigans. Harry Nolan, a freelance illustrator, comes back to his apartment one evening to find a mysterious woman, Vivi, holding his gun. She wants to read an anonymous manuscript that Nolan has been given by a small press editor so he can provide an illustration. The manuscript is a short story, a fable, based on the idea of luring a God down to Earth with an illusion in order to kill it.
But who wrote it? And why, suddenly, are so many people interested in getting hold of it?
As always, Powers is weaving fact and fiction together: so we visit the Paris catacombs, the Shakespeare & Company bookshop, and the Île de la Cité; we encounter Ernest Hemingway, still sore about losing all his work on a train in 1922. We encounter Gertrude Stein and her gnomic writings:
"A cause and no curve, a cause and loud enough, a cause and extra a loud clash and an extra wagon, a sign of extra, a sac a small sac and an established color and cunning, a slender grey and no ribbon, this means a loss a great loss a restitution."
And we encounter Picasso, who has a fascination for bulls and who may or may not have the key to the whole affair.
It’s comforting and familiar: though we haven’t been here before, we have definitely been somewhere similar. Nolan is a typical Powers male protagonist: confused, sceptical, out of his depth, frequently hurt, but gallant and steadfast in the face of adversity. Vivi is intrepid, brave, independent, resigned to her fate, and protective of the decent Nolan.
Being harsh, you could call this Powers-by-numbers. But also: it’s Tim Powers. I’m just grateful he’s still with us and producing new books.
Though with patience He stands waiting, With exactness grinds He all."
There’s an argument to say that Tim Powers should never stray far from his tried-and-true formula of literary hidden histories: famous poets and authors involved in supernatural shenanigans. He’s done romantic poets beset by vampires; pre-raphaelites also dealing with the undead; the Brontës beset by werewolves… and now it’s all this.
But if he did that, we would have no Stranger Tides, no Fault Lines series and no Declare. You could argue that in a lot of his best work, he is writing a secret history based on real people and events. The more detailed the research, I think, the better the resulting novel. In this one, The Mills of the Gods, just published, we’re in 1920s Paris with the Lost Generation.
Let’s deal with the heffalump in the room first: that cover. It looks trashy, as have a lot of his recent book covers. It needn’t be so. The “cover” of the audiobook version is better. And if you were willing to stump up for one of the limited editions, you might get something quite classy.
But if like me you get the paperback or kindle edition, you’re stuck with the trashy one. A pulpy cover needn’t be bad.
The problem with the Mills of the Gods cover is… what am I looking at? Is it supposed to be the male and female protagonists? Because that’s wrong. Vivi, in the book, is frequently described as having blonde or “straw coloured” hair. And if the guy is Nolan, I dunno where that hat came from. And if it’s supposed to be Hemingway… well, where’s the moustache?
Anyway, rubbish cover. What’s the book like?
We’re in Paris, 1925. There’s no F Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald, but there is Hemingway, Gertrude Stein, Alice B Toklas, Pablo Picasso, and supernatural shenanigans. Harry Nolan, a freelance illustrator, comes back to his apartment one evening to find a mysterious woman, Vivi, holding his gun. She wants to read an anonymous manuscript that Nolan has been given by a small press editor so he can provide an illustration. The manuscript is a short story, a fable, based on the idea of luring a God down to Earth with an illusion in order to kill it.
But who wrote it? And why, suddenly, are so many people interested in getting hold of it?
As always, Powers is weaving fact and fiction together: so we visit the Paris catacombs, the Shakespeare & Company bookshop, and the Île de la Cité; we encounter Ernest Hemingway, still sore about losing all his work on a train in 1922. We encounter Gertrude Stein and her gnomic writings:
"A cause and no curve, a cause and loud enough, a cause and extra a loud clash and an extra wagon, a sign of extra, a sac a small sac and an established color and cunning, a slender grey and no ribbon, this means a loss a great loss a restitution."
And we encounter Picasso, who has a fascination for bulls and who may or may not have the key to the whole affair.
It’s comforting and familiar: though we haven’t been here before, we have definitely been somewhere similar. Nolan is a typical Powers male protagonist: confused, sceptical, out of his depth, frequently hurt, but gallant and steadfast in the face of adversity. Vivi is intrepid, brave, independent, resigned to her fate, and protective of the decent Nolan.
Being harsh, you could call this Powers-by-numbers. But also: it’s Tim Powers. I’m just grateful he’s still with us and producing new books.
December 29, 2025
There are some authors that you come to trust over time. That you know, wherever they're going to lead you, it will be a fun ride. Tim Powers is one of those authors for me. He's a great storyteller with wild ideas and I'm never disappointed whether he takes me to 16th century Vienna, or to hang out with the Brontes, or to run from ghosts created by the traffic on the Los Angeles freeway. The Mills of the Gods didn't disappoint. A rollicking read.
December 30, 2025
4 stars feels like too much but 3 would be too few... I liked this but wish it took more time to breathe. Historical figures saunter in, aid or argue with the protagonists, and depart. There's a scene early on, the second time the protagonists meet, and I had to read it multiple times before I concluded that no, it WAS just a weird chance meeting. Anyways, like I said, I liked it, but not one of my favorite Powers novels.
January 11, 2026
The Mills of the Gods by Tim Powers
Tim Powers is the leading writer of the subgenre of “occult fantasy.” Powers specializes in placing his story in a setting that mixes history and the occult. In Declare, Powers tells a story involving Kim Philby and a genie on Mount Ararat. In Last Call, Powers pairs Jungianism and the Fisher King with Bugsy Siegel’s Las Vegas. The obscurity of Powers’ background can be challenging, but it can also be fun.
In The Mills of the Gods, the setting is Paris shortly after the First World War This is the Pris of Ernest Hemingway, Shakespeare and Company, Alice b. Toklas, and Gertrude Stein, all of whom become characters in Powers’ book.
It is also the Paris of the gods, Moloch and Cybele, and a resurrection cult of Moloch worshippers who can foresee the future. You might not have been aware of the street warfare between the Moloch cult and the Cybele worshippers in Paris in 1925, very few people were, but they were there.
Also, don’t forget the magical cats of Paris, the matagots.[1]
Henry Nolan is a former American soldier who now lives in Paris and works as an illustrator. Nolan is asked to illustrate a strange story about a bullfight that turns into a bull sacrifice. This story pitches him into occult Paris as Vivi Chastain, a mysterious young Parisian woman, breaks into his apartment to read the story, and then, they are chased by a gang of murderous nine-year-olds. He witnesses Vivi talking to a corpse in the River Seine, and ultimately, they learn that the story, which is the McGuffin of all this action, is a Hemingway story liberated from a cult by Pablo Picasso.
And it turns out that Vivi escaped from an orphanage before her body could be used as a vessel for a dead French politician.
Powers weaves historical figures and events together with folklore and myth. The challenge for Vivi and Nolan is freeing Vivi from her connection to the cult of Moloch, which uses children as the vessels for reincarnated souls. I found myself liking the characters and becoming invested in their efforts and their growing relationship. Like Powers’ stories generally, this was an enjoyable read.
Before hitting publish, I want to mention the Catholic theme. Powers is a Catholic. He is writing a story about ancient gods that are all too real on some dimension that interacts with our own. Yet, Vivi is Catholic, and by the end, Nolan becomes Catholic. The characters acknowledge that the ancient gods recognize they must stay in the shadows because of the power of the Christian God. Moloch’s plan seems to involve taking down the Christian God.
The book closes on an orthodox note:
“Reincarnation is a wishful myth,” said Vivi. She and Nolan had gone to an evening Mass at a Catholic church in Marseilles, across the border into France, three days ago. Vivi had said it was a spot of white paint to follow. “They’ll go on to judgment—like everyone else.” Her gaze swept across the paintings on the walls, and she shivered. “Like the rest of us.”
She had told Nolan before Mass that the two of them were not in a state of grace, and could attend the service but not take Communion. Before they could ever do that, she had said, it would be necessary to have their “sins forgiven in baptism.”
Powers, Tim. The Mills of the Gods (pp. 352-353). Baen Books. Kindle Edition.
And:
I suppose I’m Catholic if I’m anything, Hemingway had said. Certainly can’t take any other religion seriously. In this last week Nolan had been tumbled into a perilous supernatural world behind the evident world, and all sorts of things might turn out to be true. And he had used the Catholic invocation to finish off the Shaydim.
Powers, Tim. The Mills of the Gods (p. 354). Baen Books. Kindle Edition.
The arrival of Christianity meant the end of the old gods. The sacred springs and holy groves were tamed by the new dispensation. Catholic sacramental rites drove out the cults. Matagots moved into the shadows.
Perhaps this is why Powers writes “occult fantasy” rather than “urban fantasy.” Urban fantasy often acts as if it is Christianity that has the burden of proof, and magic has always had the upper hand. But in our history, magic disappeared. If it held on, it did so in the shadows to avoid the superior power of Christianity.
I don’t know if that is what Powers is going for. I am just tossing this out as food for thought.
Tim Powers is the leading writer of the subgenre of “occult fantasy.” Powers specializes in placing his story in a setting that mixes history and the occult. In Declare, Powers tells a story involving Kim Philby and a genie on Mount Ararat. In Last Call, Powers pairs Jungianism and the Fisher King with Bugsy Siegel’s Las Vegas. The obscurity of Powers’ background can be challenging, but it can also be fun.
In The Mills of the Gods, the setting is Paris shortly after the First World War This is the Pris of Ernest Hemingway, Shakespeare and Company, Alice b. Toklas, and Gertrude Stein, all of whom become characters in Powers’ book.
It is also the Paris of the gods, Moloch and Cybele, and a resurrection cult of Moloch worshippers who can foresee the future. You might not have been aware of the street warfare between the Moloch cult and the Cybele worshippers in Paris in 1925, very few people were, but they were there.
Also, don’t forget the magical cats of Paris, the matagots.[1]
Henry Nolan is a former American soldier who now lives in Paris and works as an illustrator. Nolan is asked to illustrate a strange story about a bullfight that turns into a bull sacrifice. This story pitches him into occult Paris as Vivi Chastain, a mysterious young Parisian woman, breaks into his apartment to read the story, and then, they are chased by a gang of murderous nine-year-olds. He witnesses Vivi talking to a corpse in the River Seine, and ultimately, they learn that the story, which is the McGuffin of all this action, is a Hemingway story liberated from a cult by Pablo Picasso.
And it turns out that Vivi escaped from an orphanage before her body could be used as a vessel for a dead French politician.
Powers weaves historical figures and events together with folklore and myth. The challenge for Vivi and Nolan is freeing Vivi from her connection to the cult of Moloch, which uses children as the vessels for reincarnated souls. I found myself liking the characters and becoming invested in their efforts and their growing relationship. Like Powers’ stories generally, this was an enjoyable read.
Before hitting publish, I want to mention the Catholic theme. Powers is a Catholic. He is writing a story about ancient gods that are all too real on some dimension that interacts with our own. Yet, Vivi is Catholic, and by the end, Nolan becomes Catholic. The characters acknowledge that the ancient gods recognize they must stay in the shadows because of the power of the Christian God. Moloch’s plan seems to involve taking down the Christian God.
The book closes on an orthodox note:
“Reincarnation is a wishful myth,” said Vivi. She and Nolan had gone to an evening Mass at a Catholic church in Marseilles, across the border into France, three days ago. Vivi had said it was a spot of white paint to follow. “They’ll go on to judgment—like everyone else.” Her gaze swept across the paintings on the walls, and she shivered. “Like the rest of us.”
She had told Nolan before Mass that the two of them were not in a state of grace, and could attend the service but not take Communion. Before they could ever do that, she had said, it would be necessary to have their “sins forgiven in baptism.”
Powers, Tim. The Mills of the Gods (pp. 352-353). Baen Books. Kindle Edition.
And:
I suppose I’m Catholic if I’m anything, Hemingway had said. Certainly can’t take any other religion seriously. In this last week Nolan had been tumbled into a perilous supernatural world behind the evident world, and all sorts of things might turn out to be true. And he had used the Catholic invocation to finish off the Shaydim.
Powers, Tim. The Mills of the Gods (p. 354). Baen Books. Kindle Edition.
The arrival of Christianity meant the end of the old gods. The sacred springs and holy groves were tamed by the new dispensation. Catholic sacramental rites drove out the cults. Matagots moved into the shadows.
Perhaps this is why Powers writes “occult fantasy” rather than “urban fantasy.” Urban fantasy often acts as if it is Christianity that has the burden of proof, and magic has always had the upper hand. But in our history, magic disappeared. If it held on, it did so in the shadows to avoid the superior power of Christianity.
I don’t know if that is what Powers is going for. I am just tossing this out as food for thought.
January 1, 2026
It’s always a pleasure to have a new Powers book, and this one is a welcome return to his unique brand of historical fantasy, incorporating real figures from the period in question - in this case 1925, and including Hemingway, Picasso, Stein, and Toklas.
But of course the focus is on the protagonists: the displaced, no-nonsense, American illustrator Harry Nolan, and the misfortunate, but sharp and determined Parisian drifter Vivi Chastain, with a dynamic reminiscent of Crawford and Josephine in The Stress of Her Regard. Nolan’s transition from loner to partner is predictable but fun. And Powers hits many familiar notes here, starting with the sudden introduction of supernatural elements, followed by Nolan’s gradual, reluctant acceptance of them. We also get the body switching, the villainous immortality seekers, and the disorientation of characters being dropped into a fantastical environment in which the physics of the mundane world no longer applies.
The mythological aspects involve the lesser known (to me at least) ancient deities Cybele and Moloch, with their key attributes being cleverly sketched out and brilliantly brought forward to 1920s Paris, setting them up for a confrontation in Spain.
The Paris setting is meticulously detailed, with immersive descriptions of the Seine-adjacent streets and districts. The pacing includes numerous chaotic action sequences that make this a fun and relatively quick read. Highly enjoyable, and recommended for both Powers fans and those unfamiliar with his work who’d like to give him a try.
But of course the focus is on the protagonists: the displaced, no-nonsense, American illustrator Harry Nolan, and the misfortunate, but sharp and determined Parisian drifter Vivi Chastain, with a dynamic reminiscent of Crawford and Josephine in The Stress of Her Regard. Nolan’s transition from loner to partner is predictable but fun. And Powers hits many familiar notes here, starting with the sudden introduction of supernatural elements, followed by Nolan’s gradual, reluctant acceptance of them. We also get the body switching, the villainous immortality seekers, and the disorientation of characters being dropped into a fantastical environment in which the physics of the mundane world no longer applies.
The mythological aspects involve the lesser known (to me at least) ancient deities Cybele and Moloch, with their key attributes being cleverly sketched out and brilliantly brought forward to 1920s Paris, setting them up for a confrontation in Spain.
The Paris setting is meticulously detailed, with immersive descriptions of the Seine-adjacent streets and districts. The pacing includes numerous chaotic action sequences that make this a fun and relatively quick read. Highly enjoyable, and recommended for both Powers fans and those unfamiliar with his work who’d like to give him a try.
January 28, 2026
3.5 rounded up because I’m a big admirer of Powers. Fun, but far short of a work like his Declare.
January 13, 2026
This is Tim Powers at his best: weird, occult stuff is happening behind the scenes! Our heroes, Vivi and Nolan get caught up in these events and have to chase down the truth, with a few side quests along the way.
I really appreciated Power's ability to fully flesh out these happenings in a relatively small volume. The pacing here is just about perfect. All in all, a enjoyable mystery, even if it plays out pretty much like you thought.
I really appreciated Power's ability to fully flesh out these happenings in a relatively small volume. The pacing here is just about perfect. All in all, a enjoyable mystery, even if it plays out pretty much like you thought.
February 24, 2026
I am a big fan of Tim Powers, so not loving his more recent books is discouraging (specifically Hide Me Among the Graves and My Brother's Keeper). This one, however, was deeply satisfying and finally felt like one of his books. (I haven't read the Vickery and Castine books yet, just one of those things, so for all I know I will love them.)
It's a good post-World-War-I story, and there's plenty of maneuvering and blood, things I like about Powers' writing. There's also a surprisingly good romance, not surprising because of Powers' skill, but because I wasn't expecting the plot to go there. And I love that religious faith is central to the solution (and not just the religion readers might expect).
What struck me, though, wasn't so much the plot--this is an exciting secret history with Hemingway and Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas among the real historical figures--but that it showed me why I was dissatisfied with the two books named above. All the Powers novels I love have huge, world-altering plots with dramatic consequences for success or failure. It seems I'm less interested in the smaller, more personal stories, which might also explain why I wasn't that into On Stranger Tides. This was an important realization, because I think I can apply it going forward and maybe reduce my dissatisfaction.
I will have to make an effort to grab Alternate Routes when I have access to my library again. That looks promisingly epic.
It's a good post-World-War-I story, and there's plenty of maneuvering and blood, things I like about Powers' writing. There's also a surprisingly good romance, not surprising because of Powers' skill, but because I wasn't expecting the plot to go there. And I love that religious faith is central to the solution (and not just the religion readers might expect).
What struck me, though, wasn't so much the plot--this is an exciting secret history with Hemingway and Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas among the real historical figures--but that it showed me why I was dissatisfied with the two books named above. All the Powers novels I love have huge, world-altering plots with dramatic consequences for success or failure. It seems I'm less interested in the smaller, more personal stories, which might also explain why I wasn't that into On Stranger Tides. This was an important realization, because I think I can apply it going forward and maybe reduce my dissatisfaction.
I will have to make an effort to grab Alternate Routes when I have access to my library again. That looks promisingly epic.
March 25, 2026
I got about half way through this and started to worry because I felt like I was understanding a Tim Powers novel on my first read through. Then I got to the end and the crisis was averted because that climax was wild.
On a more serious note, this was definitely one of Powers' more easy to understand novels and at times I felt it wasn't up to what I expect from a Powers' novel. Mostly in that I felt the plot and background was spelled out for me.
So, the world and background were fantastic. A bunch of cultists hijacking the power of to control their own reincarnations and see the future? And now they're pursuing an escaped child with a rogue personality growing? Absolute baller concept.
Add in the mid way reveal that has emerged to fight , apparently for simple love of the game (or out of inherent nature maybe), the cats of Paris are collectively . And then a climax at a ? I'm 100% here for it.
I think the straightforwardness of the plot held me back from liking it as much as expected . . . I like walking away from a Powers' novel wondering what the heck just happened.
Also, the PoV character, Harry Nolan, fell somewhat flat. He was serviceable but his motivation and backstory were pretty straightforward. He's just . Which is fair, to heck with them sauteurs but it's a pretty simple characterization.
So, I had a good time. it was a fast paced thrill with Powers' usual deep integration of fantasy and history but it fell somewhat short of what I was hoping for. C'est la vie I suppose.
On a more serious note, this was definitely one of Powers' more easy to understand novels and at times I felt it wasn't up to what I expect from a Powers' novel. Mostly in that I felt the plot and background was spelled out for me.
So, the world and background were fantastic. A bunch of cultists hijacking the power of to control their own reincarnations and see the future? And now they're pursuing an escaped child with a rogue personality growing? Absolute baller concept.
Add in the mid way reveal that has emerged to fight , apparently for simple love of the game (or out of inherent nature maybe), the cats of Paris are collectively . And then a climax at a ? I'm 100% here for it.
I think the straightforwardness of the plot held me back from liking it as much as expected . . . I like walking away from a Powers' novel wondering what the heck just happened.
Also, the PoV character, Harry Nolan, fell somewhat flat. He was serviceable but his motivation and backstory were pretty straightforward. He's just . Which is fair, to heck with them sauteurs but it's a pretty simple characterization.
So, I had a good time. it was a fast paced thrill with Powers' usual deep integration of fantasy and history but it fell somewhat short of what I was hoping for. C'est la vie I suppose.
December 25, 2025
English is not my native language so I read it slowly, but I was so drawn in that I couldn't help but want to know what happened next.
A young man who has been traumatized by his military experiences but still retains a kind heart.
He meets a girl who is full of determination and drive, who refuses and resists the tragic fate that has been forced upon her.
Enemies who possess power, wealth, health and talent, yet are brutal and obsessed with lust.
Parisian artists such as Hemingway, Picasso, and Stein make a strong impression.
A mystery hidden in many layers, the horror of a myth resurrected in the modern city of Paris.
Magical cats.
His works are always visual, but this time in particular, images of Ghibli anime kept playing in my head.
I hope that someone in the Japanese film industry will read this and turn it into a movie.
A young man who has been traumatized by his military experiences but still retains a kind heart.
He meets a girl who is full of determination and drive, who refuses and resists the tragic fate that has been forced upon her.
Enemies who possess power, wealth, health and talent, yet are brutal and obsessed with lust.
Parisian artists such as Hemingway, Picasso, and Stein make a strong impression.
A mystery hidden in many layers, the horror of a myth resurrected in the modern city of Paris.
Magical cats.
His works are always visual, but this time in particular, images of Ghibli anime kept playing in my head.
I hope that someone in the Japanese film industry will read this and turn it into a movie.
March 7, 2026
Tim Powers, making use of Ernest Hemingway, Gertrude Stein, Alice Toklas, and Pablo Picasso in post WWI Paris! Yes, of course he makes good use of the catacombs under Paris. Yes, of course there are supernatural happenings and spiritually-suspect entities involved, and our heroes must make many hard choices - do they save themselves or do they fight greater evil? Well, read the book and find out.
The audiobook is a bit disappointing; Scott Aiello narrates and the female protagonist's voice is appreciably softer than his regular voice and other variations, so I found myself needing to roll back, up the sound, and then lower the volume again; a small annoyance compared to the convenience of being able to drive and read at the same time!
The audiobook is a bit disappointing; Scott Aiello narrates and the female protagonist's voice is appreciably softer than his regular voice and other variations, so I found myself needing to roll back, up the sound, and then lower the volume again; a small annoyance compared to the convenience of being able to drive and read at the same time!
January 31, 2026
During the roaring twenties, a number of famous artists and writers like Picasso and Hemingway lived in Paris. Tim Powers tells of a book cover artist, who had been an engineer in the American Army. Harry Nolan comes into contact with Vivi Chastain, a former street girl, on the run from cult sauteurs who have discovered how to force reincarnation using the Carthaginian god Moloch. The two of them caught in The Mills of the Gods (hard from Baen) have to survive an attempt by a ghost to steal Vivi’s body, a fight in the catacombs of Paris. Finally they have to face the god at the ruins of a former sanctuary in Spain. Very exciting with minor roles from famous personages from the era.
March 4, 2026
Brisk, absorbing, and flat-out enjoyable. I especially liked the small cast of real historical figures, and this now vies with The Anubis Gates for my favorite ending in a Powers novel. I actually teared up. I also appreciated the little detail that . Explains a lot.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 14, 2026
Felt a bit as a "by the numbers" book by Powers. We get some wierd shit going on, in historical times, where he namedrops a couple of famous people from the past. Seems like a story he wrote on autopilot from his strange mind.
It was a good story, but not one of his better. Still, I enjoyed it. 3.25 stars.
It was a good story, but not one of his better. Still, I enjoyed it. 3.25 stars.
February 25, 2026
really disappointing compared to his other work. the story is too linear , bland and the romance feels railroaded how much time is spent poking the viewer and saying virginity and Christianity are good?
Read
March 13, 2026Tim Powers hasn't lost a step. An excellent blend of weird and action.
March 19, 2026
This is some old school Powers. The protagonists mixing with historical characters while involved in occult shenanigans. It is a fast and fun read.
March 21, 2026
I have enjoyed this book, as I do all of Tim powers books. But something in this one was a little lacking compared to the others. Still an interesting read though.
March 23, 2026
Reread for… reasons.
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