The Oracle

Wizard War Chronicles #4

by Hugh Cook

WARS WERE NOT AS LIVELY AS STORYTELLERS PRETENDED...

Yen Olass could read dreams and tell the future. Even as chaos reigned in the city of Gendormargensis, the oracle's talent served her well. Indeed, as the city fell to battling warlords and imperial treachery, Yen Olass escaped by riding with Lord Alagrace as he led the invasion of distant Argan. The supreme commander, ordered to capture Castle Vaunting, hoped that the oracle's powers would ensure victory. As for Yen Olass, she found the perils of Argan vastly overrated; war, she thought, was a bore. But then she was unaware that three wizards had just arrived at Castle Vaunting on a magical mission. Nor could she divine that such wizardly warfare would soon have her contending with real monsters, a flaming moat, a healthy mud fight, and a peculiar enchantment...not to mention the teary expectant mistress of a Rovac warrior. And that was just the beginning!

Genres: Fantasy

346 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published July 1, 1989

About the author

Hugh Cook was a cult author whose works blend fantasy and science fiction. He is best known for his epic series The Chronicles of an Age of Darkness.

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Reviews

[Aaron]

Though this is a sci-fi/fantasy novel, it is an amazingly ballsy review of the anxiety, and complete lack of power most women have experienced throughout the history of the world. The novel does suffer from the usual tedium that appears to be inescapable for most writers when documenting their characters while traveling from one location to another. It is when the action is stationary that the book really sings. There is little of the wacky wizardry and action of the other entries in the series, but very few authors are able to so accurately express the frustration inherent in someone with a strong desire for freedom as Cook is able to accomplish here.