Hello world!
Welcome to WordPress. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start writing!
PRODUCT
Amazon.com: The Black Bird Oracle: A Novel (Audible Audio Edition): Deborah Harkness, Jennifer Ikeda, Random House Audio: Books
Product Description:
Price:
Detailed description:
Diana Bishop journeys to the darkest places within herself—and her family history—in the highly anticipated fifth novel of the beloved #1 New York Times bestselling All Souls series.
“The Black Bird Oracle deftly explores the nexus of memory, history, and parenthood—the magic, pain, and promises mothers pass onto their children.”—Jodi Picoult
Deborah Harkness first introduced the world to Diana Bishop, an Oxford scholar and witch, and vampire geneticist Matthew de Clermont in A Discovery of Witches. Drawn to each other despite long-standing taboos, these two otherworldly beings found themselves at the center of a battle for a lost, enchanted manuscript known as Ashmole 782. Since then, they have fallen in love, traveled to Elizabethan England, dissolved the Covenant between the three species, and awoken the dark powers within Diana’s family line.
Now, Diana and Matthew receive a formal demand from the Congregation: They must test the magic of their seven-year-old twins, Pip and Rebecca. Concerned with their safety and desperate to avoid the same fate that led her parents to spellbind her, Diana decides to forge a different path for her family’s future and answers a message from a great-aunt she never knew existed, Gwyneth Proctor, whose invitation simply reads: It’s time you came home, Diana.
On the hallowed ground of Ravenswood, the Proctor family home, and under the tutelage of Gwyneth, a talented witch grounded in higher magic, a new era begins for Diana: a confrontation with her family’s dark past and a reckoning for her own desire for even greater power—if she can let go, finally, of her fear of wielding it.
In this stunning new novel, grand in scope, Deborah Harkness deepens the beloved world of All Souls with powerful new magic and long-hidden secrets, and the path Diana finds at Ravenswood leads to the most consequential moments yet in this cherished series.
* This audiobook edition comes with a downloadable PDF including a family tree.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
Read more
Product group:
Categories: Arts & Photography
Product name:
Amazon.com: The Black Bird Oracle: A Novel (Audible Audio Edition): Deborah Harkness, Jennifer Ikeda, Random House Audio: Books
Sabine –
Sooo lang gewartet und steht den anderen büchern in nichts nach. Diana dringt tiefer in ihre Ursprungsfamilie und damit auch in mögliches Potential, das auch ihre Kinder beeinflussen könnte… *ich spoilere hier sicher nicht* 🙂
Grossartig geschrieben, absolut lesenswert
Valerie S. –
It felt so good being reunited with Diana, Matthew and the twins! After an ominous omen and a mysterious tarot card arriving, Diana is called to visit her father Stephen’s ancestral home. The Proctor family was a big question mark in my mind, so it was fascinating to meet them, learn about their magic and the beautiful Ravenswood. One thing I appreciate so much about Deb’s books are her characters are so multifaceted and not always likeable. We learn about some painful things in the past, including trauma and some prejudices that were challenging. But overall this is a beautiful story of family, finding one’s roots and connecting with strength and power. Deb is a masterful storyteller, and this book made me laugh, cry, hop down rabbit holes to research things, and even reconsider my feelings about certain characters! Absolutely loved it, and exciting to see where we’ll go next.
Meg –
Harkness has achieved the unlikely in this fifth book in the discovery of witches series: a book as good as the first one that opens up a whole new world of character development. Many series start to pall after the third or fourth installment, but this was a tour de force that leaves us begging for more. The story was visceral, magical and evocative. I know I will reread and eagerly await the next installment. Brava Professor Harkness. I haven’t felt like this since Harry went to Hogwarts. The depth of the Proctor home at Ravenwood was profound and practically tangible. I can smell it.
Spoilers
My only complaint is the dubious right the congregation has to reign over creatures who never agreed to it. It’s so egregious it feels like a plot hole. There’s no voting, no seeming rhyme or reason of who gets on the witches congregation. Why wasn’t Satu permanently expelled from the congregation after an attack on Diana? What laws are the witches required to follow? Each coven appears to be a self governing body but it makes no sense that a single body in a different country could have any authority over creatures around the world, especially when governing without the consent of the governed. 3 representatives also seems like an arbitrarily small number given the complexity of the witches rooms on the island. Where are the staff? I hope some of this is solved in the next book. It’s the only thing that really marred my enjoyment. loved the ghosts!
Janna Wong Healy –
3.5 Stars.
Full disclosure: I was an early fan of Harkness’ first book in this series, A Discovery of Witches, and after reading it, I fell deeply in love with the characters, story, and writing. I read the first book at least 17 times, own it in hard copy, soft copy, Audible, and book-on-tape, and it’s one of my go-to books when I need an infusion of happiness.
So I couldn’t wait to see what the next chapter would bring.
I’m sorry to say that I wasn’t as enthralled or engaged by The Black Bird Oracle as I was hoping to be. The book was overwritten and felt like it would never end. But when it did, it turns out it’s simply a stepping stone to the next book. The plot moves around and around without as much conflict as ADOW readers are accustomed to. So, the satisfaction quotient was low for me. In addition, there are way too many characters to keep track of and many of them do not figure into the crux of the plot.
Most importantly, the element that made ADOW so arresting and enticing — the complexities of the love affair between a witch and a vampire — is missing. For example, Matthew is not a factor in the plot for much of this book. And there are few historical references, which were such an integral factor in the early books and helped make the books engaging and deep.
The conflict concerning Diana and Matthew, which was everything in the first three books, is missing and this loss is difficult to bear.
I wanted to love this next book in the series…I am as disappointed as her fans that I didn’t. 🙁
Although I purchased the hardback, I also purchased the Audible book and I’m happy that the original narrator, Jennifer Ikeda, is back. She reads the book beautifully and her dulcet tones are welcomed back.
Krista G –
I have read all the earlier books in this series – huge fan! This latest instalment is amazing – all the intriguing historical references, and oooh, the secrets we did not know in the previous stories! The characters are becoming more complex with the addition of the newest members posing new challenges and concerns. New characters add more layers and spice. Harkness’ writing has also evolved – becoming sparer, clearer and tighter weaving thematic and allegorical elements for greater impact. I find myself savouring sentences and passages. The new conflicts involve the same cast with their strengths and foibles, but in deeper and more nuanced ways. A great read and one I will be revisiting along with the audio book and the beloved reader of all the books. Don’t miss this!
Emily07 –
I loved the first three books of The Discovery of Witches, but I really didn’t like the fourth book at all. This book brought back all my favorite characters and Dianne and Matthews twins are just wonderful and full of life and passion. It was also fun to meet Dianne’s paternal relatives, ones she didn’t know she had, and really get to know some of them. And based on the ending, we have more books to come in this fabulous series. I highly recommend the book.
Sarah Lott –
If you are a fan of the All Souls Trilogy and wanting to revisit familiar characters, picking up where the Bishop-Clairmont family left off, you might want to check expectations. Yes, you get a lot of the same familiar characters, but this book seems to find them changed, and focuses less of the plot and characters and more on the witchiness of it all.
Honestly, I didn’t enjoy this book as much as the original trilogy or Marcus’ book. I felt that the characters had some pretty significant changes from their well-developed personalities and it was a little jarring for me as a reader to see such personality shifts and reconcile them with the previous outings.
However, on its own it’s a good book, just less story/plot than I’d usually like or have come to expect from Harkness. I thought the description of the witchiness and the theory and concepts was well-executed, and the interspersing of poetry and Shakespeare throughout inspired. I will pick up the next books in this series (this one ended in a way that you know there will be a continuation), but I think I’ll re-read the original ones to scratch the itch this one left unscratched.
W. Green –
Deborah Harkness carries on her spellbinding tale of Witches, Vampires & Daemons. This book deals with her Father’s side of the family in Salem. Thrilling, fabulous, cannot put it down. I do hope there is a fifth in the pipeline…
LettyAnn –
This book is absolutely amazing. It was so great to be reunited with the well know characters and the new characters were equally great. The storyline is so well written and interesting. I cannot wait for the sequel. I am going to re-read it at least once
Client d’Amazon –
Je voulais recevoir ce livre le jour de sa sortie dans sa langue originale, ce qui n’était pas possible dans ma librairie. Il est arrivé bien à temps et en bon état, ce qui n’était pas le cas de mes derniers achats de livres Amazon donc j’étais ravie ! Comme les tomes présents de la série, le livre est excellent et l’écriture de Harkness riche et passionnante.
Brad –
The original 3 books are some of my favourite books, so when I heard about this I was incredibly excited to continue the story of Diana and Matthew. The story didn’t disappoint, it is different to the originals and it does feel like some fundamentals of the original needed to be changed to fit with the new narrative, however I feel this was completed expertly and I am now eagerly awaiting books 6+!