Oracle's Legacy
“She was a bad omen” the author writes. “Looking at her wild curly hair and her big brown baby-doll eyes it wasn’t obvious but she was trouble. Trouble he didn’t need. Several of the clientele were already eyeing her scoping her out as she danced. She wasn’t dressed for the club scene. But even without the flash she was still catching eyes.”
Augustus Granger mysterious businessman extraordinaire is left to wonder what Ollie Mason ex-girlfriend of his best friend is doing at his nightclub in Atlanta.
Things aren’t as they appear in this debut book by R. B. Holbrook a native of North Carolina. It’s the first in a trilogy that features members of a secret civilization who seem like regular people except for their superior mental and physical powers. This is their “energy” which they try to keep hidden but which is evident in a tattoo-like seal on their bodies.
A struggle between various factions or Houses is developing because the Oracle “the most powerful person in the Structure” is near death and each house is pushing their own candidate for the position. The current Oracle is from the House of Sun.
Ollie and her studious twin brother Ellis are two of nineteen children fathered by Jacob Mason. They were taken in and raised by Bethea Jacob’s first and only wife after their own mother died in childbirth twenty-eight years before.
Ollie and Ellis care for the elderly Bethea and several younger siblings in their comfortable home in Silver Spring Maryland when they aren’t out on undisclosed missions; Ollie is a hired gun and Ellis is her advisor/protector.
When various bad guys mark Ollie for assassination her family tries to protect her but even they have to call on a bigger gun—Augustus Granger who can read minds and memories and also possess souls if he so desires.
Holbrook has created a memorable character in Ollie. She’s a beautiful opinionated foul-mouthed humorous family-loving killer whose mother tells her “You have a mind of your own. You have power—power people fear. Power that can do harm to others if not used appropriately. So you must show restraint.”
This is a fast-paced read once it gets started but there is quite a lot of complicated background material to digest along the way. The author includes a list of terms and definitions which is helpful. Several typos also detract from a smooth reading.
Readers will become invested in the characters and will be disappointed that they have to wait for the next volume to continue with their story.
Disclosure: This article is not an endorsement, but a review. The publisher of this book provided free copies of the book and paid a small fee to have their book reviewed by a professional reviewer. Foreword Reviews and Clarion Reviews make no guarantee that the publisher will receive a positive review. Foreword Magazine, Inc. is disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
