In 1355, Margaret of Ashbury depends on renegade friar Brother Gregory to record her life story and state of Mystic Union, and he is forced to accept the state of grace of this "mere woman"
"Open the pages, and out comes a whiff of brimstone, as The Oracle Glass transports you to the Paris of kings and witches, on a guided tour of corruption, love, and sorcery." --Diana Gabaldon Seventeenth-century Paris. Genevieve is a skinny, precocious girl with a mind full of philosophy and the remarkable power to read the swirling waters of an oracle glass. Left for dead by her family, she is taken in by the ingenious occultist La Voisin, who rules a secret society of witches that manipulates the rich and the scandalous all the way up to the throne. Tutored by La Voisin, Genevieve creates a new identity for herself--as the mysterious Madame de Morville, rumored to be one hundred fifty years old. Soon, even the reigning mistress of the Sun King himself consults Madame de Morville on what the future holds for her. And as Madame de Morville, Genevieve can revel in what women are usually denied--power, an independent income, and the opportunity to speak her mind. But beneath her intelligence and wit, and in the face of unexpected love, Genevieve is driven by the obsessed spirit of revenge.... "INTELLIGENT, WITTY AND ELEGANTLY WRITTEN." --San Francisco Chronicle "Judith Merkle Riley's novels are small jewels, smooth and polished, glowing with a light all their own....Merkle Riley has her own oracle glass--and she uses it to see as vividly into the past as her Genevieve sees into the future." --Detroit Free Press "Enlightening, enticing...The author's own alchemical skill is fully evident here as dashes of black magic and sorcery are added to spice the lively plot. Liberal sprinklings of wry wit and mordant humor help keep the narrative cauldron bubbling." --TheCleveland Plain Dealer
In the year 2051, Earth stood on the brink of acceptance as full member of the Galactic Milieu, a confederation of worlds spread across the galaxy. Leading humanity was the powerful Remillard family, but somebody--or something--known only as "Fury" wanted them out of the way. Only Rogi Remillard, the chosen tool of the most powerful alien being in the Milieu, and his nephew Marc, the greatest metapsychic yet born on Earth, knew about Fury. But even they were powerless to stop it when it began to kill off Remillards and other metapsychic operants--and all the suspects were Remillards themselves. Meanwhile, a Remillard son was born, a boy who could represent the future of all humanity. His incredible mind was more powerful even than his brother Marc's--but he was destined to be desroyed by his own DNA...unless Fury got to him first!
