Oracle

In the not-too-distant future, system administrator and self-styled defender of information systems Jane Deerfield, dressed as her vinyl-clad alter-ego, "Oracle", prepares to head home on a lonely Halloweed night, two hours past curfew. Suddenly, caught in an explosion of energy, she feels herself hurled through time and space to end up in a world beyond her comprehension. The first person she encounters is Daken, a king set out on a quest to rescue his people from a mysterious enemy known as the Tarveen. Although he revives Jane from her initial state of near-death, he spares her little time. His goal, as he makes his way East, is to beseech the Elven Lord to aid in his people's struggle. Specifically, he needs an army. Daken casts a special language spell on Jane so that she can understand him, but unfortunately she still won't be able to communicate with anyone else. This, along with the fact that she knows nothing about Daken's mysterious world, puts her in the unavoidable position of his travelling companion as he continues his journey. Although the two share an immediate attraction (and a bit of vigorous sex), Jane is still quite wary of her rescuer. For one, as an uncompromising pacifist she cannot accept that any war is ever an acceptable solution, and she opposes Daken's mission to raise an army. For another, she's the sort of woman who can get put off by a marriage proposal delivered by an almost complete stranger (a VERY funny scene). For his part, Daken has been forced onto the throne by the deaths of his father and older brother, and doesn't understand why he can't get Jane to realize what a convenient thing it would be for both of them if he could return to his people with both an army behind him and a queen by his side. After all, as he's so fond of repeating, he's a very wealthy king. Greyle's story takes her reader through an elaborately crafted world of magic, ghosts, mutations and romance. With multiple villains, adventures, and twists, this could easily have been turned into a trilogy. And as a single book, it's packed with more plot than almost any other romance I've ever encountered. Not only did I think this book was fantastic, but my husband, an avid sci-fi and fantasy reader who never even touches romance, read it for himself and loved it too. One last note: Before I sat down to write this review, I did a quick check and discovered that "Oracle" won the following prestigious awards: Holt Medallion Award - Best First Book Holt Medallion Award - Best Paranormal PRISM Award - Best Futuristic Fantasy PRISM Award - Best of the Best in 1999 Romance Writers of America "Rita" Award finalist for Best First Book A great book: five stars and even more if I could give them.

by ChereIt's Halloween and Jane Deerfield is dressed in her costume. She's dressed as her favorite comic book hero, the Oracle. Instead of the boots, she has on bright orange hightops. Of course, she's already missed all of the celebrations. Once again, she's stuck working on the computers in the college where she works. As a computer nerd, this is an occupational hazard for her. She's just getting ready to leave, when there's a sudden explosion. She feels herself being pulled into some kind of vortex, and then nothing.She wakes up ice cold in some sort of a field. When she opens her eyes, there's her fantasy man come to life. He speaks to her, but she can't understand a word he says. Somehow, he manages to get her warmed up. He does some kind of a spell on her, and she can now understand everything he says to her. But he is only one that she can understand. He introduces himself to her as King Daken and tells her that he is a healer. He tries to explain to her that all Kings are healers. Daken is from Chigan and he is on his way to see the Elven King, Ginsen, in Bosuny. Daken's people are being attacked by the Tarveen and he wants the Elven King to give him an army so he can destroy them. So, they travel by foot to Bosuny. Jane finally comes to the realization that she was sucked into some kind of vortex and transported to a different planet. She knows that she is an alien here and wants nothing more than to go back to her own world. She is definitely attracted to Daken and he is also attracted to her. She notices that everything around her has some kind of energy. This place that Jane ended up is something like a medieval setting. There are no machines but magic is rampant, right down to living rivers. They finally get to Bosuny and it turns out that the Elven King's castle is actually the University that Jane used to work at. Daken takes her to the "House of Prophecy". Jane can't believe what she finds inside. It turns out to be the computer that she was working on when the explosion occurred. Jane will now become the Keeper of Knowledge and have a seat on the Ruling Council if she can get the computer running again. She looks around her and finds a boy. She calls him Steve and decides to make him her assistant. Daken helps her as much as he can. She runs into her old boss, Dr. Beavesly, who is now a ghost in the computer system itself. Somehow, he melds with her mind and she has access to all of his memories. This is when the horror really comes into play as Jane is forced to relive what happened to her world. Some tech somewhere screwed up and started a nuclear holocaust. The magic that all of these people possess is, in reality, radio activeness. Some of the people managed to survive and melded with other living things in order to survive and it is now 200 years into Jane's future. Now, Jane has a mission. She has to get the computer up and running and she has to keep the planet from destroying itself again. She loves Daken, but he is co

Jane Deerfield was a computer tech in the year 2012. On Halloween night the nuclear bomb fell and threw her forward in time two centuries. Jane awoke to find herself a stranger in a strange land. She was in a land where magic was real and technology was unheard of. "Doctors" were referred to as "Kings". So King Daken found her in a meadow and nursed her back to health. She learned that Daken's people were in danger of extinction by a murdering race called Tarveen. He was enroute to the Elven Lord to plea for an army. She traveled with Daken and found herself face-to-face with a dismantled computer. A prophecy stated that someone from the past would someday come and understand what all the parts were. That person would become the "Keeper of Knowledge". Once together, Jane would get answers to all everything. But the knowledge would threaten many who plot and plan, even Daken's plans. Jane only knew she had to keep this new world from making the same mistakes her old world did. ***** Author Katherine Greyle has made a new fan in me! This story was AWESOME! Romance, Fantasy, and Sci-Fi rolled into one. Highly recommended reading for male or female! ***** Reviewed by Detra Fitch.

I have to say I enjoyed finally reading romance with a tone down cover! but cover aside I found I really enjoyed the book. It was funny, dramatic, sweet and even frustrating. I got mad at the heroine for being stupid and the hero for being... well... a man.It also made me think. How would I feel in the same situation?I would have liked a bit more back story. Like how society got to were it was in 2012, but maybe thats a story for another day.However I disagree with a previous reviewer. With our currently level of dependency on technology a smart person could tumble governments by cutting out the financial base underneath, and create havoc and change the very fabric of society easily. It is possible, unlikely but yes possible. (for that matter one terrorist, one nuke, NYC, the economic impact HUGE!) and all I have to say about the comment on the change in language in 200 years is this: I'd loved to see a conversation between George Washington and Eminem, and that is with a public schools system keeping the language relatively stable. Now imagine no schools for 200 years. Slang takes on a whole new meaning.I would have to suggest you read the book yourself.

Jane Deerfield works on the Boston University Computer system in the near future. A cataclysmic event catapults her into a world filled with a particular magic. . . and fueled by legend. She meets King Daken, a powerful handsome man, who is determined to bring peace to his land, a land devastated by the evil Tarveen. When Jane is proclaimed the Oracle, the keeper of knowledge, she struggles between her newly-discovered love for Daken and her duty to prevent this world from destroying itself as hers had. Wizards, Elven Lords, ancient spirits. . . Oracle's fabulous world is vivid, mesmerizing and action-packed. More than a keeper, Oracle's timeless themes, seamlessly rendered, destine it to be a classic. A legendary romance from a brilliant fresh voice, Katherine Greyle.