The Oracle Glass

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Overview

With imaginative verve, intelligence, and exceptional detail, The Oracle Glass captures the rich tang of one of history's most irresistible eras. Spinning actual police records from the reign of Louis XIV into a darkly captivating story, it follows the fortunes of Genevieve Pasquier, a fifteen-year-old girl who has been transformed into an imperious, seemingly infallible fortune-teller... Genevieve is a skinny, precocious little monkey with a mind full of philosophy and the power to read the swirling waters of an oracle glass - for a demimonde who will believe anything. Left for dead by her family, Genevieve is taken in by La Voisin, an ingenious occultist and omnipotent society fortune-teller. La Voisin also rules a
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Overview

With imaginative verve, intelligence, and exceptional detail, The Oracle Glass captures the rich tang of one of history's most irresistible eras. Spinning actual police records from the reign of Louis XIV into a darkly captivating story, it follows the fortunes of Genevieve Pasquier, a fifteen-year-old girl who has been transformed into an imperious, seemingly infallible fortune-teller... Genevieve is a skinny, precocious little monkey with a mind full of philosophy and the power to read the swirling waters of an oracle glass - for a demimonde who will believe anything. Left for dead by her family, Genevieve is taken in by La Voisin, an ingenious occultist and omnipotent society fortune-teller. La Voisin also rules a secret society of witches - abortionists and poisoners - who manipulate the lives of the rich and scandalous all the way up to the throne. Tutored by La Voison, Genevieve creates a new identity for herself - as the mysterious Madame de Morville, complete with an antique black dress, a powdered face, a cane, and a wickedly sarcastic streakwho is supposedly nearly one hundred fifty years old. 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 deniedpower, an independent income, and the opportunity to speak her mind. Beneath her intelligence and wit, what drives Genevieve is a private revenge - but what she doesn't expect is for love to come in the bargain.

A bold, exquisitely imagined novel of masquerade and murder, witchcraft, wonder, and romance in the magnificent court of Louis XIV. Skinny, precocious Genevieve possesses the remarkable power to read the swirling waters of an oracle glass. Tutored by the ingenious occultist La Voisin, she reinvents herslf as a mysterious 150-year-old fortune-teller, and revels in the prizes that few women of her time can attain.

Editorial Reviews

Publishers Weekly
From the author of In Pursuit of the Green Lion comes a novel set in 17th-century Paris and Versailles, tinged with the occult and a feminist sensibility. The younger daughter of a loveless marriage between a scholar and a woman of high breeding, Genevieve Pasquier appears to have few prospects, since she was born with a deformed leg. Taught Latin by her father, however, she has a keen intelligence that stands her in good stead when, after leaving home as a teenager, she is adopted by a wealthy fortune-teller as her protegee. Genevieve has the gift of seeing the future in water, a talent that Catherine Montvoison, a real-life figure who was both a seer and an undercover abortionist to the aristocracy, quickly exploits. Played out against the background of Louis XIV's court, the narrative offers ample glances into the lives of the nobility, as well as intrigue and a love triangle involving Genevieve, an outlaw and a society playwright. Unfortunately, the author's impressive knowledge of the time is offset by wooden characterization and predictable plotting, and her story never quite breaks the bounds of competent genre fiction. Toward the climax, scenes of torture, witch-hunts and executions will satisfy those who like their historical fiction laced with a touch of horror; for readers who enjoy an exotic setting with a celebrity slant, the novel offers an intriguing vacation read. (June)
Library Journal
Once again Riley (Vision of Light, LJ 10/ 15/90; In Pursuit of the Green Lion, LJ 1/ 89) has written an outstanding historical novel of 17th-century France, permeated by a feminist consciousness that enlivens her work without dominating it. Genevieve Pasquier, the ugly, scholarly daughter of a financier who fell along with Nicholas Fouquet, is beloved by her father but no one else; when he dies she is imprisoned by selfish relatives convinced that she has access to a secret fortune. Escaping, she is saved from suicide by a notorious occultist and her secret organization. They transform her into the Marquise de Morville, whose mystery and fortune-telling gifts capture the attention of members of the Sun King's court. Based on a real-life scandal known as the ``Affaire des Poisons,'' this tale is riveting from start to finish. [Literary Guild selection.]-Cynthia Johnson, Cary Memorial Lib., Lexington, Mass.
More Reviews (1) Fewer Reviews
School Library Journal
YA-Genevieve Pasquier is an educated, skinny, crooked-backed 15-year-old when her beloved father dies. After her uncle rapes her, she runs away, desiring only to end her pain by drowning herself. Instead, she is taken in by La Voisin, a wealthy fortune-teller, abortionist, and chemist who rules the seamier side of 17th-century Paris. La Voisin sets her up in her own business disguised as ``Madame de Morville,'' an 150-year-old seeress who interprets images that appear in an oracle glass. This profitable venture throws young Genevieve into a world of court intrigue, political back-stabbing, demonology, and revenge, and she discovers that she enjoys the independence denied to most women of the time. When she is invited to the palace to read the waters for Louis XIV, she slides from favor and is suspected of participating in a poisoning ring. In a desperate race against time, she must rely on her own wits and on a man she loves to save herself. Mature YAs will relish her development from a weak and naive child to a witty and powerful woman who manipulates degenerate, superstitious Parisian society to her own advantage.-Susan R. Farber, Chappaqua Library, NY

Product Details

  • ISBN-13: 9780449910061
  • Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
  • Publication date: 10/17/1995
  • Edition description: First Ballantine Books Edition
  • Edition number: 1
  • Pages: 507
  • Product dimensions: 5.52 (w) x 8.30 (h) x 1.18 (d)

Customer Reviews

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Sort by: Showing all of 5 Customer Reviews

  • Anonymous

    Posted January 20, 2005

    Amazing!!!

    I love this book. The characters are rich, the details are accurate, and the story is inspiring. JMR is a genius, and I love all her books. I loved all the characters, especially Astaroth/Sylvie. They are so hilarious and vivid.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted April 5, 2004

    Five stars is not enough!

    I borrowed this book from the library and ended up with so much overdue fines and worse I had to pay for the book cause I refused to return it. It was that good! This book has EVERYTHING. A great historical theme,a strong and brilliant heroine, an intellectual and lovable hero and a delicious lovestory. Who could ask for more? One more thing, I always love Ms Riley's thorough and very realistic approach to historical settings. She does the best research and puts them into pen and paper with just enough breath to make them oh so alive for her readers. This one in particular is her best work ever! This is a must read!

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  • Anonymous

    Posted May 6, 2000

    Absolutely Incredible!!!

    i can't say enough wonderful things about this book. as an avid reader of eveything from romance, to Star Wars, to nonfictional world history, i would still have to say that its one of the best books i have ever read, if not the best. Ms. Reily has presented a marvelous, well-written story, full of unforgetteable charaters, and just the right mix of romance, intrigue, magic,betrayal, and emotion. Any collection is empty without it.

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  • Anonymous

    Posted March 9, 2000

    Who needs TV with Books like this!!!!

    Strictly picky about my reading choices, I was turned onto JMR by another author. Riley has a mastery of detail and history that makes not only the fictional characters life like but the true ones too!!! A beautiful blend of Parisian history, sorcery, romance and adventure. The story turns like a serpents head but never leads you far from your path. A must for the historical novel reader! I recomend it so much I've already given my copy away to a friend.

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.

  • Anonymous

    Posted February 27, 2000

    A Great Book!

    I loved this book and read it diligently from the moment I found it. The characters are well written and realistic, the plot really lets you know where the book is going, and it's a wonderful ride the whole way through. I loved the Marquise de Morville, otherwise known as Genevieve Pasquier. It is well worth the read. If you enjoy tales of sorcery, you'll be learning about seventeeth century Paris while you read as well!

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