THE ORACLE BETRAYED

"Between what I speak and what people hear yawns a vast divide," says the voice of the god to Mirany, a trusted servant, in Welsh author Fisher's sprawling, atmospheric adventure. Set in an ancient culture that blends elements of Greece and Egypt, the novel shifts between the third-person narratives of Mirany, one of the Nine young women who serve the Oracle, and Seth, a scribe who has promised a map of a royal tomb to a vicious gang of thieves. Archon lives a life of seclusion, receiving commands from the god and passing them on to the people through his Speaker—he has no other human contact. Before the Archon dies in a sacrificial ceremony, he passes a note to Mirany, warning that the Speaker is fabricating the words of the god in order to manipulate the masses and tells Mirany she can trust his musician, Oblek. Meanwhile, the people and the land suffer through a crippling season of drought. As Mirany boldly strikes out on her own to find Oblek, she crosses paths with Seth. Fisher constructs a fascinating cosmology, doubly so because of the gravity she grants it. This is no cautionary yarn about the perils of blind faith: Mirany begins as a doubter, despite her placement in the role of priestess of the Oracle, while the corrupt Seth believes there is a god, contrary to his dark actions. Mirany's journey to faith leads her to realize that the rituals do have meanings beyond the symbolic. A crisp, quick-moving narrative and fully fleshed out characters will keep readers hooked to the remaining installments in this trilogy. Ages 10-up. (Mar.)