Title: The Auguries by F.G. Cottam
Publisher: Severn House Publishers
Genre: Contemporary, Horror, Occult
Length: 208 pages
Book Rating: C+
Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley
Summary:
An unexpected lunar eclipse. A poisonous fog that cripples the capital. Statues that weep blood.
As the catalogue of calamities mount, fear and paranoia provoke rumours of terrorist attacks. But from whom?
History professor Juliet Harrington is an authority on sixteenth-century mysticism and a long-time believer in the existence of the Almanac of Forbidden Wisdom, a potent spell-book legend insists was compiled in that period by a cabal of powerful occultists. Its magic is summoned though only at disastrous cost, signalled by The Auguries. Juliet is convinced that the recent plague of disasters means someone reckless is using the book – and she has little time left to stop them.
Review:
The Auguries by F.G. Cottam is an intriguing blend of occult and horror elements.
Fourteen year old altar boy Andrew Baxter is disturbed enough about troubling occurrences during a recent funeral to talk to his parish priest Father Gould. During the course of their discussion, the term “the unrestful dead” immediately comes to the priest’s mind. In an effort to learn more information, Gould reads a monograph by Professor Juliet Harrington in which a rumored book, Almanac of Forbidden Wisdom, might be responsible for recent tragic events.
It turns out Britain’s Home Secretary also believes this book containing numerous spells is at the heart of their country’s latest catastrophes. He convinces Juliet to travel to Germany in hopes of learning where German alchemist Gunter Keller (who was burned at the stake centuries earlier) hid the Almanac. As these cataclysmic events continue at an alarming rate in Britain, the fate of the world rests on Juliet locating and neutralizing the book. Will she accomplish this near herculean task?
Unbeknownst to Gould or Juliet, the Almanac of Forbidden Wisdom has fallen into the hands of young local girl in his parish. She does not comprehend the correlation between her experiments and the tragic events occurring in Britain. And even if she does eventually figure out the connection, will she stop performing the spells in the book?
Juliet is aided by translator Paul Beck as they scour Keller’s long ago writings that begin in 1528. They uncover alarming information that in turn leads to their frenetic attempts to track down the writings of other people involved with the spells in the Almanac of Forbidden Wisdom. Juliet also knows how to stop the current catastrophes from continuing, but she must locate the book. She is edging ever closer to uncovering the Almanac’s whereabouts but will Juliet get there before it is too late?
The Auguries features an interesting premise but the pacing is slow and some passages are a bit repetitious. The translations of the centuries old works are quite fascinating. However, the story arc in the present hinges on unrealistic circumstances surrounding the novel’s antagonist. The horror and occult aspects of the storyline are extremely well written and very interesting. F.G. Cottam brings the novel to an ambiguous conclusion that is rather frustrating. A bit of a mixed bag, but an overall entertaining read.
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