Review: Damian's Oracle (War of Gods #1) by Lizzy Ford

Synopsis (Goodreads):

Inspired by Slavic mythology, Damien’s Oracle is the entree into the ongoing battle between good and evil over the fate of humanity. The White God, Damian, and his Guardians protect the world from the Black God and his monsters while rescuing Naturals – humans with extraordinary paranormal gifts - from the Black God, who would kill or convert them.

Caught in the middle is cool-headed Sofia, a Natural whose gift will tip the scales in the war. Sofia begins her transformation from human into oracle, the first in thousands of years. Damian rescues her from the Black God in time to complete a ceremony that will bind her to him for eternity. Sofia struggles with her new world and her role as an oracle and Damian’s mate while haunted by a mysterious man from Damian’s past who’s supposed to be dead. Unbeknownst to her, her link to the dead man may be all that saves Damian, his Guardians, and the fate of humanity.

While he wants nothing more than for the petite beauty to take her place at his side like the oracles of legend did his White God forefathers, Damian can’t quite rationalize having to win her over instead of command her. Further complicating his life is the sobering realization that there are spies in his organization who are helping the Black God take out his Guardians. Damian must help Sofia reach her potential fast, especially when a threat from his past returns.

My Thoughts:  I am having thoughts about this book.  Many, many thoughts.  The first one being that Lizzy Ford has some real talent.  She's creating worlds (not just in this book but with all her stories I've read) that make me want to climb inside and wallow in them.  They're dark and painful and yet there's this core of hope running through that speaks to me.

The second thought I'm having is that although I'm classifying this as a paranormal romance, it's fairly light on the romance.  Sofia spends a lot of her time fantasizing about Damian but she's holding herself back from exploring a physical relationship with him as she adjusts to her new life as a bad ass oracle.  Damian is a sexual being and he offers to act on those fantasies often but knowing that she's struggling to find herself amid the new life she's been thrust into he doesn't push.  There's a fascinating push and pull between them as they try to find a balance with one another after Sofia's explosive introduction to his world.

There's a secondary tormented hero-type that I'm loving here, too.  However, I don't want to go into too much detail about him so you can watch him unfold in bits and pieces and feel how damaged he is.  Come to think of it, the entire supporting cast is well-rounded and strong.  They alternately support the main characters and challenge them to make them stronger.

Damian's Oracle is a fast paced, sometimes tragic story that kept me reading well into the night.  Lizzy Ford has created dynamic characters and an intriguing world that feels big enough to spawn several stories.  It looks like I'm going to have to pick up book 2 to see how our heroes fare.

More books by Lizzy Ford

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