AUGUST 2018 - AudioFile
Imagine being given 108 predictions of the future that all come true, one at a time. What would a person do with that knowledge? Everyman Will Dando does his best, while selling certain predictions for billions of dollars on the side. He posts the rest, so the world can learn from them. Narrator Charlie Thurston carefully leads the listener down the story’s path with subtle intonations suggesting that our hero is never quite sure he is doing the right thing. Some predictions are mundane, like a man peppering his steak, while others warn of deadly catastrophes. Is it any wonder the oracle is treated like a god? From the author of Marvel comic series such as Daredevil and She-Hulk, this is outstanding work that challenges the listener's idea of right and wrong. M.S. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine
Publishers Weekly
01/01/2018
When struggling New York City bassist Will Dando, the hero of bestselling comic book writer Soule’s wildly entertaining first novel, awakens with the precise knowledge of future events—some seemingly trivial and others of monumental importance—he and a longtime friend decide to slowly disclose the information online as the omniscient Oracle. As the world’s population becomes obsessed with the Oracle’s posts—some thinking he’s a savior and others vilifying him—unmasking the Oracle’s identity becomes the prime objective for government agencies, religious groups, and journalists worldwide. On the run from those seeking to kill him or exploit his knowledge, Dando realizes that all the predictions are somehow connected and that someone—or something—could be orchestrating the end of the world. Although the premise is a bit shaky, the relentless pacing, richly developed characters, and brilliant ending make this apocalyptic speculative thriller an undeniable page-turner. Agent: Seth Fishman, Gernert Company. (Apr.)
From the Publisher
Here’s my prediction: this book will seep into your soul. The Oracle Year is about knowing the future—and what you do with that knowledge. As you meet Will Dando, you can’t help but reevaluate yourself. Get ready for the best kind of fun.” — Brad Meltzer, New York Times bestselling author of The Inner Circle
“Anyone will enjoy this comically fast-paced tale about Will Dando, who wakes up one day with 108 wacky and world-shattering predictions.” — Washington Post
“Soule’s The Oracle Year is like a sliding puzzle, except every time you think you can predict what the image will be, new pieces slide into place. It’s a wonderfully mysterious thriller that proves Soule is as much a master of prose as he is of comic book script.” — Chuck Wendig, New York Times bestselling author of Invasive and Blackbirds
“A thrilling, noodle-bending adventure that keeps readers guessing until the very end.” — Kirkus
“Wildly entertaining. . . . the relentless pacing, richly developed characters, and brilliant ending make this apocalyptic speculative thriller an undeniable page-turner.” — Publishers Weekly
“With The Oracle Year, Soule has created something truly special, both a globe-spanning thriller, and a razor-witted look at the modern human condition. The Oracle Year is easily one of the best debuts I’ve read in years.” — Scott Snyder, New York Times bestselling author of Wytches, Batman, and A.D.
“Soule’s background in comics shows in this dark, rollicking tale.” — Booklist
“This volatile and unpredictable novel will entertain and keep you guessing until the very end.” — New York Journal of Books
“The Oracle Year has all of the elements of a straight-ahead action thriller, while exploring faith, politics, and personal responsibility with heart and a sly, satirical wit straight out of the funny pages.” — Barnes & Noble Sci-Fi Blog
Barnes &Noble Sci-Fi Blog
“The Oracle Year has all of the elements of a straight-ahead action thriller, while exploring faith, politics, and personal responsibility with heart and a sly, satirical wit straight out of the funny pages.
Barnes & Noble Sci-Fi Blog
“The Oracle Year has all of the elements of a straight-ahead action thriller, while exploring faith, politics, and personal responsibility with heart and a sly, satirical wit straight out of the funny pages.
Scott Snyder
With The Oracle Year, Soule has created something truly special, both a globe-spanning thriller, and a razor-witted look at the modern human condition. The Oracle Year is easily one of the best debuts I’ve read in years.
Chuck Wendig
Soule’s The Oracle Year is like a sliding puzzle, except every time you think you can predict what the image will be, new pieces slide into place. It’s a wonderfully mysterious thriller that proves Soule is as much a master of prose as he is of comic book script.
New York Journal of Books
This volatile and unpredictable novel will entertain and keep you guessing until the very end.
Booklist
Soule’s background in comics shows in this dark, rollicking tale.
Washington Post
Anyone will enjoy this comically fast-paced tale about Will Dando, who wakes up one day with 108 wacky and world-shattering predictions.
Booklist
Soule’s background in comics shows in this dark, rollicking tale.
Brad Meltzer
Here’s my prediction: this book will seep into your soul. The Oracle Year is about knowing the future—and what you do with that knowledge. As you meet Will Dando, you can’t help but reevaluate yourself. Get ready for the best kind of fun.
Washington Post
Anyone will enjoy this comically fast-paced tale about Will Dando, who wakes up one day with 108 wacky and world-shattering predictions.
AUGUST 2018 - AudioFile
Imagine being given 108 predictions of the future that all come true, one at a time. What would a person do with that knowledge? Everyman Will Dando does his best, while selling certain predictions for billions of dollars on the side. He posts the rest, so the world can learn from them. Narrator Charlie Thurston carefully leads the listener down the story’s path with subtle intonations suggesting that our hero is never quite sure he is doing the right thing. Some predictions are mundane, like a man peppering his steak, while others warn of deadly catastrophes. Is it any wonder the oracle is treated like a god? From the author of Marvel comic series such as Daredevil and She-Hulk, this is outstanding work that challenges the listener's idea of right and wrong. M.S. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine
Kirkus Reviews
2018-01-28
A man who can see the future—in cryptic fragments—wreaks havoc on the world stage as millions wait breathlessly for every single prediction.This is Soule's debut novel, although he's spent years writing some of the most popular superhero characters for Marvel, DC, Image, and more. Here, he uses his keen eye to create a whip-smart thriller that employs the tiniest bit of speculative fiction, spinning an entertaining, keenly satirical tale about behavior and causality. In a clever twist, Soule starts his novel in the middle of the story, as "scruffy, underemployed" bass player Will Dando flirts with a woman at a bar, hinting that he's the mysterious figure known in popular culture as "The Oracle." In fact, Will does know some of the future, as revealed to him in 108 predictions in a dream. They can be as benign as a woman buying milk or as deadly as a bridge collapse. Will has been working with his best friend, Hamza Sheikh, and Hamza's pregnant wife, Miko, to sell certain predictions to corporations for hundreds of millions of dollars while posting others on an incredibly popular website known simply as "The Site." He has good intentions. "The predictions came to me. I'm using my best judgement about what to do with them," he later tells spunky reporter Leigh Shore, who becomes an ally. But Will quickly draws the ire of a range of powerful and dangerous figures that include the president of the United States, a hypocritical televangelist, and the most interesting foe, a sly, grandmotherly assassin known only as "The Coach." Soule finesses Will's dilemma with a Byzantine plot in which Will and his companions can't tell if the prophecies are coalescing into a dangerous endgame or their very lives are being manipulated by the arc of the predictions.A thrilling, noodle-bending adventure that keeps readers guessing until the very end.
