The Black Bird Oracle 🐦‍⬛

By Deborah Harkness.

⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

“Everyone in the family knew that the quickest way to soothe my ruffled feathers was to put a book in one of my hands and a cup of tea in the other.”

As a long-time fan of the All Souls series, including the TV show, I was thrilled to step back into the world of Diana and Matthew in The Black Bird Oracle.

The series has always held a special place in my heart, and I was eager to see what new challenges and revelations awaited them. The book brings us a more mature Diana, now balancing her role as a historian, a powerful witch, and a mother. Her family’s peaceful life is upended when their daughter Becca receives a mysterious gift from a dying raven, leading Diana on a journey to uncover long-buried secrets about her Proctor heritage.

One of the most intriguing aspects of the book is its deep dive into magic. While previous entries in the series explored history and politics, this one shifts focus almost entirely to Higher Magic, wands, and the complexities of Light, Darkness, and Shadow.

Despite my excitement, I found the book to be a bit overcrowded with characters and plotlines. At times, the narrative felt scattered, making it harder to stay fully immersed. There were so many threads woven throughout Diana’s journey to Salem, the Congregation’s involvement, Matthew’s interactions with the Proctor family, and the evolving magic system that it sometimes felt like too much to absorb at once.

Most significantly, some of Diana’s choices did not quite align with the character development from the previous books, which made parts of her journey feel inconsistent.

It truly pains me that this was not a five-star read because I love Deborah Harkness and her writing. While The Black Bird Oracle offers fascinating expansions to the All Souls world and sets up intriguing possibilities for future books, it lacks the gripping, cohesive storytelling of the original trilogy. That said, there is still plenty to enjoy, and I will always be eager for more from this world. Fingers crossed this will be adapted into the TV show as well.

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