The Queen's Oracle is the final part of the Tamir Triad by Lynn Flewelling. I read and reviewed the previous two books as well and although Flewelling basically has a good story there, the books are nonetheless never more than entertaining. I was hoping that the final part would be better, but I'm afraid it is the worst of the lot. It killed any desire I had left to pick up another one of her books quite effectively. I thought it a very predictable book so I didn't bother with avoiding spoilers at all cost.

At the end of Hidden Warrior Tobin/Tamir makes an attempt to seize the throne. Unfortunately her beloved cousin and Heir-Apparent Korin escapes the carnage caused by a Plenimar invasion and makes for the stronghold of Cirna. He declares Tamir a traitor but she retains quite a bit of support in the aftermath of the invasion. While Tamir starts rebuilding and gathering support Korin's councillor, the wizard Niryn introduces him to his new wife. A distant cousin of royal blood and one the the last living women of Thelatimos' line. Niryn hopes to strengthen Korin's claim by producing a female heir. Tamir is in no hurry to start a civil war but it appears armed conflict cannot be avoided.

On top of all that Tamir has to deal with the fact she now has a female body and the impact that has on her relationship with her squire Ki. It also appears the transformation isn't a complete success as the spectres of her past still haunt Tamir. Quite a lot to deal with for a fifteen year old girl.

As I said, Flewelling basically has a good, if not very original, story here. The problem is in the excecution. Nowhere in this book (or the previous one for that matter) does she get anywhere close to drawing a convincing character going through a gender identity crisis. There is quite a bit of truth is the saying that a man's penis is his best friend, removing it, magically or by other means, has a big psychological impact. She does ponder these changes in the scarce moments she is not dealing with matters of state but most of these thoughts are reserved for problem of convincing Ki she is actually a woman. In fact, Ki is probably more confused than Tamir is. That just doesn't work for me.

Another problem with this book is that is dreadfully predictable. You can see the "they lived happily ever after" a mile off. Things don't go particularly smoothly for Tamir but no unexpected problems arise, her Hill-Witch saviour arrives in her hour of need and the demise of the evil wizard couldn't have come at a better time. I suppose the climatic final confrontation between Tamir and Korin is pretty well done, even if Tamir's battle plan doesn't make all that much sense, but that is about all I can say in favour of this book.

The problems don't end there though, it turns out that the magical object Arkoniel has been lugging around for most of the trilogy has no significant role in the story. In her afterword the author mentions we may find out in future books? Why on earth did she mention it a dozen times if it is completely irrelevant to the story? It's the one thing in the book that isn't utterly predictable and we end up with this?

The Oracle's Queen is a disappointing ending to a trilogy that showed promise but never delivered. It's a predictable straightforward fantasy novel. If you are looking for a uncomplicated read this may be your book, but for something that challenges, a book that really fires the imagination, you'll have to look elsewhere.

Other Reviews of works by Lynn Flewelling

Hidden Warrior - May 17, 2008

The Bone Doll's Twin - Mar 30, 2008

Luck in the Shadows - Oct 6, 2005