Romantasy

Review: The Oracle of Dusk by Elyse Thomson

June 25, 2026

Synopsis:

An oracle should know better than to fall for a doomed king.

Aurora is a historian—not a prophesied hero. But the day she finds her first artefact, destiny pits her against the primordial monster that has repeatedly destroyed her world. Cornered by the beast, she escapes death when the artefact sends her to the ancient past and gifts her one chance to kill the monster before it’s unstoppable. Except it also lands her in the arms of King Theron, a handsome schemer infamous for his tragic fate.

Theron is a bad man but an excellent king. When a battlefield mishap sends him to an enemy queendom in chains, the last thing he expects to find is a beauty with the knowledge to save his kingdom and crush his foes. Tempted by Aurora’s uncanny foresight, Theron vows to possess her at any cost.

Aurora’s only hope to defeat the monster in the ancient past is Theron’s army. With her world’s future at stake, she knows better than to succumb to his seduction, yet finds herself hopelessly drawn to him. But as she awakens magic that torments her with visions of predestined tragedies, Aurora begins to fear her heart is as doomed as the man—and world—she’s trying to save.

Review:

The beginning part of the book was something I really liked. Aurora enjoys her quiet life. She focuses on her studies, and her best friend Phaedra is making life a lot more enjoyable.
When one day a stranger shows up to collect her and tells her that she is suddenly a key player in saving the world from evil taking over, she not only doubts her role but is not particularly willing to leave. When she is finally convinced (she is also not left with much of a chance) of the importance of her role, she begins her journey.

The story had so much potential, and I was hoping for more than what I got in the end. I’m not the most knowledgeable person about Zelda, so I cannot speak about any references or accuracy here. What I can confirm is that we got a personal journey of growth, a hero vs. villain story, an adventure, and some time travel – and also a romance.
The time travel arc had so much potential but lacked execution for me. Travelling back and finding out about the origins – and the potential to avoid the same events happening over and over in the future – had a lot of promise, especially with Aurora’s keen interest in historical events. What I got instead was a story that felt dragging in parts, with character interactions I wasn’t very interested in, and a romance that I did not fully support. All of this felt like it took away from the main story and made it seem more like a side plot that lost some of its direction. If that part had been shortened a bit, it would have made for a more compelling story. It felt like too much happening at once, but also nothing really advancing a lot (as if we forgot the eminent danger in between).

Overall, I enjoyed it, but more for its potential. I’m hoping that the next book in the series will deliver on that front.

🌙 Recension: The Starlight Princess (Cycle of Calamity #1) by Elyse Thomson
📚 Genre: Romantasy
📅 Release Date: May 28, 2025
📖 Publisher: ‎Two Laurels Press
📗 available in various formats
📱 Read as: Kindle
💸 I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
🗣️ Language: English
📆 Pages: 437
⭐️ 3/5