The Diviner

During one month in the autumn of election year 2000, scores of movie-business strivers are focused on one goal: getting a piece of an elusive, but surely huge, television saga, the one that opens with Huns sweeping through Mongolia and closes with a Mormon diviner in the Las Vegas desert; the sure-to-please-everyone multigenerational TV miniseries about diviners, those miracle workers who bring water to perpetually thirsty (and hungry and love-starved) humankind. Among the wannabes: Vanessa Meandro, hot-tempered head of Means of Production, an indie film company; her harried and varied staff; a Sikh cab driver, promoted to the office of -theory and practice of TV; a bipolar bicycle messenger, who makes a fateful mis-delivery; two celebrity publicists, the Vanderbilt girls; a thriller writer who gives Botox parties; the daughter of an L.A. big-shot, who is hired to fetch Vanessa's Krispy Kremes and more; a word man who coined the phrase -- inspired by a true story; and a supreme court justice who wants to write the script.A few true artists surface in the course of Moody's rollicking but intricately woven novel, and real emotion eventually blossoms for most of Vanessa's staff at Means of Production, even herself. The Diviners is a cautionary tale about pointless ambition; a richly detailed look at the interlocking worlds of money, politics, addiction, sex, work, and family in modern America; and a masterpiece of comedy that will bring Rick Moody to a still higher level of appreciation.

The culmination and completion of Margaret Laurence’s celebrated Manawaka cycle, The Diviners is an epic novel. This is the powerful story of an independent woman who refuses to abandon her search for love. For Morag Gunn, growing up in a small Canadian prairie town is a toughening process – putting distance between herself and a world that wanted no part of her. But in time, the aloneness that had once been forced upon her becomes a precious right – relinquished only in her overwhelming need for love. Again and again, Morag is forced to test her strength against the world – and finally achieves the life she had determined would be hers. The Diviners has been acclaimed by many critics as the outstanding achievement of Margaret Laurence’s writing career. In Morag Gunn, Laurence has created a figure whose experience emerges as that of all dispossessed people in search of their birthright, and one who survives as an inspirational symbol of courage and endurance. The Diviners received the Governor General’s Award for Fiction for 1974.

Quinn has a rare and powerful gift, one that manifested from the rage and trauma of her harrowing childhood. Years later, the anger she can't let go of makes her an unpredictable and dangerous weapon of last resort for a kingdom on the brink of war. Diviners like Quinn are venerated yet feared, protected yet exploited. Bonded to the Queen, they are forced to endure hardship and sacrifice to protect her empire. After a near loss in a key battle and the death of the Diviner of Fire, the Queen calls for aid from the elite soldiers of the allied territories to the East. A striking warrior named Kiran is assigned to protect and train Quinn, and as the pair become close despite the rules that bind them, they discover that the enemies within are just as dangerous as the ones at the gates. Time is running out for Quinn to harness her power. The enemy is closing in around them. Impossible sacrifices haunt every decision Quinn makes. As she fights to keep what little she's claimed as hers, Quinn learns that her destiny might not lie in the hands of fates or kingdoms, but in her own. Praise for The Diviner "The Diviner is a wonderfully immersive fantasy set in a carefully crafted magical world and is as much a deeply emotional love story as a suspenseful adventure. The slow burn became an inferno." - W.D. Henning, author of Paradise Blight and Dark Fall "The Diviner is intricately written, and not like any fantasy story you've read before. This book will get you hooked and you'll build special connections with the characters... (you'll) love Quinn of course, but you'll also fall in love with Kiran, Skye, Adri, and Rolfe. The Diviner is worth the read - every second you spend on it is not wasted." - Aina Untalan, author of Exes and Ohs "Quinn is an actual badass instead of being a damsel in distress, which I hardly ever get to see in books." - Court of Miracles Awards (Finalist) "Fans of fantasy romance series like From Blood And Ash and A Discovery of Witches will love The Diviner." - D. Samms

Anyone can learn to dowse-for precious metals, missing persons, water, the solution to a problem, or a myriad of other objectives. All that is required is practice, awareness, and a working knowledge of basic dowsing principles and mechanics. Tom Graves’ guidebook provides the tools whereby your natural ability to dowse can be turned into a reliable skill. One of the oldest arts and sciences known to man, dowsing is widely used today in fields as diverse as medicine and archeology. The Diviner’s Handbook moves directly into the firsthand experience of dowsing and the heightened sense of awareness that is the dowser’s most important ally. With clear, insightful explanations and generous illustrations, the author shows you how to: • Make and use simple, effective dowsing instruments • Develop dependable methods of analytic and intuitive interpretation • Experiment with a wide range of traditional and personal dowsing techniques • Locate people, objects, and information; diagnose illness; and attune with plants and animals Each of us is capable of detecting the subtle emanations and vibrations that surround us. The Diviner’s Handbook helps you develop your own, individual talent and technique for dowsing as a key to greater knowledge and the time-honored art of divination.

“In addition to scaring the daylights out of us, The Diviner’s Tale stands up for the offbeat and unconventional in human nature” (The Boston Globe). Cassandra Brooks is a diviner, what used to be called a water-witch. Hired by a developer to dowse some land in upstate New York, she is walking a lonely forested valley one spring morning when she comes upon the shocking vision of a young girl hanged from a tree. When she returns with authorities to the site, the body has vanished, leaving in question Cassandra’s credibility, if not her sanity. The next day, during a return visit with the sheriff to have another look, a dazed, mute missing girl emerges from the woods—alive, and the very picture of Cassandra’s hanged girl. What follows is the narrative of ever-deepening and increasingly bizarre divinations that will lead this gifted young woman, the struggling single mother of twin boys, hurtling toward a past she’d long since thought was behind her. The Diviner’s Tale is at once a journey of self-discovery and an unorthodox murder mystery, a tale of the fantastic and a family chronicle told by an otherwise ordinary woman who is about to be locked in a mortal chess match with a real-life killer who has haunted her since before she can remember. “[A] splendidly written mystery . . . A compelling story. Grade: A.” —The Plain Dealer “An astonishing writer.” —Joyce Carol Oates, New York Times–bestselling author of Double Delight “Beautifully written, tight as a tripwire, The Diviner’s Tale isn’t quite like any ghost story I’ve read before.” —Boing Boing “Morrow quietly drops clues as he guides you deeper into the mystery of the dead girl—and into Cass’s own mind.” —The New York Times

Enlil-Bani stood up from the royal palanquin and looked over the crowd, his wrist discreetly shackled to the seat. His head buzzed from deep sorrow, weariness and lack of sleep, yet he was concerned that he might be recognized by anyone he knew. He also felt ashamed to have been substituted for the king, destined to be hung at the end of the day as a murderer. His face and scalp itched from the false wig and beard he wore, designed to make him resemble the genuine king of Isin city. The year is about 1860 B.C.E., Sumeria. If the soothsayers predicted that a calamity would happen to the real king, it was a common practice to create a substitute king in his place. By executing the substitute, the gods would be fooled and the prediction would come true. This day was unique, because Enlil-Bani is known to have survived and remained on the throne for twenty-four years. Called a real page turner, and a total immersion in Sumerian life, The Diviners Chronicle is based on history, and reveals a range of emotions, including ambition and avarice, jealousy and revenge, lust and love, plus loyalty and compassion.

Bestselling author Melanie Rawn's triumphant return to high fantasy. The only survivor of royal treachery that eliminates his entire family, Azzad al-Ma'aliq flees to the desert and dedicates himself to vengeance. With the help of the Shagara, a nomadic tribe of powerful magicians, he will finally be able to take his revenge - but at what cost?

Though many of us suspect that there is more to the physical world than meets the eye, reading diviner Joe Cassidy's story, simply called The Diviner, is still both amazing and inspiring - an experience akin to reading Lorna Byrne's biography Angels in my Hair. Joe Cassidy connects with what lies beneath the surface. He knows a side of life that is at once familiar, mysterious and powerful. In his work he sees the terrible consequences of curses placed on houses, or of ancient sacred sites destroyed. He has a unique insight into the torments caused to the living by trapped spirits and natural phenomena that stress the landscape. In The Diviner, Joe explains the ancient art he practices. He describes how he discovered his gift and why he resisted it for many years, suffering the consequences in stress and ill-health. Over a decade ago he realised he had to accept his destiny and despite having a young family, he began working as a diviner. Since then has worked on over five thousand cases. Joe does not advertise but somehow people find him. Everyone from housewives and lorry drivers, to lawyers and record company executives, turns up at his door. What they each sense is that Joe's timeless insights can help with a problem that appears insoluble. The Diviner is a story of listening, divining and healing that throws a light on a side of life that is both ancient and still very much part of modern life. And it is a fascinating and uplifting story of a life less ordinary. Joe Cassidy lives with his wife and family in Co. Kildare and is in his fifties. His daughter is the author, Laura Jane Cassidy. He has been practicing as a diviner for the past ten years.