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Tim Powers is the most creative speculative fiction writer working today, and Declare is a triple-decker masterpiece. No one does wholly other and alien occult worlds as well as Powers. It is the signature of all his work, and it is the uncanny, beating heart of this novel. The second layer of Powers� brilliance on display here is his masterful crafting of hidden history � taking small, obscure details of actual history and re-explaining them through the lens of his occult universe. In Declare, his major historical focus is the notorious British double agent, Kim Philby, but actions of Woodrow Wilson, T.E. Lawrence, Lenin, and other historical notables also figure in. Powers redefines the entire Cold War, and the bulk of twentieth century history through his occult lens. Powers then takes this fascinating occult hidden history and delivers it in a gripping spy novel as cold blooded and convincing as anything by le Carré.

Note that Declare is not a fast paced thriller. It is deliberately crafted as a long, slow burn. Powers teases the secret of his chilling, supernatural reality from the book’s opening sentence, but does a slow reveal, giving out only bits and pieces, hints of the dread reality. He builds the tension this way most effectively. Related to this, he tells his story jumping backwards and forwards in time, mostly between 1963 (the book’s present tense) and various dates in the 1940s, during and after the war. While this style of storytelling is sometimes problematic, Powers has mastered it, and uses it to great effect.

This is my third time reading Declare. I have enjoyed it as much this time through as when I first read it nearly twenty years ago. If you enjoy Tim Powers unique work, it is a must read.