The thing that struck me pretty early in World’s Okayest Oracle (Reluctantly) Seeks Demon, was that there was no internal barrier to a relationship between Gwen and Hugh, it was all external. Hugh and Gwen met once just before the most humiliating moment of Gwen’s life. But as soon as Gwen walks back into Hugh’s life 20 years later, it’s very clear that he’s all in. There will be no third act break up, he will make any and all adjustments to keep Gwen in his life. With that tension gone, what else is there? Mmmmmmmm, maybe a great big war and Gwen’s foretold murder?
At the end of Zomromcom, Gwen, for the first time in her oracular career, had a big prophetic vision. Everyone knew that the zombies hadn’t escaped containment on their own, but Gwen’s vision confirmed that something bigger and nastier than anticipated. Bigger problems means they need a bigger ally, so Gwen goes to Hugh, who believes her, for his own reasons.
Gwen is a delightful character. She’s almost 40 and has made a community for herself with her low stakes prophecies. She’s a serious cheese connoisseur and in the early months of pregnancy. Having failed out of Oracle school (see above most humiliating day), she’s outside the highly regulated and isolated oracle structure. Being on the outside turns out to be an advantage.
All of Dade’s books have a mix of silly and serious. She gets cheesy about cheese in World’s Okayest Oracle, and has a nice reward for fans of Edie’s foil wrapped burrito wielding skills. She also dives into our anxieties about the extractive nature of capitalism and the violence of racism. As in Zomromcom, the answer is community and connection. The romance between Hugh and Gwen is sweet and grounds the big emotional swings.
I am intrigued by the setup for book 3 in the epilogue.
