"Declare" (Tim Powers 2000) is another of the author's harmonising of real history, mythology, and inventive storytelling. This time Powers mixes in the Cold War complete with Kim Philby, Arabian djinn, an on off romance between a British and Soviet spy, and Noah's Ark on a peak in Ararat.

The author's painstaking research gives a depth to the espionage background, and to the magical elements. When reading Powers I feel there's always more behind each sentence, stories untold. Reading Powers is like wandering through an exotic city, one may not see every lane every alley but the sensation is of something rich and strange.

Powers' alternative history of the Cold War reads very well. A lot better than the 'actual' mundane unmagical history! But what is history? Even history is subjective, not objective. For those who believe in demons demons do exist.