The Omen
From the beginning, with Wizard's First Rule, Terry Goodkind set a new standard for epic storytelling. Now he returns with a powerful new tale from Richard and Kahlan's world. An accident leads to the discovery of a mysterious machine that has rested hidden deep underground for countless millennia. The machine awakens to begin issuing a series of increasingly alarming, if minor, omens. The omens turn out to be astonishingly accurate, and ever more ominous. As Zedd tries to figure out how to destroy the sinister device, the machine issues a cataclysmic omen involving Richard and Kahlan, foretelling an impending event beyond anyone's ability to stop. As catastrophe approaches, the machine then reveals that it is within its power to withdraw the omen . . . In exchange for an impossible demand.
Themes & atmosphere
What you might want to know about The Omen
The questions readers send us most often, answered without spoilers.
After his wife's stillbirth in a Rome hospital, American diplomat Robert Thorn agrees to a quiet swap and brings home a newborn boy named Damien. Years later, posted as ambassador to London, Thorn watches a nanny hang herself at Damien's birthday party and a priest tries to warn him about his son.
First a movie. The 1976 film The Omen was the original; David Seltzer wrote the novelization that was published the same year. Both are based on Seltzer's screenplay.
Yes. The original 1976 film spawned three sequels (Damien: Omen II, Omen III: The Final Conflict, Omen IV: The Awakening), a 2006 remake, and a 2024 prequel, The First Omen.
The Omen is 512 pages in standard print editions, though page counts vary slightly between hardcover, paperback, and large-print formats.
At an average reading pace of about 250 words per minute, The Omen takes most readers 8 to 11 hours to finish.
The Omen is a standalone novel by an unknown author, not part of a series.
The Omen is available in hardcover, paperback, ebook, and audiobook formats from Amazon, Bookshop.org, ThriftBooks, and most major bookstores.