Diamonds are the theme of the month, but I don't know any books with diamonds in them. So I went and sat down in the Common Room before starting on my homework, and was rooting through my bag when I pulled out one of my favourite Muggle reading books and then it hit me: The Prophecy of the Gems by Flavia Bujor. It's gemstones related so I think it'll work.
Anyway I decided to read it again, and was instantly sucked back in as soon as I saw the Council of Twelve and then the Thirteenth Councillor. Now, I can can hear you all doing the mental math. My lips are sealed on that one.
The author, Flavia Bujor, was only fourteen years old when the book was published but you'd think it was written by an adult. The book introduces the antagonists before it introduces the protagonists. Three thirteen, nearly fourteen, year old girls who are living what appear to be normal lives. Jade is the daughter of a Duke, Opal lives with her great aunt and great great great aunt, and then Amber is a peasant girl. I love the way we learn about the girls' lives before something called The Prophecy comes into effect on their fourteenth birthdays.
The tagline for the book is Three girls Three Stones One destiny and that instantly sucked me in the first time around. The paragraphs vary, but I have to remember that the book was first written in French and painstakingly translated into English. I would love to see the original French version, even if I can't read French any more, because it would be interesting to see how the book looks in its native language and how it was meant to be read.
Despite this the plot keeps you gripped with new characters that add to the plot and send you off on another part of the story and you wonder if you're ever going to reach the end and how it all joins up. There is essentially one main plot: the story of Jade, Opal, and Amber. Then there are three sub-plots that are woven together in a very clever way: the search for the Chosen One, the fight between the Forces of Darkness and the Forces of Light, and then the heartbreaking story of fourteen-year-old Joanna, or Joa, who is dying and linked to the protagonists somehow through time.
I don't get to read it very often, but I love getting sucked into the classic battle of good vs evil. I also love the way that the heroes are ordinary girls who have to grow up quickly. Jade reminds me of an uncut diamond at the start - brash, doesn't think things through, and very rough around the edges. Opal is a perfect diamond; fragile, delicate, and looks calm and smooth from the outside. And Amber is somewhere in the middle, not quite the uncut diamond from the ground but not quite the polished diamond either.
Now, if you don't mind, I'm going to get back to my book so I can finish it before I do some homework for Potions. Before Snape throws a fit that it isn't done yet, that is.
See you next month!
Adele