The Jewel and Her Lapidary
Ratings3
Average rating3.7
15
Ratings3
Average rating3.7
2016 Nebula Award finalist for Best Novelette From Fran Wilde, the Andre Norton and Compton Crook Award-winning author of Updraft. The kingdom in the Valley has long sheltered under the protection of its Jewels and Lapidaries, the people bound to singing gemstones with the power to reshape hills, move rivers, and warp minds. That power has kept the peace and tranquility, and the kingdom has flourished. Jewel Lin and her Lapidary Sima may be the last to enjoy that peace. The Jeweled Court has been betrayed. As screaming raiders sweep down from the mountains, and Lapidary servants shatter under the pressure, the last princess of the Valley will have to summon up a strength she’s never known. If she can assume her royal dignity, and if Sima can master the most dangerous gemstone in the land, they may be able to survive. “The central fantastical idea is pretty cool... nicely written... I suspect the world it’s set in might yield more fine stories.” – Locus At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
Series
2 primary booksGemworld is a 2-book series with 2 primary works first released in 2016 with contributions by Fran Wilde.
Reviews with the most likes.
This is a highly original story and I enjoyed it.
I saw several reviews which classify the two main characters' relationship as romantic, but I didn't really see it that way. To me it's more accurate to call it a very close master/servant bond, and it does have the usual moral problems of that setup, since the lapidaries are more or less slaves. But if the lapidaries did not serve the jewels, they would be slaves to the gems, I guess, so it's a little morally grey.
The story is kind of in the tradition of classic sci-fi short stories I read as a kid, like Ray Bradbury - it's nothing like his work in tone or subject matter, but in that it's focused on a very specific concept, the magic system, and the plot and characters seem to spring from that idea. But the characters are definitely interesting and well-developed, and the plot kept me guessing until the end.
I did know about the ending before I started this - it's a sad ending, but it fits the story and does not feel inappropriate.
