Neonjade

The Black Jewels Trilogy, by Anne Bishop comprises the fantasy novels Daughter of the Blood, Heir to the Shadows and Queen of the Darkness.

Genre: Fantasy

My Rating: 9.0 out of 10

The story is a gripping tale to save three parallel worlds from pure evil, and, on the way, a few very special souls. The characters suck you in and don’t let you go for 1204 pages. I am so happy that I gambled on buying the trilogy format instead of purchasing Daughter of the Blood alone to test the waters. By the end of the first chapter, I was enthralled. I could not set it down, and consumed the book in three days of intense reading.

I would classify the novels as borderline “dark fiction.” Anne Bishop’s plotline is based on an environment where deeper and often darker passions rule. There are truly evil characters in the three parallel worlds that battle with obvious heroes for the survival of what we would consider humanity, but the characters who you will root for are not shining knights and sparkling princesses. They are dark jeweled warlords and witches who live and battle with all the passions, flaws, promise, and shining glory of what you would consider human, amplified not only by their individual power and extended life spans, but by the psychic connections they maintain with their world and each other.

Most of the adult content is not graphic, but the concepts pack an emotional punch, so I would not recommend these books for young or sensitive readers. Slavery, rape, manipulation and mutilation are the tools that team evil rely on to subjugate their enemies. Two of the main heroes are victims of team evil for centuries and the Queen, the living dream and sole hope of humanity’s survival, is torn apart in mind and body twice over the course of the novels.

Overall: If you like a mature, passionate, 3d-characterized read that takes you to another world, The Black Jewels Trilogy won’t let you down.

Cover/Binding: The paperback cover of the version that I purchased is the rather thin and fragile version we’re seeing on most economy books these days but the actual binding seems pretty solid.

Here’s an affiliate link to The Black Jewels Trilogy at Amazon:

Have you read any or all of the Black Jewels Trilogy fantasy novels? What did you think about them? Would you recommend any of Anne Bishop’s other novels? Or any novels that you think people might like if they liked these?

Do you need more information about this book to know whether it is something you’d like to read? What sort of information would be of more assistance?

Please share with a comment!