A glittering read!

[VRBeauty]

Hi Guys: I just finished reading "Brilliant," a novel by Marne Davis Kellogg (2003).

It isn't the best book I've ever read... mostly a sex and romance romp with a bit of intrigue thrown in for good measure, really, but...

The main character and narrator is an executive in a high-end auction house who has an eye for fine jewelry and stones. The story fairly drips with luscious descriptions of diamonds, spectacular, and jewelry lore.

Oh, and did I mention that she's not above exacting a fine revenge?

Fun stuff...

Something to consider the next time you're looking for some escapist reading!

So I figured that there must be some other fun, gem-centric books out there. If you know of one, please post it here!

 

[LegacyGirl]

Thanks for the review. I might have to check that out

 

[Diamond*Dana]

I am ALWAYS looking for a good book to indulge in, thanks!

 

[Circe]

Heh - I actually have a sublist of gem-centered books, but I haven''t come across this one. Thanks for the tip! A few off of my list ....

In SF&F: Peg Kerr''s Emerald House Rising mysticizes gem-lore (the entire society is basically modeled on the Moh''s scale), but her protagonist is the daughter of a jeweler and lapidary trying to earn her place as a Master in their guild. EHR contains excellent descriptions of the details of the craft.

In general fiction: Bijoux (Meredith Rich) is a very, very 80''s novel, tracking the slightly melodramatic lifestyle of the self-titled Jewel Dragoumis on her journery to the top of the world of jewelery design: it lapses into hysteria when it touches upon personal relationships (and also has a touch of new-agey mysticism, come to that), but Rich does a good job of portraying the field of design.

Elizabeth Lowell has a series of gem-based romance novels centering on a family of tall Beautiful People who are all tangentially linked to the family business in minerals, but the only one that I''d actually recommend is Pearl Cove: the rest focus more on soft-core love scenes and myths surrounding gems than they do on their actual qualities, but PC is actually pretty accurate and informative about the history of pearls and the modern farming practices associated with them.

I''m sure more will occur as I scan my shelves ....