![The Gemstone Chronicles Book Three: The Emerald by [Stuart, William]](https://i0.wp.com/images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51kp9PyIuVL.jpg?resize=467%2C718&ssl=1)
The Gemstone Chronicles: Book Three The Emerald by William L Stuart
BLURB:
Aidan, Maggie, Nana, Beebop, and their elven friends have recovered the first two of four gemstones stolen from the Elven Bow. With the second stone – the Amethyst – protected by the Elven Scouts Alatariel and Lotheth and on its way to Keeper for safekeeping, the rest of group heads deeper into Celahir to rescue Aidan and Maggie’s father, Mike, from the clutches of the witch Maeva and to recover the third gemstone – the Emerald.
After a fateful encounter at Maeva’s house, the witch turns everyone, except Aidan and Maggie, into stone statues to decorate her lawn. With the help of Dylan – a ghost boy they met in the village of Fearn – the children have to muster all of the courage and ingenuity they possess to find a way to retrieve the witch’s heart from its hiding place and trade it for their family and friend’s freedom. If they can do that, then they might be able to find the third gemstone by defeating the cockatrice…
MY REVIEW:
It’s been a while since I read book one and two of this series, so I had to refresh myself on what was happening in the story.
THE GEMSTONE CHRONICLES Book One: The Carnelian
THE GEMSTONE CHRONICLES – Book Two: The Amethyst
In the first books, Beebop and Aidan were the hero’s. This time it’s Maggie’s turn. We start off with the small family in search of Laura’s husband and the children’s father. They know he’d been kidnapped from their world and was being held prisoner by a fearful witch. Along their travels they meet a boy named Dylan. He has his own secrets and agenda with the witch. Will he hinder or help his new found friends?
The beginning of the story is somewhat slow as the reader is told a synopsis of what transpired in the first two books. But once we get past that part and onto the story, it goes at a fairly decent pace. We get to meet some new mystical creatures. I loved the concept of the owl feathers.
As for the plot, there is a lot of excitement and adventure going on in this book. There are new lands to discover, riddles to solve, and evil elves to thwart.
The characters are believable and the world building is well-done. I really enjoyed the relationship between Aidan and Maggie. Especially with Aidan’s budding romance with Siobhan. They acted just like typical siblings.
My biggest complaint about this series is I can’t relate and connect to the characters the way I want. When the story is just about one of them, like Maggie in this book, yeah, I get her and feel for her. The problem is, there are just too many characters, and we end being TOLD actions instead of being SHOWN actions. It causes such a disconnect for the reader. At least for me.
But aside for that, this is a series for all people, young or old, who enjoy a good fantasy adventure. I can’t wait to read the conclusion. I give it 4 owls.
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