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Junior
Collins
Hardback £10.99
ISBN: 0007161131
Reviewed by Lee Weatherly
[Armadillo 6.2 Summer 2004]
One of the main marketing points of this title seems to be its authors age: Flavia Bujor is only fourteen, and was twelve when she began work on the novel. Viewed while taking this into account, Prophecy of the Gems is an amazing work, with strong central characters and a deftly-handled storyline: Jade, Opal and Amber ¨ the 'gems of the title ¨ are enemies by prophecy, but must band together and travel into the magical world of Fairytale in order to defeat the Army of Darkness. On the way they learn the value of friendship and discover inner strengths they never knew they had.
While many of Bujors ideas are echoes of other fantasy works, there is much here that is engaging in its own right, and her structural and pacing skills are on par with far more experienced writers, and superior to some. The story is complex, but never difficult to follow, and she neatly foreshadows all of her many plot-elements. The writing itself is somewhat raw and awkward in places, but the overall impression is that Bujor, if her work has not been compromised by being published at too young an age, could be a major writer in twenty years time.
All in all, a surprisingly good read that readers of around ten and upwards are sure to love.