11/12/2012

JOSS STIRLING’S SEEKING CRYSTAL: IT JUST GETS BETTER AND BETTER …



RATING GUIDE:
 
5 – A keeper!   
4 – Very good
3 –  Passable
2 –  I’d rather read a telephone book
1 – An absolute bomb.  Read at your own risk!


There are some artists who, after coming up with a brilliant debut, suddenly lose steam and produce disappointing and mediocre work.  This doesn’t appear to be so in the case of author Joss Stirling, whose third book, “Seeking Crystal,” seems to be the best, so far.

“Seeking Crystal” provides a light, refreshing break from the dark and heavy “Finding Sky” and “Stealing Phoenix”.  The heroine in Stirling’s third book is Crystal, your everyday, garden-variety teenager:  angst-ridden, with lots of self-doubt hidden in a tough shell of false bravado.  Crystal considers herself a dud, next to her almost perfect savant sister, Diamond, and copes with her inner securities by pretending to be flippant and non-committal about many things.  She also deals with her issues by being quite prickly and difficult.  All of these make her very real and human, which is probably one of the strengths of this book (it’s hard to relate to someone who’s perfect, after all). 

Crystal accompanies Diamond to a Savant conference in Italy hosted by the Benedict family (who are also featured in Stirling’s first two books, “Finding Sky” and “Stealing Phoenix”), and this is where Diamond finally meets her soulmate, Trace Benedict.

Crystal tries to hide her jealousy by being catty, and this is not lost on Trace’s brother, Xav, who’s not only extremely gorgeous but funny.  And it is in Italy where Crystal’s world turns upside down.  The bachelorette’s party she hosts for Diamond turns into the ultimate disaster, when Diamond and the rest of the Benedict women (matriarch Karla, Sky and Phoenix) are kidnapped by the Contessa Nicoletta, a fellow savant who’s out to avenge her son’s imprisonment by the Benedicts.  Now, Crystal and Xav have to combine their powers and get the Benedict women back from the Contessa’s clutches, right in time for Diamond and Trace’s wedding.

Before things got too boring, Stirling introduces a new concept, that of the “soul-seeker,” as opposed to “soul-finder” (you’ll have to read the book to find out what it is).  Not that anything about this book is boring (in my opinion, at least).  The introduction of a self-absorbed actor named James provides a touch of humor to the story, and Stirling’s use of Italy as the main setting for the book is just perfect for a lot of love, as well as a lot of action.  And by action, I mean, testosterone-driven action, not action between the sheets (it’s a young adult novel, after all!).

As in the first two installments, readers who love romance and/or action won’t be disappointed.  In my opinion, though, Stirling scores the highest when it comes to crafting characters who are very human and real in spite of their powers, and deal with universal issues faced by many teenagers:  Self-doubt, body image issues and growing-up issues, such as choosing one’s life direction and mending ties with one’s family.

RATING:  5 




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