Product Description

THE ODESSA STONE... is a gem, shrouded through history by secrecy and myth, jealously guarded by those who know of the immense power it grants to rare Gifted Ones. And in more than 800 years there has been none quite as Gifted as... Linda Beaufort, a neurotic 13yr old obsessed with superstitions, dice and Abba. When her politician-father drags her along on a trip to Odessa, she finds out why she s spent her life seeing Half-There Things in the corner of her eye. One Half-There starts being Completely-There all the time, and she is... Avalon, a hopeless faery propping up the lowest order of spiritae. One of her quests in life. other than counting the leaves on trees, is to find out if the mythical Odessa Stone exists - but when she stumbles across proof, she is hunted down by... Morrah, a vengeful evil spirit at the end of her millennium of life, who then finds Linda - and that s when all the trouble starts. All who have controlled the Odessa Stone have brought untold suffering upon the world and themselves. Is Linda the next to be destroyed by its power - and those who crave it?

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #54866 in Books
• Published on: 2003-10-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 2
• Binding: Paperback
• 416 pages

Review
A Top Novel! SUGAR.... A Fantastical Adventure Kids And Adults Can Enjoy! SPIRIT & DESTINY.... Read One Page And You'll Be Hooked! COSMO GIRL.... A Magical Book! MIZZ.... A GR8 READ! Dare.... You'll be seeing fairies everywhere! IT'S HOT!.... Magic! SMASH HITS.... FAB! J17 --Magazine Reviews

Customer Reviews

Kylie and ABBA in a book!!!
This is my favourite book, and even more so since I found out off the official website that Kylie was the inspiration for Avalon! I read it again imagining her as Linda's best friend, and the story was even better. Probably because I knew what was coming up, as well, and that made a really good difference, because a lot happens and there's a lot to keep up with, so the second time round was better than the first.
So apart from looking for ABBA references, I started looking for Kylie ones and there's a few half-quotes buried in there which you have to be looking hard for to find, which any fan would find tricky! I've never read a story which makes you read it two ways. One is the story which I loved, but the other is the hidden quotes and references. If you like Harry Potter, ABBA and Kylie, you'll love this. But if you're not really into them, you'll still really get into the story.

The Odessa Stone really is a gem!
The strange little drawings at the beginning made me wonder if I was embarking on the right story, because children's books are not something I particularly enjoy - for example, I read the Harry Potter series and found them to be pleasant, but too light and undemanding until The Goblet Of Fire and The Order Of The Phoenix. So being confronted by child-like drawings of odd creatures and shapes did make me feel that this was not going to be for me. One chapter later, I had been launched into Linda's world and was absolutely engrossed. What an opening chapter!
I didn't understand the drawings until a few more chapters had passed, by which time Avalon had begun to innocently lead Linda on her way into the most magical journey - and phew, what a journey it becomes!
It seems that others have already picked up on the depth of the story, specifically that the tale is one of Linda's self-discovery as much as any other kind of discovery, which I found to be intelligently written and very, very carefully crafted. So many strands of her personality gradually come together to turn her into who she 'becomes', and all her failings bring out her greatest strengths as she passes from incident to incident, no matter how small or insignificant.
Avalon is not a Tinkerbell type of Disney fairy, neither is she a cheap opposite (ie an attitude-laden character). She's Linda's perfect best friend, far more vulnerable than Linda herself, but capable of huge strength (and I don't mean kicking doors down, which is something she's very good at) Her strength is her ability to work her way into Linda's heart - and also mine, and I would safely say the heart of anyone who reads this!

A book to come back to!
My daughter (15) was reading a book which seemed to be taking up most of her waking hours - and that's unheard of! She began regaling me with updates, chapter by chapter, then page by page until she was reading out whatever had happened which had caught her attention. By the time the stone was in Linda’s hands, so was I. I bought a copy, and gladly jumped into the wonderful world of The Odessa Stone - and for the first time in far too many years, I began to read a book!
My first impression was that there was a real love of writing here, and a genuine warmth for the characters. Linda is the centre of attention of course, and although she is well on her way to a breakdown she is simply crying out for a loving family. Her father is an equal measure of awful, toe-curling, laughable insensitivity and shallow vanity, but like any true politician he benefits from that! Dee, Constance, and the supporting characters.. they all sparkle. Even the dreaded Morrha (who is enticingly dark and evil) can be amusing at times, particularly as an expert flirt!
But the real joy is in the minor details - the small asides and trivial (or whimsical is better) actions combine to create a believable world, not just in a “What was going on” manner, but in a “Why these individuals are the way they are” manner. I feel that the seemingly trivial descriptions (for example, how Avalon passes the time when Linda needs some space for a few moments by herself, in the park) are actually the precise opposite. I felt they helped to give all the characters a lot of depth and understanding, which over the course of the entire book drew me not only into their world but also into their lives.
With the advantage of being able to read during the afternoons I soon caught up with my daughter and I promised not to get ahead of her. Well, I won’t say whether I did or didn’t keep that promise, but I will say that I loved every minute. Half way through I felt as if I had been through a hurricane on a hang glider!
If I were to choose a favourite part, it would have to be the heartbreaking moment where Linda (I must pause for a deep thought, in order to be discrete about the next few words) is 'getting her breath back outside a grocers'. If you’ve read it, you’ll know exactly which part that is. To say any more would probably be wrong, so I won’t say why she was there - but the emotions that were running through Linda raced straight into my heart. I admit that I needed a few tissues in the story, and the ending was achingly wonderful. It is the most wonderful reward for having read (and loved) the rest of the book!
Books for teenagers have certainly changed since I was at school, and if more had been like this, then I would (probably) have read more in the years since then! I’m going to read the other book by C Chambers next, The Guardian Of Time, as is my daughter. The Odessa Stone is a book to come back to, and as someone who has never been much of a reader, I would recommend it 100%. It's not just for teenagers - being a little older (ahem!) doesn’t matter one jot.
Rather like Avalon, some things appear from nowhere and bring a lot into your life - and this is one of those things!