THE JEWEL THIEF

Viking/Penguin, 2020. 1st Edition 1st Printing. Hardcover. New/New. Shatterstock. CONDITION: NEW 2020 Viking hardcover (black boards) & dust jacket, first edition, first printing. Beautiful dust cover collage by Shatterstock. CONTENT: Paris - 1693. A lush, slow-burn romance set in 17th century France, and based on the history of the Hope Diamond. Her story begins . . . in Paris. The only daughter of the King's crown jeweler, Juliette marvels at the large, deep-blue diamond Louis XIV has commanded her father to make shine like the sun. But Jean Pitau has never cut a diamond quite like this, and shaping it is a risky endeavor. As Jean spirals into depression, Juliette takes it upon herself to cut the stone, and with every misstep, brings her family closer to ruin. Her story resumes . . . in a cold, dark cell of the Bastille prison. Charged with stealing the King's diamond, Juliette has but one chance to convince him that her motives were pure. If she fails, this night may very well be her last. Though, death wouldn't be her worst fate. Because recording Juliette's confession is René, a court-appointed scribe, and the man she loves. But René holds his own grudge against Juliette, and this is her one and only chance to win back his heart. ["Mobley skillfully combines real events and people with a fictional teen protagonist forced to make her thief's confession to her horrified true love. The romance inherent in diamonds and royalty is enhanced by the young lovers' story, and is also augmented by a (multicultural) plot thread involving the Jewish jewelers, who were notoriously badly treated in Europe at that time (the 1600s)."--Booklist] (Grades 8 - 12)