Recommendation Arrow: Amethyst

No Ollie watch today, guys. Instead, I've decided on a new feature that I'll run occasionally, where I'll recommend books that I've picked up and really liked.

The first installment is a bit unusual. If people remember Amethyst, Princess of Gemworld at all, they remember a pretty princess story aimed at a young female audience. Admittedly, that's what the creative team was going for, but what they ended up with is an epic tale that anyone can enjoy.

The plot revolves are Amy Winston, a normal 13 year old girl who gets an amethyst gem for her birthday. Little does she know that this gem is the harbinger of serious change in her life. You see, Amy is not from Earth. She is secretly a native of Gemworld, a land of magic ruled by royal houses based on Earthly birthstones.

Amy's real parents, Lord and Lady Amethyst, were murdered by the devilish Lord Opal 20 years before. As the rightful rulers of Gemworld, they were the last obstacle in his plans for conquest. Luckily a family retainer, Citrina, managed to smuggle the infant Amy away from danger and to the safety of her adoptive parents
.
It is only 13 years later that Amy learns the truth and travels to Gemworld to take up her destiny as the rightful heir to the throne and the last hope of a conquered world.

Now, "little girl finds out she's secretly a magic fairy princess" sounds like a plot straight out of the latest Barbie straight-to-video piece of crap, but the story is much deeper than that. Although Amy ages to about 20 every time she enters Gemworld, she's still just a kid. She has a lot to learn and gets into some serious situations before she masters her magical birthright. Her supporting cast is also well fleshed out, and the Gemworld itself is world building at its finest.

The story continues as Amy and her allies try to rally support against Opal and occasionally looks in on her Earthly family, who love her deeply despite her not being their natural child.

All in all, there's a seriously entertaining, epic story going on here. If you come across these issues in a discount bin (I did) please pick them up. You won't be sorry!


Note: Amy's story is continued in a short lived ongoing follow-up to the original maxi-series. The original creative team left after the first 9 issues. The title really went down hill after that, so my recommendation stops there as well.

(Plus, you get amazing covers like the one above by George Perez)


Blog Admin: I went back to the old template. As Rick said, the site needs a little green!