The Tavernier Stones: A Novel - Softcover

Parrish, Stephen

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0738720569 ISBN 13: 9780738720562

Publisher: Midnight Ink, 2010

Synopsis

Product update: The Tavernier Stones has won the 2011 Independent Publisher (IPPY) gold medal in the mystery/suspense/thriller category.

When the body of seventeenth-century mapmaker Johannes Cellarius floats to the surface of a bog in northern Germany with a 57-carat ruby clutched in his fist, the grisly discovery ignites a deadly twenty-first-century international treasure hunt to unearth the fabled Tavernier stones.　 The hoard reputedly contains some of the world's most notorious missing jewels, including the 280-carat Great Mogul diamond and the 242-carat Great Table diamond.

Scrupulously honest Amish-born cartographer John Graf teams up with outlaw prospector and gemologist David Freeman in a ferocious race to find the treasure and break a secret code that will unravel the centuries-old Tavernier stones mystery. But other fortune hunters, opportunists and criminals alike, are in hot pursuit of the mismatched partners---and they'll stop at nothing to possess the legendary jewels.

"The Tavernier Stones has something for every reader--adventure, intrigue, information, and no small amount of wit. An exciting debut from a talented new author, this novel delivers the goods." --Debra Ginsberg, author of The Grift and The Neighbors are Watching

"An utterly compelling adventure that pulls you along on a rollicking ride and doesn't let go of you until you turn the last page. The writing just sparkles." --Patricia Wood, author of Lottery

"From the opening pages to the closing scene, Stephen Parrish has created a literary mystery, one with adventure, history, cartography, jewels, and unforgettable characters. I can't recall the last time I finished a mystery that also moved me so much." --Erica Orloff, author of The Roofer and Freudian Slip

"The Tavernier Stones is a sparkling, multi-faceted gem of a fast-paced thriller." --Eric Stone, author of Shanghaied

"Relentlessly fascinating, Stephen Parrish's The Tavernier Stones is reminiscent of Dan Brown's Lost Symbol, but this treasure hunt based on real historical figures involves ancient maps, complex codes, and a cache of mysterious lost gems. It's one hell of a good time." --Mark Terry, author of The Fallen

About this title

About the Author

Stephen Parrish is a cartographer and gemologist. The Tavernier Stones, winner of an Independent Publisher (IPPY) gold medal, is his first novel. Visit Steve online at stephenparrish.com, stephenparrish.blogspot.com, or facebook.com/stephenparrish.

Reviews

Parrish's debut, a Da Vinci Code satire, fails to make the most of its intriguing premise. When a bog man preserved in peat turns up near Hamburg, Germany, the police discover an enormous ruby clenched in his fist. Authorities identify him as Johannes Cellarius, a 17th-century cartographer, who was possibly done in with a pickaxe by a jealous husband. The really cold corpse inspires a global treasure hunt for the legendary Tavernier Stones, of which the ruby was part, lost by Jean-Baptiste Tavernier (1605–1689) during his fabled seventh journey to the Orient. The last map Cellarius drew contains a clue composed of medieval runes. John Graf¸ an Amish cartographer, teams with David Freeman, a brilliant thief and gemologist, but more ruthless folks are also after the jewels. A gemologist and cartographer himself, Parrish slyly mixes fact and fancy as the progressively more silly action builds to an over-the-top climax. (May)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Edition details

• Publisher: Midnight Ink
• Publication date: 2010
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0738720569
• ISBN 13: 9780738720562
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 370