Book of Names (Diadem: A Fantasy Mystery, No. 1) [Paperback]

John Peel (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 9 and up | Series: Diadem

Three teenagers from very different worlds--Score, a streetwise New Yorker; Renald, who prepares for a medieval battle; and Pixel, who is confined to the one-room world of Virtual Reality--are kidnapped and plunged into a perilous odyssey as they seek to unlock the secrets of the Diadem. Original."

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

John Peel was born in 1954 in Nottingham, England. He attended Nottingham University and began his writing career as the editorial assistant for England's Apparel Production and Marketing. He later worked as a comic-strip writer for Marvel Comics in London, and was until recently the overseas television critic for England's Starburst magazine. Since immigrating to the U.S.A. in 1981, John Peel has worked as a contributing writer and editor for numerous media-based magazines. He now writes novels full-time from his home on Long Island, where he resides with his wife, Nan, their wirehair fox terrier, Dashiell, their orange, spotted tabby, Amika, and their miniature pinschers, Loki (aptly named after the Norse god of mischief and destruction), Bartleby, Shadow, Reggie, Tievel, Rocky, Anubis Princess and Lady Penelope.

He has just sold his first film script, Haunting Adrian, which is expected to commence shooting in the near future.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

p r o l o g u e

The Shadows wereout hunting, far from home. In a pack, they moved through the spaces between the many worlds, seeking their prey. It couldn't just be anyone. It had to be the right victim. The correct sacrifice. They all anticipated the thrill of the hunt and the final taking. This was not merely their job. It was their sport. It was their pleasure. They enjoyed finding their targets, and they felt a genuine thrill as their victim was dragged off to its fate.

The Shadows' not-quite-faces seemed to wrinkle with laughter and pleasure. As they closed in on one small, green-and-blue planet, they could feel that this was the one. Here they would find their next victim.

Here, on a small, backward, off-the-beaten-path planet named Earth.

Here the right prey lived-for the moment. Sliding unseen and unsuspected into the atmosphere of the planet, they began to close in on their chosen target. They left a trail of chilled air behind them, like the contrails of a jet aircraft, as they spiraled down, down, down toward the waiting land below.

All their senses felt as if they were on fire. Over the ocean they sped, zeroing in on one small island. A tiny place called Manhattan, perched on a small rock above the surface of the Atlantic Ocean. There they would find the right person. There the sacrifice awaited.

They were ready and eager. Soon, very soon, they could take their prey . . .

1

Score was scared. It was the one emotion he knew really well. He'd lived with it for most of his short life. He reckoned he must have been born scared, because he couldn't ever recall spending a single day when he wasn't afraid.

It had been his father, mostly, who had scared Score. Tony Caruso was a mean, tough guy, and, even on the streets, the word had been out that nobody messed with Tony Caruso and lived to brag about it. His was a name that, even whispered, scared gang members, mobsters, and even cops all over Lower Manhattan. Tony Caruso was Bad, and the capital letter was there as a warning.

Then, just two weeks ago, everything had changed. Bad Tony had done something wrong, again, but this time the police took him away. Usually, he managed to pay off someone or to get away from the police somehow. But not this time. He'd slipped up, and the police had solid evidence on him. Score didn't much care, as long as they kept his father away from him for a long, long time.

Score found himself alone, going through everything in their small apartment. He managed to find some money that Bad Tony had hidden. Then, behind a loose board in Bad Tony's bedroom, he found a letter that had never been mailed. On the front was his name and address. Puzzled, he stared at it. The handwriting looked familiar, but it wasn't his father's . . .

It was his mother's! She'd been dead for three years, but Score remembered her well. She'd been another of Bad Tony's victims, another reason to hate his father. Excitement mounted in Score as he opened the envelope and took out the sheet of paper within. Unfolding it, he began to read.

It made no sense to him whatsoever. Some of it seemed to make sense, but really didn't. "Treen is the start," for example. Who or what was Treen? And what was he, she, or it the start of? Score simply didn't understand. Why would his mother want him to have something like this, something he couldn't understand? She must have hidden it for him to find one day. If she felt it was important, maybe he'd figure out what it meant somehow. He carefully folded it and slipped it into the wallet of money he had found. With the money, he planned to start a new, improved life . . .

Then the police had taken Score, as well. Not under arrest. Well, they hadn't called it that, but he had been taken in front of a judge, who'd placed him in the custody of the Children's Services people. It wasn't arrest because they claimed to be doing everything for his own good-including locking him up when he had tried to escape. But this time, he'd not only tried, he'd succeeded.

So, now he was back where he belonged, on the Bowery, in New York City. Score was scared here, too, but at least he knew the streets and the dangers. There were gangs to watch out for, and other people might hold his father's actions against him. But at least he had a chance, since he was on his own turf.

There was another thing that was scaring him, and one he had no control over. For the past week, he'd been having a recurring dream. It confused and worried him, because it made absolutely no sense. He would hear, over and over again, a repeated tune. It wasn't anything he'd ever heard before, or anything he'd ever choose to listen to. It was slow and kind of mournful, the kind of music you might hear at a...(Continues) --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9 and up
  
• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Apple (Scholastic) (August 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0590059475
• ISBN-13: 978-0590059473
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5.2 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (54 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,444,099 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Thrilling imagination, magic, mystery, and adventure!, July 8, 2000

By 

Callie "chroi" (Portland, OR United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Book of Names (Diadem: A Fantasy Mystery, No. 1) (Paperback)

My sister went to a Scholastic Book Fair and discovered this book, and like Animorphs, it brought the reader on a great adventure. This book series is full of puzzles and mysteries, making the reader a part of the adventure. There is magic and wonder, fights and conflicts, and characters that share the adventure with you. The author John Peel does an excellent job in developing characters and filling the atmosphere with imagination and mystery. Those of you who love the thrilling adventures in Animorphs and Everworld will also really love this adventure.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Book of Names NO. 1, October 17, 2003

By 

keven anderson (Blackfoot, ID USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Book of Names (Diadem: A Fantasy Mystery, No. 1) (Paperback)

When I first looked at this book I thought it would be strange but when I started to read it I was transported to another dimenion. I was amazed by the story and how it was described. The way he wrote it made it seem as if you were traveling along with them and fighting by their side. I highly recommend this book!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars One of my favorites!, February 27, 2005

By 

J. L. Sullivan (Duluth, MN) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Book of Names (Diadem Series) (Paperback)

Granted, John Peel's Diadem books may not be the most technically advanced books ever written, and they certainly aren't great works of literary genius. But they are incredibly addictive, and great fun to read. I own the first six, and I've read the entire series several times. The puzzles within the books, while simple, give them an interesting dimension, and if you have the older versions, the covers themselves even connect to form one long picture. The characters have much more depth than you'd expect for a series aimed at a younger audience, and the story is actually quite complex. And not only are they fun to read, but they only cost around five bucks each.