The Mistress of the Jewels (Westria, No 1) [Mass Market Paperback]

Diana L. Paxson (Author)

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 512 pages
• Publisher: Tor Books; 1st edition (August 15, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0812548663
• ISBN-13: 978-0812548662
• Product Dimensions: 6.4 x 4.2 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,355,905 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I was brought up in southern California, but came north to attend Mills College and never left. I got my M.A. in (medieval) Comparative Literature from the University of California in 1966, the same year I put on the first tournament of what was to become the Society for Creative Anachronism. Since 1971 I've lived at Greyhaven, a hundred-year old house in Berkeley, with successive generations of family, friends, cats and dogs.

It's a literary family, including my husband, Jon DeCles, and the late Marion Zimmer Bradley, who was my mentor as a writer as well as colleague in founding Darkmoon Circle. My first published novel was Mistress of the Jewels, which began the chronicles of Westria. After I had written several historical fantasies, Marion, whose health deteriorated after she wrote Mists of Avalon, asked me to help her with The Forest House, which is how I ended up writing the Avalon series.

Much of the spiritual experience in my novels comes out of my work in the pagan community. I have now begun to publish that material in a series of non-fiction books, the most recent being Trance-Portation. My most recent novel is Sword of Avalon, set at the end of the Bronze Age, which gave me an opportunity to explore the end of the Homeric Age and the techniques of bronze- and iron-forging.

For more about my work, see:

www.westria.org
www.avalonbooks.net
www.seidh.org

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Some good early work, September 30, 2003

By 

Kirsten R "Mac user since '88" (Twin Cities, Minnesota) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Mistress of the Jewels (Westria, No 1) (Mass Market Paperback)

A little about me. . . I have read nearly everything by Diana Paxson, starting with her more recent works (e.g., "Wolf and the Raven," "Dragons on the Rhine," the "Hallowed Isle" series). It wasn't until recently that I could acquire all of the Westria novels and read them.

I disagree with the negative comments by another reviewer. The Westria series was one of Diana Paxson's first novels and, as an early novel, is quite good. It may help to understand how "Mistress of the Jewels" fits into the entire series. While other authors give you a short, brief descent into chaos/evil from which the hero/heroine must emerge, in "Mistress" Ms. Paxson shows you the descent and the contributing factors. It isn't until "Silverhair the Wanderer" (pt. 3 of the Westria series) that you are truly introduced to all of the heroes and heroines and begin to see their struggle to emerge from chaos/evil. As such, "Mistress" is truly a 'prequel,' and it is in later books of the Westria series that Ms. Paxson's character and plot development truly shine.

All in all, the entire series is a good read.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars disagreement, September 28, 2000

By 

Micajah Christie (Glasgow, KY USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Mistress of the Jewels (Westria, No 1) (Mass Market Paperback)

i disagree with the above review. i have never read the short stories, but i loved this book. i found the characters deep and compelling. i loved the premise and the story.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Engaging series, although not Paxson's best, August 11, 2004

By 

Fruit Loop (Down South) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: The Mistress of the Jewels (Westria, No 1) (Mass Market Paperback)

Lady of Light and Lady of Darkness introduce interesting characters in a fabulous setting (apparently Earth after an apocalypse) but the endings are unsatisfying, especially in the second book. The hero and heroine, Faris and Jehan, vacillate between strength and weakness and become rather blase in Lady of Darkness. Still, the series is entertaining and worth reading. Perhaps more appropriate for teens than adults.