The Secret Language of Stones (Daughters of La Lune, #2)

by M.J. Rose

In World War I Paris, Opaline Duplessi, an employee at the famous La Fantasie Russie jewelry store, spends her time making trench watches for soldiers at the front, and mourning jewelry for the mothers, wives, and lovers of those who have fallen. People say that Opaline's creations are magical, a word she would rather not use. But she does have a rare gift, a form of lithomancy that allows her to translate the energy emanating from the stones and receive messages from beyond the grave. In her mind, she is not a mystic, but merely a messenger, giving voice to soldiers who died before they were able to properly express themselves to loved ones. Until one day, one of these fallen soldiers communicates a message directly to her, and Opaline sets off on a journey into the darkest corners of wartime Paris and across the English Channel, where the exiled Romanov dowager empress waits to discover the fate of her family. --

• ISBN10: 1476778116
• ISBN13: 9781476778112
• Publish Date: 19 July 2016 (first published 1 July 2016)
• Publish Status: Active
• Imprint: Atria Books
• Format: eBook
• Pages: 384
• Language: English

Reviews

[elysium]

This is second book in a series but works well as a stand-alone too.

The book follows Opaline Duplessi who is the daughter of Sandrine from the previous book. She’s a jeweler who during the war makes talismans for women who have lost their loved ones in the war. She hears things through the stones and can give their last word to their loved ones.

Opaline just want’s to be normal and isn’t too happy with La Lune gifts she has. She doesn’t want her mother to teach her any magic and I didn’t get what her problem was with her mother. There were some issues between Opaline and Sandrine and I would have liked to learn more about that.

One time she makes a talisman for a woman who’s lost her son. Usually when she speaks with the dead through the stones, the dead leave her right away. But Jean Luc keeps speaking with her for a long time, and Opaline starts to fall in love with her ghost lover. I think it went on too and started to feel bit weird.

I liked Opaline, she’s loveable and kind, but at times I felt fustraited with her lack of wanting to learn about the magic she posses.

While I loved this book, it did not captivate me as much as The Witch of Painted Sorrows. Can’t really say why that is but there you go. But all in all, I loved this book and would have wanted to know what happens next. I look forward to the next book!

[Whitney @ First Impressions Reviews]

The Secret Language of Stones by M.J. Rose is a ghost story of historical proportions.

Like in The Witch of Painted Sorrows, the first book of The Daughters of La Lune series, M.J. Rose created a mystical setting in Paris that one can only see if they look closely enough. The descriptions of 1918 Paris were exquisite and shined off the page. Although, the most vivid were not of the Mona Lisa or Eiffel Tower, but of dark, dingy rooms that glittered gems and sounded off bumps in the night exhibiting a well-rounded portrait for the reader's imagination.

Opaline was a young adult trying to find her place in the world. Her occupation and love life (no matter how unconventional) were still to be determined and enjoyed following along on her journey.

Opaline meets her soul mate through a talisman and a love affair from two universes begins. This was interesting at first and showed the continuing insanity of her family lineage but I felt it went on a little too long. I was ready for the relationship to cease and for her to move on to the real world. The liaison became too weird for my taste and any Gothic romance factor soon wore off. It was an intriguing subplot but I felt that Opaline's talents of speaking to the beyond could have been showcased in other ways.

The portion of the novel that truly interested me was when the novel's mystic is sent to give a reading to the Dowager, in an attempt to communicate with her Romanov grandchildren.

The Romanov Dynasty, with its fairy tale beginnings and the nightmarish end, has always captivated my interest, and therefore read of any mention concerning Fabergé eggs, the Tsar or the Bolshevik Revolution with great ferocity. It created depth to the story, quickening the pace of the plot. Therefore, I read the last third rapidly. Upon finishing, I thought "I wish the author had incorporated the Romanovs more." Only upon reflection did I realized she most certainly did. With great subtlety, M.J. Rose turned discussions into conspiracy and jewels into secrets that throughly enraptured the reader.

Overall, The Secret Language of Stones by M.J. Rose was a fabulous tale of mystery and with hidden meetings, deception, and a little supernatural the author created a story that was firmly planted in the ground, unwavering where it would proceed. M.J. Rose's novel was easy to fall into and forget the present.