Teenager Joy Christianson always was the life of the party, but all that changed when her best friend committed suicide. Now all Joy wants is to reconnect with Melanie. She wants to know WHY. She needs closure. When some of her new friends tell her how she can find these answers using a Ouija board, Joy is torn between thinking it’s a game and being creeped out, but she can’t resist the lure.
She slips deeper into the occult as she seeks meaning in her life. The old answers from her parents and her church don’t seem sufficient any more. As depression and oppression take hold, any sort of meaning slides further and further away.
But all hope is not lost. What will it take to jolt Joy into a new path, one where she genuinely seeks help? Even a trip to Diamond Estates, a home for troubled girls, is not an easy cure. But with God–and people praying–there is still hope.
The Shadowed Onyx is the third (and final) book in The Diamond Estate series for teen girls. Each story features a girl who’s lost her way and seeks help in regaining her faith. These are not simplistic stories where, once you pray, everything becomes all better. Life isn’t usually like that. Our struggles are real. However, there is always hope, and each of these books also provides that in abundance. All three of these books are highly recommended for the teen girls in your life–girls who know that life is complicated and often difficult, girls who are facing huge challenges, girls who need a road map through their trials to hope. The Wishing Pearl deals with drinking and driving and abuse. The Embittered Ruby is about teen pregnancy, gang activity, and manipulation. The Shadowed Onyx, as mentioned, takes a hard look at the occult. These stories do not glorify the negative lifestyles, but use them as a backdrop to paint hope in bright colors.
I admit to being biased. Nicole O’Dell is one of my critique partners and writing buddies. I’ve seen this story (and series) develop from a mere gleam in Nicole’s eye. She has not only a rare talent, but a driving passion for helping teen girls make wise choices.
Nicole O’Dell is the founder of Choose NOW Ministries, the host of Parent Talk and Teen Talk on Choose NOW Radio, and the author of a bunch of YA and adult fiction and non-fiction. Some of her books include the interactive Scenarios for Girls series, the Diamond Estates series, and the new Hot Buttons interactive nonfiction series for parents. She’s also the mom of six kids, among them a set of preschool triplets. Visit Nicole’s website to learn more and find links to all the fun social stuff.
I’ve read several versions of this book as it grew, but haven’t yet held the paper copy in my hands. My review is based upon the final submitted version as I last saw it, a few months ago.
