The Chronicles of Chrestomanci: Volume I by Diana Wynne Jones

My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Title: The Chronicles of Chrestomanci Volume 1
Author: Diana Wynne Jones
Pages: 598
Series: The Chronicles of Chrestomanci

In this multiple parallel universes of the Twelve Related Worlds, only an enchanter with nine lives is powerful enough to control the rampant misuse of magic—and to hold the title Chrestomanci...

The Chants are a family strong in magic, but neither Christopher Chant nor Cat Chant can work even the simplest of spells. Who could have dreamed that both Christopher and Cat were born with nine lives—or that they could lose them so quickly?

There are two parts of The Chronicles of Chrestomanci Volume one, which are The Charmed Life and The Lives of Christopher Chant.

The Charmed Life:


- this part was basically about a young boy with a wicked sister who got used and abused. Cat Chant, innocent and thought he was without talent, was left under the care of the incumbent Chrestomanci. When he realized the powers he possessed was rare and he himself has got nine lives worthy of being the next Chrestomanci, we was already in a mess created by his evil sister.

My thoughts on this book -

The plot was amazing. Although the trend Diana Wynne Jones has this protagonist:a-boy-who-didn't-realize-how-important-and-talented-he-was-until-he's-caught-up-in-a-grave-danger sort of character, the plots were all different. Her style in writing hooked me up until the end. The story was fast pace, exciting and magical! I enjoyed the 1st part of the book and hoped the 2nd does the same.

In this book, it dawned on me how a sibling can be wicked on her own account. How also one can be so innocent and good-natured. I liked how the story became complicated for dear Cat Chant that made him do things that he was unsure of. Chrestomanci's role also was enigmatic as I have read the Magicians of Caprona before this. He sounded important. So, in the end of this part it was explained why so. 

The author gave me a good vision of how the world of Chrestomanci looked like. She described it enchantingly. How the gifted with magic and without mingled and governed. Unlike the world of wizards and sorcerers' tales that I have read with gloomy atmosphere, this was different. It's rather colorful and sunny. So it was a breathe of fresh air. 

The Lives of Christopher Chant:

This is the story before the Chrestomanci in the Charmed Life was reigning. The plot was complicated as they travelled between worlds and there were so many characters. Nevertheless, I enjoyed this part more than the first one! There were evil elements again inveigling the protagonist without him knowing, using and abusing him. Again, Christopher here was clueless of what's going on and of his powers. There were values that we can learn from and that evil would not prevail, stuff that can make you feel good, bad and guilty of. I liked how Diana created a series of worlds and how one can take advantage of it. That's different type of smuggling and I dared say was a clever one! Diana Wynne Jones never seized to amaze me. She has a writing style that kept me interested in her books up to the end and craving for more.  This was totally different from the first and you'll learn more about the role of Chrestomanci and how as a child he was taking it to be the next one. Definitely worth reading!

And if you care for sports, there was the cricket game for you! I enjoyed this magical world of Chrestomanci!

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