A Rumor of Gems
by Ellen Steiber

Description:
Enter the port city of Arcato: an old and magical town set somewhere in our modern world, a town where gemstones have begun to mysteriously appear . . . gemstones whose mystical powers aren't mere myth or legend but frighteningly real, casting their spells for good and ill. And the gemstones aren't all that's awry: gods and tricksters have also been loosed, sewing chaos in the streets of Arcato.

Caught in this maelstrom of magic and chance are four people whose lives become inextricably intertwined: Lucinda de Francesco, an embittered young woman who has no interest in falling under the influence of gods, gems, or any man; Alasdair, a shaman of sorts who can read and invoke the power of the stones; Sebastian Keane, an antiques dealer who pursues Lucinda with charm and persistence and other mysterious means; and Micheal Fortunato, an 11-year-old boy who--under the influence of gods and gems--may have become a killer.