[mosimage} There is never a dull moment for Mariah Mundi living in the Prince Regent Hotel. But catastrophe strikes when three eminent visitors spontaneously combust at a hotel party. Just a freak of nature or a cleverly plotted murder? Mariah Mundi senses a conspiracy. And when his best friend, Sasha, is kidnapped, he knows that he must find answers – urgently. Who’s the masked man seen prowling the streets? And why is the richest man in the world so interested in the hotel? Could the answer lie in the mythical Ghost Diamonds?

The second book in the Mariah Mundi trilogy, The Ghost Diamonds once again plunges the reader into the dark fantasy world of an alternative Victorian Whitby. Here, steam power drives advanced machinery; a “clawing” haar fog shrouds the night in hidden dangers; and the Bureau of Antiquities fights to keep powerful artefacts out of the hands of mysterious foes.

 As in many of G. P. Taylor’s books, the powers of good, truth and light must struggle against the almost overwhelming forces of darkness, although this time the enemy is less supernatural, and owes less to C. S. Lewis than to John Buchan or Arthur Conan Doyle. I did find the opening of the book rather slow and confusing. The prose felt dense and overdone in places, the tone was disturbing and melancholic, and the references to the previous book somewhat alienated the uninitiated.

 However, I was pleasantly surprised as the story got going and I found myself increasingly drawn into an intriguing and fast-paced mystery adventure. Taylor expertly weaves a web of dark secrets and hidden agendas, with Mariah battling to uncover and outwit ”the power behind the power”  a shadowy force with agents everywhere. There are few wasted references; small details early in the book take on new significance as the story unfolds and the threads come together in an exciting denouement. The action is almost breathless at times, as Mariah is chased from one deadly encounter to the next: attacked by a giant octopus, pursued by a fiendish assassin, hunted by the supposed forces of law and order.

With a Dickensian exuberance, Taylor populates his world with a host of grotesque characters: the bitter and curiously elongated Inspector Walpole; the narcoleptic Mrs Mukluk; the villainous duo Grendel and Grimm; the enigmatic aquarium owner, Titus Salt, whose deceptive appearance and prophetic visions may just save Mariah’s life. Much less developed, however, is Mariah himself. I was never quite convinced by his inner life and found he lacked sympathy at times.

This book would make a challenging but engaging read for mystery adventure lovers in upper KS2 and beyond. However, I would recommend that the books be read in sequence, as Taylor clearly has an overarching scheme which deserves following from beginning to end. I eagerly await the final instalment!

2009-06-14