I just read the best book all about DIAMONDS and I’m delighted to be able to offer free copies to five of you! This fabulous read is Brilliance and Fire, by Rachelle Bergstein, and if you enjoy Diamonds in the Library at all this book is going to rock your world.

It’s totally our kind of reading material, my darlings. First I’ll tell you a bit more about it, and then we’ll have our giveaway!

When I heard Brilliance and Fire described as “A Biography of Diamonds,” I didn’t know what to expect. Would it be a technical overview of developments in stone-cutting? A chatty collection of spotlights on famous diamonds throughout history? Would it be silly, or well-researched?

The reality was better than I even imagined.

Brilliance and Fire reads like an anthropological exploration of the role that diamonds play in our contemporary culture and how these shiny rocks came to fill the role that they do in our lives. It spotlights famous diamonds, famous collectors, and an in-depth examination in how diamond-focused traditions and attitudes have evolved over time. Bergstein considers societal shifts, economic fluctuations, diamond companies’ behind the scenes machinations and more in her quest to trace how we came to feel the way we feel about diamonds.

The tone is friendly but not condescending, intellectual but still accessible. Rather than simply relating history, Bergstein brings the historical characters to life in well-researched vignettes that keep the reading experience lively and dynamic. Would you have loved to be in the room when Pierre Cartier first showed Evalyn Walsh McLean an unusual diamond named Hope? Bergstein brings that scene – and many others – to life.

Brilliance and Fire taught me things I never knew about the history of diamonds, both by filling in details about the figures I already love and introducing me to completely new tidbits, like the fascinating tale of half-nude scientist Henri Lemonine, who tricked DeBeers into believing he had perfected synthetic diamonds in 1905.  I had no idea that diamond slingers have been seeing the threat of man-made diamonds as potentially imminent for more than 100 years.

Brilliance and Fire doesn’t ignore the darker side of diamonds either: there’s a whole chapter on conflict stones, the development of the Kimberley Process, and experts’ thoughts on how an ethically minded shopper can make the right diamond-related choices.

Do you want to read Brilliance and Fire yet? Good – because I have the great pleasure of offering FREE paperback copies to five of you.

a Rafflecopter giveaway
All you need to do to enter is sign into the widget above with your email address and complete at least one of the actions. You only need to do one to be eligible, but you can do as many as you want if you’d like to give yourself an edge with extra entries.

Please note that this giveaway is US-only and will be open for one week. I’ll email all five of the winners once the giveaway has ended; winners must reply to my email with a mailing address within 7 days or they will forfeit their win and a new winner will be chosen.

A huge thank you to Rachelle Bergstein for sending me a copy of her wonderful book for review, and to both Rachelle and Harper Collins for offering us all 5 copies of Brilliance and Fire for this giveaway!

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