The Jewel Thief

By: Jeannie Mobley

Narrated by: Mary Sarah

In this lush young adult romance based on the true story of the Hope Diamond, the daughter of the king’s jeweler is imprisoned for stealing a precious diamond. She has one chance to prove her innocence and win back the heart of the man she loves—or die trying.

“A gripping tale of a bold young craftswoman determined to carve out her own glorious destiny.”—Elizabeth Bunce, Morris Award-winning author of A Curse Dark as Gold

“Mobley crafts her own Hope Diamond legend, one filled with romance and intrigue.”—Publishers Weekly

How far would you go for the ones you love?

Sixteen-year-old Juliette Pitau had the world at her feet. The daughter of the finest gem-cutter in all of Paris, she attended private balls at the Louvre, caught the eye of a handsome young scribe named René, and watched as King Louis XIV hand-selected her father, Jean, as his crown jeweler.

But when Louis purchases the Tavernier Violet, a large, deep-blue diamond the likes of which the French court has never seen, Jean is overcome with fear. Cutting such a diamond is risky, and there’s no room for error. While the pressure of the commission sends Jean into depression, Juliette takes it upon herself to have the diamond cut. Thus begins her inevitable descent . . .

Now, suspected of stealing the Tavernier, Juliette sits cold and filthy in her dungeon cell. A pardon from the king is all she can hope for, but to earn it, she’ll have to prove that her motives were in service of the crown.

To Juliette’s surprise and delight, the court appoints René to record her confession. But René holds his own bitter grudge against Juliette, and is about as close to forgiving her as Juliette is to her freedom.

With one night to tell all, Juliette must win back her life, so she can win back her love.

Critic reviews

"The mystery at the heart of this book maneuvers deftly between the intrigue and deception of the Sun King's court, an aching romance, and the lengths we will go for those we love. I couldn't put it down!"—Andrea Robertson, New York Times bestselling author

"Set among the splendors and intrigues of the Baroque court, The Jewel Thief is a gripping tale of a bold young craftswoman determined to carve out her own glorious destiny."—Elizabeth Bunce, Morris Award-winning author of A Curse Dark as Gold

"Mobley crafts her own Hope Diamond legend, one filled with romance and intrigue . . . Mobley's account of diamond cutting is fascinating, and her attention to the political and social tensions of the time, particularly the treatment of Jews in 17th-century France, adds a pointed layer of consequence to the novel."—Publishers Weekly

"Mobley skillfully combines real events and people with a fictional teen protagonist forced to make her thief's confession to her horrified true love. The romance inherent in diamonds and royalty is enhanced by the young lovers' story, and is also augmented by a (multicultural) plot thread involving the Jewish jewelers, who were notoriously badly treated in Europe at that time (the 1600s)."—Booklist

"Juliette emerges as a realistically flawed heroine . . . A winding tale of jewelry-based intrigue."—Kirkus Reviews