#THE BLACK BOOK OF COLORS SERIES#

She gives Karris a note concerning Gavin's unfaithfulness, to be read after leaving the Chromeria. The White sends Karris to Garriston, Tyrea's capital, to spy on its Satrap's army. This child was conceived while Gavin was betrothed to Karris White Oak, a member of his Black-guard, the most elite military force in the world. He had not known of his son's existence until this point. Sixteen years after the war, the Prism receives a note from a woman claiming to be 'Lina,' instructing him to meet his now 15-year-old son across the world in Tyrea. Tyrea was devastated, with almost all the men killed and its fertile farmland destroyed. At Sundered Rock, in the Satrapi of Tyrea, Gavin destroys his brother, causing Dazen's general Corvan Danavis to surrender. The Chromeria's enemies quickly make common cause with him, and the resultant war is brief but bloody.

After Dazen burns down the powerful White Oak family house with several women and children inside, he is sought by the Chromeria. Gavin, the elder brother, was groomed to be Prism from a young age by Andross Guile, their father and spectrum color. Only one person a generation is meant to be a 'full-spectrum light-splitter' however, the two Guile brothers, Gavin and Dazen, demonstrate the same abilities. Prisms typically die (or start to lose their colors) after their 7th, 14th, or 21st year of serving. A Prism's abilities, ceremonial authority, status and Chromeria-sponsored protection allow him a great deal of personal agency however, he has the least official governing power in peacetime, this role falls to the 'white', a non-drafting ruler who decides on most of the Chromeria's political policy. A Prism represents the god Orholam (a name possibly related to ' hohlraum', a concept in the thermodynamics of radiation), who it is believed bestows magical power onto his chosen. Creatures such as these are referred to as wights, and are terminated with extreme prejudice by the Chromeria, often via the Prism. At this point they go mad and attempt to incorporate luxin into their own bodies. A normal magician is called a 'drafter', a drafter may draft until enough Luxin residue builds up in the drafter's eyes to break into the white of the eye, otherwise known as 'breaking the halo'. The Prism, apart from being able to use magic of every color, must also be able to 'split light', allowing them to use magic more efficiently than normal magicians.

#THE BLACK BOOK OF COLORS SERIES#

The series is based around the magical principle of chromaturgy, in which light is harnessed to create 'Luxin'. The ruling council consists of seven 'colors', who are essentially representatives from each satrapy, The White, and the Prism.

The Chromeria is also the seat of education and regulation for the color magic on which the series is based. Satrapies have considerable independence, but are under the loose control of a federalist central government the Chromeria. The story takes place in The Seven Satrapies, 7 semi-autonomous countries, surrounding a large sea each satrapy is ruled by a ' satrap'. Ages 5–10.The Black Prism is set in a pre-industrial fantasy milieu, albeit more advanced than most, with gunpowder weapons and widespread use of simple machines such as pulleys and gears. It is as soft as silk when his mother hugs him and her hair falls in his face.” It would be a mistake to read the book as a message about how the other senses compensate for blindness “compensate” doesn’t do justice to all that Thomas offers about what he tastes and feels and hears and smells. Red is “sour” brown “crunches” and green “tastes like lemon ice cream.” He has given careful thought to all the colors, “but black is the king. While the concept is arresting in itself, Thomas’s proclamations about color reveal him as a bold, engaging character. (Decoding the images this way, not incidentally, is difficult.) “Thomas,” the narrator begins, “says that yellow tastes like mustard, but is as soft as a baby chick’s feathers.” Opposite, delicately drawn plumes float across the page. White text appears on black pages, with braille above on the facing page, also black, images suggested in the text are printed in raised black lines-inviting the reader to discover them through touch alone. Attempting to convey the experience of blindness, this non–picture book by a pair of Venezuelan artists reads triumphantly.

The black book of colors