''Deltora Quest'' (often called ''Deltora Quest 1'' by fans) is a

children's A child ( : children) is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty, or between the developmental period of infancy and puberty. The legal definition of ''child'' generally refers to a minor, otherwise known as a person younger ...

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving Magic (supernatural), magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy ...

novel A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itsel ...

series written by

Emily Rodda Jennifer June Rowe, (born 4 April 1948), is an Australian author. Her crime fiction for adults is published under her own name, while her children's fiction is published under the pseudonyms Emily Rodda and Mary-Anne Dickinson. She is well know ...

. It was first published between 2000 and 2002 in Australia by

Scholastic Press Scholastic Corporation () is an American multinational publishing, education, and media company that publishes and distributes books, comics, and educational materials for schools, parents, and children. Products are distributed via retail and on ...

. There are eight books in this series: ''

The Forests of Silence ''The Forests of Silence'' is a fantasy novel written by Australian author Emily Rodda, and is the first book in the eight-volume Deltora Quest series. It was first published in 2000 by Scholastic and was awarded the "Notable Series in Children' ...

'', '' The Lake of Tears'', '' City of the Rats'', ''

The Shifting Sands ''The Shifting Sands'' is the fourth book in the eight-volume '' Deltora Quest'' fantasy novel series written by Emily Rodda. It continues the trio's journey to find the seven missing gems of Deltora, braving dangers and Guardians in each book. Th ...

'', '' Dread Mountain'', ''

The Maze of the Beast ''The Maze of the Beast'' is the sixth book in the Deltora Quest novel series, written by Emily Rodda. It was published in 2001 by Scholastic. Plot summary Lief, Barda, and Jasmine had retrieved the emerald from Dread Mountain. They travel a ...

'', '' The Valley of the Lost'' and '' Return to Del'' in that order. These books are followed by two other series set in the same universe: ''

Deltora Quest 2 ''Deltora Quest 2'' (known in North America as ''Deltora Shadowlands'') is a series of children’s fantasy books, written by Australian author Emily Rodda. It follows the adventures of three companions as they journey outside the magical lan ...

'' (''Deltora Shadowlands'' in North America), ''

Deltora Quest 3 ''Deltora Quest 3'' (known in North America as ''Dragons of Deltora'') is a series of children's fantasy books, written by Australian author Emily Rodda. It follows the adventures of three companions, Lief, Barda, and Jasmine, as they journey acr ...

'' (''Dragons of Deltora'' in North America). Together, these three series are collectively also referred to as the '' Deltora Quest'' series, and occasionally the ''Deltora'' series by some fans.

Plot

The series depicts the adventures of Lief, the teenage son of a

blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from #Other metals, other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such ...

, and the Good vs. Evil struggle of his country against its

dictator A dictator is a political leader who possesses absolute power. A dictatorship is a state ruled by one dictator or by a small clique. The word originated as the title of a Roman dictator elected by the Roman Senate to rule the republic in times ...

. He initially lives with his parents in the city of Del, situated on the fictional

island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...

of Deltora. The main

story arc A story arc (also narrative arc) is the chronological construction of plot in a novel or story. It can also mean an extended or continuing storyline in episodic storytelling media such as television, comic books, comic strips, board games, vide ...

takes place during a time of

economic depression An economic depression is a period of carried long-term economical downturn that is result of lowered economic activity in one major or more national economies. Economic depression maybe related to one specific country were there is some economic ...

and

political repression Political repression is the act of a state entity controlling a citizenry by force for political reasons, particularly for the purpose of restricting or preventing the citizenry's ability to take part in the political life of a society, thereb ...

, under the dictatorship of the

evil Evil, in a general sense, is defined as the opposite or absence of good. It can be an extremely broad concept, although in everyday usage it is often more narrowly used to talk about profound wickedness and against common good. It is general ...

Shadow Lord. This is the second time that the country's welfare has been threatened by him: the Shadow Lord's previous attempt at power was foiled by the creation of a magical jeweled

Belt Belt may refer to: Apparel * Belt (clothing), a leather or fabric band worn around the waist * Championship belt, a type of trophy used primarily in combat sports * Colored belts, such as a black belt or red belt, worn by martial arts practition ...

that was able to repel his

dark magic Black magic, also known as dark magic, has traditionally referred to the use of supernatural powers or magic for evil and selfish purposes, specifically the seven magical arts prohibited by canon law, as expounded by Johannes Hartlieb in 1456 ...

and drive him into hiding. Over time, however, he was able to infiltrate the royal cabinet and manipulate the royal family into wearing the Belt less and less. Eventually, the Shadow Lord also managed to corrupt the

trade Trade involves the transfer of goods and services from one person or entity to another, often in exchange for money. Economists refer to a system or network that allows trade as a market. An early form of trade, barter, saw the direct excha ...

system, sever communication between major cities, and render civilians politically powerless. Having established chaos, he set his seven Ak-Baba to scatter the Belt's

gemstone A gemstone (also called a fine gem, jewel, precious stone, or semiprecious stone) is a piece of mineral crystal which, in cut and polished form, is used to make jewelry or other adornments. However, certain rocks (such as lapis lazuli, opal, ...

s throughout Deltora, in "fearful places, guarded by seven terrifying guardians". The people's protection gone, the Shadow Lord assumed leadership. Lief, born soon after the beginning of this dark reign, is told of the gems on his sixteenth

birthday A birthday is the anniversary of the birth of a person, or figuratively of an institution. Birthdays of people are celebrated in numerous cultures, often with birthday gifts, birthday cards, a birthday party, or a rite of passage. Many relig ...

. His father, Jarred, has reforged the damaged Belt so that the gems may be reunited. Wanting the Shadow Lord overthrown, Lief leaves home to search for the seven gems: the

topaz Topaz is a silicate mineral of aluminium and fluorine with the chemical formula Al Si O( F, OH). It is used as a gemstone in jewelry and other adornments. Common topaz in its natural state is colorless, though trace element impurities can mak ...

, the

ruby A ruby is a pinkish red to blood-red colored gemstone, a variety of the mineral corundum ( aluminium oxide). Ruby is one of the most popular traditional jewelry gems and is very durable. Other varieties of gem-quality corundum are called sa ...

, the

opal Opal is a hydrated amorphous form of silica (SiO2·''n''H2O); its water content may range from 3 to 21% by weight, but is usually between 6 and 10%. Due to its amorphous property, it is classified as a mineraloid, unlike crystalline forms ...

, the

lapis lazuli Lapis lazuli (; ), or lapis for short, is a deep-blue metamorphic rock used as a semi-precious stone that has been prized since antiquity for its intense color. As early as the 7th millennium BC, lapis lazuli was mined in the Sar-i Sang mines, ...

, the

emerald Emerald is a gemstone and a variety of the mineral beryl (Be3Al2(SiO3)6) colored green by trace amounts of chromium or sometimes vanadium.Hurlbut, Cornelius S. Jr. and Kammerling, Robert C. (1991) ''Gemology'', John Wiley & Sons, New York, p ...

, the

amethyst Amethyst is a violet variety of quartz. The name comes from the Koine Greek αμέθυστος ''amethystos'' from α- ''a-'', "not" and μεθύσκω (Ancient Greek) / μεθώ (Modern Greek), "intoxicate", a reference to the belief that t ...

and the

diamond Diamond is a Allotropes of carbon, solid form of the element carbon with its atoms arranged in a crystal structure called diamond cubic. Another solid form of carbon known as graphite is the Chemical stability, chemically stable form of car ...

, which represent each of the ancient

tribe The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide usage of the term in English language, English is in the discipline of anthropology. This definition is contested, in p ...

s of Deltora. He is accompanied by Barda "The Bear", a family friend who once worked as a palace

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison ...

for the royal family, and they are later joined by the wild forest girl Jasmine. Together the trio travel across Deltora in search of the lost gems. The locations of the gems comprise the titles of the books-with the exception of volume 8-and each gem has certain magical properties, which often assist with the quest.

''The Forests of Silence''

''The Forests of Silence'' is the first book of the ''Deltora Quest'' series and acts as a sort of introduction to the series. The book is split in two parts, the first, acting like a long prologue, following the lives of Jarred and King Endon, of their childhood and adult life up to when the Shadow Lord conquers the land of Deltora and the gems are separated from the Belt. Jarred and Endon were the best of friends until the chief adviser, Prandine (the Shadow Lord's spy), framed Jarred for trying to kill Endon, forcing Jarred to flee the castle. Before he leaves, Jarred hides in the tree he and Endon played in as kids and leaves Endon a coded message telling Endon to signal if he ever needs Jarred's help. Once he escapes, Jarred learns that everything they thought they knew about the world outside the palace was a lie. The palace was surrounded by a magical mist caused by the Shadow Lord, that makes the village of Del appear a happy and prosperous place to anyone looking out at it from the castle (as the royal family never leaves the castle, the mist is very unlikely to be discovered). In actuality, the people in Del were starving and in great decline. Jarred begins his new life as a blacksmith's apprentice, later becoming a blacksmith himself. Jarred watched the palace every night for the next few years, until Endon signaled him and by then it was too late to save the gems and prevent the Shadow Lord's invasion. In the second half of the book, Lief, Barda, and Jasmine recover the first of the famed jewels, the topaz, from the Forests of Silence.

''The Lake of Tears''

''City of the Rats''

''The Shifting Sands''

''Dread Mountain''

''The Maze of the Beast''

''The Valley of the Lost''

''Return to Del''

Characters

References

External links

Official United States ''Deltora'' websiteOfficial Australian ''Deltora Quest'' websiteOfficial website of Emily Rodda
{{Deltora Quest Book series introduced in 2000 Deltora Fantasy books by series Series of children's books