The Mysterious Tale of "The Stone Council": Exploring Jean-Christophe Grange's Captivating Novel

Following the internationally bestselling "The Crimson Rivers," Jean-Christophe Grangé presents us with "The Stone Council." While "The Stone Council" is primarily a Crime/Thriller novel in terms of its subject matter and plot, it is a book that encompasses various different genres within its pages, all crafted by Grangé's enchanting pen.

Quotes from “The Stone Council”:

After listing and setting aside all possibilities, what remains? The impossible.

The believing individual takes the first step towards power. Perhaps they become the embodiment of power itself.

When a person's back is against the cliff, do they turn around?

A person can always escape from prison. But from freedom?

Yet one pain cannot hide another.

...He used to say that writers don't choose their characters, but rather characters choose their writers. I guess the same applies to fate.

There is no such thing as unfounded hope.

Everything must have been written somewhere. Waiting was necessary.

We are all on the side of life.

Pictures will speak better than long sentences.

Every person carries their loved ones within them, like a small cemetery.

We will never be the same again…

The Subject of “The Stone Council”:

In his novels, Grange presents works in the Thriller/Crime genre, and his use of fluent language along with incorporating various fields into the plot explains the prolonged presence of Grange's books on the bestsellers list.

The core theme in "The Stone Council" primarily revolves around the savage method of "heart explosion" used to kill animals in Shamanism, which forms the basis of the murders.

Additionally, "The Stone Council" delves into various areas, including physical and psychological violence, parapsychology, the Tseven people of Turkish-Mongolian descent, the battle among Shamanism successors, and even the buried secrets of the former Soviet Union like nuclear fusion, providing detailed and captivating insights.

It seems that the world, the real world, is nothing but violence, betrayal, and evil.

The Summary:

Before delving into the summary of the book "The Stone Council," it is essential to talk about the characters, which undoubtedly form the fundamental elements of the novel. In all of his works, Grange shapes a particular character, infusing them with distinct personal traits, and then constructs the entire plot around this character. This approach is evident in "The Stone Council" as well.

The same principle applies to the main character of the novel, Diane Thiberge. Diane, an ethologist by profession, is an extraordinary woman with unique qualities. Due to an incident she considers an "accident" during her adolescence, Diane develops haphephobia, the fear of touch. In addition, she has received training in "wing-chun," a close-range self-defense and counter-attack art from the South China region, and has won numerous awards in the field.

The plot of "The Stone Council" begins with Diane's desire to adopt a child. Having struggled with haphephobia and undergone years of psychological therapy, she wishes to adopt a child to give her life meaning. However, it is not an easy journey due to her past experiences and her mother Sybille's involvement in a mysterious event during Diane's teenage years.

After years of effort and failed attempts, Diane manages to adopt a child named Lucien from an orphanage in Southeast Asia, with the assistance of her stepfather Charles Helikian. Her life takes a positive turn with Lucien's arrival, but tragedy strikes when a traffic accident leaves Lucien in a coma.

Amidst the despair, a doctor named "Van Kaen," an expert in Eastern medicine, appears and miraculously heals Lucien using acupuncture. However, the next day, Van Kaen is found brutally murdered in the hospital's kitchen cabinets. The baffling murder sparks Diane's determination to uncover the truth, as she suspects a connection between Lucien and the doctor's death.

Diane's pursuit of the truth leads her to Langlois, a French police officer, who initially assists her in investigating the Van Kaen murder. However, as the story unfolds, Langlois and three others are brutally murdered in a similar fashion. As Diane's journey takes her from France to Moscow and then to Mongolia, she discovers a series of interconnected murders linked to her son Lucien.

This leads Diane to the heart of the Soviet Union's fusion research, where she encounters scientists focused on parapsychology and Shamanism. Throughout her journey, she witnesses profound changes in people, the willingness to believe the unbelievable, and the incredible successes of Eastern medicine. She also learns about Shamanism and the Mongolian culture.

In conclusion, the summary of "The Stone Council" showcases Grange's ability to captivate readers with a plot that keeps them engaged and curious until the very end. His unique narrative style and limitless imagination expand the boundaries of the reader's imagination. "The Stone Council," with its blend of action, suspense, drama, and crime elements, stands as a must-read for fans of these genres.

Wishing You Enjoyable Reading in Advance.