Children of the Lamp
Children of the Lamp is a series of fantasy novels for senior children as well as adolescents and adults written by the British author P.B. Kerr. It tells the story of twin djinn, John and Philippa Gaunt, and their challenges with adapting to the world of djinn. The story has a variety of themes, family, adventure, and loyalty being a few. The first book, The Akhenaten Adventure, was published in 2004. The second book, The Blue Djinn of Babylon, was published in 2006. The third book, The Cobra King of Kathmandu, was also released in 2006. The fourth book was published in August 2007 [1], and is named The Day of the Djinn Warrior. The film rights are held by Dreamworks.
The Books
The Akhenaten Adventure
John and Philippa are twelve year old twins, with a remarkably beautiful mother, and a very rich, not very handsome, but very kind father, who live a life of luxury in Manhattan. One day, their wisdom teeth appear simultaneously. Then they both have the same dream in which their uncle, Nimrod tells them to come to London. They begin the adventure of a lifetime, from Cairo to London, from pink Feraris to Camels. With a wise old uncle named Nimrod, his one-armed butler who is called Groanin, his enormously tall egyptian servant called Creemy, and an agoraphobic ancient djinn called Mr. Rakshasas. From New York to London to Egypt, back to London and back, the twins' adventures are filled with excitement as they undergo training in the use of their newly discovered powers, but are also fraught with danger, as they battle the evil tribes of djinn, to preserve the balance between good and evil in the world.
The Blue Djinn of Babylon
John and Philippa Gaunt, twelve-year-old twins who recently discovered themselves to be descended from a long line of djinn (commonly called genies) and who are now in possession of great powers, have only just returned from their adventures battling evil djinn in Cairo and London. Now the mystery surrounding a powerful book of djinn magic named Solomon's Grimore lures the twins straight into their next extraordinary adventure.
When the Solomon Grimoire is reported missing, John and Philippa are called upon to retrieve this book of power. They travel across the globe, from New York to Istanbul, Berlin to Budapest, but, little do they know, a trap has been set and the djinn twins are about to walk right into it. Soon, John must embark on an epic journey to save his sister from the fate of eternal hard-heartedness, before it's too late.
The Cobra King of Kathmandu
Fiery magic in a land of ice. Midnight intruders and murder by snakebite sweep John and Philippa Gaunt into their third fantastic adventure. After their friend Dybbuk Sachertorte sends an email pleading for help the twins go save him, the twins can't refuse. Dybbuk gives a mysterious painting leading them to Nepal to save their friends. In snowy Kathmandu, the children as well as Mr. Groanin' face the ultimate test of their amazing djinn powers. Can they uncover the venomous secrets of an evil Snake Cult to find the long-lost talisman of the Cobra King? Meanwhile, at home, their mother prepares to follow her destiny, which she has still kept secret.
The Day of the Djinn Warrior
The Day of the Djinn Warrior is the fourth novel and will deal with more of the Sachertorte family's past, as well as the encounter with the newly changed Layla Gaunt.
The fourth djinncredible adventure for the Children of the Lamp. Theft, hauntings and red-hot mystery - it's a race against time for John and Philippa Gaunt to outwit the wicked Iblis. But can the djinn twins stop Iblis now he has woken the ancient warriors of a long-dead emperor from their sleep...?
The djinn twins are off on another whirlwind adventure that takes them around the globe and into unknown worlds. And it's a race against time as they attempt to rescue their mother from her fate as the Blue Djinn of Babylon. They discover that an aging curse has been placed on their father and if the twins are gone too long, he'll rapidly become an old man. As the twins and their friends travel around the globe on their rescue mission, they notice that something very strange is happening: An evil force has awakened the terracotta warriors created by an ancient Chinese emperor, and someone with very bad intentions has cast a spell possessing the soldiers with wicked spirits. And now, the very fate of the world hangs in the balance.
Meanwhile, museums all over the world are reporting robberies of valuable jade from their collections, as well as bizarre hauntings. Can the twins stop the mysterious terracotta warriors, rescue their parents, AND save the world before it's too late?
Use of Magic in the Series
The djinn (regardless of whether they like it or not) are the guardians of luck, so they derive their power from "luck". Much of the narrative thrust comes from those who promote good luck, who are attempting to combat those who promote bad luck. In particular the book focuses on the Marid, a tribe of djinn, to which the Gaunt family belongs, and the Ifrit who provide many of the enemies in the four books.
Characters
John Gaunt
John Gaunt is the twin of Philippa Gaunt. John is described as tall and dark, and previously pimply. John, like most djinn, is claustrophobic but as seen in "The Akhenaten Adventure", John panics more than Philippa does. He has a strong dislike to salt, as revealed in "The Blue Djinn of Babylon. He is quite athletic, and acquired more strength in the second book in order to fight of a bully physically. During the second book, John faces numerous obstacles, including having to kill a very real looking projection of his own father, in his efforts to save Philippa. His focus word is ABECEDARIAN.
Philippa Gaunt
Philippa "Phil" Gaunt is the twin of John Gaunt. Philippa is shorter with red hair and glasses, like her father. Like her brother John, she is claustrophobic and dislikes loud noises. Philippa is described as the more intellectual one; this was seen with her quick skill of telling lies to Miss Pickings, allowing herself to successfully remove Gordon Warthoff's pimples, and is an expert Djinnverso player. In "The Blue Djinn of Babylon", she is kidnapped by her maternal grandmother Ayesha, the Blue Djinn of Babylon. It's revealed Philippa was used as a key to get Layla Gaunt to usurp the role as Blue Djinn. Her focus word is FABULONGOSHOOMARVELISHLYWONDERPIPICAL, the longest one in the series (with the exception of John's discrimen).
Uncle Nimrod
Nimrod Plantagenet Godwin is the powerful Djinn uncle of John and Philippa and defacto leader of the Marid. Nimrod is depicted as a loud djinn who enjoys the color red, and a near experate at all things relating to djinn. Apparently, he has a strong dislike to jade, and rubies. He is always seen with a cigar, and has a strong talent in allowing the smoke of his cigar to create shapes and/or allowing those shapes to then become real. Nimrod's companion is Mr. Rakshasas, who he always keeps in his pocket. He first appeared in a dream of John's and Philippa's simultaneously, when their wisdom teeth were extracted. His focus word is QWERTYUIOP (the top ten keys on a keyboard).
Layla Gaunt
Layla Gaunt is the eccentric, rather glamorous mother of John and Philippa, and sister to Nimrod. She first appears as a stern mother, telling John that naming one of the dogs "Elvis" isn't acceptable. From then and through the series, she was depicted as an extremely tall djinn who had the media clamouring up for her. She had an apparent blatant relationship with her brother Nimrod in their later lives, but had grown up loving him earlier. She had then cut herself off from the djinn world, including dropping the use of her powers right after turning her husband's murderous brothers into the pet dogs. She finally began using her powers again to turn an assassin, hired to kill John and Phillipa, into a cat, who they took in as a pet and named Monty. She had renounced the use of her djinn powers after she attempted to save her daughter Philippa from her mother Ayesha. Ayesha wished her to become the new Blue Djinn of Babylon, a position Layla did not desire; resulting in the kidnapping of Philippa in order to force Layla to take the position. In "The Cobra King of Kathmandu", Layla Gaunt leaves her family forever in order to become the next Blue Djinn. In "The Day of the Djinn Warriors" she is replaced by Faustina , Dybbuk's sister, as the Blue Djinn and comes back home. On her way home from Iraq, her body is incinerated by a pyroclastic flow from the Hawaiian volcano Kilauea and her spirit is currently occupying the maids body. Her focus word is NEPHELOKOKKYGIA (from Cloud cuckoo land).
Edward Gaunt
The father of the twins Philippa and John Gaunt. He is fearful of the twin's powers after their mother turned his two brothers into dogs. Described as absentminded, but brilliant and a good father. He is quite fond of antiques and a successful banker. During the fourth book the curse set on him by his wife is making him age at an unnaturally rate.
Recurring Characters
Ayesha Godwin: (Deceased) The Blue Djinn of Babylon, Layla Gaunt's mother, and John and Philippa's grandmother. She is about two hundred years old, but looks about ninety. As Blue Djinn, Ayesha is the arbitrator of djinn disputes and is considered "beyond" good and evil. Her state of mind is not achieved naturally; she uses the tree of logic (the "third tree of eden") to become hard-hearted.
Iblis Teer: Leader of the evil Djinn tribe, the Ifrit. He was punished by Ayesha for killing Hussein Hussaout in the first book. Ayesha sentenced him to be exiled to Venus for ten years, but the container he was trapped in never made it to the shuttle because it was stolen, in the Cobra King of Kathmandu his body is torn apart by Djinn tigers and he possessed a magician as his new body, he is now trapped in an impenetrable suit of Jade and Gold. He has a son named Rudyard who quite dislikes the twins. His focus word is TETRAGRAMMATONITIS.
Mr. Harry Groanin: Nimrod's one-armed butler. Groanin freed Nimrod from confinement and won three wishes. After wasting his first two wishes he became Nimrod's butler so he could properly consider how to use his third wish, and to make sure Nimrod doesn't trick him. He uses his third wish to help locate a trapped Nimrod and feels quite liberated afterwards. Groanin's other arm was recreated by John, Philippa, and Dybbuk in book 3. This arm is strong enough to fight an angel in book 4 and win.
Mr. Rakshasas: Nimrod's djinn friend. Mr. Rakshasas feels more at home in his lamp than outside of it, following a long period of forced confinement. He is afraid of large and open spaces. He is considered a leading djinn expert on the Baghdad Rules, a series of conventions regulating wishes and wish granting and even wrote a book on the subject called The Shorter Baghdad Rules, he was absorbed by one of the Terracotta warriors. His focus word is SESQUIPEDALIAN.
Alan and Neil: Brothers of Mr. Gaunt. Jealous of all of his success, the pair attempted to kill him. They were stopped by Mrs. Gaunt and turned into the family's beloved Rottweilers. In the first book, John tried to change their names into Winston and Elvis (much to the horror of his father). After they sacrificed their own lives to save John, in his quest to rescue Philippa, they returned to human form. Layla Gaunt had made it so that their punishment would only last for as long as the animals lived.
Dybbuk Sachertorte: Djinn friend of John and Philippa. His mother is the djinn Doctor Sachertorte, who helps John and Philippa recover from their illness in The Akhenaten Adventure. He goes with them on their adventures in The Cobra King of Kathmandu. His favorite things are treasure hunts and old war movies. He, his mother, and his pet coyote Colin live in Palm Springs, California. He also has a crush on Philippa. He acts as a magician under the name of Jonathon Tarrot in the fourth book, because of power abuse he becomes mundane. In the third book, it is revealed that his father is Iblis Teer, leader of the Ifrit tribe and most evil of all Djinn. His focus word is ZYGOBRANCHIATE.
Rudyard Teer : Djinn son of Iblis and half-brother of Dybbuk Sacertorte. He suffers the same fate as his father, trapped in a suit of jade and gold.