Chronicles of Chrestomanci

## Genre Information

Children's
Fantasy

Young Adult
Parallel Worlds

 (Series Content Ratings Click on Explicit Ratings for details.)

## About the Series

* **Genres:** Children's Fantasy / Young Adult / Parallel Worlds
* **Theme:**
* **Narrative style**:

## Series Description

A series of books taking place in the Twelve Related Worlds involving a powerful nine-lifed enchanter known as Chrestomanci, written by Diana Wynne Jones.

**Chrestomanci** (pronounced /ˈkrɛstəmænsi/) is the title of a position held by at least two major characters in a series of fantasy novels by Diana Wynne Jones. It is also the name given to the book series.

The **Chrestomanci** is the title of a powerful enchanter with the responsibility of regulating magic usage in a set of parallel universes including our own world. The Chrestomancis are unique in that they have nine lives. This is because while most people have "doubles" across nine worlds, a potential Chrestomanci has no doubles. It is a government job, and each Chrestomanci is responsible for locating and training his or her successor. The word "Chrestomanci" may be derived from the Greek *khrestos*, meaning "useful," and -mancy, "divination."

## Series Books

1. Charmed Life (Chronicles of Chrestomanci Book 1) (1977)
2. The Lives of Christopher Chant (Chronicles of Chrestomanci Book 2) (1988)
3. Witch Week (Chronicles of Chrestomanci Book 3) (1982)
4. The Magicians of Caprona (Chronicles of Chrestomanci Book 4) (1980)
5. Conrad's Fate (Chronicles of Chrestomanci Book 5) (2005)
6. The Pinhoe Egg (Chronicles of Chrestomanci Book 6) (2006)

### Shorts

* "The Sage of Theare", in *Hecate's Cauldron* (1982) ed. Susan M. Schwartz
* "Warlock at the Wheel", in *Warlock at the Wheel and Other Stories* (1984) by Jones
* "Carol Oneir's Hundredth Dream", in *Dragons and Dreams* (1986) ed. Jane Yolen et al.
* "Stealer of Souls", in *Mixed Magics* (2000) by Jones

### Read order

1. Charmed Life
2. The Lives of Christopher Chant
3. The Magicians of Caprona
4. Witch Week
5. Conrad's Fate
6. The Pinhoe Egg
7. Mixed Magics (Chronicles of Chrestomanci)
	1. "Carol O'Neir's Hundredth Dream"
	2. "The Sage of Theare"
	3. "Stealer of Souls"
	4. "Warlock at the Wheel"

## World Building

### Fantasy Elements

All Chrestomancis must have, or have had, nine lives. Merely calling out "Chrestomanci" will cause him to appear, whether he wants to or not. As a result, he has been referred to as "August Personage," "the Big Man" or similar. It is implied that saying his name three times forces him to at least try to solve whatever magical dilemma the summoner wants. The exception to this is that the summoner must be in true need of aid, with no way out of their dilemma other than Chrestomanci's intervention. One cannot summon him simply because one is lazy.

### World

There are twelve different series' of worlds in the Chrestomanci series. They are all linked because everybody on them all speak the same language. Every series also started out with the same geography, but their own history changed the worlds in different ways. For instance, some worlds are still going through an Ice Age, and in Series Seven's worlds Britain has not broken off from the continent of Europe.

#### Series Twelve Worlds

Twelve B
Twelve B is our own world. It has no magic at all.
Twelve A
Magic in Twelve A is common and comes in different strengths and varieties. :*Hag* is not a category of magic-user, but is instead a derogatory term for anyone who practices magic. Notable witches include Gwendolen Chant and Ellen Sharp.
**Witch**/**Warlock** - Practitioners of **witchcraft**, the weakest form of magic. Witches and warlocks rely primarily upon ingredients to cast their spells. Additionally, they can be further ranked according to what kind of license they have.
***Certified*** - The lowest qualification. People only go to Certified Witches when they can't afford anyone better. Mrs. Sharp is a Certified Witch.
***Accredited*** - A higher qualification than *Certified*. There are three Accredited Witches on Coven Street in Wolvercote.
***Willing*** - It's unclear how strong or weak a qualification this is. One Willing Warlock lives on Coven Street in Wolvercote and is mostly hired for lifting heavy objects or making the wrong horse win at the races.
**Necromancer** - Practitioners of necromancy. Contrary to the traditional meaning, necromancy does not involve raising the dead; it is merely a step up from witchcraft. Henry Nostrum is a necromancer.
**Wizard** - Practitioners of wizardry.
**Magician** - Practitioners of magician's magic. Notable magicians include Michael Saunders.
**Sorcerer**/**Sorceress** - Practitioners of sorcery, which seems to involve using a personal, inanimate object (such as a handkerchief) as a focus. Miranda Chant, Christopher's mother, is a sorceress.
**Enchanter**/**Enchantress** - Practitioners of enchanter's magic. Enchanter's magic is notable in that it does not require ingredients; instead, enchanters are capable of *willing* their magic to shape reality. Millie is a powerful enchantress, and the Chant family pride themselves on being a clan that produces many enchanters. Marianne Pinhoe is also an enchantress.
***Nine-lived Enchanter*** - The most powerful users of magic in Series Twelve, and among the most powerful in any other world. As their name suggests, nine-lived enchanters have nine lives. This happens when a person's doubles are either not born or die at birth, and all of those eight additional lives and their latent talents collect in one person. Four nine-lived enchanters are known by name: Benjamin Allworthy, Gabriel De Witt, Christopher Chant, and Cat Chant.
Twelve D
It is said that Twelve D has even more magic than Twelve A, but it is so badly organized that it is hard to tell.
#### Series Eleven Worlds

Only one world here, ruled by the Dright with a rod of iron. Its people are the ones who have given rise to our stories of elves.

#### Series Ten Worlds

Another hot Series, where lands and mountains are arranged in a way we would not recognize and religion is very important. Here some worlds seem very primitive while others are full of heavy industry. These worlds all know about one another and trade with each other, despite their differences.

The constant feature of all nine worlds is the worship of the goddess Asheth, a fiercely possessive and vengeful goddess. Her soldiers, known as the Arm of Asheth, have been known to track those who have offended the goddess from world to world for years.

#### Series Nine Worlds

Dragons live here too, but this is a tropical Series, with huge jungles and strange trees and plants. Insects here are large and worrying. Explorers from other Series need protective clothing.

#### Series Eight Worlds

The series where most of the dragons live. Each world is grim, mountainous and chilly, and the people are not very friendly. The difference between the worlds here is that some worlds are fuller of people than others. No one knows why.

#### Series Seven Worlds

The main feature of all these worlds is that there are no British Isles. The European landmass stretches from China to the Altantic without a break, but with many more mountains than we have in our world. There is a lot of snow here and some mighty glaciers. Otherwise the people there are much like the people in our Series, except that there are many more kings.

#### Series Six Worlds

A mysterious set of worlds, largely unexplored. There are thought to be volcanoes here which the magic-users of Six use to power their magics. This Series is as magical as Series One.

#### Series Five Worlds

A strikingly beautiful set of worlds that are all a mass of islands surrounded by very blue seas. Humans share these worlds with tribes of mermaids.

#### Series Four Worlds

In these worlds the marshes evaporated, so there is a lot of desert and a number of very salty seas. The people here are always at war with one another for possession of the limited number of oases, but they are also very civilised. Dragons live in the deserts.

#### Series Three Worlds

A Series mostly marsh and quite warm. People live in settlements built of stilts and grow a lot of rice.

#### Series Two Worlds

Here the flatness of the worlds is humpier with very little sea, so the land is divided by a multitude of rivers crossed by hump-backed bridges. Mighty land eels live in these rivers, most of them quite intelligent and rather dangerous.

#### Series One Worlds

A bleak, flat but very magical Series, thought by some people to be the very first set of worlds that came into being. It was the Great Mages, who rule these worlds, who first discovered the other Series and numbered them. The Mages are very powerful and very arrogant and look down on all the other worlds as being pathetic newcomers.

One constant magical feature in all nine of Series One worlds is the great enchantment of the ring trains, which hurtle through magical rings a hundred feet in the air.

### Protagonist

The Chrestomancis encountered throughout the series include Gabriel de Witt and his successor Christopher Chant. As of the events of *Charmed Life*, Christopher Chant has started training Eric Chant as the next Chrestomanci.

Christopher Chant
appears in all of the books in the Chrestomanci series. He is the current occupant of the post. He takes great pains with his clothes, and is often found in either his impeccable dove-grey suit or one of many elaborately embroidered dressing gowns. He is often described as dreamy or vague, but these are also the times when he is most perceptive. He currently has two lives remaining, one of which is in a gold engagement ring worn by his wife, Millie.
Benjamin Allworthy
was the Chrestomanci before Gabriel de Witt. Little is known about him other than his name. In *The Pinhoe Egg*, it is said he was the last wizard to go shooting in two hundred years.
Gabriel de Witt
was Christopher's predecessor, and appears in *The Lives of Christopher Chant*, *Conrad's Fate*, and *Stealer of Souls*. Christopher Chant became Chrestomanci after Gabriel retired.
Eric "Cat" Chant
appears in *Charmed Life*, *Mixed Magics*, and *The Pinhoe Egg*. Although in training, he has not yet become Chrestomanci. He is left-handed, and had been reprimanded in school for being so. He is a seemingly ordinary boy, with interests similar to most boys his age. Cat currently has three lives remaining. His nickname was given to him by his sister, when she found out he had nine lives.