The Black Jewels  The Black Jewels is a series of dark fantasy novels and short stories written by American writer Anne Bishop. The first three books were originally published individually and then together as a trilogy in a single omnibus collection. The series takes place in a world where those born with dark power/magic rule in a deeply matriarchal society. Winner of the William L. Crawford Memorial Fantasy Award, 2000. Stand-alone novels published after the award-winning trilogy. Anne Bishop has published two complete Black Jewels short story anthologies. Two additional short stories can be found within other publications. There are two main, interconnected hierarchical systems among the Blood. The first is the Jewel system. In a society with a high tolerance for violence, Jewel ranking gives an immediate sense of innate power. The darker a person's Jewel, the more dangerous they are. They have greater Craft (magic) abilities and higher metabolisms, as well as significant political advantages over lighter Jeweled Blood. The Jewels themselves act as reservoirs of power. The Blood are able to use some Craft without tapping into their Jewels but the vast majority of their abilities require them. Using too much Craft and draining a reservoir can potentially shatter a Jewel and permanently render a person unable to access that power. Adult members of the Blood typically have two full sets of Jewels, a Birthright and the one they "wear". While Jewels are typically worn out in the open, the Blood are able to sense Jewel rank to a certain extent (multiple instances show that this ability is easy to confuse, especially if the bearer wears their Birthright instead of their actual Jewel). Jewels fall into thirteen ranks with darker colors being stronger. They are:  White  Yellow  Tiger Eye  Rose  Summer-sky  Purple Dusk  Opal*  Green  Sapphire  Red  Gray  Ebon-gray  Black  *Opal is the dividing line between lighter and darker Jewels because it can be either. Members of the Blood undergo two ceremonies to determine their innate strength. The darker the Jewel, the stronger the person is. During the Birthright Ceremony, which occurs in childhood, they may or may not walk away with a Jewel. It is unheard of to receive anything darker than Red as Birthright. The only known exception to this being Janelle Angelline. A second ceremony is done at the age of majority. Called the Offering to the Darkness, it lasts from sunset to sunrise. When making the Offering to the Darkness, a person can descend a maximum of three ranks from his/her Birthright Jewel.