“Destiny of the Diamond Princess” by Sherri Winston, c.2026, Bloomsbury, $18.99, 240 pages
Dripping in jewels from head to foot.
If you were a princess or a queen, that’s what you would have. Jewels, gold, lux gowns and lush thrones, not to mention power and respect. It would be so much fun. It would mean a lot of work, too. And in the new book, “Destiny of the Diamond Princess” by Sherri Winston, it might include an ancient curse.
For her entire life, Zahara-Grace Jones had known that she was adopted. What she didn’t know was that her life was a lie!
That whole time, her Mom claimed she didn’t know a thing about Zhara-Grace’s birth parents. She didn’t even have names, she said. But on the evening of Zahara-Grace’s 12th birthday, the truth is revealed. The mom had known a lot about Zahara-Grace’s birth. In fact, she was there right after Zahara-Grace entered the world, and she was given a mysterious box to give to Zahara-Grace on her 12th birthday.
Inside the box was a medallion, a statue and a letter that said everything would make sense soon. Zahara-Grace put the medallion around her neck immediately, as she seethed with anger. Why did her mother keep such an important secret for so long? She hated to be mad at the people who loved her most, but she had so many questions.
And then there was more: As Zahara-Grace competed in her favorite school sport, equestrienne skills, there was a commotion on the sidelines. A tall, regal gentleman loudly announced that she was the granddaughter of the King of Maliwanda, and the descendant of Princess Fara. That meant that Zahara-Grace was a real-life, bona-fide, honest-to-goodness princess!
What a shocker, right? Her BFFs were unfazed, her mother was nervous, and her G-Pop was gracious. But becoming royalty could seriously change a girl’s life, starting with rumors of a curse, palace jealousy and a poisoning centuries ago.
Was Zahara-Grace the heir to that curse? And was it truly a coincidence that the mummies of her ancestors were about to be on display at a local art museum …?
To your adult eyes, a mummy’s curse novel might seem like old-school fiction. And it is — yet it’s also not, in this case. “Destiny of the Diamond Princess” has shades of 1932, but with a 2026 twist that’s fresh as can be, and fun, too.
Author Sherri Winston’s character, Zahara-Grace, is a great kid, kind and responsible, and her family is supportive of her interests, which widens the story and lets in more believability. On that same note, there’s African history and mythology in the tale, which gives it a ring of truth that your child will love, but not so much that the story feels textbookish. What young readers will probably enjoy best, though, is the exciting Indiana Jones-like tone that Winston uses. It’s thrilling and just a little scary, but safely so.
“Destiny of the Diamond Princess” is meant for kids ages 8-to-11 but slightly older children might enjoy it, too. As might an adult, because this book is a gem.
