Children Of The Lamp Books In Order

Publication Order of Children Of The Lamp Books

Children of the Lamp is a series of children’s books written by P.B. Kerr following the exploits of two children who learn that they have magical powers.

+The Story

The Children of the Lamp series began publication in 2004 with ‘The Akhenaten Adventure’. The Book introduced readers to the Gaunt family. John and Philippa Gaunt are twins living in New York City with their parents.

John and Philippa’s lives change when they turn twelve and their wisdom teeth appear. The pair manifests magical powers and realizes that they are actually Djinn, beings that have the capacity to bend the world to their will by granting wishes.

The discovery fills John and Philippa with both excitement and apprehension. On the one hand, their eyes are opened to a fantastical world filled with all manner of supernatural creatures. The twins meet their uncle Nimrod and, through him, learn of the important role they were born to fulfill.

On the other hand, the world of the Djinn is dangerous, and it doesn’t take John and Philippa long to realize that with their gifts comes a responsibility to fight evil.

Fortunately for all involved, John and Philippa are more than happy to step up and fight whenever the need arises.

P.B. Kerr describes Djinn as the guardians of luck. This applies to both Good and Bad Djinn. Good Djinn promote good luck and they fight to protect it at all costs. Their cause is primarily represented in the Children of the Lamp series by the Marid, a tribe of Djinn led by Layla Gaunt.

John and Philippa belong to the Marid.

The Bad Djinn work to promote bad luck and their primary representatives take the shape of the Ifrit, a tribe of evil Djinn that play the role of antagonist throughout the books.

While the Ifrit and the Marid are not the only tribes of Djinn in the series, they tend to play the most prominent roles.

P.B. Kerr makes an effort to expand the mythos of the Djinn in between all the running, and fighting and adventuring.

He explains that the power of the Djinn has its limits. For one thing, every time Djinn grant a wish, they lose a portion of their life force which, in turn, shortens their lifespan. And the life force a Djinn loses can never be regained.

Additionally, Djinn need heat to use their power. For that reason, it is common practice to freeze adult Djinn in ice to prevent their power from being used.

Djinn in the Children of the Lamp Universe depend on will and imagination to make wishes come true. If they can accurately picture what they want to achieve, they can make it happen.

However, that does not include bringing back the dead, affecting the flow of time or creating other Djinn. Kerr maintains the old trope that Djinn can only grant three wishes to any given individual.

However, there is a fourth wish on offer that individuals can use to undo all their previous wishes if things did not pan out quite as they intended.

The perks of being Djinn include slowed aging, the ability to take an astral form with which one can enter the dreams of other people and even possess them, and shapeshifting capabilities.

Djinn can also travel by whirlwind and utilize the powers of elemental beings.

While Philippa and John take center stage in the Children of the Lamp Series, the books boast quite the rich cast of characters. They include Dybbuk, John and Philippa’s best friend and a fellow Djinn who loves treasure hunts.

Then there’s Uncle Nimrod, a powerful Djinn and the leader of the Marid. Nimrod, who has a preference for red suits, is the primary source of wisdom and guidance for John and Philippa.

Harry Groanin is Nimrod’s butler. Harry freed Nimrod from imprisonment. In return, Nimrod offered Harry three wishes. Harry misused the first two wishes. He became Nimrod’s butler because he needed time to figure out how to best use his third wish.

Layla Gaunt is the twin’s mother. A tall, glamorous and eccentric lady, Layla departed the Djinn world a long time ago and even chose to forego the use of her powers. Layla doesn’t play much of a role in the first few stories. However, circumstances eventually drag her back into the fray.

Edward, the twin’s father, is a successful banker who loves antiques. Edward fears John and Philippa’s powers.

The Children of the Lamp books have been criticized for some of the xenophobic views P.B. Kerr presents. The books seem to throw disdain at everything and everyone who isn’t European.

+The Author

Philip Kerr is a British author that attended a Grammar School in Northampton before pursuing a law degree from the University of Birmingham. Born in 1956, Kerr was a copywriter for Saatchi and Saatchi. He eventually abandoned the career to write full-time in 1989.

Kerr has written both fiction and nonfiction for adults and children.

+The Akhenaten Adventure

John and Philippa are 12-year-old twins living in New York. Their father Edward is an investment banker. Layla, their mother, is suspicious in the power she seems to wield on the social scene.

Despite that, John and Philippa are living relatively ordinary lives. Then their wisdom teeth appear and their powers manifest. John and Philippa learn that they are Djinn. That means they have the power to grant wishes.

With their eccentric uncle Nimrod, his complaining butler Groanin and old friend Rakshasas in tow, John and Philippa embark on a journey to find the ghost of an evil pharaoh.

John and Philippa are good, obedient kids. They are also brave and do not hesitate to jump into the thick of things when trouble arises.

+The Blue Djinn of Babylon

When their wisdom teeth came in, John and Philippa learned that they were Djinn. They have since come to terms with the great power they possess and the responsibilities it entails, having only recently come back from fighting an evil Djinn in Egypt.

When the most powerful grimoire in the Djinn world is stolen, the twins realize that their adventures have only just begun.