Author: Amy Ewing
Genre: Fantasy, Dystopia
Number of Pages: 358
Publisher: HarperTeen
Publication Date: September 2, 2014
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Summary:
The Jewel means wealth. The Jewel means beauty. The Jewel means royalty. But for girls like Violet, the Jewel means servitude. Not just any kind of servitude. Violet, born and raised in the Marsh, has been trained as a surrogate for the royalty—because in the Jewel the only thing more important than opulence is offspring.
Purchased at the surrogacy auction by the Duchess of the Lake and greeted with a slap to the face, Violet (now known only as #197) quickly learns of the brutal truths that lie beneath the Jewel’s glittering facade: the cruelty, backstabbing, and hidden violence that have become the royal way of life.
Violet must accept the ugly realities of her existence... and try to stay alive. But then a forbidden romance erupts between Violet and a handsome gentleman hired as a companion to the Duchess’s petulant niece. Though his presence makes life in the Jewel a bit brighter, the consequences of their illicit relationship will cost them both more than they bargained for.
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Look at that cover? Who wouldn't want to pick up a book with such a beautiful cover? I don't know about you but I am a push over for a beautiful cover, plus the summary had me hooked, I needed this book in my life. But with no money I had to wait for my library to have it. They finally did. To me, a good book is something where I devoured the first 200 pages of The Jewel in two hours. It was amazing!
In a world where the royals can no longer reproduce, the job falls upon the young girls with a genetic mutation to do so. Violet (#197) has known she would be a surrogate since she was twelve years old. Upon being sold to the Dutchess of the House of Lake she believes that her life will be great. She has a lady-in-waiting, a huge bedroom, and closets full of beautiful dresses. That illusion is quickly crushed when with in five minutes of meeting her "master" she is slapped. Violet soon learns that the Dutchess will do anything in her power to continue her line.
I liked Violet most of the time. The only time I didn't like her was anytime she was with/thinking about Ash. Violet was a bit frustrating though, she has plenty of time to try to escape or attempt to and she didn't bother. Even after she started seeing the doctor. She just stayed put. Then when there was opportunity for her to get out, she blew it. I wasn't crazy about Ash, I felt like he was really only at the palace for for one thing. Though Garnet wasn't in a lot of the book he is my favorite character. There was something in every part he was in that made me giggle a bit. I wished he was in more of the book to be honest, but with how The Jewel ended I am pretty sure he wil play a bigger roll in the next book.
The romance is what made me changed the rating from five stars to four stars. Like I said, I wasn't crazy about Ash and then the insta-love, I just wasn't a fan. Maybe the author meant for it to be like that though? After all, Violet has been isolated from boys since she was twelve years old so maybe she thinks she is in love? I'm not sure. I have my suspicions for the next book though.
There was something about this book that reminded me of The Selection by Kiera Cass. So, if you were a huge fan of that series then The Jewel is for you!
I liked Violet most of the time. The only time I didn't like her was anytime she was with/thinking about Ash. Violet was a bit frustrating though, she has plenty of time to try to escape or attempt to and she didn't bother. Even after she started seeing the doctor. She just stayed put. Then when there was opportunity for her to get out, she blew it. I wasn't crazy about Ash, I felt like he was really only at the palace for for one thing. Though Garnet wasn't in a lot of the book he is my favorite character. There was something in every part he was in that made me giggle a bit. I wished he was in more of the book to be honest, but with how The Jewel ended I am pretty sure he wil play a bigger roll in the next book.
The romance is what made me changed the rating from five stars to four stars. Like I said, I wasn't crazy about Ash and then the insta-love, I just wasn't a fan. Maybe the author meant for it to be like that though? After all, Violet has been isolated from boys since she was twelve years old so maybe she thinks she is in love? I'm not sure. I have my suspicions for the next book though.
There was something about this book that reminded me of The Selection by Kiera Cass. So, if you were a huge fan of that series then The Jewel is for you!
RATING: ★★★★
I read and loved The Selection and really want to read this (I've actually been meaning to read it for a while now, but other books just keep getting in the way). I'm glad you enjoyed this and great review!
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