Violet is a surrogate, born with unique gifts to shape the world around her, yet bought and sold to the highest bidder in a world where royalty rules all. This had a lot of flaws, and unfortunately it really hindered my enjoyment of what could have been a good story.
The main issue I had was just how unoriginal I found the story. Reading this felt like deja vu. Poor yet beautiful girl with unique gifts brought into a different world? Check. Evil ruling power that manipulates said girl? Check. Dull and one dimensional love interest leading to instalove? Check. I also think I rolled my eyes several times over the names of some of these characters. One character is called Cinder. And her brother is Ash. Seriously.
My other main issue was Ash. The love interest. The story takes a significant dip after his introduction, as he's so dull with no definable characteristics or charm. He's basically Finnick from The Hunger Games without the emotional depth. When Violet starts fawning over him after meeting him for all of ten minutes, I knew this story wasn't going to end the way I wanted it too. I much preferred the relationship between the various surrogates and their 'owners', and the dynamics and rivalries that are barely explored but had so much potential. I didn't think there was any need to introduced Ash at all. If anything, he hinders the plot. I found all of his scenes very cringy, and I often skim read them. Violet as a main character is also severely lacking in personality. She goes from petulant teen to submissive slave with no in-between. She's got no emotional depth, and bumbled from one scenario to the next, relying on other people to rescue her.
Several times I was also confused by the world itself. We don't see anything outside of The Jewel except very briefly at the beginning. The rules of the world aren't explained very deeply either, and are often contradictory. Why treat some surrogates well, others badly, yet always have them dressed up like dolls all the time? Why are they repeatedly drugged? It felt like an easy cop out to explain any passage of time. What are the various Auguries, and why do only poor girls have these powers? They weren't explained well, or integrated well into the story, and I often felt confused when Violet uses any of them. Also, their use with regards to childbirth is just...odd.
This really wasn't for me. The potential was there, but the execution fell flat.
The Jewel is available to purchase now from: Amazon
2 STARS
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