Review: The Jewel by Amy Ewing + Author Q&A + Giveaway

What: The Jewel (The Lone City #1) by Amy Ewing

Who: Walker Books Australia

When: September 4th 2014

How: A copy of this novel was provided by Walker Books Australia for review.

“Today is my last day as Violet Lasting. Tomorrow I become Lot 197.”

The Jewel is a shocking and compelling new YA series from debut author, Amy Ewing.

Sold for six million diamantes, Violet is now Surrogate of the House of the Lake in the centre of the Lone City, the Jewel. Her sole purpose is to produce a healthy heir for the Duchess – a woman Violet fears and despises.

Violet is trapped in a living death, her name and body no longer her own. She fights to hold on to her own identity and sanity, uncertain of the fate of her friends, isolated and at the mercy of the Duchess.

The Handmaid’s Tale meets The Other Boleyn Girl in a world where beauty and brutality collide.

I was interested in The Jewel from the moment I heard about it. I’m a sucker for dystopians, especially the ones with a more flamboyant edge. It gets me every time.

I’d heard some mixed reviews, but that never deters me. I don’t always love the books that everyone else loves, and I don’t always dislike the books everyone else seems to dislike. So I was more interested than ever in reading The Jewel.

Overall, I certainly enjoyed The Jewel. I read it in one day. That tends to be a positive thing when it comes to books, because it means I don’t want to do anything else (or anything remotely life-related). Although I did have a few narrowed-eye moments (I do this – I narrow my eyes at a book when something is iffy. I guess it’s just my sceptical side coming out). I’ll talk about the narrowed eye moments first.

The Auguries. Awesome concept: girls start displaying these weird kind of powers (?) when they hit puberty and because of these (and other things?) they’re auctioned off to barren rich ladies to make their babies. Notice the question marks? Yeah, that’s why there were narrowed eyes. What exactly are the Auguries? Why are only poor women born with them? What exactly do they do? None of these questions were answered and that irritated my need-to-know-things-because-I’m-a-scientist side.

The beebees. Or, you know, the babies. Why are the rich women barren? Why can only girls from poor families conceive children? There was a bare basics sentence or two about why the rich women weren’t having any babies, but there wasn’t really an explanation as to why it was happening.

The instalove. I wasn’t as annoyed by it as everyone else, because in a dystopian situation I think one’s emotional responses are likely heightened and you’re probably scared shitless about the future so you don’t want to waste a minute – but. I would have preferred no declaration of love/needing-wanting to be together forever. I think the instant lust and attraction were forgivable, and I think without the undying love aspect, it probably would have been an easier pill to swallow.

Violet. I just don’t really get her. She did some stupid shit sometimes (like putting a green mark on the Duchess’s face, which I thought was petty and of course it would be caught, silly girl), and failed to act at others, and in general I just didn’t think she was strong enough. I know, not everyone has to be Katniss in a dystopian novel but do they have to rip up dresses and fawn over boys and just do everything they’re told? I understand she would have been scared of the retaliation but surely the adage ‘better to ask forgiveness than permission’ could have come into play at least once.

So they were the things that had me narrowing my eyes. In general, with a little more explanation and a little more time, everything would have been peachy.

There were things that I didn’t narrow my eyes at, of course. Like the premise. Getting auctioned off to have some rich lady’s baby? SIXTEEN AND PREGNANT? Gives me the heebie-jeebies if I’m being honest.

The clothes. I love love love it when books have emphasis on fabulous clothes. Like fancy dresses. And Violet/the Duchess/heaps of other characters were always prancing around in their finery and I loved reading about that.

Ash. I liked him, I did. I mean a guy who teaches girls how to have sex properly? Hells to the yeah. Although I wish we had gotten to know a bit more about this job *wink wink*

The Duchess. She was a fabulous character, I think. Sometimes she’d seem all vulnerable and pity-inducing and then she’d freaking punch someone in the face or smash a cello to pieces.

The cliffhanger. YES. This is a cliffhanger done well. I want the next book, because I want to know what happens to all the characters whose futures are up in the air. I don’t like it when the first book in a series is pretty much just a filler for the other books in the series, and The Jewel was in no way a filler. We were introduced to the world, the characters, the storyline. And now we have to wait x amount of time for the next book. OH, THE PAIN OF WAITING.

So there you have it. The Jewel has its ups and downs, but I’m telling you – if you’re a fan of the glamorous dystopians (like The Selection), I’d recommend giving The Jewel a go.

© 2014, Chiara @ Books for a Delicate Eternity. All rights reserved.

Author Q&A

1. Where did the idea for The Jewel originate?

The concept for THE JEWEL came from a lazy Sunday afternoon I spent watching movies on basic cable. TAKEN came on, and I thought to myself, “Sure, why not? I like Liam Neeson.” For those of you who haven’t seen it, there is a scene when his daughter (the one who gets taken) is paraded onto a stage and bid on by powerful men who want to buy her as, essentially, a sex slave. As I watched that scene, I wondered to myself what it would be like if, instead of men, it was women bidding on her. Why would a woman buy another woman? I thought at first it would be to carry their children for vanity purposes. Why go through nine months of hormones and stretch marks and dietary restrictions when you can have some other girl do it for you? Slowly the idea evolved to the point that these women needed these girls. That generations of inbreeding had caused too much chromosomal damage, and that these surrogates had the power to fix it. And so, the Auction was born, and Violet’s story came to life.

2. Did you always intend for the story to be a series?

I did! I love reading series, and I always knew I wanted to write one. Plus, it means I get to live with these characters and this world for a longer period of time, to see things grow and develop. For a writer, I can’t think of anything more exciting.

3. Who is your favourite character in The Jewel?

Ok, I’m torn on this one. First, I’ll say: The Duchess! I absolutely love the Duchess. She is so layered. You never know if you want to hate her or feel bad for her. I think that’s my favorite type of character to read, and to write. But in terms of pure fun, Garnet wins hands down. He is such a jerk, but he’s a loveable jerk. Super entitled, a total rule breaker, and supremely inappropriate—what could be more fun to write than that?

4. Are there any parallels between Violet’s character and yourself?

I did used to play the cello when I was in middle school, but not nearly as well as Violet! I hope I am as fierce a friend as she is. And I’m a bit of a romantic too. Oh, and we are both stubborn. Thankfully, my stubbornness has never resulted in any kind of horrible punishment.

5. What is the one book that has influenced you most as a reader and/or writer?

The Lord of the Rings was incredibly influential to me as a lover of fantasy. I remember reading those books when I was a teenager and just wishing I could live in Middle Earth, that it could be real. I want to create worlds like that, worlds you never want to end.

6. Which Hogwarts house do you think you’d be sorted into and why?

I think I’d be a Ravenclaw. A huge value was placed on education in my house growing up. We weren’t allowed to watch much television, and reading was required, seeing as my mother was a librarian. But I’d like to think I could be a Gryffindor too!

7. What is the one word you would use to describe The Jewel?

Just one? Ah, so difficult! Okay, I’ll say Choice, because it is such an important theme in The Jewel—the power to choose what happens not only to your own body, but to your life.

8. Share one random fact about yourself!

I love string cheese. It’s my favourite thing to eat. If I was stranded on a deserted island with only one thing…string cheese. Hands down.

Giveaway

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Follow the Australian tour below!

Thursday, September 18th Diva Book Nerd

Friday, September 19th Inside My Worlds

Saturday, September 20th Books for a Delicate Eternity

Sunday, September 21st Thoughts by J

Monday, September 22nd Kids Book Review

Tuesday, September 23rd Striking Keys

Wednesday, September 24th Genie in a Book

Thursday, September 25th Fictional Thoughts

Friday, September 26th Book Much

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