The Jewel by Amy Ewing

Out of all the free books I got from BEA in May, this one is definitely one of my favorites. Amy Ewing is a debut author with a lot of hype. And I have to say, I agree with all of it. If you liked The Selection by Kiera Cass, you'll love this one too. I know for sure that this blogger can't wait until the second one comes out. Check it out!

The Jewel 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.


The Jewel Review:
I loved everything about this book. The beginning of the novel is quite mysterious and doesn't give away too much too soon. Ewing has struck a really good balance with giving away background info. The story is beautiful. I don't want to give away too much to those of you who are thinking about reading it, and in fact I wish I could just gush about how much I loved it, but I'll try to steer clear of both of these things.

Violet is a really strong, smart character who's fairly good at playing the game Surrogates have to play in this world. If you've read The Selection, you'll fall in love with Violet just as fast as you fell in love with America. One difference though, is The Jewel has a stronger, slightly more intriguing plot line. The Selection was largely romance driven, which is perfectly fine, don't get me wrong. But I loved all of the scandal and politics of this book.

In fact, some people on Goodreads are complaining about the romance aspect of it, but I'd probably have to say that I disagree with them. I enjoyed the romance. I think it made Violet a stronger character, and gave the book enough suspense to leave readers hanging at the end of the book. Another thing I loved about this book was not knowing who the romantic interest would be until halfway through the book. The Goodreads summary I posted above gives away more than the back of the book, which just alludes to a romance with somebody. In fact, I thought it was going to be someone completely different from who it was. And I liked that it wasn't obvious at first. And without saying what the ending was, I will tell you that I liked it. Granted, I don't love being left hanging, but I loved the surprise and the suspense thrown in at the end, and think you will too. Make sure to pick up a copy of this when it comes out.