Month: August 2014

ARC REVIEW – THE JEWEL by Amy Ewing

Posted August 31, 2014 by Emma in Blog / 10 Comments

The Jewel (The Lone City #1)
by Amy Ewing
Publisher – Walker Books
Release Date – 9th September 2014
Buy – Amazon | Book Depository

A shocking and compelling new YA series from debut author, Amy Ewing; The Handmaid’s Tale meets The Other Boleyn Girl in a world where beauty and brutality collide.

Violet Lasting is no longer a human being. Tomorrow she becomes Lot 197, auctioned to the highest royal bidder in the Jewel of the Lone City. Tomorrow she becomes the Surrogate of the House of the Lake, her sole purpose to produce a healthy heir for the Duchess. Imprisoned in the opulent cage of the palace, Violet learns the brutal ways of the Jewel, where the royal women compete to secure their bloodline and the surrogates are treated as disposable commodities.

Destined to carry the child of a woman she despises, Violet enters a living death of captivity – until she sets eyes on Ash Lockwood, the royal Companion. Compelled towards each other by a reckless, clandestine passion, Violet and Ash dance like puppets in a deadly game of court politics, until they become each other’s jeopardy – and salvation.

A stunningly gorgeous, yet brutal truth to society’s most wanted, comes The Jewel, Amy Ewing’s debut YA novel. 
Dystopias is an odd genre for me, the writing has to be spot on alongside a great plotline and intriguing characters and The Jewel, certainly didn’t disappoint. Whilst I was a little anxious getting into this novel, with the mixed reviews/ratings, possible insta-love and a horrific cliff-hanger, I say don’t let that fool you. 
In the world of the Lone City lives a girl called Violet Lasting, she isn’t like others girls, she has been chosen to be this vessel, a vessel of creating new life and tomorrow she begins her new life as Lot 197… Violet was tested at the age of 12, whether she would be the perfect candidate to be a surrogate to the founding families of The Jewel. Five years of preparation, practice and pain, she is auctioned off to the highest bidder. However, her lot number gives her status, she is one of the best-tested for her Auguries (powers of manipulation in our terms) Colour, Shape, and Growth. Although this seems like she is chosen for greater purpose, now you only see the beauty to it, but underneath and behind the scenes there is an ugliness to the system, of brutality and conflict. Being born to be chosen has far fewer pleasures, its a curse as well. 
Whilst sold to the House of Lake, Violet becomes a nobody, just a shell to be protected and shown off to the other Houses. The Jewel, although seeming to be the glamorous vision of luxury, only stands when you are one of them. The Duchess, who bought her, is a vile, emotionless, tight-lipped, cruel woman, who thinks branding and showing off Violet like her prized possession. It made me sick to think this woman, has no shred of humanity, only wealth. Well money can’t buy your everything, honey. She was the one character that I wanted to tear her eyes out. 
Violet or Lot 197’s character are two people and Ewing certainly written a controlled balance between them. Violet didn’t want to give up who she was, her music, her cello brings that out of her, as well as her lady’s-maid Annabelle and finally her love interest, Ash. Ash is like Violet, at a young age he was forced to become a companion to attend to his sister’s well-being. Ash no longer became the person he wanted to be, but the person he had to be for his clients. Violet and Ash both act as an anchor to each other, allowing them to be who they are freely and truthfully. Honestly, their relationship in the novel, really solidified their characters, it didn’t for a once degrade the novel with the mention of insta-love.
Although this society certainly brings out the beauty and brutality of the character’s and their surroundings, it certainly was creatively done. The only thing would that was cruel to me, as a reader was the cliff-hanger, I have to wait a whole year for the next book, not fair! The Jewel is written and plotted brilliant and I believe Amy Ewing will be YA author to look out for. 
Rating – 4.5

Divider

GUEST POST & GIVEAWAY – CASSIE MAE (Author of THE REAL THING)

Posted August 25, 2014 by Emma in Blog / 4 Comments
GUEST POST & GIVEAWAY – CASSIE MAE (Author of THE REAL THING)

A big THANK YOU! to this site for letting me invade for THE REAL THING tour 🙂 (squishy hugs) Hi. I’m Cassie. And I’m a social media addict. I’ve been posting to Facebook daily for about three years. Maybe longer. There was a month or two in 2012 when I did nothing but refresh my email 20 times or more a day. I call that “query pits.” It was a dark time. But I emerged from it thinking I’d gotten better. But then, in early 2013, I found a new pitfall. Goodreads. Why, Goodreads, why? Why do you tempt me […]

Divider

REVIEW – ANNA AND THE FRENCH KISS by Stephanie Perkins

Posted August 14, 2014 by Emma in Blog / 8 Comments
REVIEW – ANNA AND THE FRENCH KISS by Stephanie Perkins

Anna and the French Kiss (Anna and the French Kiss #1)by Stephanie PerkinsPublisher – UsborneRelease Date – January 1st 2014Buy – Amazon | Book Depository Anna has everything figured out – she was about to start senior year with her best friend, she had a great weekend job, and her huge work crush looked as if it might finally be going somewhere… Until her dad decides to send her 4383 miles away to Paris. On her own. But despite not speaking a word of French, Anna finds herself making new friends, including Etienne, the smart, beautiful boy from the floor […]

Divider

REVIEW – RUIN AND RISING by Leigh Bardugo

Posted August 11, 2014 by Emma in Blog / 10 Comments
REVIEW – RUIN AND RISING by Leigh Bardugo

Ruin and Rising (The Grisha #3)by Leigh BardugoPublisher – IndigoRelease Date – June 19th 2014Buy – Amazon | Book Depository The capital has fallen. The Darkling rules Ravka from his shadow throne. Now the nation’s fate rests with a broken Sun Summoner, a disgraced tracker, and the shattered remnants of a once-great magical army. Deep in an ancient network of tunnels and caverns, a weakened Alina must submit to the dubious protection of the Apparat and the zealots who worship her as a Saint. Yet her plans lie elsewhere, with the hunt for the elusive firebird and the hope that […]

Divider

REVIEW – THE MANIFESTO ON HOW TO BE INTERESTING by Holly Bourne

Posted August 6, 2014 by Emma in Blog / 14 Comments
REVIEW – THE MANIFESTO ON HOW TO BE INTERESTING by Holly Bourne

The Manifesto on How to Be Interestingby Holly BournePublisher – UsborneRelease Date – 1st August 2014Buy – Amazon | Book Depository Apparently I’m boring. A nobody. But that’s all about to change. Because I am starting a project. Here. Now. For myself. And if you want to come along for the ride then you’re very welcome. Bree is a loser, a wannabe author who hides behind words. Most of the time she hates her life, her school, her never-there parents. So she writes. But when she’s told she needs to start living a life worth writing about, The Manifesto on […]

Divider

RELEASE DAY LAUNCH – OPPOSITION by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Posted August 5, 2014 by Emma in Blog / 5 Comments
RELEASE DAY LAUNCH – OPPOSITION by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Today I’m very pleased to announce the release of Book 6 of the much anticipated, Lux series by Jennifer L. Armentrout, OPPOSITION! I’m a HUGE fan like many others of Daemon and Katy, and how amazing that she is a book blogger. So I have an exclusive excerpt and giveaway for your eyes only! Without further ado, I hope you enjoy… Opposition (Lux #6)by Jennifer L. ArmentroutPublisher – EntangledTeenRelease Date – TODAYBuy – Amazon | Book Depository Katy knows the world changed the night the Luxen came. She can’t believe Daemon welcomed his race or stood by as his kind […]

Divider

AFTERNOON TEA WITH SARAH ALDERSON/MILA GRAY!

Posted August 3, 2014 by Emma in Blog / 10 Comments
AFTERNOON TEA WITH SARAH ALDERSON/MILA GRAY!

On Saturday, I was very excited to attend an Afternoon Tea with Sarah Alderson aka Mila Gray for the publication of her New Adult novel COME BACK TO ME. This is my very first event as a blogger and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I finally got to meet some lovely bloggers that I’ve talked to a lot. I felt like I wasn’t just a girl behind this blog as they got to see me. I also got my books signed, yay! So here is a little recap of my day! Jasprit, Donna and ME!  A lovely drink and CBTM! At […]

Divider