Summary: 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.I'm so happy to see that it's not just Leigh Bardugo completely destroying a really fabulous story with the worst romance put to paper.
Rating: 3.4 We could have had it all.
Good: If there had been absolutely no romance this book would have been a solid 4-4.5. It is a good science fiction novel like Logan's Run, different from the dystopian novels of today that are all grime, grit in pain instead of the sterile truly frightening world of controlled, normalized cruelty. In this world girls that can manipulate color, shape and growth are auctioned off like cattle to bare children for the royalty so they can continue, basically, inbreeding without the genetic repercussions. Added into that a new queen (Electress) from a lower class that not only wants to break the barriers between in the caste system, but had some very dark plans for the girls of the Auction. After all, they're property to her and nothing more. Violet is one of the most desirable surrogates, as she has very strong powers. She's thrown into a world where no one is her friend and she is in a race against time to secure her freedom before she is impregnated. It's pretty slow and very subtle in the beginning, and if court politics and cloak and dagger means of power aren't your cup of tea, you'll see this as nothing more than a slow set up book. But if you like being immersed in a functioning world, and watching the politics of such world play out it's an extremely enjoyable and shows a very real and frightening relationship of abuse and abuser which adds to the depth of the novel until...
