Welcome back to The Bookish Cure Podcast—your little corner of shelf therapy for comfort rereads, chaotic TBR energy, and nostalgic throwbacks.
This week, we’re stepping away from Becky Bloomwood’s shopping chaos and into the glittering, gilded (and honestly super creepy) world of Amy Ewing’s The Jewel. Think: palace intrigue, strict caste systems, lush dresses, and girls sold at auction to bear children for the elite. If The Selection had a messy, dystopian cousin who hung out with The Handmaid’s Tale, this is it.
✨ What you’ll hear in this episode:
A quick refresher on the Lone City universe and its brutal caste system.
Violet Lasting’s journey from the Marsh to the ultimate gilded cage.
Other key characters—Raven, Lucian, Ash, and of course the terrifying Duchess of the Lake.
My original YA dystopia phase memories (yes, 2010s audiobook snobbery included 🤦♀️).
Why the auction scene still gives me major chills.
Shelf Therapy takeaway: Even in worlds built to control you, love and loyalty are lifelines.
📚 My rating: 3.5 stars – A solid series opener with unforgettable moments, cringey teen romance, and just enough palace drama to keep you hooked.
🎧 Next week: We’re lightening things up with Finlay Donovan and her chaotic, suburban murder-mystery misadventures in Finlay Donovan Digs Her Own Grave. Because after the Jewel’s darkness, I need some laugh-out-loud crime capers.
💛 Come chat with me on Instagram @thebookishcure. Did the auction scene creep you out as much as it did me? Let’s talk!