jill tew – GoodeyReads

Rating: ★★★★
Audience: YA Dystopian Romance
Length: 352 pages
Author: Jill Tew
Publisher: Joy Revolution
Release Date: October 14th, 2025
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

An electrifying dystopian novel packed with a tantalizing love triangle, gripping political intrigue, and a Bachelor-style competition from the critically acclaimed author of The Dividing Sky, Jill Tew.

Eden Lowell has plenty to be frustrated about. In the flooded Marshes of former Miami, each day is about survival. Even her feelings for her best friend Henry are more complicated than they should be. Luckily, Eden knows exactly who to blame: the Cruisers, corporate elite who sail the world on massive ships instead of facing the environmental crimes they’ve committed on land.

When Eden learns that a Cruiser family is hosting a dating competition for their heir, Theo Desjardins, she seizes an opportunity. Aided by a political agitator known as the Ringmaster, she’ll infiltrate the competition, break Theo’s heart, and then steal his money for the Marshes. A perfect plan…

Until she gets to know Theo, who’s not only handsome but surprisingly kind…

As Eden drifts deeper down into the Cruisers’ world, the line separating truth and lies becomes murky. Torn between two identities, two loves, and two futures, will she choose the mission, or her heart?

PROGRESSIVELY GOOD.

The second half of this book showed off the best. I found myself much more invested and intrigued by waiting to see how things were going to play out. I’m not generally a fan of dystopian novels but Jill Tew has written another great one that holds my attention with a unique idea and characters you want to root for.

This feels love triangle adjacent and worked well because it’s clear from the get-go how that line was going to progress. I thought the romance was sweet and had a lot of those quiet moments where they genuinely got to know each other better. And I love seeing characters show growth as they learn new things about the world around them.

What I didn’t like was the competition. This one was just too catty for me and I didn’t click with it as well.

Overall though I liked it and the audiobook was a great production. I will continue to look forward to the next release from this author.

Overall audience notes:

YA Dystopian Romance
Language: low
Romance: kisses
Violence: low

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: YA Dystopian Romance
Length: 352 pages
Author: Jill Tew
Publisher: Joy Revolution
Release Date: October 8th, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Serpent & Dove meets Arcane in this dystopian romance debut that follows a cunning memory merchant who deals a little extra happiness on the side and the handsome rookie officer on her tail!

In 2460, eighteen-year-old Liv Newman dreams of a future beyond her lower-class life in the Metro. As a Proxy, she uses the neurochip in her brain to sell memories to wealthy clients. Maybe a few illegally, but money equals freedom. So when a customer offers her a ludicrous sum to go on an assignment in no-man’s-land, Liv accepts. Now she just has to survive.

Rookie Forceman Adrian Rao believes in order over all. After discovering that a renegade Proxy’s shady dealings are messing with citizens’ brain chemistry, he vows to extinguish the threat. But when he tracks Liv down, there’s one problem: her memories are gone. Can Adrian bring himself to condemn her for crimes she doesn’t remember?

As Liv and Adrian navigate the world beyond the Metro and their growing feelings for one another, they grapple with who they are, who they could be, and whether another way of living is possible.

Thank you GetUnderlined for the gifted copy.

UNDERRATED.

Alright y’all. I have seen no one in my book circles pick this one up (yet) and I gotta say, this needs to change!! I really liked this book and (while I can’t figure out if it was a standalone or a sequel is coming) it reminded me of why I used to read a lot of dystopian books circa the earlier 2000’s — now I feel old.

ANYWAYS. I thought the ideas and world building in this book were cool. I loved the division throughout and how each one worked inside this mega city corporation. It had this haunting edge of something that could actually happen and an intriguing look at how things would function.

The romance is a bit fast paced but it was charming. I thought it was sweet and loved that it stayed to true YA. There were a few romantic tropes I loved and there was good chemistry between Liv and Adrian. I’m very impressed with this debut and definitely will be reading this author’s next book!

Overall audience notes: