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My Review:Title: Roman and Jewel
Author: Dana L. Davis
Published by: Inkyard Press
Release Date: January 5, 2021
Format: eARC
Pages: 320
Genres: Young Adult, Romance, Contemporary
Source: NetGalley
Reading Challenges: Lenoreo's 2021 COYER Winter, Lenoreo's 2021 Diversity Reading Challenge, Lenoreo's 2021 Netgalley and Edelweiss Challenge
Find it: Goodreads ✩ Amazon ✩ B&N ✩ Google ✩ Kobo ✩ iBooks ✩ IndieBound ✩ Book Depository
My rating:
Blurb:If Romeo and Juliet got the Hamilton treatment...who would play the leads? This vividly funny, honest, and charming romantic novel by Dana L. Davis is the story of a girl who thinks she has what it takes...and the world thinks so, too.
Jerzie Jhames will do anything to land the lead role in Broadway's hottest new show, Roman and Jewel, a Romeo and Juliet inspired hip-hopera featuring a diverse cast and modern twists on the play. But her hopes are crushed when she learns mega-star Cinny won the lead...and Jerzie is her understudy.
Falling for male lead Zeppelin Reid is a terrible idea--especially once Jerzie learns Cinny wants him for herself. Star-crossed love always ends badly. But when a video of Jerzie and Zepp practicing goes viral and the entire world weighs in on who should play Jewel, Jerzie learns that while the price of fame is high, friendship, family, and love are priceless.
I received a free copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest and unbiased review/opinion.
4 stars — You know what? This felt like a delicious guilty pleasure YA read.
I’m a huge Broadway fan, so this was like bonus good for me — I loved the look into a new Broadway show. And not only that, but there were lots of references to other musicals, and it was just so much fun to watch both Jerzie and Zepp geek out about theatre.
I enjoyed Jerzie’s voice — she was earnest, and nerdy, and both proud and humble. She pushed at her boundaries a bit, but in general was a goodie. She just felt real. I cringed when she tried to rebel, and didn’t quite get that as much — but I crushed right along with her, and went through all her ups and downs.
Zepp was pretty fun — a bit cocky and arrogant, with his own issues he was dealing with in the background. I was surprised by some of his decisions, but he had his own growing to do. Usually I mourn the lack of dual POV, but I didn’t feel like the story was lacking without it. It really was more Jerzie’s journey.
And they were pretty cute together, I have to admit. It just had all those things that suck me into a YA romance — lots of tingly tummy feelings, some drama, but all in all feel good.
I will admit, sometimes it went in weird directions that I didn’t see coming, but nothing too out there.
Lots of great secondary characters in this one. I loved Jerzie’s relationship with her brother, it felt real. Her Aunt Karla made me laugh and laugh at some of her quips. I loved that Cinny ended up being 3-dimensional. I wasn’t sure which way that would go, so I was super happy. Not 100% redeemable, but insight into the mean girl ness. And lots of other fun people in the background — mostly theatre peeps (and not just fellow actors).
I enjoyed the musicality of it as well, even if it went over my head most times.
And while it wasn’t a retelling like I somehow thought it might be (that’s on me, I’m an idiot), I still felt like we kind of got a bit of that too since they were putting on a diverse retelling. I really loved seeing how Robbie had reimagined the classic tragedy.
Side note: While I’m used to ARCs needing a bit of clean up, this one felt a bit earlier draft than I’m used to. The bones of the story — plot, characters, emotions — were fantastic, and I was so in! But some of the writing was a bit awkward, and there were some inconsistencies. I sincerely hope that it got that final editing pass, because this story deserved the polish and shine.
I think I was worried about this story, and it was all for naught. It had me smiling away enough that my hubby noticed, so definitely a success.
I didn’t know about this one, but Broadway background is enough for me. I caught that about the mean girl not being a type, but a real character, too, and the fun aunt. Looks good.