The Gems

by M.C. Jeter

Stressed with school and her step mother's cruelty, 17 year-old Ruby Jenkins just wants to finish high school and get the hell out of Ohio. But when Ruby discovers that she is anything but normal, nothing she wants seems to matter anymore.

A realistic dream, new student, and inexplicable secrets thrust her into a world of the unknown. Having to leave her whole life behind to stop her newly discovered uncle from creating a world of devastation, Ruby and her new allies are forced to find others like them for help. And when someone from her old life can't seem to let her go, saving the world gets a lot more complicated.

Will Ruby be able to put her past behind her and fight with her new family before chaos erupts?

THE FOLLOWING SUBJECTS APPEAR IN THE GEMS:
Blood and Gore
Death
Generational Trauma
Guns
Mental Illness
Murder
Sexual Assault (Graphic)
Sexually Explicit Scenes
Suicide Ideation
Swearing
Torture
Violence

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction

387 pages, Paperback

Published June 28, 2023

About the author

M. C. Jeter is the indie author of The Gems, a new adult fantasy novel. She is set to graduate from the Ohio State University in May 2024 with a BS in Neuroscience and a minor in American Sign Language. For fun, M. C. likes to read, write, dance, sing and play on her Nintendo Switch. As of right now, M. C. has many diverse stories bouncing around in her brain that she is so excited to share with the world.
M. C. Jeter began writing her debut novel in fourth grade and as she grew, her main character did too. From starting at 10 years old to ending at 17, Ruby, the main character of The Gems, will take you on an adventure full of love, regret, and challenges. You can embark on her adventure starting July 1st, 2023!

Reviews

[Ceri 🍉 · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.25*
Overall I liked the concept of the book, I felt the magic system was quite original which was nice. I felt the characters were relatively well developed, although I can understand that it would be difficult to give 20+ characters depth. Some of it I didn’t particularly enjoy, sometimes the dialogue with words like Lol being used. The other thing was the moments with her brothers, it was very off putting to be honest.

[Shar📚 · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.9

[tbaby · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. Hands down. 5⭐️🤩.

The Gems follows Ruby, a high school girl orphaned and raised by her horrible step mother. Ruby discovers she has magical powers by wearing a ruby necklace. Soon after she discovers she comes from a family of people named after gems, who all have powers when they wear their perspective stones. That starts that race to find the rest of her siblings, scattered around the states by their parents in an effort to protect them from their evil uncle. Ruby must find all of her siblings and train so they can stop their evil uncle from his plot to destroy the world and free their parents.

The premise of this story is so unique! A group of black people with the power of gems??? Sign me up.

We really grow with Ruby, following her as she is forced out of her comfort zone and into new experiences so that she can help her family.

And the characters are all so unique. There were a lot of siblings, so not all were explored in this story, but the ones we did get to know, I fell in love with. I hope in the other novellas we get to know more about them all!🥰

[Lachlan Cameron · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Gems was not only stunningly written but also had such a good storyline! Each and every character was well developed and most had amazing personalities (I’m looking at you BS…..). The emotions that I felt while reading The Gems were something I haven’t experienced from a book in awhile.

Ruby has to be one of my favorite main characters that I’ve met this year. She’s not only down to earth, but has a great sense of loyalty and knows how to have fun. I absolutely adore her and Zach’s relationship, the caring and gentle love that they share. Top-tier in my opinion. The rest of the Gems are all amazing as well (apart from Emerald but that’s another story im sure) but Pearl would probably be my all-time favorite. She’s just so cool.

M.C. Jeter really knows how to invoke intense emotional reactions from her readers. I wasn’t even 25% through the book and I had already cried, laughed, and felt so proud of our characters. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who’s looking for an adult fantasy story (with teenage characters) but definitely check out the trigger warnings before starting!

[slimsbooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

here’s some thoughts I had:

- the pacing wasn’t half bad
- I feel like the writing style is pretty unique and the book literally gets better as you read.
- I absolutely adore the characters and the sibling relationships, even some of the ones I was annoyed with at first grew on me over time
- The characters are funny sometimes and they’re fun, the main character is such a cinnamon roll. But she goes through so much. (Please read the trigger warnings btw)
- The magic system was super interesting and I feel like there’s a lot that could be branched out on as the series goes along
- The plot is slow for the first few chapters but it’s not put you to sleep slow it’s necessarily slow.
- The romance is super cute with the childhood friends to lovers arc
- Y’all I was emotionally invested, I laughed and cried and genuinely can’t wait for the next book!
Thank you for your review.

[Kira Myers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting concept and story. Some elements (not the fantastical ones) seemed a bit unrealistic to me, but overall, it was an intriguing read. If you're looking for a fast-paced urban fantasy with diverse characters, this one will fit the bill.

[Shu.reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Solid read. Quite unique concept, loved the storyline as it kept me engaged. However the ending/plot was kinda predictable and I could have done without the romance aspect (but the lather could be just a me thing. I understand the author’s decision for including that).

[Kennedy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was hooked. Not a second of this book was boring from the beginning, middle, or end. The plot twists just kept twisting and the characters were pretty enjoyable. The ending felt like a movie.

[Lala · Rating 5 out of 5]

I havent read this book yet but I just wanted to show you my support!!

[Sunny]

Dnf 25%
Der Schreibstil ist gar nicht meins und der Anfang der Story macht für mich absolut keinen Sinn :(