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A review by littlebirdbooks
The Ruby Locket by Melissa Wray
3.0
After receiving an email talking about this novel, I was really interested to start reading it as I had just finished a dystopian novel and was still on a kick so I immediately bought it! However, that excitement wasn’t entirely sustained throughout the novel.
The Ruby Locket is a dual narrative novel where, one day, Saxon stumbles across Kerina; a girl who he initially thinks is dead and who has no memory of her life or who she is. However, it’s dangerous to hide a ‘rambler’, especially one as special as Kerina is. As Kerina begins to learn who she is through the flashbacks that haunt her, Saxon learns something important about his life too. To get the answers that they both need to move on from the past and into the future they need to work together.
As the novel does alternate between two protagonists it’s important that you’re able to form a bond with both of them. Unfortunately, I only really found myself drawn to Saxon despite the mystery that surrounded Kerina. As a character I felt that Saxon was much more developed and more believable. However, this could also largely be down to the fact that Kerina doesn’t remember who she is therefore her character was slower to develop. Quite a few of the characters also seemed quite similar as they were often sarcastic with witty one liners.
I thought the plot was very interesting and I did like the concept of the world that Wray had built. I also liked the way that Saxon and Kerina’s story were intertwined and how it all came together. However, despite this I did feel that the pacing of the novel was slightly off at times, sometimes it felt a little rushed (particularly the ending) and some parts felt like they could have been slightly shorter. I feel that this was partly down to the fact that the novel alternates between the two protagonists in short chapters. If the character’s chapters were combined, making them slightly longer, and then alternated I think this would have helped the narrative along.
Overall, whilst I did have some issues with the novel I did enjoy the plot and I was interested to see where it would go. The novel has a lot of potential but I can also see it being a great read for young adults!
The Ruby Locket is a dual narrative novel where, one day, Saxon stumbles across Kerina; a girl who he initially thinks is dead and who has no memory of her life or who she is. However, it’s dangerous to hide a ‘rambler’, especially one as special as Kerina is. As Kerina begins to learn who she is through the flashbacks that haunt her, Saxon learns something important about his life too. To get the answers that they both need to move on from the past and into the future they need to work together.
As the novel does alternate between two protagonists it’s important that you’re able to form a bond with both of them. Unfortunately, I only really found myself drawn to Saxon despite the mystery that surrounded Kerina. As a character I felt that Saxon was much more developed and more believable. However, this could also largely be down to the fact that Kerina doesn’t remember who she is therefore her character was slower to develop. Quite a few of the characters also seemed quite similar as they were often sarcastic with witty one liners.
I thought the plot was very interesting and I did like the concept of the world that Wray had built. I also liked the way that Saxon and Kerina’s story were intertwined and how it all came together. However, despite this I did feel that the pacing of the novel was slightly off at times, sometimes it felt a little rushed (particularly the ending) and some parts felt like they could have been slightly shorter. I feel that this was partly down to the fact that the novel alternates between the two protagonists in short chapters. If the character’s chapters were combined, making them slightly longer, and then alternated I think this would have helped the narrative along.
Overall, whilst I did have some issues with the novel I did enjoy the plot and I was interested to see where it would go. The novel has a lot of potential but I can also see it being a great read for young adults!