Scan barcode
lottsofplots's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Murder, Death of parent, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Blood, Violence, and Gore
Minor: Sexual content and Abortion
katyfortner's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This was such a cool retelling. The author definitely has a way with drawing in the reader and hooking them. It may not have been my favorite story but it still hooked me the whole time. It was heartbreaking and mysterious and dark. I’m excited to read the next one.
Even though I knew they couldn’t have been talking about giving up her first born baby so much without her actually getting pregnant soon after but still thought it was very abrupt that they slept together once and then the next section of the book she’s pregnant. She definitely wouldn’t have been able to tell that fast even if her bleeding cycle was late.. at least I wouldn’t think so.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death of parent, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, Slavery, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, and Death
Minor: Abortion
ji_llreads's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
I’ve enjoyed a lot of Marissa Meyers books in the past, but although this book had its redeeming qualities it definitely wasn’t my favorite. The story was interesting but became a little too dark for me even with its light jokes and witty banter. I also feel as though the book can become slow and a little hard to read at times, especially at the beginning and middle sections. This is all my opinion though, so if you enjoy good storytelling and fairytales with a darker twist, you’ll surely enjoy this book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore
Moderate: Violence
Minor: Abortion
aishawilson's review
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
nah bro i was thinking yesss cos i love the lunar chronicles so much and i saw this and thought, dope, will be along the same lines right? and yes i did get to have the same writing style again which was lovely and omg love a fairy tale rewrite but this book gets far more gory/gritty and leaves no survivors (for the purpose of no spoilers, i am referring to my heart which very much did not survive). it's a weird in-between vibe that makes you think, hm, the warning bells aren't too loud surely everything is fine right.. and sometimes it is fine and sometimes it is so not fine.
Some other notes just in hindsight:
in all honesty, i was not deeply connected to Serilda and more saw her as a way to get to the other characters that i did like, Gild and Lorraine especially. i didn't have anything against her, but it's possible that i felt like i was being pushed to sympathise and root for her just because so much was going wrong for her, rather than because she was a genuinely likable character.
and speaking of things going wrong for her... some of it was too much. dad becoming a zombie? where did that come from? we already knew he was dead and Serilda wanted revenge - I'm not sure what the zombie thing did for the plot except reintroduce the teacher as a good character, which easily could have been done another way. obviously a lot of bad stuff happens in this book to people who dont deserve it, but he literally didnt deserve it and i feel like there was zero explanation as to how it happened? like is zombification a random incident or did something in their lives trigger them to come back as undead to eat their families?
and while on the topic of undeserved deaths.... you already know what I'm talking about. what the fuck.... all 5 kids? dude no fucking way.. still struggling to fathom it tbh.
Some other notes just in hindsight:
in all honesty, i was not deeply connected to Serilda and more saw her as a way to get to the other characters that i did like, Gild and Lorraine especially. i didn't have anything against her, but it's possible that i felt like i was being pushed to sympathise and root for her just because so much was going wrong for her, rather than because she was a genuinely likable character.
and speaking of things going wrong for her... some of it was too much. dad becoming a zombie? where did that come from? we already knew he was dead and Serilda wanted revenge - I'm not sure what the zombie thing did for the plot except reintroduce the teacher as a good character, which easily could have been done another way. obviously a lot of bad stuff happens in this book to people who dont deserve it, but he literally didnt deserve it and i feel like there was zero explanation as to how it happened? like is zombification a random incident or did something in their lives trigger them to come back as undead to eat their families?
and while on the topic of undeserved deaths.... you already know what I'm talking about. what the fuck.... all 5 kids? dude no fucking way.. still struggling to fathom it tbh.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Child death and Violence
Minor: Abortion
kbairbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
It’s tricky because I believe Marissa Meyer is a master at her craft. This was genius storytelling, in my opinion, but I also don’t like scary things and I would classify this book as horror. Sooo I’m amazed by the storytelling and horrified by the contents.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Torture, Pregnancy, Slavery, Suicide attempt, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Cannibalism, Murder, Suicide, Violence, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Abortion
lc_books's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
I picked this book up for the cover art if I'm being honest. It's so beautiful and once I read the story to completion I appreciated the cover even more, the artist really does capture the feeling and theme perfectly.
The story is set in a Germanic fairytale world and follows a Rumpelstiltskin/Beauty and the Beast retelling. We follow the main character; Serilda, a miller's daughter who is blessed with a god's gift of storytelling (or according to the villagers, lying). She is an outcast and the only true friends she has are the children she tutors and tells stories to. Her life is changed during a full moon when she encounters the fabled Erlking during the famous hunt. To protect the creatures he was hunting, Serilda lies and tells the Erlking that she can spin straw into gold - which she can't - and in the next full moon he takes her.
All three stars go to the mesmerizing worldbuilding which was so atmospheric and was a very believable fairytale land straight out of Grimm's. I have a soft spot for ghosts in a story and I thought the castle filled with ghosts was pretty great. It would have been better if they had been further developed because, for me, the most interesting character in the entire book was the coachman ghost with an iron chisel in his eye! Because Dutch is a second language and I'm familiar with German - I hundred percent enjoyed the word play with the German language and it added something extra special to the read for me and more depth to the world.
So, this was almost a five star read for me. It had so much potential especially in the first half, even though the main character; Serilda, didn't do it for me. I was so frustrated with her actions and behaviors that, at times, it made whole scenes unenjoyable for me.
Unfortunately, I really disliked the last third of the book. I nearly DNF'd it.
It got dark real fast. Like grimdark dark. I found the death of all the adorable children (which I thought were better characters than Serilda) was a step too far. I wasn't prepared for it and it was very much a slap in the face. I don't need a shock like that to appreciated high stakes. I read a lot of horror and difficult scenes, gore and death. And so I realize that horrific consequences can work well depending on the theme of a story. Then I thought how can this get worse. Well, Serilda is now pregnant at the end of the book and has promised her unborn child both to the Erlking and also her ghost lover, Gild (who is basically Rumpelstiltskin). There was a very awkward abortion/anti-abortion themed scene which, after the slaughter of children, I just couldn't stomach. The worst thing that happens to Serilda, after her stupid decisions cause the death of her friends, is that she becomes Queen??!! Nope. Just nope. I can't with this ending, it ruined my enjoyment of the whole thing. Which is a real shame.
Would I recommend this book? Probably. I mean, it had it's ups and downs but I know some readers will love it. Though, I recommend the Lunar Chronicles by the same author as it is far better. Even though Gilded was childish at times, I question if this should be for kids?
Will I continue with this Gilded series? No. Regardless of the ending, I don't love the main characters enough to care what happens next.
Such a shame. I'm sad I can't rate it any higher.
The story is set in a Germanic fairytale world and follows a Rumpelstiltskin/Beauty and the Beast retelling. We follow the main character; Serilda, a miller's daughter who is blessed with a god's gift of storytelling (or according to the villagers, lying). She is an outcast and the only true friends she has are the children she tutors and tells stories to. Her life is changed during a full moon when she encounters the fabled Erlking during the famous hunt. To protect the creatures he was hunting, Serilda lies and tells the Erlking that she can spin straw into gold - which she can't - and in the next full moon he takes her.
All three stars go to the mesmerizing worldbuilding which was so atmospheric and was a very believable fairytale land straight out of Grimm's. I have a soft spot for ghosts in a story and I thought the castle filled with ghosts was pretty great. It would have been better if they had been further developed because, for me, the most interesting character in the entire book was the coachman ghost with an iron chisel in his eye! Because Dutch is a second language and I'm familiar with German - I hundred percent enjoyed the word play with the German language and it added something extra special to the read for me and more depth to the world.
So, this was almost a five star read for me. It had so much potential especially in the first half, even though the main character; Serilda, didn't do it for me. I was so frustrated with her actions and behaviors that, at times, it made whole scenes unenjoyable for me.
Unfortunately, I really disliked the last third of the book. I nearly DNF'd it.
Would I recommend this book? Probably. I mean, it had it's ups and downs but I know some readers will love it. Though, I recommend the Lunar Chronicles by the same author as it is far better. Even though Gilded was childish at times, I question if this should be for kids?
Will I continue with this Gilded series? No. Regardless of the ending, I don't love the main characters enough to care what happens next.
Such a shame. I'm sad I can't rate it any higher.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Cannibalism, Death of parent, and Child death
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Suicide attempt, Kidnapping, and Slavery
Minor: Abortion
maublew's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Child death, and Death
Moderate: Kidnapping, Animal cruelty, and Pregnancy
Minor: Abortion and Sexual content
arthur_ant18's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Body horror, Death of parent, Child death, Animal death, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Confinement, and Gore
Moderate: Slavery, Animal cruelty, Suicide, Pregnancy, Cannibalism, Injury/Injury detail, and Grief
Minor: Abortion, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, War, and Sexual content
mundanedaydream's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Violence, Death of parent, Gore, Confinement, and Blood
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Murder, Kidnapping, and Suicide attempt
Minor: Torture and Abortion
biohazzardous's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
It starts off really building up the world and the mystery but once it’s the last two moons things finally pick up and take HARD turns. I wished the buildup didn’t feel like a slog at times. And while I liked the characters that was the only thing really pushing me since the mystery element took so long to build. But now that it’s getting somewhere I’m very much looking forward to the second book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Child death, Death of parent, Violence, Body horror, and Death
Moderate: Murder, Kidnapping, and Abortion
Minor: Torture and Vomit