Reviews with content warning for Body horror - Gild

This book was extremely dark & slow at times but the plot was fascinating and the twist at the end really surprised me. Though there were some things that disturbed me, overall, I do want to find out what happens next.

Content Warnings

finnickdeservedbetter's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-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? It's complicated

4.0

Content Warnings

michellemaas's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

First read: 3 - ⭐⭐⭐
Second read: 4 - ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Gild suffers from first book syndrome. By that, I mean that there's not a lot of stuff actually happening, more so just exposition. I consider the first book in a fantasy series the sacrificial lamb. You have to speed through it to get to the good stuff that usually starts during book 2.

I heard the rest of the series is amazing, and the author is clearly very creative so I am willing to hold off my harsh judgments until I've read books 2 and 3. Like I said there seems to be a lot of potential since it is an interesting concept and the author is good. But just reviewing this book individually, it's very meh. Not bad but not good. I am hopeful for the rest of the series though.

*Edit
I have since read Glint and Gleam and I fully stand by my earlier assessment. The first book just had to set up the world-building and as soon as you get to book 2 the plot starts to kick in. I would definitely say that this series is worth the read, so don't judge it based on the first book alone. At least read until book 2 until you make any decisions.

Also, the series gave me strong From Blood and Ash vibes so if you enjoyed that series I think you will like the Plated Prisoner series and vice versa.

Content Warnings

ktbookbug's review against another edition

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dark emotional inspiring mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

RATING SYSTEM
I give up to 1 star for each category: characters, world, plot, my emotional investment, and my entertainment/interest level. My rating break down is below.
REVIEW
This book shocked me, thrilled me, had me on the edge of my seat, surprised me, and had me running to get the next book. Half the book is getting inside the head of the main character, setting up the story, etc. and the rest is just a series of "What's going to happen next, oh I can't look, shoot I'm reading I have to look, oh that wasn't so bad--OH MY GOSH!" The best way to read this is to go in blind so I don't want to say too much, but please check out the content warnings/trigger warnings because those are absolutely necessary to know. Here's my rating break down:

Characters - 1 star
- You can tell a great deal of thought went into each character, no matter how small, and their role in this story.
World - 1 star
- This will make more sense when you read it, but I love how our understanding of the main character's world is limited to what she's experiencing so that when you get flashbacks you're experiencing them as a memory too instead of learning about the world for reference.
Plot - 0.5 star
- I loved where the story took me and there were awesome surprises, but there were a couple of times where I thought to myself, "Is this a plot twist or did the author just forget to leave some breadcrumbs for me to follow. Not only did I not see it coming, but it felt a bit like a deus ex machina (essentially, a feeling like, "Oh, well that was convenient..."). Instead of being this WOW moment I was kind of confused. Other surprising moments were done incredibly well though.
Emotional Investment - 1 star
- I had to drag myself away at points because I was so incredibly connected to this story and knew it had the potential to destroy me, especially at some of the darker parts I could see coming up. I would get some fresh air, drink some water, make sure I had nothing else planned and that no one would come and bother me before I started reading again.
Entertainment/Interest - 1 star
- This was one of the few books I've read where even the internal dialog of the main character working through something was entertaining. Sometimes it can get repetitive or boring and you just want new information to be introduced already! But I hung on every thought the main character had because I was going through this story with her. Anytime she would figure something out or have a revelation I'd be like, "Oh good I didn't know how we were going to find our way out of this." When I wasn't reading it I was thinking about it, and that's the first thing I look for in this category.

Content Warnings

morganphoenix's review against another edition

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challenging dark sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.25

Content Warnings

folkofthebook's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Slow to start, I was hooked after a reveal/twist. Thoughts I had: What's with these fucking ribbons? Why are spikes so hot? I do not trust this motherfucker. Kennedy takes the tale of King Midas and recreates it with her own unique vision, bringing in the fae mythology. Extra points to her for twist.
Glad I made the jump onto this series, already starting book 2!
TW/CW: grooming, toxic relationship, sexual assault, r*pe, etc.

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