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literaryintersections's review against another edition
challenging
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
I just finished this yesterday and y'all what can I say. Namina Forna knows how to write an ending. WHEW that climax got me hype and now I'm like "damn I have to wait for book 3".
What I loved: The alaki, jatu, and Deka's friends. The relationship between Deka and Britta is *chef's kiss*. I love seeing how they rep for each other, how they support each other, are always there to fight for each other. It's chosen family AT IT'S BEST. It was nice to see the small moments between the friend group but I wanted more - these kids are experiencing so much pain and death and I wanted more happy moments.
I am not sure how I feel about the direction the book took but, and it was extremely slow in the beginning. But once the threads started to pull together, and Deka started to figure out the mysteries of The Gilded Ones and Idugu, I was invested.
Overall, a book about children having to fight for their rights, fight for the rights to live and have autonomy over their bodies, feels extremely relevant to what we are dealing with in our society now. And as much as it's hard to read at times, it reminded me that no one makes change alone. The friendships and love we build, the community, is what will make that change happen.
What I loved: The alaki, jatu, and Deka's friends. The relationship between Deka and Britta is *chef's kiss*. I love seeing how they rep for each other, how they support each other, are always there to fight for each other. It's chosen family AT IT'S BEST. It was nice to see the small moments between the friend group but I wanted more - these kids are experiencing so much pain and death and I wanted more happy moments.
I am not sure how I feel about the direction the book took but, and it was extremely slow in the beginning. But once the threads started to pull together, and Deka started to figure out the mysteries of The Gilded Ones and Idugu, I was invested.
Overall, a book about children having to fight for their rights, fight for the rights to live and have autonomy over their bodies, feels extremely relevant to what we are dealing with in our society now. And as much as it's hard to read at times, it reminded me that no one makes change alone. The friendships and love we build, the community, is what will make that change happen.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Child death
kshertz's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
informative
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
This book is just as good as Gilded Ones. The twists and turns were fantastic. Everything I thought I knew from the first book gets turned on it’s head. There are some moments I actually gasped out loud. Other moments I had tears in my eyes. The writing is just fantastic and the underlining themes are subtle but there if you look. I just love everything about it and now I can’t wait for book 3. I have sooo many questions and theories. I love it. Officially invested highly in all these characters though so I’m hoping they all make it through book 3.
Content Warnings
Minor: Death, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Murder, Toxic relationship, Violence, War, Abandonment, Blood, and Emotional abuse
annikareads_'s review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Violence, and Death
Moderate: Misogyny, Transphobia, and Gaslighting
beckyyreadss's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
I wanted to read this book because I absolutely loved the first book in this series, the second I found out this was becoming a series, I instantly pre-ordered this book. It has been a long wait and oh boy it was worth the wait.
This book follows sixteen-year-old Deka who lives in Otera. Which is an ancient kingdom who believe that a women’s worth is tied to the purity of her blood. On the day of the purity ceremony, Deka bleeds gold which is the colour of impurity and she is a demon. She is thrown into a new world where she has been banished from her home, her village and is left for dead. Until a mysterious woman saves her and tells her the truth: she is an Alaki which is a near-immortal with amazing gifts. It has been six months since she found out she was an Alaki and she has freed the goddesses. There is now a war raging across the kingdom. Otereans now think jatu are traitors to the nation and Deka is getting called a monster. Deka is now tasked with freeing the rest of the goddesses, but when she begins to free them, she starts to see a strange symbol everything in places of worship and worn on armour. There is something evil about that symbol – when Deka looks at it, it makes her lose her senses and repels her power. She can’t seem to command the new deathshrieks and she can’t understand them when they speak. Deka knows that freeing the goddesses is just the beginning. Deka’s powers are getting stronger and she could be the key to saving the whole kingdom.
I enjoyed this book. I still think the first book is better and such a good debut. But Namina Forna managed to carry on the storyline that it kept you intrigued. I love the found family trope in this book and how they all look after each other. I love Deka and I think her growth in this book is beautiful. The way that she thinks that no one is going to love her to being the hero and having a well-protected family who love her to bits was so heart-warming. I loved the plot and the action in this book and the fact that there was still a hint of romance. It took me a while to get into this book but I think that’s because of the new terminology that you learn within this book
I can’t wait to see what’s going to happen with Deka and the gang in the next book and hopefully don’t have to wait too long for the third book.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Death of parent, Sexism, Slavery, Torture, Violence, and War
vmknmy's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
3/5
I read The Gilded Ones about a year ago and could not remember anything from it, so I went into this one with only remembering like 3 things lmao, didn't even remember Deka's name until it was mentioned a few pages in or something like that, and I also didn't remember who anyone was at first.
one of the things I liked about the book was the characters- they were all so distinct and ngl after reading a few chapters I remembered who most of them were because the way they were written made them memorable in a way, especially Britta and the way her dialogue is written that shows how she has a different accent than the rest of them, which is just really cool to see :)))
I also really liked the representation in this book, with how the author introduced trans and non-binary characters into the story and how they had people who were "more of a they than a she" and also how the Singular was introduced as an "our" and "they" and how they were all genders I think that's what the book said? cant remember lmao and how they introduced a few characters as being trans (at least that's what I read some of the parts, idk I'm stupid :') ) I also liked the wlw and mlm characters, as they felt like they had more of a purpose in this book rather than just being thrown in for diversity like i felt the first book did, but this one had so much diversity in terms of sexuality and gender which was just really cool to see :)))
The plot in this was also good i think, i liked how there were twists and how things didn't go as they planned. I also liked the fact that Deka had to uncover the truth about the godesses, and how she had to come to terms with it and how it unsettled her that she had been lied to and decieved, which really helped with her character development. It also had a lot of death, with some quite important deaths happening, and one almost made me cry which is rare so i guess that makes it good ? idk
The world is so well developed and so many details are explained and it really develops the culture of Otera and how they explained customs, social norms and social ettiquete is so detailed and aaa the world is really well made
i enjoyed the book and ill probably read the next one but i didn't love it as much as other books ive read so like 4 stars
there's also some mentions of how some characters were transphobic towards another (if i read it correctly, that is) as well as some
I read The Gilded Ones about a year ago and could not remember anything from it, so I went into this one with only remembering like 3 things lmao, didn't even remember Deka's name until it was mentioned a few pages in or something like that, and I also didn't remember who anyone was at first.
one of the things I liked about the book was the characters- they were all so distinct and ngl after reading a few chapters I remembered who most of them were because the way they were written made them memorable in a way, especially Britta and the way her dialogue is written that shows how she has a different accent than the rest of them, which is just really cool to see :)))
I also really liked the representation in this book, with how the author introduced trans and non-binary characters into the story and how they had people who were "more of a they than a she" and also
The plot in this was also good i think, i liked how there were twists and how things didn't go as they planned. I also liked the fact that Deka had to uncover the truth about the godesses, and how she had to come to terms with it and how it unsettled her that she had been lied to and decieved, which really helped with her character development. It also had a lot of death, with some quite important deaths happening, and one almost made me cry which is rare so i guess that makes it good ? idk
The world is so well developed and so many details are explained and it really develops the culture of Otera and how they explained customs, social norms and social ettiquete is so detailed and aaa the world is really well made
i enjoyed the book and ill probably read the next one but i didn't love it as much as other books ive read so like 4 stars
there's also some mentions of how some characters were transphobic towards another (if i read it correctly, that is) as well as some
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Sexism, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Homophobia
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders and Sexual violence
Minor: Transphobia
betweentheshelves's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
After starting to free the goddesses and discovering her true identity, Deka is tasked with ensuring the rest of them are free. But the task proves difficult when everyone thinks you’re a monster and a war rages on in your country. Being named a traitor to your nation makes everything more dangerous, even as you’re trying to save them.
However, as Deka releases the other goddesses, she starts seeing strange symbols everywhere. Symbols that repel her powers and make her lose all of her senses. Deka knows that there is a dark force is out there, threatening the mere existence of humanity. And her powers grow stronger, it will be up to Deka and her army to stop it to save humanity.
Thanks to NetGalley and Delacorte for an advanced copy of this to review! The Gilded Ones was one of my favorite fantasy books from last year, and with that ending, I was excited for the sequel. I loved the way Forna expands the world in this book, even adding more diversity in the characters and some interesting plot twists.
Picking up six months after the first book, this book doesn’t waste any time jumping into the action. Forna is also a master at crafting worlds. There’s so much detail that went into creating this world and mythology and I was really impressed. Where sometimes description can weigh down a fantasy novel, Forna does it in a way that helps in moving the plotline forward.
Unfortunately, I do think this book falls prey to second book syndrome. While I appreciated the world building, the pacing felt off at times. After the first scene, the beginning feels a little slow. I also am not sure that this necessarily needed to be a trilogy? I actually didn’t even realize that it was going to be until I got to the end of the book.
Will I read the third book when it comes out? With that ending, probably! Even if I just stick around to see how these characters will evolve in the future, because I am hooked.
------
I think this falls victim to second book syndrome, a little. It felt a little long at times, and the pacing was sometimes off. But I did like how it expanded the world from the original novel. Stay tuned for a full review to come!
However, as Deka releases the other goddesses, she starts seeing strange symbols everywhere. Symbols that repel her powers and make her lose all of her senses. Deka knows that there is a dark force is out there, threatening the mere existence of humanity. And her powers grow stronger, it will be up to Deka and her army to stop it to save humanity.
Thanks to NetGalley and Delacorte for an advanced copy of this to review! The Gilded Ones was one of my favorite fantasy books from last year, and with that ending, I was excited for the sequel. I loved the way Forna expands the world in this book, even adding more diversity in the characters and some interesting plot twists.
Picking up six months after the first book, this book doesn’t waste any time jumping into the action. Forna is also a master at crafting worlds. There’s so much detail that went into creating this world and mythology and I was really impressed. Where sometimes description can weigh down a fantasy novel, Forna does it in a way that helps in moving the plotline forward.
Unfortunately, I do think this book falls prey to second book syndrome. While I appreciated the world building, the pacing felt off at times. After the first scene, the beginning feels a little slow. I also am not sure that this necessarily needed to be a trilogy? I actually didn’t even realize that it was going to be until I got to the end of the book.
Will I read the third book when it comes out? With that ending, probably! Even if I just stick around to see how these characters will evolve in the future, because I am hooked.
------
I think this falls victim to second book syndrome, a little. It felt a little long at times, and the pacing was sometimes off. But I did like how it expanded the world from the original novel. Stay tuned for a full review to come!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Death, and Homophobia
Moderate: Sexual violence
elizajaquays's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
The Gilded Ones was one of my top five reads of 2021, so I was so excited to receive an ARC through NetGalley from Delacorte Press. Thank you so much for the opportunity! I rate it 4.5 out of 5 stars.
We are immediately thrust into action with Deka dealing with the aftermath of what happens when you depose an Emperor but are powerless to enact immediate change. Much like in The Gilded Ones, the book does not shy away from graphic descriptions of war—both for those in the army and the civilian bystanders. They may have overthrown a corrupt emperor, but the world is still not a safe place for women.
What I love most about Deka’s story is that every turn, she is constantly rediscovering what it means to be the Nuru to the Goddesses and that we are learning right alongside her. If there is information that we as readers don’t have, it is because Deka also doesn’t have that information (and is most likely doing her best to uncover it). We are right there with her, struggling to determine who is trustworthy and what the cost will be if she trusts the wrong person. Well, that might be my second favorite thing about this book. What I truly love most about her story is her ride or die friendships that she’s built. It’s truly a story of found family who would do anythign to protect each other. There is no mountain too high, no army too large.
The thing that drew me out of the story the most was some of the repeated phrases and scenes, to the point where I was flipping back to make sure I didn’t lose my place and reread a scene. There were subtle differences between them and it was rarely anything over a few lines at a time, but it was definitely a bit jarring and felt like it was a heavy-handed way to say “hey this bit is important.” The only other issue I had with it was that most of the advertising I’d come across didn’t specify that this was a middle book and even when searching, I only found a couple of references mentioning that this was a planned trilogy. I think if I had engaged with it knowing it was not the final book in the series I would have enjoyed it more.
But I still had an excellent time reading it and am so excited for the next book in the series!
We are immediately thrust into action with Deka dealing with the aftermath of what happens when you depose an Emperor but are powerless to enact immediate change. Much like in The Gilded Ones, the book does not shy away from graphic descriptions of war—both for those in the army and the civilian bystanders. They may have overthrown a corrupt emperor, but the world is still not a safe place for women.
What I love most about Deka’s story is that every turn, she is constantly rediscovering what it means to be the Nuru to the Goddesses and that we are learning right alongside her. If there is information that we as readers don’t have, it is because Deka also doesn’t have that information (and is most likely doing her best to uncover it). We are right there with her, struggling to determine who is trustworthy and what the cost will be if she trusts the wrong person. Well, that might be my second favorite thing about this book. What I truly love most about her story is her ride or die friendships that she’s built. It’s truly a story of found family who would do anythign to protect each other. There is no mountain too high, no army too large.
The thing that drew me out of the story the most was some of the repeated phrases and scenes, to the point where I was flipping back to make sure I didn’t lose my place and reread a scene. There were subtle differences between them and it was rarely anything over a few lines at a time, but it was definitely a bit jarring and felt like it was a heavy-handed way to say “hey this bit is important.” The only other issue I had with it was that most of the advertising I’d come across didn’t specify that this was a middle book and even when searching, I only found a couple of references mentioning that this was a planned trilogy. I think if I had engaged with it knowing it was not the final book in the series I would have enjoyed it more.
But I still had an excellent time reading it and am so excited for the next book in the series!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Blood, Misogyny, Murder, Violence, War, and Death
easyqueenie's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Death
Moderate: Sexual violence
karis_rogerson's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I really liked the arc of this story - how Namina Forna took the big world she's created in book one and made it even bigger in book two. The depth of world-building is really great. The setup for book three was really interesting, too, and will definitely have me coming back for more; at the same time, this book maintained its own arc as well.
There is a lot of violence in this book, but it's not explicit or gratuitous.
There is a lot of violence in this book, but it's not explicit or gratuitous.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence
hwconductor's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence
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