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turnthepages_nl's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
3.0
It's not bad, but the pacing was off for me. Too slow in most places and the action sequences were too fast. I also saw some plottwists coming which took the fun out.
Erlen was amazing tho and she made it more enjoyable.
Marissa Meyer had to fill in a nine month gap, because the original story doesnt tell about that time. But her version sadly did not satisfy me.
If she didnt do the plottwist at the end of book 1, gilded could be a standalone novel. It didnt work as a duology for me because I feel like I didnt get to know the characters better...
I was in a fantasy mood, but this book did not quench my thirst. And I'm so sad about it because I love Marissa's other books!
I hope you loved this story more than I did <3
Erlen was amazing tho and she made it more enjoyable.
Marissa Meyer had to fill in a nine month gap, because the original story doesnt tell about that time. But her version sadly did not satisfy me.
If she didnt do the plottwist at the end of book 1, gilded could be a standalone novel. It didnt work as a duology for me because I feel like I didnt get to know the characters better...
I was in a fantasy mood, but this book did not quench my thirst. And I'm so sad about it because I love Marissa's other books!
I hope you loved this story more than I did <3
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Animal cruelty, Death, Pregnancy, Toxic relationship, Child death, Blood, Gore, Kidnapping, Murder, Physical abuse, and Violence
badbrhireads's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
this book was a frustrating read. i truly truly disliked the protagonist and felt as though the plot could have been condensed into one book. felt like some scenes were there for no actual reason but to have words on a page. i do think meyers’ has beautiful imagery for setting the mood but just felt very off. i had my hopes up because the ending of the first book picked up quite a bit but u honestly didnt need to read the first book it just got explained in the beginning. lots of thoughts… first time that i dreaded reading and i really wanted to enjoy this fairytale
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death
Minor: Death of parent, Death, and Pregnancy
jburson's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
Probably my own complete lack of maternal sentiments but I just couldn't get behind the sudden devotion to her unborn child when it wasn't something she wanted in the first place and when, because of magic its growing completely separate from her inside her physical body and she's a spirit for 99% of the narrative.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Violence, Toxic relationship, Torture, and Pregnancy
voldycat's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
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
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Death, Animal cruelty, Child death, Toxic relationship, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Rape, War, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Grief, and Child abuse
Minor: Abandonment
clairew97's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, Violence, Abandonment, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child death, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Grief, Infertility, Kidnapping, and Pregnancy
kaiyakaiyo's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
this took me SO long. the first half dragged terribly, and the constant “twists” just felt like Serilda being so slow on the uptake it was out of character. I wouldn’t call her clever by any means in book 1; she mostly walks right into every trap set for her, but shes new to magic and does try to untangle the Erlkings web.
In this one she just straight up does not look before she leaps to an extremely unrealistic degree. She knows the consequences and yet let’s her guard down EVERY time. Every time she acted shocked by an evil thing the Erlking did i facepalmed; I’ve never seen such a sharp decrease in intellect in a main char between books before. Maybe the baby was rerouting oxygen from her brain? She’s blessed by the god of stories and lies but can’t pick apart very clear threats and lies said directly to her face? she does all this “investigating” but somehow never realizes the literal underworld gate is under her home? She realizes her “power” but continues spouting off bullshit that gets everyone in trouble? Her characterization is just incredibly weak in this book; there’s no way a “skillful liar” is that stupid? book 1 was okay but this one was just a total slog
also imma be real there was a gratuitous amount of child death in these books, and the use of the rumpelstiltskin name trope was incredibly cheesy and out of place. the ending was so cobbled together it doesn’t make sense! as someone who loved the lunar chronicles I am baffled that these books came from the same planet let alone the same author. just 0 interesting character development and a fascinating universe with no consistency
In this one she just straight up does not look before she leaps to an extremely unrealistic degree. She knows the consequences and yet let’s her guard down EVERY time. Every time she acted shocked by an evil thing the Erlking did i facepalmed; I’ve never seen such a sharp decrease in intellect in a main char between books before. Maybe the baby was rerouting oxygen from her brain? She’s blessed by the god of stories and lies but can’t pick apart very clear threats and lies said directly to her face? she does all this “investigating” but somehow never realizes the literal underworld gate is under her home? She realizes her “power” but continues spouting off bullshit that gets everyone in trouble? Her characterization is just incredibly weak in this book; there’s no way a “skillful liar” is that stupid? book 1 was okay but this one was just a total slog
also imma be real there was a gratuitous amount of child death in these books, and the use of the rumpelstiltskin name trope was incredibly cheesy and out of place. the ending was so cobbled together it doesn’t make sense! as someone who loved the lunar chronicles I am baffled that these books came from the same planet let alone the same author. just 0 interesting character development and a fascinating universe with no consistency
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Pregnancy, Violence, and Child death
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts
writer_egreene's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Pregnancy, Toxic relationship, Violence, Child death, Blood, and Abandonment
abby_can_read's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I enjoyed this book. I think it was a good sequel. This is a dark fairytale retelling. The characters are entertaining and there is come character development. The relationship between the characters is interesting. The plot is a little predictable though I did enjoy it. The writing style is lovely.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Pregnancy, Death, Gore, Blood, Emotional abuse, Grief, and Violence
Moderate: Animal cruelty, War, Torture, Animal death, Child death, Murder, Physical abuse, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Abandonment, Body horror, Death of parent, Infertility, Kidnapping, and Confinement
bandysbooks's review against another edition
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Once long ago, I read and enjoyed The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer, so naturally when I saw Cursed, I thought I might enjoy it as well. I don't know if it's just that I was much younger when I read The Lunar Chronicles or if this duology isn't quite of the same quality, but I was left wanting.
We have a fairytale retelling which is Meyer's bread and butter. This time it's of Rumpelstiltskin. Instead of centering on Rumpel himself, we have a story that features a damsel in distress and he is her protector of sorts. I thought the way she twisted the story was fairly interesting.
Where it fell apart for me was the main character. I found her incredibly frustrating. I can't count how many times the bad guy did something horrible, she pleads with him, and then he does something even more horrible. He's clearly a sadist who gets off on psychological torture and she gives him exactly what he wants by begging him. She even makes deals with him on multiple occasions and they always end with him doing something terrible and finding a loophole in the deal. I understand trying once, but after he backstabs her once, she should never make a deal with him again. It honestly got a bit tedious.
Also, this book relies heavily on the unplanned pregnancy trope which is one of my least favorite tropes. I get that it's an important part of the story arc, but it just wasn't for me.
All in all, I just think I am maybe the wrong demographic for this book. I could imagine a 14 or 15 year old reading and enjoying this, but as a 35 year old there was a lot that left me cringing. I honestly wouldn't have read this second book in the duology, had I not had an ARC of it. If you're into young adult fantasy, you might enjoy this.
* I received an E-ARC of this from Netgalley. This in no way affects my review.
We have a fairytale retelling which is Meyer's bread and butter. This time it's of Rumpelstiltskin. Instead of centering on Rumpel himself, we have a story that features a damsel in distress and he is her protector of sorts. I thought the way she twisted the story was fairly interesting.
Where it fell apart for me was the main character. I found her incredibly frustrating. I can't count how many times the bad guy did something horrible, she pleads with him, and then he does something even more horrible. He's clearly a sadist who gets off on psychological torture and she gives him exactly what he wants by begging him. She even makes deals with him on multiple occasions and they always end with him doing something terrible and finding a loophole in the deal. I understand trying once, but after he backstabs her once, she should never make a deal with him again. It honestly got a bit tedious.
Also, this book relies heavily on the unplanned pregnancy trope which is one of my least favorite tropes. I get that it's an important part of the story arc, but it just wasn't for me.
All in all, I just think I am maybe the wrong demographic for this book. I could imagine a 14 or 15 year old reading and enjoying this, but as a 35 year old there was a lot that left me cringing. I honestly wouldn't have read this second book in the duology, had I not had an ARC of it. If you're into young adult fantasy, you might enjoy this.
* I received an E-ARC of this from Netgalley. This in no way affects my review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pregnancy, Murder, Torture, and Child death
iz_kap1225's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Mystical and adventurous. Has some sad scenes but nothing MAJOR, just slight sad parts. Very good in my opinion. Book two after Gilded.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pregnancy, Child death, Gore, War, Murder, Death, Animal death, Death of parent, and Violence