Reviews

A Taste of Gold and Iron by Alexandra Rowland

bookheathens's review against another edition

3.5

It was gay and it was okay. I don't know that I'd seek out more books in this series (even though I was today years old when I found out that it's a series 😅)

mj_books's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful 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? Yes

4.5

The amount of times I got emotional over this book is unbelievable! My friends got tired of me constantly talking about it and the characters and the plot. Evemer and Kadou have my heart even though half the time I was thinking that they were never going to be happy with each other but THEY DO! THEY DO! Believe in them!!! They will capture your heart as they did mine! 

(It does start of slow but that does add to the character building that leads the rest of the story. But the slow start was reason for it not being a 5. That doesn’t take away the fact that I ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT!) 

hegerst's review against another edition

5.0

I have been a big fan of Alex through their podcast for over a year now, but finally getting to hear their voice come through in this story was more than I could have ever wished for. Not only did I know how much this book meant to them, I enjoyed it so immensely, I had a book hangover for several days after and didn’t want to believe it was over.

If you are in any way moved by fealty, the ethics of, subtle fantasy, economics, queer romance, or the Ottoman Empire, then this book is for you.

bumblebelle's review against another edition

adventurous emotional 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? Yes

4.75

lmskikun's review against another edition

Not into it rn

maddie_reads_stuff's review against another edition

3.0

I was really caught up in the story at the start, but I had a hard time staying invested and taking the characters seriously as the the plot got more romance-focused

Spoiler

(the kind-of-but-not-really fake marriage and subsequent we-need-to-get-divorced-so-we-don't-actually-consummate-this melodrama was a bit more than I could suspend my disbelief for)

. I did appreciate that one of the main characters had anxiety, and overall representation (I wanted more Melek!). But for my taste I needed more plot, more complex antagonists, maybe a betrayal, less romance, and less Tadek...

viandraaa's review against another edition

emotional lighthearted reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

joanna1905's review against another edition

4.0

This was SUCH a good read! I'll admit it took me a little while to get into but the further along I read it just kept getting better and better. The world was just developed enough to be a compelling backdrop without detracting too much from the primary story (the romance). I adored the slow build and the angst because it was done in a way that didn't feel like dragging things out for the sake of it and it served to make these little disaster gays even more wonderfully adorable.

I would have liked there to be a little more discussion of Kandu's anxiety, it seemed as though that plot was dropped a bit by halfway through. I also wish we got to see his sister find out about the marriage.

All in all, it worked very well as a stand-alone but there would definitely be room for a squeal as well, maybe a fxf romance with Zeliha or a story following Tadek.

I definitely plan on copping a physical copy of this and rereading it because I can just tell it's one of those books that'll hit you harder when you read an actual copy.

sweetsorrows's review against another edition

5.0

an amazing stand-alone fantasy novel! it did such a wonderful job with world-building and vocabulary that allowed the narrative to be still cohesive but also hilarious.

ruth_bookdevourer's review against another edition

adventurous emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75