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3.71 AVERAGE
3.71 AVERAGE
he Gilded Crown brings a new perspective to necromancy. Hellevir is a young woman intent on saving everyone. Everything she does is for the good of the many, no matter the personal cost. When she realizes as a very young girl that she can bring the dead back to life, she becomes determined to use her gift as often as possible. As you can imagine, most others are not as altruistic as Hellevir and she quickly ends up entangled in the violent machinations of politics and court life as news of her abilities spreads. With her family, friends, and even her own soul at risk, she is forced to make decisions between what is possible and what is right.
This book includes:
- Death as a corporal concept
- Religious conflict between a monotheistic religion and a philosophical/spiritual religion
- Necromancy as it has never been seen before
- Altruism vs Ruthlessness
- Violent political machinations
- LGBT characters and love stories
- A Familiar
- Who done it murder mystery
I loved "The Gilded Crown." It was nothing as I expected based on the book title or cover art, however, Hellevir's story captured my heart. Her connection with the natural world and dynamic with Death was so visceral, and the imagery was strong. I was in blissful agony watching her be so trusting and innocent over and over, and I wished for her success so badly. I can't relate to her, I related much more to Farvor, but I rooted for her regardless.
My only plot issue is that I felt like Hellevir's relationship was a bit forced, I think the soul-bonding was enough of a motivation for her. Cutting the weak romance would have removed some of the scenes that dragged. I also mentioned the cover art and title a bit before, but I think the book title was hugely misleading. It should have been something like *The Girl Who Made a Bargain with Death* or *Death's Bargain" or *walks with Death* or something that alludes more to the dark fairytale aspects that are central to the plot. The cover art should also never have been changed. I loved the original cover and it matched the genre and themes way better. The new cover alludes to a spicy romantasy, and this is very much not that.
All that said, I did enjoy this book and I highly recommend this one to all lovers of folktales and fables. Fans of "After the Woods," "Thornhedge," and other less literal and slower-paced stories will eat this book up.
I received this ebook as an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to NetGalley, Avon and Harper Voyager, and Marianne Gordon for the opportunity to review this book.
This book includes:
- Death as a corporal concept
- Religious conflict between a monotheistic religion and a philosophical/spiritual religion
- Necromancy as it has never been seen before
- Altruism vs Ruthlessness
- Violent political machinations
- LGBT characters and love stories
- A Familiar
- Who done it murder mystery
I loved "The Gilded Crown." It was nothing as I expected based on the book title or cover art, however, Hellevir's story captured my heart. Her connection with the natural world and dynamic with Death was so visceral, and the imagery was strong. I was in blissful agony watching her be so trusting and innocent over and over, and I wished for her success so badly. I can't relate to her, I related much more to Farvor, but I rooted for her regardless.
My only plot issue is that I felt like Hellevir's relationship was a bit forced, I think the soul-bonding was enough of a motivation for her. Cutting the weak romance would have removed some of the scenes that dragged. I also mentioned the cover art and title a bit before, but I think the book title was hugely misleading. It should have been something like *The Girl Who Made a Bargain with Death* or *Death's Bargain" or *walks with Death* or something that alludes more to the dark fairytale aspects that are central to the plot. The cover art should also never have been changed. I loved the original cover and it matched the genre and themes way better. The new cover alludes to a spicy romantasy, and this is very much not that.
All that said, I did enjoy this book and I highly recommend this one to all lovers of folktales and fables. Fans of "After the Woods," "Thornhedge," and other less literal and slower-paced stories will eat this book up.
I received this ebook as an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to NetGalley, Avon and Harper Voyager, and Marianne Gordon for the opportunity to review this book.
The Gilded Crown brings a new perspective to necromancy. Hellevir is a young woman intent on saving everyone. Everything she does is for the good of the many, no matter the personal cost. When she realizes as a very young girl that she can bring the dead back to life, she becomes determined to use her gift as often as possible. As you can imagine, most others are not as altruistic as Hellevir and she quickly ends up entangled in the violent machinations of politics and court life as news of her abilities spreads. With her family, friends, and even her own soul at risk, she is forced to make decisions between what is possible and what is right.
This book includes:
- Death as a corporal concept
- Religious conflict between a monotheistic religion and a philosophical/spiritual religion
- Necromancy as it has never been seen before
- Altruism vs Ruthlessness
- Violent political machinations
- LGBT characters and love stories
- A Familiar
- Who done it murder mystery
I loved "The Gilded Crown." It was nothing as I expected based on the book title or cover art, however, Hellevir's story captured my heart. Her connection with the natural world and dynamic with Death was so visceral, and the imagery was strong. I was in blissful agony watching her be so trusting and innocent over and over, and I wished for her success so badly. I can't relate to her, I related much more to Farvor, but I rooted for her regardless.
My only plot issue is that I felt like Hellevir's relationship was a bit forced, I think the soul-bonding was enough of a motivation for her. Cutting the weak romance would have removed some of the scenes that dragged. I also mentioned the cover art and title a bit before, but I think the book title was hugely misleading. It should have been something like *The Girl Who Made a Bargain with Death* or *Death's Bargain" or *walks with Death* or something that alludes more to the dark fairytale aspects that are central to the plot. The cover art should also never have been changed. I loved the original cover and it matched the genre and themes way better. The new cover alludes to a spicy romantasy, and this is very much not that.
All that said, I did enjoy this book and I highly recommend this one to all lovers of folktales and fables. Fans of "After the Woods," "Thornhedge," and other less literal and slower-paced stories will eat this book up.
I received this ebook as an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to NetGalley, Avon and Harper Voyager, and Marianne Gordon for the opportunity to review this book. This review is also available on my GoodReads - check out my profile https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/62314863
This book includes:
- Death as a corporal concept
- Religious conflict between a monotheistic religion and a philosophical/spiritual religion
- Necromancy as it has never been seen before
- Altruism vs Ruthlessness
- Violent political machinations
- LGBT characters and love stories
- A Familiar
- Who done it murder mystery
I loved "The Gilded Crown." It was nothing as I expected based on the book title or cover art, however, Hellevir's story captured my heart. Her connection with the natural world and dynamic with Death was so visceral, and the imagery was strong. I was in blissful agony watching her be so trusting and innocent over and over, and I wished for her success so badly. I can't relate to her, I related much more to Farvor, but I rooted for her regardless.
My only plot issue is that I felt like Hellevir's relationship was a bit forced, I think the soul-bonding was enough of a motivation for her. Cutting the weak romance would have removed some of the scenes that dragged. I also mentioned the cover art and title a bit before, but I think the book title was hugely misleading. It should have been something like *The Girl Who Made a Bargain with Death* or *Death's Bargain" or *walks with Death* or something that alludes more to the dark fairytale aspects that are central to the plot. The cover art should also never have been changed. I loved the original cover and it matched the genre and themes way better. The new cover alludes to a spicy romantasy, and this is very much not that.
All that said, I did enjoy this book and I highly recommend this one to all lovers of folktales and fables. Fans of "After the Woods," "Thornhedge," and other less literal and slower-paced stories will eat this book up.
I received this ebook as an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to NetGalley, Avon and Harper Voyager, and Marianne Gordon for the opportunity to review this book. This review is also available on my GoodReads - check out my profile https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/62314863
“You don’t have much choice when your both bound and one of you decides to jump.”
“The Gilded Crown,” by Marianne Gordon
Hellevir has been able to raise the dead since she was ten years old. The showed figure in the afterlife demands a price for every life she resurrected which continues to go up the more she brings back. Her gift has been her secret until Princess Sullivain is assassinated and Hellevir decides to bring her back. With the assassin unknown, Hellevir must remain by the Princess’ side in case she is needed. Hellevir begins to fall in love with the Princess, but she only has so much of herself to trade the death god.
This book was really good. I loved the premise of the story. The main character was annoying because of how much she was willing to do for people she didn’t know but it was essential to her character in the book. I wanted her to stand up for herself more. I liked how the princess was more than she seemed and how it complicated the story. I cannot get enough of the death god and his lore and really hope there will be more about all that in the Raven’s Trade series. 4 out of 5 stars.
-F/F
-Magic
-Death God
-Political Intrigue
Thank you for the ARC, Netgalley.
“The Gilded Crown,” by Marianne Gordon
Hellevir has been able to raise the dead since she was ten years old. The showed figure in the afterlife demands a price for every life she resurrected which continues to go up the more she brings back. Her gift has been her secret until Princess Sullivain is assassinated and Hellevir decides to bring her back. With the assassin unknown, Hellevir must remain by the Princess’ side in case she is needed. Hellevir begins to fall in love with the Princess, but she only has so much of herself to trade the death god.
This book was really good. I loved the premise of the story. The main character was annoying because of how much she was willing to do for people she didn’t know but it was essential to her character in the book. I wanted her to stand up for herself more. I liked how the princess was more than she seemed and how it complicated the story. I cannot get enough of the death god and his lore and really hope there will be more about all that in the Raven’s Trade series. 4 out of 5 stars.
-F/F
-Magic
-Death God
-Political Intrigue
Thank you for the ARC, Netgalley.
adventurous
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was such a good from beginning to end. I’m excited to read the second as this was the perfect build up for more, I wish I could just spew out absolutely everything but I will urge those who like more political fantasies with a sprinkling of romance and death magic to read this book, as it’s AMAZING!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death
Moderate: Child death, Physical abuse
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
I loved this. A few things kept it from being a 5 star read for me - Hellevir being pretty passive and never really learning the "there is always a choice" lesson, having like 3 chapters from the brother's POV in an otherwise single POV book, and a bit of a lack of forward momentum - but I was still engaged throughout. The romance wasn't at all what I was expecting, which was actually quite refreshing (although I don't feel like the toxicity of it was ever fully acknowledged) . I preordered the sequel immediately.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
tense
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
This is one of the best books I have read this year. Hellevir was such an amazing protagonist I loved her and wanted to wring her neck MOST TIMES but I really enjoy gentle characters who have a strong moral compass and stay true to their nature of kindness despite all the horrible things she witnessed and was forced to tolerate. I really hated Sullivain for most of the book but at the end I appreciated how well she was written.
I cannot wait to get my hands on the next book!
I cannot wait to get my hands on the next book!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Death of parent
Moderate: Torture
Minor: War
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest feedback!
This is certainly the dark fantasy with a really interesting magic system I quite enjoyed. I LOVED how the main character, Hellevir’s magic comes with a price. Finally! So tired of the all-powerful main characters. And I loved how she has to bargain with Death. Hellevir has an interesting backstory to developing her necromancy abilities and how she ends up with Sullivain. I honestly couldn’t stand Sullivain and found her to lack depth or true reasoning behind her actions. I felt bad for Hellevir. However, I’d be interested to see where the next book goes.
This is certainly the dark fantasy with a really interesting magic system I quite enjoyed. I LOVED how the main character, Hellevir’s magic comes with a price. Finally! So tired of the all-powerful main characters. And I loved how she has to bargain with Death. Hellevir has an interesting backstory to developing her necromancy abilities and how she ends up with Sullivain. I honestly couldn’t stand Sullivain and found her to lack depth or true reasoning behind her actions. I felt bad for Hellevir. However, I’d be interested to see where the next book goes.
The vibes are immaculate. While the writing style is straightforward, it still portrays a very satifysing fairy tale vibe. The premise of a young woman who can enter Death and make bargains to bring people and creatures back to life is well formed and somewhat unique. In some ways, the story reminds me a bit of The Bear and the Nightingale in the way it sets up the childhood of Hellevir as unique, the religious tension and a somewhat naive and innocent main character being forced into political scheming.
I don't know why some reviews seemed to think this would be a romantasy, as the advertising doesn't really every say anything about romance, but it definitely is not a romantic fantasy or fantasy romance in anyway. The characters are interesting and while Sullevain is mostly unlikeable, its not for lack of characterization but rather serves an interesting foil to Hellevir. There is some romantic tension, that I think does drive some of Hellevir's motivations, but it is subplot at best. The pacing is somewhat uneven at times, but remains overall intriguing. I think I know where things are going with Death and the more mythology aspect of the action, but I'm interested to see if I end up being right.
I don't know why some reviews seemed to think this would be a romantasy, as the advertising doesn't really every say anything about romance, but it definitely is not a romantic fantasy or fantasy romance in anyway. The characters are interesting and while Sullevain is mostly unlikeable, its not for lack of characterization but rather serves an interesting foil to Hellevir. There is some romantic tension, that I think does drive some of Hellevir's motivations, but it is subplot at best. The pacing is somewhat uneven at times, but remains overall intriguing. I think I know where things are going with Death and the more mythology aspect of the action, but I'm interested to see if I end up being right.
3⭐️
Sadly this one just never turned into what I was really hoping for. I think the premise is great and I really enjoyed the scenes with death. The writing itself is also very beautiful. Just the story and plot just never really amounted to its potential falling flat.
I'm interested to see what else this author writes because I think her writing is really strong,
Thank you to NetGalley and Avon and Harper for this advanced reader copy. My review is voluntarily my own.
Sadly this one just never turned into what I was really hoping for. I think the premise is great and I really enjoyed the scenes with death. The writing itself is also very beautiful. Just the story and plot just never really amounted to its potential falling flat.
I'm interested to see what else this author writes because I think her writing is really strong,
Thank you to NetGalley and Avon and Harper for this advanced reader copy. My review is voluntarily my own.