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bree_h_reads 's review for:
The Gilded Crown
by Marianne Gordon
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
slow-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
This was SUCH an amazing book and I honestly can’t recommend it enough. I’m so excited to get the sequel from the library, I’m dying for it to come off hold.
Every single character in this story felt REALLY well thought out and considered. Each one was unique, but also didn’t feel flat or boring. Hellevir, as our lead, is the most obvious example. She has a deep, unending empathy for people and animals. Especially those who were given an unfair hand by life. However, due to her empathy, she often found herself in difficult situations. She struggled with putting herself over her desire to help those in need. I also appreciated her almost recklessness. She has a habit of acting without really thinking and I enjoyed watching her make stupid choices and suffering the consequences. Then there was Sullivain who was such an interesting character. She was clearly beloved by most in her life, but also had people trying to assassinate her as a consequence of her and her grandmother’s actions. I really enjoyed seeing how Sullivain and Hellevir played off each other. Hellevir grappling with what she expects it to be like, plus her morals, and what Sullivan is really like mixed with Sullivain’s innate selfishness, complicated relationship with her grandmother, and her blooming recklessness from having Hellevir in her life. I really enjoyed it. There’s also Death. I really appreciate his adherence to rules, but also innate secrecy. His dynamic with Hellevir was wonderful, something about him was almost like a father figure while also very much not being a parental relationship. It was super fun to read about and I’m really excited to see how it’ll shake up and shift in the second book.
I think the world building for this world was perfectly delivered. There’s a really clear sense of what’s happening in the world, but also how and why things work the way they do. Seeing the struggle between the country’s traditional religion and how it clashes with the new religion was so well done and felt deeply realistic. I also loved how the way characters of certain backgrounds and religious beliefs looked at the world so differently from people with different beliefs. Hellevir’s family was the clearest example, but there’s such a strong sense of it in general. Especially with politics. Hellevir clearly doesn’t grasp everything, but watching her put different dynamics and clues together really helped me as the reader understand what was happening better.
To start, the setup for the plot was absolutely amazing. I don’t want to talk too much about what happened throughout the story so I don’t spoil it, but I was so invested in Hellevir exploring the mystery and also trying to complete her bargains with Death. Also the themes adjacent to the main plot. I think every single relationship and dynamic really lends to themes on sacrifice and toxic dynamics. I absolutely love it.
Overall I cannot recommend this book enough. I really liked how much thought I had to give it and that it held up under consideration, but it was wonderful. If I weren’t writing this review at 12:30 am I would absolutely yap about it more.
Every single character in this story felt REALLY well thought out and considered. Each one was unique, but also didn’t feel flat or boring. Hellevir, as our lead, is the most obvious example. She has a deep, unending empathy for people and animals. Especially those who were given an unfair hand by life. However, due to her empathy, she often found herself in difficult situations. She struggled with putting herself over her desire to help those in need. I also appreciated her almost recklessness. She has a habit of acting without really thinking and I enjoyed watching her make stupid choices and suffering the consequences. Then there was Sullivain who was such an interesting character. She was clearly beloved by most in her life, but also had people trying to assassinate her as a consequence of her and her grandmother’s actions. I really enjoyed seeing how Sullivain and Hellevir played off each other. Hellevir grappling with what she expects it to be like, plus her morals, and what Sullivan is really like mixed with Sullivain’s innate selfishness, complicated relationship with her grandmother, and her blooming recklessness from having Hellevir in her life. I really enjoyed it. There’s also Death. I really appreciate his adherence to rules, but also innate secrecy. His dynamic with Hellevir was wonderful, something about him was almost like a father figure while also very much not being a parental relationship. It was super fun to read about and I’m really excited to see how it’ll shake up and shift in the second book.
I think the world building for this world was perfectly delivered. There’s a really clear sense of what’s happening in the world, but also how and why things work the way they do. Seeing the struggle between the country’s traditional religion and how it clashes with the new religion was so well done and felt deeply realistic. I also loved how the way characters of certain backgrounds and religious beliefs looked at the world so differently from people with different beliefs. Hellevir’s family was the clearest example, but there’s such a strong sense of it in general. Especially with politics. Hellevir clearly doesn’t grasp everything, but watching her put different dynamics and clues together really helped me as the reader understand what was happening better.
To start, the setup for the plot was absolutely amazing. I don’t want to talk too much about what happened throughout the story so I don’t spoil it, but I was so invested in Hellevir exploring the mystery and also trying to complete her bargains with Death. Also the themes adjacent to the main plot. I think every single relationship and dynamic really lends to themes on sacrifice and toxic dynamics. I absolutely love it.
Overall I cannot recommend this book enough. I really liked how much thought I had to give it and that it held up under consideration, but it was wonderful. If I weren’t writing this review at 12:30 am I would absolutely yap about it more.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Cursing, Death, Toxic relationship, Blood, Grief, Religious bigotry, Murder, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death, Child death, Violence, Death of parent, Classism
Minor: Miscarriage, Pregnancy