You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
tinynightingales 's review for:
The Gilded Crown
by Marianne Gordon
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