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osassafras 's review for:
The Gilded Crown
by Marianne Gordon
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
The premise of this story is so fun, and like many others I really enjoyed the scenes with Death. The problem is, I found there was a lot more chemistry between the otherworldy entity and Hellevir than Hellevir and Sullivan. I felt like there could've been a better development of the tie between them, emphasizing that it was not based on true romantic feelings. It felt a little like I was supposed to like the two of them together only because the book told me they wanted it. I didn't fully finish the book but read up on the rest of it because I became too frustrated. I can see why people were frustrated with Hellevir, but I think that her relative meekness and recklessness with herself were interesting character flaws to potentially be worked out. I think it would be more impactful if she herself saw the toxicity in the relationship more plainly and battled herself more over reconciling the pull she feels toward Sullivan and what she knows Sullivan has done. The refrain of "my grandmother asked me to" and "i know her grandmother made her" is an explanation but not an excuse and it felt like that absolved Sullivan for the most part in Hellevir's mind. It just fell short of making me believe that there was a reason that H. was so adamant in keeping S. alive at the cost of everything.