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A review by literaryjunarin
The Gilded Ones by Namina Forna
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
“No matter my origins, there is worth in what I am.”
As part of The Storygraph's challenge last 2021, there's a prompt to read a book that fits all of the criteria from my reading profile which contains the moods emotional, adventurous, reflective, and medium-paced with 300-499 pages. So I have read this book, and did I like it? I loved it!
To give you a glimpse of the world in this book, imagine The Handmaid's Tale with monsters and self-healing girls. That's it. A world where women can't shout, drink, ride horses, go to school, learn a trade, learn to fight, can't go out with a man to escort them, can't do anything that doesn't somehow relate to having a husband and family and serving them.
The main character, Deka, is anticipating anxiously the bloodletting ritual that all 16 years old girls go through where they'll know if their blood is pure or not. Red blood is pure, gold is impure, which doesn't make sense, because, hello? It's gold! Gold-blooded girls are treated like demons.
And so, on the day of the ceremony, Deka's blood runs gold. All hell broke loose.
THOUGHTS:
1. The monsters are called Deathshrieks, which doesn't sound scary at all let me tell you.
2. I found the description of the creatures difficult to visualize.
3. For a YA book, I think the violence is a bit too gory. There's beheading, dismemberment, burning, drowning, which are graphically described.
4. This book is 415 pages long but it felt short. The pacing is just right for me.
5. It has a lot of likable female characters and I wish they have their own POV.
6. The romance is cute and it made me smile but there's no tension at all.
7. The concept of the powers of alakis is interesting and the mystery behind Deka's powers kept me guessing.
8. I saw the plot twist about The Gilded Ones coming a mile away but that didn't bother me because this girl loves spoilers.
9. I really can't pinpoint what I loved in this book but I'm so invested in this world and so, I'll be reading the sequel surely.
As part of The Storygraph's challenge last 2021, there's a prompt to read a book that fits all of the criteria from my reading profile which contains the moods emotional, adventurous, reflective, and medium-paced with 300-499 pages. So I have read this book, and did I like it? I loved it!
To give you a glimpse of the world in this book, imagine The Handmaid's Tale with monsters and self-healing girls. That's it. A world where women can't shout, drink, ride horses, go to school, learn a trade, learn to fight, can't go out with a man to escort them, can't do anything that doesn't somehow relate to having a husband and family and serving them.
The main character, Deka, is anticipating anxiously the bloodletting ritual that all 16 years old girls go through where they'll know if their blood is pure or not. Red blood is pure, gold is impure, which doesn't make sense, because, hello? It's gold! Gold-blooded girls are treated like demons.
And so, on the day of the ceremony, Deka's blood runs gold. All hell broke loose.
THOUGHTS:
1. The monsters are called Deathshrieks, which doesn't sound scary at all let me tell you.
2. I found the description of the creatures difficult to visualize.
3. For a YA book, I think the violence is a bit too gory. There's beheading, dismemberment, burning, drowning, which are graphically described.
4. This book is 415 pages long but it felt short. The pacing is just right for me.
5. It has a lot of likable female characters and I wish they have their own POV.
6. The romance is cute and it made me smile but there's no tension at all.
7. The concept of the powers of alakis is interesting and the mystery behind Deka's powers kept me guessing.
8. I saw the plot twist about The Gilded Ones coming a mile away but that didn't bother me because this girl loves spoilers.
9. I really can't pinpoint what I loved in this book but I'm so invested in this world and so, I'll be reading the sequel surely.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence