Set in an alternative Paris of the 1890s, five friends seek to find a valuable artefact that will let one of them claim his rightful place as heir of one of the major Houses of an ancient Order.

It took me quite a while to warm to this book. Mainly because I found the world building and system of magic to be poorly described and felt very confused for at least the first half of the book with so many questions about the world we were in distracting me. We're told only that five fragments from the Tower of Babel were dispersed to various sites where major civilisations would later arise and the art of 'Forging' would flourish. Forging appears to be the art of making objects from other substances with both functional and magical properties but we're never shown anything about how people know they have these skills or are taught to use them and we never see anyone in the process of using them. We're also told that in France there were four Houses that belong to the Order of Babel but nothing at all about how these Houses came about, who belongs to them or what they do, just that they are important. Unfortunately that wasn't enough for me to enjoy the adventure even though the writing was good and the plot well constructed. The cover is certainly very lovely but the title did not resonate with the novel (who were the Gilded Wolves?). I also wasn't overly invested in the characters, but feel there is scope to develop them further in a sequel (perhaps with a bit more world building, please).

Roshani Chokshi is back with an all new book, complete with her gorgeous writing and an interesting ensemble cast of characters--and ART HEIST.

In Roshani Chokshi’s new book, we follow six main characters, each belonging to different Houses of Parisian elites who have magical affinities. Their gifts are categorized by mind and matter (mind over matter, heh)--gifts that manipulate physical things like gases or liquids, or gifts that manipulate less permeable things, like that of reading an item’s past just by touching it.

Our group consists of outcasts, each in their own way. Severin, the leader of the group, has lost claim to his birthright of a broken House, and by stealing back an artifact, hopes to reclaim it. The magic in this book and the setting are wildly interesting. Especially as regards the setting, Roshani Chokshi has written both the beauty and utter horror to be had in the Parisian World’s Fair--Exposition Universelle. She doesn’t shy from the ugly, the bad, the racist, the prejudiced. Her inclusivity and diversity in this book are a thing of beauty, however!

Each character have their own quirks and interests, their own intricate histories with pasts and each other. If you’re looking for a Six of Crows-esque ensemble cast, this one is for youuu.

As usual though, my favorite part was Roshani Chokshi’s GORGEOUS writing. She has toned it down for this book from her previous duology, but it’s still very much her style and it comes through with beautiful turns of phrases and description. Honestly that was the highlight of this book for me because I have some serious writer envy when it comes to Roshani’s beautiful turns of phrase.

If you enjoy her previous fare and ensemble casts and diverse historical storytelling, be sure to check this one out!

I truly can't remember the last time a book captured my heart and consumed me the way this book did.
From the very beginning I fell in love with this found family group of friends. Their banter made me cackle so hard, and the way they all supported each other unconditionally was so refreshing to see.
Laila was the perfect mom of the group. I could definitely see myself in the way she took care of all of her friends and baked all of her endless desserts-and I was absolutely envious of her confidence as L'Enigme.
Zofia was the character that I related the most to, and I adored Chokshi's portrayal of her as an autistic character (she's never confirmed to be autistic, but it's made pretty clear throughout the book). The way that she saw the world, thought about things, and struggled to connect with her friends rang true so closely with me.
I also really liked how Hypnos was such a complex character. He wasn't your average antagonist-we really saw his motivations and reasons for doing the things he did, and his growth throughout the book was fantastic.
The angst between Severin and Laila was SO GOOD. I am actually dying to read the sequel, and it's killing me to have to wait for so long.

The settings and descriptions in this were amazing. Chokshi creates a world truly worthy of the underworld with the Order and all of the Houses. The parties and history and world building were so rich with history-you can really tell that Chokshi did so much research going into this book.

I also thought it was so refreshing to see such a unique magic/science system. I loved how she perfectly blended the magic and science together, so that you truly can't have one without the other. I want to learn so much more about Forging and the way it works, because it really is so fascinating.
Overall, I can't recommend this book enough. Definitely pick this one up when it comes out!

~ARC provided by NetGalley~

I said it before and I'll say it again Roshani Chokshi is seriously becoming one of my favorite writers!!!!! Throw me in a heist, some magic type ish, some romance and not to mention the way her writing captivates you; I'm all in. I mean just read this bit here...
"Slowly, Enrique pushed the hour hand. Hypnos and Severin had moved closer without him noticing. He saw the scene, suddenly, in his mind's eye, as if from afar: three boys kneeling around a clock made of bone, the light behind them rendering them sharp shadows brought to life, and he felt that thread of hunger sewing them all together in the moment, so that when it cam right down to it, perhaps their souls would have been indistinguishable."
Her words and worlds just suck you right in. Ready for number 2 and this one hasn't even been released yet!! And let me just say I love Hypnos! Read the book, that's it lol.

AHHHHHH! With vibes of Six of Crows and the GrishaVerse, I enjoyed this immensely...which is really no surprise. Roshani is hands down one of the best (and one of my favorite) YA authors today. Her writing is impeccable.

I will admit that in the beginning, it's a lot to take in. The Order. Forging. That leaves for a lot of confusion, and I wasn't sure if this book would be for me after all. However, the characters, the plotting, the heists...so much fun. And smart.

I loved the historical elements woven in. Again, this just helps to showcase Chokshi's brilliance.

As the story progresses, it begins to feel like a puzzle coming together. And all that stuff from the beginning were stray pieces that you may have forgotten about. This is usually the problem with info dumps. They're tedious and get overlooked. I did have to go back and re-read things that I'd forgotten in order to make sense of later developments. But this didn't detract from my enjoyment.

I love the quiet, understated romance incorporated. Never does it take the spotlight from the familial vibes and love. It's definitely there...but only in small, stolen moments. Which, of course, makes me want it even more.

This little gang of characters have definitely solidified a place in my heart. And I cannot wait for the next book, though I have no choice but to do so!

This was quite great, and I was not expecting that. I have no idea why, but I went into this book expecting not to like it that much, probably because of the time period it takes place in. I'm not usually a fan of books that take place too far in the past, but that assessment was VERY wrong for this book. Which is a good thing.

The setting for this book was interesting in the sense that you really got to see how the time period affected the characters. For example, Laila, who is an Indian woman, battles with the struggle of having a dark skin tone in Paris at the time. Being mistaken for a servant countless times surely puts a burden on someone. Of course, this is demonstrated through many other characters as well.

Plot-wise, I went into this book wary too. It's pitched as a heist story, and that is one of my favorite tropes, but also one that can be done wrong. I was afraid it wouldn't live up to the epicness of other heist stories like Six of Crows or the Now You See Me movies. Luckily, I was wrong yet again. The heists in this book were super exciting and had a total Indiana Jones vibe.

There were so many twists and turns throughout the plot, and that honestly might be one of my only critiques for this book. At times I did find myself confused, and that may have been due to any of these three reasons:

1) The book was just confusing? Most likely not this, but always a possibility.
2) I read this on vacation so I couldn't put all of my usual brainpower into it.
3) I read this on Kindle, and for some reason I never connect to Kindle books as easily as I do for physical books.

While I was at times confused by the plot, and at the beginning felt a disconnect from the characters, as the story progressed I got more and more into it. By the end I was fully engrossed and I really want to read the sequel.

Lastly, I would like to discuss the amazing cast of characters from this book. There were six main characters in this story, and I would say that each one was arguably as interesting as the next. Let's give a quick rundown, shall we?

❇ Séverin- Even though he's presented as the protagonist, I honestly feel like I know the least about him. I love the dynamic he presents with Laila (even if he is a complete jerk in that one scene near the end), and his emotions towards her are incredibly engaging. I need to see where his character goes in the rest of the series.

❇ Laila- SISTER SNATCHED. That ending scene with her and Séverin though. I felt her break a couple of chapters before, but man, did she bounce back. She is an immensely strong female character, especially when she transforms into L'Énigme. I need more of her and the angst with Séverin in book two. Now.

❇ Zofia- This girl might actually be me in an alternate reality. She has trouble with social interactions (most likely a form of autism or asperger's, but it remains unnamed because it would not have been identified in the 1800's), and is in love with math and physics. She uses numbers to calm down and appreciates the Fibonacci Sequence. I swear, the author somehow read my mind and infused it into this character. Also she's Jewish, and I'm half Jewish, so clearly Zofia=Emily here.

❇ Enrique- Oh Enrique. In love with history, symbology, and maybe a dude in this squad of characters *wink wink*. Or a girl. Who knows?? Because we have a bisexual love triangle on our hands and I don't know what to do with it. THIS IS WHY I NEED THE NEXT BOOK NOW.

❇ Hypnos- He might be tied with Zofia for my favorite character in this book. With quotes like:

"You're like a plague."
"What was that? I'm all the rage?" Hypnos cupped a hand to his ear, then grinned.

What is there not to love?

❇ Tristan- A little jelly bean.

All in all, a great book and I'm kind of sad that I read it so early, because now I have to wait over a year for the sequel. *sniffles*

I'm conflicted about the rating of this book. I did like it a lot. I loved the complex characters and their backstories. Ms. Chokshi really breathed life into them. All of the characters had good motivations for what they were doing. I loved the setting. January/February is going to be a great month for books set in France.

I think perhaps why my gut gives this book 3.5 stars is that it was a little too long. Maybe there was a little too much backstory. Maybe there was too much shared about the characters. Even though I enjoyed it (and will probably read the sequel), it wasn't a book that I couldn't put down.

The Gilded Wolves tells the story of a group of teens (who actually act older than teenagers) who are trying to steal an artifact. These artifacts are amazing and have great powers, and it's one of the charms of this book. They get a little more than they bargained for, when they realize that there is a group of people bent on rising up and becoming like gods.

I love how the author builds a world behind the real world that we can all read about in history books. How there is an unseen group of people with amazing power behind the scenes. How there is magic around us when everything seems ordinary. I also loved the puzzles and mathematical thinking that is in this book. I think a lot of people are going to like it. If only it was a little shorter, I think I could have loved it more.

The book beyond this gorgeous cover does not disappoint! The story is compelling, the writing evocative and the characters engaging. Recommended!

DNF 13%

I loved the way this book began. Magical heist/adventure stories are endlessly entertaining to me. The characters seemed very promising, well thought out and distinct. I just ... Got to the part where a secret map in an I Ching puzzle revealed an eye of Horus, which led to a binary code, which led to a Bible verse. It's like the Davinci code on cocaine. I just had to stop. Maybe I'll pick it back up later, but for now, no.

An advance copy of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I love a heist. Whether it’s cinematic—like Ocean’s Eleven or The Da Vinci Code—or literary—like Leah Bardugo’s gorgeous Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom—heist narratives (when done well) are compelling and fast moving and just plain fun. They thrive on misdirection and subterfuge, both for characters within the story and for the reader. Roshani Chokshi’s young adult novel The Gilded Wolves, out January 15 and the first of a duology, falls solidly into the heist tradition. (Thanks to @netgalley for the ARC!)

The Gilded Wolves opens in a late 1800s Paris imbued with magic. An established crew of diverse characters successfully has completed a series of missions and is, at the novel’s beginning, in the midst of another. In this world, certain people are adept at Forging, a sort of magical engineering, and a circle of Houses control the world. Each House represents a different facet of magic connected to fragments of the Tower of Babel.

The novel moves between several perspectives. Séverin, the leader of the crew, has been cast out of the wealth and power associated with his line, the House of Vanth. He was raised in a series of foster homes, each dominated by a father who represented one of the seven deadly sins. With him through his childhood was Tristan, his foster brother, who relied on Séverin’s strength to help him survive each home. Next is Laila, a seductive, mysterious, and skilled woman from India who maintains an alternate identity as L’Egnime. Then comes Zofia, a brilliant Forger and victim of anti-Semitism whose objective approach to her world, including insight into numerical patterns, points toward some positioning on the autism spectrum. From the Philippines, Enrique, the final member of the group, can’t Forge but who makes up for his lack of ability with a dedication to history that informs many of their missions.

Each character has a distinct goal through the narrative, separate from the treasure they seek together, and each has a signature characteristic that acts as a sort of flag through the novel: Séverin, for example, chews cloves, Tristan has a gigantic tarantula that horrifies his friends, and so on. While these traits set the characters apart, they do at times seem to stand in for deeper development of individual characters. In general, The Gilded Wolves, in comparison with Chokshi’s other works, relied more on explicit explanation, on telling more than showing. This was, I think, in service of the plot, and Chokshi certainly devoted space to characters’ back stories, but I found myself wishing that the characterization were more nuanced.

As in all heist narratives, certain plot points require great suspension of disbelief: characters are able to foretell other characters’ actions with great accuracy or make speculative leaps just in time to allow their plan to continue. I am, as I said, all in for heists, so I happily suspended my disbelief and just went with it. The book’s fast-moving, compelling plot centers on a series of McGuffins that lay the groundwork for the next novel but are ultimately unimportant in comparison to the group dynamics at the book’s center.

The strength of the central crew and the solid heist plot make up for some shortcuts in other elements of the book. Overall, therefore, I’d recommend The Gilded Wolves, which has magic and Paris and humor and romance and vivid historical touches . . . plenty of good content for this compelling, fun YA read.

This was my first Roshani Chokshi book and her writing did not disappoint. She expertly crafts a beautiful, but dark world set in Paris during the late 1880's. Aside from her writing, my favorite part about this novel are the characters. They are all unique and stand apart from each other. In books with a lot of characters I sometimes lose track of the different characters and they blend together, but that was not the case here. I loved our main group and loved seeing them interact. They are all SO dramatic and I love that. They also have such a deep love for each other that I am not even sure they truly understand. It was beautiful and heartbreaking at times.

The reason I requested this book was because Roshani mentioned on instagram that she was inspired by National Treasure, which is one of my favorite movies. It does have that National Treasure vibe and combines history, adventure, and drama. I was also heavily reminded of Six of Crows while reading this (not a complaint). So Six of Crows meets National Treasure would be my pitch.

I had a little trouble following the world building in this novel and the plot lost me at times. I also was not a fan of the time jumps at the end, I understand why we had them, but it made the ending a little discombobulated. But, the ending also made me excited for the next books.

I really enjoyed this! It has all the elements I love in fantasy--a diverse and ragtag crew of characters, dramatic magical heists, found family, and romance with real conflict, to name just a few. Both the world and the characters are richly complex, and the historical setting is drawn with an attention to detail that I really appreciated. Fans of Chokshi's other books should enjoy this as well, since there are tons of mythology references and lush settings that reminded me of her previous works. There are a lot of intriguing twists in the end, and I can't wait to see where this story and the characters go in the next book. Definitely recommend for fans of heist novels and YA fantasy!

What an amazing story! Great world building. Compelling characters. One heck of a cliffhanger. Can't wait to read book 2!!

I was really excited about this novel because the beginning is enthralling but unfortunately it goes downhill afterwards. The premise and world building at first were very impressive. The wronged heir Severin was a great character and fun to read. At first there was intrigue and mysterious events but very quickly the book became a serious of plans for various plots and then the actual capers themselves. It is ultimately a novel with a series of heists but with magical help. Although they don’t call it magic. Items are forged which means they have special elements and some people have special abilities or origins. The POV switches between Severin and his crew of helpers who are all very different. There is a constant reminder of who everyone is and their backstories which was tedious. Each person is really just working on their part of the plan which I found boring. This was a hard book for me to finish because I was so bored by all the planning. Even the heists themselves weren’t very interesting and did not hold my attention. I wish the author had stuck to the writing at the beginning which was far more interesting than the rest of the book became.

Posted to Goodreads: Séverin Montagnet-Alarie is hunting for something. He is the heir to the mysterious House of Vanth however his inheritance has been taken from him. Séverin is willing to do what it takes to claim the postion that is rightfully his even if that means stealing his way back to his elite status or using magical forged powers. However, Séverin circumstances change when the Order of Babel, a powerful socitey asks him to help solve a mystery by which he may regain his inheritance. Séverin is joined on his journey by his friends: Enrique, Tristan, Zophia, and Laila who will add their powers to his to solve the mystery and regain their status.

I don't know how I feel about this book. It is definitely well written like everything else that Chokshi has written however it never grabbed me. The pieces of the story: the secret society, the puzzles, and the mystery are all elements that usually hook me but for some reason this book just didn't. I will keep reading Chokshi's books because she is a skilled storyteller and I will most likely read the squeal to "The Gilded Wolves" because the last chapter was the most interesting part of the book to me but I will probably not put it at the top of my to-read list.

The Gilded Wolves was a fun heist that had me expecting more, particularly regarding the characters. Together, the group was super fun and their interactions caused a smile or two. Individually, everything was surface level. The first chapters served as introductions to each of the characters and each backstory had an aspect I was interested in learning more about. Unfortunately, all of the characters' individual plights were forgotten to make room for the heist, and what a heist it was. The Gilded Wolves required some brain power on my effort, there were a lot of nifty Forged items and relationships to keep straight and it was overwhelming at times. The ending was exciting with sneak peeks to the sequel which has piqued my interest.

A historical, heist-adventure set in 1890s France with a touch of magic in the form of Forging. The book opens up with Severin and his group of misfits looking to make the score of a life time. All it will take is a treasure map stolen from the mouth of a bear and being replaced by a fake version of it. I think at that moment I knew this was going to be an interesting read. What is excellent is the diversity presented in this book and the uniqueness of each of the characters. This would be a great book to start your year with, so grab it now and wait for the magic to unfold.

Well. Chokshi has really stepped up her game with this book. It's like Six of Crows mixed with the best bits of a Dan Brown book. In short, it's full of friendship, scheming, and lots of puzzles to solve.

I began reading The Gilded Wolves with some trepidation. My multiple attempts to read the author's past work led to me complaining about a disconnect with her flowery, poetic writing style. In this book, the descriptions are vivid and opulent, but she loses a lot of the synesthetic metaphors, making it a much more enjoyable read for me.

It's Paris 1889, during the Exposition Universelle - a world's fair that featured grand operas, displays of locomotives, the largest diamond in the world at the time... and a "Negro village". A human zoo. This is not fantasy. Much of this book is the real history of Paris in all its sparkly ugliness. Into this very real setting, comes a tale of the divine art of Forging - an art whose power is believed to come from the broken pieces of the Tower of Babel.

Séverin Montagnet-Alarie is a thief and the son of a French father and North-African mother. He's also the heir to the dead House Vanth, if only the Order of Babel would accept him and grant him his inheritance. Séverin's pursuit of what is rightfully his leads him on a hunt for a Horus Eye, which is said to reveal the location of a Babel fragment. To do so, he will of course need the help of his diverse band of allies.

And can I just say I loved them? Each and every one.

💫 Tristan - Séverin's sweet brother; a lover of plants and animals, especially his tarantula Goliath. He's such a lovable goof.

💫 Laila - A feisty Indian dancer and part-time pastry chef. The chemistry between Laila and Séverin sizzles, and we soon learn that there's history between them that they are both trying to forget.

💫 Zofia - One of my two favourite characters. She is Polish, Jewish, and a genius. I think it's also implied that she might be autistic, too, as she struggles to understand jokes and human behaviour in general, but is great with numbers and solving the puzzles.

💫 Hypnos - Séverin's childhood rival. Hypnos is dark-skinned, unapologetically queer and absolutely hilarious. “Oh no, shiny things,” moaned Hypnos, clapping his hands to his heart. “My weakness.”

💫 Enrique - Ah, and my other favourite character. Enrique, my love. He's bisexual and mixed race - Filipino and Spanish - and is just the kind of perfectly snarky, funny, smart character I love. Plus, he's a history buff, so even more yay.

I love them all.

Also, The Gilded Wolves is a smorgasbord of mythology. In fact, it's main weakness might be that it's more than a little convoluted and dense. There's four third-person perspectives, and the codes and puzzles bring in a mix of Greek mythology, Biblical mythology, Chinese cleromancy, mathematics, and more. It makes a certain kind of poetic sense to have so many different mythologies, though, given the Babel story.

I think the bombardment of various mythologies is tempered somewhat by the dazzling and very enjoyable dialogue. It is especially fun when Zofia and Enrique bicker. They are both so smart, but in very different ways, and it is amusing to watch the back-and-forth of Zofia being dry and literal and Enrique being sarcastic and snarky.

“What proof did you have? What was your research?”
“Superstition. Stories,” said Enrique, before adding just to annoy her: “A gut instinct.”


It's a very interesting read, both fun and packed full of history lessons. Unlike the author's other books, this one stays low on the romance and high on the scheming and politics. But if that disappoints you, don't worry. With lines like this, romance cannot be too far away:

“That boy looks like every dark corner of a fairy tale. The wolf in bed. The apple in a witch’s palm.”


*shivers*

CW: Racism; antisemitism; abuse.

I greatly enjoyed this book and look forward to the continuation of the series. It is reminiscent of the type of series that I enjoy.

Thank you Wednesday Books for providing me an e-Arc of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

3.75 / 5 stars

The Gilded Wolves explores a diverse cast of characters who embark on a journey to recover an important artifact. There are different tasks that these characters must work to complete in order enhance their understanding of what they are working toward. This book is filled with mystical inclusions that support the world that Roshani Chokshi is trying to create in this novel.

All the characters in The Gilded Wolves are so carefully crafted in their own unique way. The reader continuously learns more about each individual throughout the book. Chokshi truly fleshes out each character and shows how each one plays an important role within the plot. I loved all the characters in this book and I was truly mesmerized by each one throughout the story. I also enjoyed being able to see through the eyes of each character through the POV changes that occur in the story.

The world presented in The Gilded Wolves is part historical and part fantastical. Roshani Chokshi builds a complex world full of mythology, history, and magical inclusions. I thoroughly enjoyed the world presented in this book, but I will say that it is a bit hard to follow at times. In my opinion some scenes and explanations are a bit too brief which makes for a harder navigation for the reader. I will say that Chokshi is an expert with most descriptions but still there were some passages I had to attempt to reread for clarity.

In a way, I also feel like some of the instances of action were a bit too rushed in the beginning occurrences which felt a little off when reading those scenes. I wasn’t too fond of the pacing at times as well because some things were drawn out and then the next transition would be rushed and somewhat unclear. I will say that some inclusions with pacing and lack of clarity definitely disrupted the story for me. I think that an extra fifty pages or so supporting some of the world building and events would have been more beneficial for creating a stronger story. I will also say that some of the ending inclusions felt a bit too filler-like and they could have been minimized for a stronger ending.

I do see the idea and purpose for continuing this story into a series, but I still feel like the story is lacking something to make me more excited for the next installment. However, I will be continuing on with the series because overall it was an intricately crafted adventure and story. I would recommend checking this book out.