For fans of Nnedi Okorafor's The Shadow Speakers, look no further for your next read.  Deka's blood runs gold at the blood ceremony, and she is no longer counted as a villager.  Her father turns away and the village leader attempts to kill her many times.  Fire, bloodletting, dismemberment--none of it works.  It only brings her to a gilded sleep which she wakes up from every time.  So when White Hands arrives at her village and offers her the choice to be an alaki, a demon near-immortal warrior or to wait until the villagers have found her final death, she chooses the former.  At least then she will have a place to go.  

Deka finally meets others like her at the expensive of difficult training, of the knowledge that she will die again and again, even with the powers that make her unnatural--even within the unnatural.  But throughout hardships, she forms familial bonds with other girls in the military, and rely upon one another to discuss their hardships during and prior their training.  When they start fighting the deathshrieks, however, those bonds are tugged and pulled as Deka continues to realize that she is somehow just not like the others.  Why can she talk to the deathshrieks?  Why do her eyes turn black?  Why can nobody else do these things?

Forna has written an absolutely fantastic debut novel that hits all of my checkboxes.  Afrofantasy?  Check.  Death?  Check.  An emphasis on how powerful and important women are?  CHECK.  

This was difficult to set down.  It was a world built like no other--Forna has clearly thought through the histories, the culture, the magic that encapsulates our hero.  I have a feeling that we've only just hit the tip of the iceberg, and I'm so excited to see where this goes when her second book comes out.  I can't wait to read it, I can't wait to purchase this book, I can't wait to tell everyone about it.  Don't miss this book.  It's horrific, endearing, funny, and something that's been missing from my bookshelf for a long, long time.

The Gilded Ones is a West-African inspired, feminist, coming-of-age YA fantasy. It features a beautifully diverse cast of characters and extraordinary world-building. The story is set in a world where women's blood determines their place in society. If you bleed red, you become a member of your village. This is what sixteen year old Deka hopes for. The alternative is to bleed gold, the color of impurity. Those who bleed gold are the Alaki and therefore are stronger and faster than regular humans, so of course, they are viewed as demons and face a terrible fate. There is a lot of mystery to why these Alaki are sought out. The story is fast-paced and filled with tons of action and twists. The characters are well-developed and ones you can't help but root for. Readers will be dying for more to the story as well as just more novels from the mind of Namina Forna. Highly recommended to readers who enjoy YA fantasy and are looking for something fresh and original.

Her blood proves her worth. Deka lives in Otera, a land that has ritualized the patriarchy to keep women in their place. 'The Gilded Ones,' Namina Forna's debut novel takes you deep into these themes and more.

As girls reach their sixteenth year they are sent to the village temples for a ceremony to determine their purity. If their blood runs true they become a member of society. If their blood runs gold a girl is impure and sentenced to death.

What is not shared about these gilded girls is that gold blood does not just mark them as unworthy of society but as something more. They are stronger, faster, and much much harder to kill.

As Deka's blood ran gold I immediately thought of the Red Queen Series. If you are at all concerned they are too similar - young women, outcasts of society, supernatural powers, oppressive governments - then let me assuage your worries. By chapter three 'The GIlded Ones' has set its own pace and story.

Then we meet the deathshrieks. They are supernatural beasts with razor-sharp claws and a scream that can kill. They are the plague of Otera, raiding towns, and the capital city. Unexpectedly, they interrupt Deka's ceremony. Chaos and death are everywhere. Deka reveals an unknown connection to them stopping the incursion but leading to the town turning on her and naming her Demon. She is killed and then killed again.

The attack reveals her as gilded but unique even among the gold-blooded. As, no matter the method of death, her sinews reattach and she rises again and again from her tortured endings. This strength is her salvation. A woman comes to her in her cell and gives her a choice. Join the emperor's new ranks with other young women with similar gifts as hers and gilded blood - the alaki. They will be the army to fight against the death shrieks and save Otera. Then after 20 years of service, she will be allowed to become a pure member of society. Or, she can stay in her village dungeon being drained and killed over and over until her true death is found.

Forna makes clear that the gold blood is a symbol that women have long been thought of a property. An object to be owned, passed around, told how to live. She builds a world as rich and clear as any you have seen on screen. In fact, the novel reads as though watching a movie. The imagery is rich and characters are clear.

In fact, one complaint is that certain areas seem a bit rushed. Like the alaki training. However, if this were a movie that would have been a montage anyway. What I valued was the time spent on the characters. They are very real and Namina Forna has given Deka the best squad. Their strengths support her weaknesses and vice versa. Deka's girlfriends are the circle of support you want your daughter to have. And, Deka is the heroine we can all love. Her growth from pious and obedient to independent and strong is beautiful.

'The GIlded Ones' could be a stand-alone novel. The ending wraps up all the major storylines. However, there is absolutely more to explore in Otera and I am patiently awaiting Deka's next adventure.

P.S. Can we talk about that cover for a minute. How gorgeous is it?! It is not how I pictured Deka but nonetheless beautiful.

The book the Gilded Ones tells the story of Deka, a young woman who is an outcast of her home because of her impure blood. She is quickly given the option to join an army of women like her fighting mysterious creatures known as deathstrikes. She learns to develop her magical skills as a result. Overall I liked this book and found it engaging to read. I appreciated the development of female characters in interesting ways. However, in some ways it was a bit derivative of Children of Blood and Bone. Still the world-building in this book is engaging.

Isn’t that a beautiful cover? It’s the cover that drew me in. The story starts out strong and you're immediately thrown into a world where women are lower than men. It is a very patriarchal world but so much so, that I cringed many times. Deka is claimed a demon during a ceremony and so begins her journey. While her journey is full of growth and perseverance it is also full of trauma and pain.
I loved watching her grow and become strong and confident. There was a great message about strength and where to find it and I love that in teen novels, I think it’s so essential. Deka grew and learned about love and trust and the strength within.
There are many twists and turns in this novel and while I enjoyed most of them, some fell a little flat for me. I have a lot of unanswered questions and don’t feel I have a full grip on the huge twist. There is a very small romance that felt a little forced but was cute and innocent at the same time. I feel I will be in the minority with a mediocre review, I believe most people will love the high fantasy and revelations at the end.
The content is very low for language and high on violence. There were a few details that might make some uncomfortable and there are many triggers with racism, inequality, abuse, trauma and more.
3.5/5 stars

I was drawn to this book by the incredible cover art. The book itself has a creative plot (not the same old) that is West-African inspired with a feminist slant. The secondary characters fell a little flat but this read was a lot of fun. This should do very well. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me a free copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

Gloriously lush in story telling and world building!! The Gilded Ones was exciting and incredibly engrossing from start to finish. Not to mention the cover is just stunning.

I would like to give a big thank you to Random House Children's Delacorte Press for giving me a chance to read an advance reading copy of The Gilded Ones during the 2020 quarantine in exchange for an honest review.

I feel incredibly lucky to read this book during a time when I desperately needed an escape from the real world. Once I got into the story I could not put down this book.

It does take a few pages to grasp what is happening in this new world. The effort to study the map and follow these new characters, new settings, and mythologies is generously rewarded by the end of the book. It’s a wonderful feeling to get to the end of a fantasy novel and see how the clues point to an epic conclusion.

The first reason I chose to read this novel is the gorgeous cover and then I saw it was a YA Fantasy novel and I was sold. I didn’t even read the synopsis and dove straight into the book.

Deka is a young teenager and is about to go to a ceremony where her small village gathers girls of a certain age to see if their blood runs red or gold. If their blood is red then they are normal and can live in society. If their blood runs gold then they are considered a demon with a consequence that is worse than death. Deka is already an outcast in the village because of the color of her skin. Why are the mostly male leaders looking for these girls with gold blood? What does it mean and why is it a big deal?

This novel is both gruesome and adorable at the same time. It felt like I was reading a Hayao Miyazaki movie where tough moments are used to reveal injustice and moments of kindness reveal desperately needed hope. I was not prepared for the weird violence, but it wasn’t told in graphic detail so I could manage. These violent scenes and events aren’t used as a shock factor, but rather as an example of how the magic works and as a commentary of the leadership in power.

The author does a wonderful job of keeping me guessing about what was going to happen next. This is a brand new fantasy world and as a reader I don’t know all the rules and laws of this realm so anything can happen. Even the character Deka has questions and she is continually searching for answers about her mother and why she is different.

Along the way Deka learns more about herself and makes a few friends. Early on we meet an oddly optimistic character named Britta. She reminded me a lot of Clare from Derry Girls. Deka’s friends are some of the best parts of the book.

As I was reading I also got a strong Ender’s Game vibe from the novel and I couldn’t wait to get to the end to see how everything plays out. Both Ender and Deka are young, strong, sympathetic characters who only want to do what is right even when they don’t have all the information they need.

This is a five-star book for me. I enjoyed my experience reading the novel and I really liked the characters. If you love original YA fantasy novels then you will definitely appreciate The Gilded Ones.

This stunning cover immediately caught my attention on NetGalley, but the description really sealed the deal of me requesting it.  

Deka comes from a world where a woman's worth depends on her purity and how well she serves the men in her life.  The most she can hope for is to be a dutiful wife and mother, but never have a voice for herself.  Compare that to the Deka at the end of the book - strong, empowered, and spirited - and you have yourself one magnificent character arc.  How thrilling to watch her realize her worth, that she mattered.    

Deka's relationships with her blood sisters, her found family, is one of the biggest strengths of this novel.  I especially enjoyed the incredibly strong bond of friendship and loyalty between her and Britta.  Many of their training and fighting scenes reminded me of the female warriors in Wonder Woman.

World-building is complex and detailed, but interwoven into the story - no info dumps here.  Just enough was held back to keep me turning the pages to figure out what was going on with the plot twists.  Pacing was a tad slow for me in the beginning, but the ending comes rather quickly - enough to make me sure there would be a sequel since I had so few pages left, but then think it was a standalone because story lines were neat and tidy when all was said and done.  

With unique world-building, a female-heavy cast of characters, and compelling plot, I'll be continuing with this series.  A remarkable debut novel.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

The Gilded Ones is a quick, enjoyable read; it approaches fantasy through a different lens than most currently published novels, embracing the West African roots of the author to great effect. Her protagonist feels authentic and age-appropriate in her decisions; nothing is immediately clear or set in stone, so she does her best and lives with her decisions. The ending did feel a little rushed; some of the events were nicely foreshadowed, but others seemed to just happen to help move the story along. All-in-all, I'm eager to read the rest of the series.

“The Gilded Ones” by Namina Forna is the coming of age fantasy that I never knew I needed. I am in awe that this is a debut. The author begins the book with a letter to the reader. In this letter, she speaks of her life in Sierra Leone and how patriarchal it is. How women are seen as less than men. She then goes on to say that she attended Spelman, an all-female, historically black college. She explains that the goal of “The Gilded Ones” was to examine and explore patriarchy in multiple ways. In my opinion, she definitely reached that goal.
The story itself was very compelling. A lot of information was presented throughout but not overwhelming so. I was immediately immersed in the story and the amazing world building that it contained. It tackled many themes including sexuality, gender, racism, feminism, colorism, and sisterhood. And that is just to name a few.
This novel features a variety of diverse characters. I love books with a tight knit group of girls/ women and this book definitely has that. Deka herself is a perfect lead and Britta, a faithful sidekick. I found everyone to be well developed and in-depth. Even though we are dealing with a large cast of characters , there was a lot of thought and detail put into each and every one of them. There was a little romance but nothing that I felt was just thrown in for the sake of throwing it in.
The pacing was steady. It was a very easy read with non-stop action and quite a few twists! The only complaint I have is that I wish one major scene had been a bit longer than it was as it felt a bit rushed.
I was so sad to see that the release date has been pushed back to March 2021, but I definitely understand. I can definitely see “ The Gilded Ones” being compared to other fantasy series in the future but I feel like Forna definitely made this story her own. I cannot wait for the rest of this amazing trilogy. Now come on 2021 so I can add the physical copy to my shelf.
TW: gruesome, death, imprisonment, mutilation, trauma, talk of sexual abuse/ assault, and torture.

This book left me speechless. I cannot believe this is Forna's debut novel. This is one of the best opening books of a fantasy series I've read in awhile, which is saying something.

What worked? Everything. The characters were well developed with clear motives for their actions that were actually believable. The pacing of the plot was near perfect (as always the training sequence goes by a little slowly, but understandably and believably so). The social commentary entrenched in this novel is not cliche, and is thoughtful and purposeful, unlike so many other YA novels that attempt this. While there are certainly tropes of the genre here, they are not overdone. The plot is slightly predictable for an advanced reader, but in a pleasant, not cliche way. And most importantly, this book knew its place in a series. Forna does not set out to make this book a part of book two in the series, but it serves as its own entity, naturally closing without being too much of a cliffhanger (part of why I refuse to read unfinished YA series). This book stands alone in its purpose, but clearly establishes a need to continue the story.

I'm so sorry everyone else has to wait until 2021 to read this. I'm going to be recommending this to my school for a summer reading pick next year, and definitely buying two copies -- one for me, and one for my classroom.

The good: The beautiful cover! Strong female characters! Smashing the patriarchy! A quick read for 400+ pages!
The not-so-good: Uneven pacing, lack of transitions, unnecessary romance, and an overt message that is emphasized by frequent epiphanies by the main protag rather than carefully executed scenes/dialogue.

The Gilded Ones, by Namina Forna, follows several women in the journey from oppressed lives dictated by a patriarchial religous system, to becoming warriors that proudly embrace their femininity, strength, and untold powers. Of these women, we get to know sixteen year old Deka, whose blood runs gold and who struggles to understand her place in the world. I really liked Deka, and it was hard to watch the pain and suffering that she endures. Make no mistake - this YA fantasy novel is one of the most bloody and violent ones I've read in those categories (it inspired a lot of dark dreams since I was reading late at night!). If you are looking for a YA fantasy that doesn't shy away from the trauma that haunts women across the globe, this is for you.

There are many wonderful characters in this story - in particular, I love spunky, easy-going Britta and guarded, tough Belcalis. They provide a great balance to Deka, and the power that comes from women working together and making alliances, rather than walking their own path. The male characters in the book often felt unnecessary, defined only by their relationships to the women they partner with - but hey, this is how men often write women characters, so it's only fair! In all honesty, I was hoping for more sapphic romance or elements but I think the book worries too much that it will come off as misandry with overarching themes - and tries to balance it with well-meaning male characters and the center of desire.

There is a lot to love here (I wouldn't have kept reading if there wasn't), but I think it could benefit from some additional scenes that demonstrate that training and the development that the women warriors go through between arriving at the training grounds of Warthu Bera. There are also reveals regarding Deka's mother and a budding friendship with Jatu recruit Keita that are explained to us, rather than given pages to develop and illustrate why these people were so important and why they made the decisions they did. I like a drawn out process of growth for the main protagonist, and while you can clearly define the differences in Deka between the first and last pages, it often felt too easily realized in the middle. Overall, I would give this novel 3.5 stars.

Thanks to NetGalley for the e-ARC, all opinions are my own.

This has to be one of the most beautiful book covers I’ve ever seen. Once I saw it and read the description, I knew it was something I had to read and I’m so glad I did.

I absolutely love fantasy books, especially those with a female protagonist, and Deka? She’s as powerful as they come.

Deka has grown up in a patriarchal society, one that sadly reflects too many societies today despite the world of fantasy this story takes place in. We meet Deka right before the purity ritual, a ceremony all young women must take part in when they turn 16 to prove that their blood runs pure. When it is discovered that Deka does not bleed red, she learns how quickly society will turn their backs on someone who is different and how strong the bonds of sisterhood and love can be.

And while it’s a fantasy full of adventure and beautiful settings, this story deals with very real issues such as misogyny, racism, abuse, and the trauma too many women have to live with. However, this is a perfect book for anyone who enjoys being reminded of just how strong women are.

I really enjoyed the world building and learning about all of the characters who become part of Deka’s story. There were parts where I felt I could have more description or emotion, but when it was there, I was transported to a beautiful world that I never wanted to leave. This book was such a joy to read and I can’t wait to add it to my classroom library, even if it looks like I’ll be waiting until 2021 for that to happen.

Thank you NetGalley and Delacorte Press for the digital ARC in exchange for a review.

“Who better to fight a monster than another monster?”

** Trigger warning for violence against women, including rape, torture, and dismemberment. This review contains some vague spoilers. **

I grin from ear to ear when a dewdrop descends slowly before me, its crystalline beauty easily perceptible by my sharpened vision. I’ve never felt this happy before. Never felt this free.

“Is this what birds feel like?” Britta shouts excitedly. “No wonder they never wanted us to run.”

And I stumble, the reminder as piercing as an arrow. the Infinite Wisdoms forbid running, as they do most things that don’t prepare girls for marriage and serving their families. According to them, girls can’t shout, drink, ride horses, go to school, learn a trade, learn to fight, move about without a male guardian. We can’t do anything that doesn’t somehow relate to having a husband and family and serving them. Elder Durkas always told us that’s because they’re trying to show us how to live happy, righteous lives.

What if it’s meant to cage us instead?

###

“The Gilded Ones…,” Belcalis says, finishing Britta’s question. There’s no question about it when those veins are so unmistakable, as are the other things: the pregnant belly of the Westerner, the Southerner’s darkness, the pale glow of the Northerner, the scaled armor of the Easterner, wings protruding from it.

“They don’t look like demons at all,” Britta says, shocked. “They look like—”

“Gods,” I whisper, thinking of all the statues of Oyomo I’ve seen, glowering down at us from the corners of temples. “They look like gods.”

###

Keita accepts me as I am—loves me. He doesn’t have to say the words, but I feel them. I feel them in the way he cradles my severed head so gently, even though the very act of holding it should horrify him.

###

Sixteen-year-old Deka of Irfut lives in Otera, a fantastical world that looks little like our own … and yet still feels painfully familiar.

Long ago, Otera was simply a collection independent villages and kingdoms, loosely divided into four regions: north, south, east, and west. That is, until the humans banded together to defeat The Gilded Ones, four demons who were terrorizing humanity, as powerful as they were bloodthirsty. Ever since, Otera has remained a theocracy: ruled by an emperor, and governed by the Infinite Wisdoms.

Otera is a deeply patriarchal society; women are meant to be wives and mothers, and little else. The prohibitions on female activity are endless: women and girls cannot run, laugh, ride horses, drink, receive an education or learn a trade, fight, leave the house without a male chaperone, be seen in public without a mask after a certain age, work outside the home, or have an opinion. “Women were created to be helpmeets to men, subservient to their desires and commands” – after all, it’s right there in the Infinite Wisdoms.


While this misogyny is the bread and butter of feminist dystopian fiction, Forna throws in an extra little twist, in the form of the Ritual of Purity. Every year, all the sixteen-year-old girls in the village are rounded up and ceremonially cut. While most girls’ blood runs red, as expected, occasionally a girl will bleed gold. She is impure – an alaki, a descendant of The Gilded Ones – and, according to the Death Mandate, she must be executed. But this is often easier said than done: an alaki only has one true death, one from which she cannot recover, and it is different for each girl. Otherwise, she will simply slip into the Gilded Sleep, only to awaken weeks later, good as new.

It’s here that we meet Deka, as she’s on the cusp of undergoing her own Ritual of Purity. Before her turn can come, Irfut is attacked by deathshrieks: fearsome, supernaturally fast and strong creatures made of quills and leather and rage. (I pictured them as crosses between werewolves and porcupines, maybe with a little pterodactyl and Groot thrown in.)

Just as her beloved father is about to be slaughtered, a primal, irresistible scream wells up from the depths of Deka’s soul – and the deathshrieks freeze. It seems that she alone can command them. For her troubles, she’s thrown in an elder’s basement, tortured, murdered countless times, and bled dry for her valuable gold blood.

Her salvation comes in the form of a mysterious woman Deka nicknames “White Hands,” aka the Lady of the Equus, who whisks her off to Hemaira, the City of Emperors, to join the emperor’s burgeoning alaki army, specially assembled to exterminate the deathshrieks.

Here, she finds her true family: good-natured Britta, with the perpetually upset stomach (much like Roberta in SUPERMAN SMASHES THE KLAN, Britta’s stomach is A MOOD); sisters Adwapa and Asha who, as daughters of the high chief Nibari, only pretend to follow the Infinite Wisdoms for the benefit of visiting priests; Belcalis, who suffered more than most under the Death Mandate and knows better to trust the elite’s fleeting favor; and Katya, a red-headed farm girl who wants nothing more than to marry her childhood sweetheart.

As the alaki train alongside the uruni – regular human boys who are to be their brothers in arms – Deka undertakes her own lessons in secret; White Hands teaches her how to harness her combat state to further enhance her already superhuman powers, and consolidate her control over the deathshrieks.

But with each raid, Deka cannot shake the feeling that something is wrong: with her cryptic answers, what truth is White Hands keeping from her? Why does Deka witness the deathshrieks using increasingly complicated tools – cochleans to cover their ears, armor to protect their bodies, and weapons ranging in sophistication from rocks to swords and maces – when she has been taught that they are unthinking, unfeeling brutes? And what of the shrines to The Gilded Ones the alaki warriors keep discovering along their path of destruction?

Usually when I dread reviewing a book, it’s for one of two reasons: either the story was so utterly, jaw-droppingly amazing that I fear it’s impossible to do the author justice – or it’s simply “meh,” and I can’t for the life of me think of anything to say. I bet you can guess which category THE GILDED ONES falls into. This is my first starred read of 2020 – I read an early copy in April, before the release date got pushed back almost a year thanks to the corona virus – aside from a few graphic novels and a reread of NOT A DROP TO DRINK, that is.

THE GILDED ONES is like THE HANDMAID'S TALE or THE GRACE YEAR, but cranked up to the nth degree, and with a welcome understanding of racial politics to boot. There’s so much to love here: richly detailed and wholly imaginative world building; one awesome found family (that keeps growing more wondrous with each chapter); unexpected plot twists like whoah; a terribly sweet (and sometimes weirdly gross; not mutually exclusive) star-crossed romance; and a compelling, skillfully executed plot, the true feminist ferocity of which doesn’t become fully apparent until the story’s end. THE GILDED ONES continued to surprise me to the very last page, in the best ways possible. This book is every bit as beautiful as the cover promises, and then some.

The ending also sets up a pretty epic sequel, which I’m already pining for. It was giving off a serious FURY ROAD vibe, which I am so here for. In the meantime, HBO? Pick this up, stat. You need a next GAME OF THRONES, I need some feminist fantasy to inject into my socially isolated veins, let’s do this thing! (Hey, it’s got to be better than bleach. Hello again from early 2020.)

On the book’s Amazon page, Refinery29 blurbs THE GILDED ONES thusly: “Namina Forna Could Be The Toni Morrison Of YA Fantasy.” Three words, and I’ll try to keep it as unspoilery as possible: Octavia. Butler. Deathshriek.

We start out meeting Deka and her father, in their lives leading up to the blood ceremony that will determine if Deka's will become a member of her village. This matters a lot to her because she is already different from the others in her village. Her mother was from a different village, so that makes people wary of her. On the day of the ceremony, nothing goes as plan and by the end of the day, she is now part of an army of girls called Alaki, who have immortals with rare gifts. We follow her throughout her journey to the training grounds, meeting other soldiers, and learning what's really going on. I found the world and 'magic' systems the coolest part of the story. The fighting scenes were also well done, it felt like I was right there watching the action. I felt that this book talked about many themes and topics, but the one that stood out most to me what society and women. I enjoyed how this book handles and developed that thought the pages. The first part of this book is all about her and the other girls and what color their blood will be if she bleeds red, she is deemed pure, if she bleeds gold, she is deemed impure. It also deals with race, abuse, trauma, and more; all I feel is done in a good way. Once, we get to the training part of the book we get to learn and see more of this world. There is an f/f relationship, that felt real and that I was all for. In the cast of characters, we meet a large mix of races, but they are all well developed. Deka, Britta, Adwapap, Belcalis are just a few characters that I enjoyed reading about. This is a story of underdogs, about learning to rise up. There is also a side plot of romance for the main character, but that was light.    
The writing is wonderful! It's violent, strong, powerful; paints a bight world with a colorful bunch of characters.   
Overall, The Gilded Ones is like a mash-up of Children of Blood and Bone and Kingdom of Souls, but better! Out of these three books, The Gilded Ones is my favorite!

First I need to talk about this cover and how DAMN gorgeous it is. I mean, that enough should be a reason to read this incredible book.

Second, this story is a unique take on a "chosen one" type trope. And it's a good thing! We have our main character who realizes something about herself and she's instantly cast in a nefarious role. Now, she is put in a camp of sorts to learn, train, and harness her power. And fight against everything that feels natural to her. The Gilded Ones is pretty incredible. From the imagery, to the storytelling, to the dialogue, everything about this book speaks beauty. I was lucky enough to get an ARC on netgalley, but I also got a physical copy and man, I really can't say too much about the cover and how awesome this story is. Even though it won't publish until next year, get ready. Because this one is a powerful story.

The Gilded Ones publishes 2.9.2021.

5/5 Stars

Deka has been preparing for the ritual of purity for her entire life. On the day of the ritual, her blood runs gold, marking her as a demon. After her father, friends, and members of the community try and fail to send her to her final death, a stranger arrives to whisk Deka off to a training camp. There, Deka will be trained with other demons to save the Emperor from the threat of Deathshrieks, monsters that have been ravaging villages across the countryside. As Deka and her friends begin to battle the Deathshrieks, they realize all that they've been told about the monsters might not be true, and they must determine whose side they are really on.

This was a very solid debut fantasy. I absolutely loved the worldbuilding, and noticed a lot of West African mythological influences (thanks, Tristan Strong!). Without getting into spoiler territory, the Deathshrieks themselves were quite cool, and the concept felt unique and new to me. I loved the messaging around belonging to a community when you're different, found family, dealing with racism, and of course, the overarching message of empowering women really appealed to me. That said, there was something off about the delivery - I felt like the writing style lent itself more to younger teens or middle grade readers, but the violence and sexual assault aspects likely make the book unsuitable for some of those younger readers. You would get not-so-subtle reminders of pieces of information, and it was repetitive in a way that I associate with books with younger audiences. The writing was almost too straightforward, if that makes sense. That's really my only complaint, though, and I'll be recommending this book widely to teen fantasy readers.

TLDR: The Gilded Ones is kind of The Handmaid's Tale meets The Red Queen meets Children of Blood and Bone (although, for the record, I found it to be of a much higher quality than the latter two books). It's a feminist fantasy centered around a defunct society steeped in West African mythology. If any of those aspects are calling to you, I'd give it a read. 3 stars - I liked it.

If you are going to do a plot as overdone as "girl discovers magical powers and leaves village to learn to fight" than it needs to be really well written or have a really good hook. This book had neither. If I hadn't read so many similar books, than I would say its average.

This is such a unique book with an interesting plot. The main characters felt like real people, the development of them was so descriptive. The plot was so different and interesting and kept me engaged the entire time. I loved how the ending was, nothing felt left out. While this could have been a singular stand alone fantasy, I love that there are more books to come to spend time with these characters. The romance felt a little rushed, but I loved the rest of the book so much I will forgive it.