4.5 stars, rounded up.
This is such a twisty retelling of Rumplestiltskin that blends so well with mythology. The characters are well written and act true to themselves. The world that Meyer has created is completely engrossing. I find myself still thinking about the people, the myths, the places...

Serilda, a miller's daughter, is impulsive, immature, and untrusting after being treated as an outcast her whole life. But her gift of storytelling is unrivaled. She finds herself in the midst of something far more sinister than she anticipated after she lies to the evil Erlking and he believes her. Whisked away to his castle, she must now spin straw into gold or lose her life. What follows is a dark, intense tale that you'll be thinking about for days afterwards.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for my e-arc of this book. All opinions are my own.

Serilda’s distinctive eyes give her away - they mark her as a liar and she is mistrusted and shunned. This creative retelling of the Rumplestiltskin story has all the Meyer hallmarks; intriguing characters, an interesting setting, and best of all, excellent themes for readers to ponder. What is storytelling but the art of lies? When can lies become the truth? Fans will love this, new readers will be added to the fandom, and everyone will be on tenterhooks until the sequel.

Marissa Meyer weaves together a variety of German fairytales into her retelling of Rumpelstiltskin. Her setting is vividly detailed, which easily captures the attention of readers, adding intrigue to her tale.

However, one might wish that the characterization of Meyer’s protagonists, especially Serilda was as evenly stitched as the setting. Serilda veers from cluelessness one moment to super sleuth the next. Throughout the story, she is provided with the tools to help her decode the mystery presented; but she tends to procrastinate rather than use these tools to her advantage. When the revelations inevitably occur, Serilda is arguably derisive, making observations that poke fun at the failure of others to come to the same conclusions. While some readers might be able to gloss over Serilda’s bombastic rhetoric, others might struggle with these carelessly facetious remarks.

While Meyer’s tale offers a conclusion, there are a few revelations that support the opportunity for a sequel. Meyer’s work in weaving together various tales into her retelling is excellent. If a sequel is in the works, one would hope that the revelations offered at the end of this installment would allow for opportunities that would promote character growth and maturity.

This was an original story that had intrigue and heart. Well written and entertaining. This story had me invested and eager to turn each page to find out more!

A unique and captivating re-telling of the familiar yet often forgotten Rumpelstiltskin tale--and from Marissa Meyer, so you know it's going to have expansive character development, sparkling worldbuilding, and layers upon layers of history and emotional

And yet.....I didn't enjoy this nearly as much as all her other books (especially the Lunar Chronicles, another insanely creative re-telling universe). Maybe it was that Serilda was sort of bland as a main character, and so her POV, narration, and interior dialogue fell flat more often than not. There just wasn't a lot to keep me reading, except for the fact that I was hoping it would get more interesting.

It did, by the way--the last quarter of the book really picks up! I just wish the rest of it didn't drag as much, so that it lessens my engagement almost to the point where I didn't want to keep reading to reach that point where I started to actually care about the story and the characters.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an electronic copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley, et al. for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

There are some who may say that fairy tale retellings are overdone and played out. I am not one of those people. I am ALWAYS down for a creative retelling of a fairy tale, and Marissa Meyer is one of the best at it.

When I tell you that this book absolutely broke my heart, I am not exaggerating. I may never recover. Well, at least not until the next book ones out, when hopefully my heart is put back together. I hope. Please?

Also, this book can get… a little dark, so I wouldn’t recommend it for younger readers.

I wanted so badly to like this more, especially after how much I LOVED the author's Lunar Chronicles series, but it just didn't grab me. While I liked the character of Serilda, 500 pages of Serilda was... a lot. I felt like the book was really boring at times and it kind of felt like a chore to keep going. That being said, the last 20% of the book was tremendous. Will I read the rest of the books in the series? Yeah, probably, since this one just kind of ended and I don't know what happens next.
I almost feel like this would have been more compelling for me if it were set in a more modern world. Now THAT would have been cool to read.
I would recommend this to other fans of fairy tales and fantasy.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group/Feiwel & Friends for the ARC!

This was a very good story, although it did drag at times. I love Gild and Serilda and am looking forward to seeing how they will outsmart the Erlking, because I have complete faith that they will!

This book was really easygoing and a bit less in my face like I was anticipating. I expected it to be...bigger? in some ways? I liked the story and the pacing is good, but the characters felt flat at some points and the drama felt like it fizzled out way too quickly.

This book was awesome! Kept me turning pages, I loved the collection of elements. Sure there is the thread of Rumplestiltskin running through it, but incorporating other folk tale elements went really well! Highly recommend for fans of folk horror or retold fairytales.

Fans of Sarah J Maas, Laini Taylor, Stephanie Garber will appreciate this book.

3.3

I like fairytale adaptations and Rumpelstiltskin retellings are usually particularly fun, because you can go in so many different directions with them. There are definitely some interesting choices in this book, and mixing the fairytale into a world of other Germanic myths & creatures is very cool, but over all I felt let down by this book.

I did enjoy the darkness of this retelling, as well. It doesn't permeate the story as a whole, but it certainly doesn't flinch away from pain, cruelty, or hopelessness. There are bad things that happen and they're not magically undone or overlooked. You don't feel safe here, because you never know what is within the realm of possibilities. This book is often unexpected in terms of where "the line" is, but never in a way that feels as if it's catering only to shock value.

But beyond the general landscape of this story, it feels mostly flat. It is slow in the beginning, and never gives you enough substance in that build up for you to get truly invested. I had hoped to like Serilda, because she seems, by design, to be a trickster with fierce loyalties and a sharp tongue- but the only part of that shown on the page is the loyalty. Her storytelling is simply storytelling, and her lies are usually silly or for survival- all the lying she's meant to have done lacks the bite promises. So instead of an interesting, slightly spiky character like I'd hoped, she's a softened, worried, carer of children with moments of true personality few and far between.

And then there's the romance, which was truly a let down. This is the flattest portion of the plot for me. The jump to romance and attraction is baffling in the context, and the idea of these characters focusing on that romance is just so weird. It's even stated more than once within the story that they're probably just into each other because they've had no other real options, yet we're supposed to buy into the romance anyway? They have no chemistry, they fall "in love" after hanging out like twice, and the way this book leaves their romance is exhausting.

Really, the miscommunication in general is just weary making and so overdone. I can deal with a little, realistic miscommunication, but there's just so many moments of deciding for no reason not to share information, and it's infuriating. It only served to take me out of the story, and dislike Serilda, more.

Finally, I can see no reason why this book is as long as it is, or why it has a sequel coming. This story could have been done in one go, but it's being stretched out to the detriment of the plot.

I was hoping for something that swept me up into a new version of a fairytale, and while the fairytale does feel new in many places I was never swept up. This wasn't the book for me.

I adored this book. This is the fastest I've read a 500+ page book in a long time. Marissa Meyer took the Rumpelstiltskin fairytale and turned it upside down in all of the best ways. All the basic elements of the original tale are there, but the characters are given different roles in the story and for me, it made it a much richer world and experience. A world full of good and evil and everything in between makes the perfect setting for a Rumpelstiltskin retelling. The book is full of magical creatures and is just one more reason why the story is so good. I cannot believe I didn't realize this wasn't a standalone! I am distraught about how long I'll have to wait to find out what happens next!

Serilda is the kind of heroine with a little bit of dirt around the edges. She was supposedly blessed (or maybe cursed? by the god of lies at conception and she spins these fanciful stories...aka: lies...to anyone who will listen. Her knack for telling everything but the truth would make her untrustworthy enough, but then you add in her strange, golden eyes and now you have a heroine that no one but her father and small children dare to care for. You can't help but think "you reap what you sow," but the time Serilda gets caught up with the evil Erlking, you're hooked and all you can do is watch as everything unfolds before you.

Without giving too much away, I adored Gild. I found myself craving more chapters with him in it. He definitely was throwing off some Devon Sawa in Casper vibes (if you know, you know). The way the author wounds him and Serilda together was amazing and I enjoyed all their moments together, even the ones that make your heart ache.

It needs to be said that this book is definitely not all smiles and happy feelings. There is a fair bit of death in it, including child death, so if that's a trigger for you, I would tread a little carefully. There's no graphic descriptions or anything, just something to be aware of.

Marissa Meyer truly has a gift when it comes to reimagining the classics. I've never read a Rumpelstiltskin re-telling so I was beyond excited when I heard about this book. I was pleasantly surprised with the direction Ms. Meyer took this story, and loved the addition of the Erlking and the Hunt.

Serilda is the miller's daughter, touched long ago by Wyrdith, the god of stories, fortune, lies... and left with golden-wheeled eyes and an ability to spin stories that the children love but the adults shun her for. One night, in an encounter with the evil Erlking and his wild hunt, she tells a story about her ability to spin straw into gold. The Erlking is intrigued, which is most unfortunate for Serilda. He orders her to spin straw into gold for him in exchange for her life. With no one to turn to, Serilda is desperate. And then comes a boy. For a price, he will spin the straw into gold for her, and save her life.

This tale takes so many surprising turns, there's never a moment for boredom. Marissa Meyer has this fantastic ability to spin magic into every word and make you feel like you're right there in the story with her characters. I loved the creepy, dark aspects in this story, the tales of murder and entrapment. And yet, in the midst of all the darkness, I was hoping beyond hope for a happy ending for Serilda and Gild. Love and romance when all seems impossible and hopeless is just my kind of story. I'm looking forward to the second book in this duology - I can't wait to see what becomes of all these characters!

So Basically I am in love with this book. IN LOVE. Marissa Meyer wrote a dark, atmospheric reimagining of Rumpelstiltskin set in Germany, an enchanting gothic fairytale reimagining of Rumpelstiltskin that simply lit my entire world on fire as I devoured page after page of this story. Blessed, or Cursed, by an old god called Wyrdith(the god of stories, fortune, lies, and fate), 18 year old miller's daughter, Serilda, lives with her father, bestowed with the ability to spin fantastical tales that mostly land her in hot water. She is shunned by most locals as cursed, untrustworthy and a born liar, and is easily spotted as being god-touched by her golden wheeled eyes. She spends her says working as a school assistant bewitching her pupils with tales spun from what appears to be thin air…but the real question of the book is-- are her stories really lies?
Danger lurks at the the full moon every month, a time when the veil of to the realm of the dead(for lack of better explanation) opens and the wildly exuberant hunt led by the evil Erlking takes place. The hunt is notorious for taking children and bewitching others to join, none of whom are ever seen alive again. One night, with his entourage of the undead and hellhounds, the Erlking is deceived by Serilda as he searches for two forest creatures, whom Serilda hides, as she convinces him she can spin gold from straw. This comes back to bite her the following full moon when she is taken by the Erlking to Adalheid Castle to spin straw into gold or be killed for her lies. Though she faces almost certain death, the castle poltergeist reveals himself to her, and for a price( a small trinket) completes the task. He knows nothing of himself or his past, only that he is Sometimes called the Gilded Ghost and goes by “Gild”, cursed to inhabit the Castle and its grounds, unable to ever depart. As Serilda is brought back to the castle time and time again, she and Gild form a relationship that grows deep and strong and the Erlking’s plans are brought into the light.
Gilded is wonderfully written with darkness and horror around every corner. You cannot help but root for Serilda and Gild, wondering how or even if they can escape the terrors of the fate that looms before them them. This book was expertly crafted and well done as a retelling and I am so looking forward to the next book in the series to see what’s in store for the characters!
**Thanks to NetGalley For an ARC in exchange for an honest review**

4.5 stars

So I have been on a retelling kick lately, and this one was right up my alley, which means I might be a little biased. This book was definitely based on Rumpeltstiltskin, but it also incorporated many German folk/fairy tales particularly the Erlking and the Wild Hunt, the Shrub Grandmother, and the Nachtkrapp as well as witches, goblins, faeries, and numerous other creatures. It is clear that Meyer did her research and I found it very interesting how she wove all of this around the original simple fairy tale. I was not expecting this to be as dark as it was, so I would not recommend this to sensitive readers or younger readers. It was dark, grim, and violent and the horrors could inspire nightmares in those who are prone to them. But I loved it.

I originally read the sample, which started at chapter 1 and it definitely made me think I was going to read a fairly simple retelling of the original fairy tale. But this full ARC includes an introduction that quickly sets the scene and after reading that, I realized that I was in for a much more serious read.

You can't have a Meyer book without at least some sort of romance, so that's definitely included here, and I have to admit that I wasn't so sure I was feeling it at the beginning. But as time passed, I started becoming more interested and invested, so I'm hoping that will develop more in the next book. Oh, did I mention that this was the first of the series? Oh yeah, I didn't realize that until I hit the last chapter and wondered how they were going to resolve everything in the remaining pages. Spoiler alert--they didn't. This is the first of a series. Argh! How can you do this to me?

So let's talk about the length--I think there are things she could have taken out and the story would still have been compelling and interesting. Instead of the three nights of weaving occurring over three nights, the three nights occur over an entire moon month. So a lot happens between the nights that develops the relationships between Serilda and the other people, both in her own town and in the town that surrounds the castle. It didn't seem like a lot happened other than that we get a glimpse of who the other people are. I'm a fan of getting to know characters, so it mostly worked for me, but I could see some folks not wanting to hang in there for the whole book. Again, I think some of this is setting the stage for the next book, but time will tell. I just have no idea if this is going to be a two-book series or a three-book series. I'm hoping it will be a two-book series. This book takes care of the first half when the gold is spun and the miller's daughter is to be married. So it would make sense in my mind for the second book to cover the wedding, the baby, and the naming of R. I will definitely be waiting anxiously for that book!

I received an advance review copy from Netgalley for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Serilda loves to tell stories. This has become such a natural part of who she is, sometimes she can’t help herself. She has been warned that it will get her in trouble someday and that day has arrived. To help some girls in need, Serilda tells a tale to the Erlking and his hunting party. She thinks she is lucky, until the next full moon when she is captured and taken to the Erlking’s castle. He commands her to spin straw into gold … or lose her life. Serilda thinks her life has reached its end until a boy appears and offers to help her … if she can pay. Serilda makes it out alive, but is her time in the castle over? What will she learn about herself and her ability to tell tales?

Gilded is the first book in a new fantasy series. This is a fairytale retelling, so there is some predictability in the story, yet Meyer has taken a well-known and beloved classic and made it relatable to a teenage audience. This book is listed as part of a series (on Goodreads), yet the series title is still listed as “Untitled.” When I got to the end of the book I could see why the story could be continued, but it may also be setting up for companion stories too. I am excited and look forward to more books in this newest fantasy world.

This author never ceases to amaze me! One of my favorite retellings is Heartless. Gilded was beautifully written, giving life to the tale of Rumpelstiltskin.

I loved the build up of the world, the characters were enticing, the story/plot was perfectly paced. As always I look forward to diving into more. The twists of the story were definitely something that had me stuck to the pages. Serilda's character made it so easy to become addicted to the story. The mysterious and whimsical ways of the villain were truly captivating.

I was iffy about this retelling because Rumpelstiltskin isn't one of my favorite fairytales but wow am I happy I gave this one a chance! The ended was left open for more, hoping we see more of Serilda and her journey! I must dive into more of Marissa's books, definitely added to one of my favs!

Huge thanks to the publisher for sending this my way!

In Marissa Meyer's new fairytale Gilded, readers are introduced to a version of Rumpelstiltskin that will forever change the way they read fairytales. It all begins with a cursed miller's daughter, Serilda, who has the ability to spin stories as fantastic as they are untrue. An apparently useless skill until the Erlking and his Wild Hunt arrive at her door. Suddenly, her ability to weave a story proves helpful, that is until the Erlking demands her presence and requires her to spin straw into gold. Locked in a ghoulish room with only straw for company, Serilda is greeted by a mysterious boy who promises to help her - for a price. What follows is a tale as strange and compelling as any Serilda has told before. A master of her craft, Meyer's does not disappoint with this first installment of her newest series.

When she catches the attention of the Erlking, a gifted storyteller seeks help from a cursed boy in a ghostly castle beyond the veil of life and death.

No praise I can write here will do this book justice. Masterfully told and spun from many threads of rich German folklore, this novel is far more than a Rumpelstiltskin retelling. The world-building is immersive, luxurious, and chilling; the characters nuanced; the heroine delightful and surprising; and the dialogue modern without feeling out-of-place. Not only is this one of my favorite books of the year, but it is one of my favorite fantasies I've read in a long time. I cannot recommend it highly enough!

This is not your normal Rumpelstiltskin. When Serilda's tale to the Urlking lands her in a huge bunch of trouble when he calls her on it. Serilda's crying accidentally brings a visitor to her cell who offers to help her if she helps him.

This is a awesome retelling but different sort of story than the one of old. It was a fun book from the start as the children always are asking for more of her stories until the stories get her into trouble. This book is full of suspense a bit of action oh and secrets, there is something for everyone in this book I hope you find your something as it really is a good book.


Review will appear on my blog on Nov 2nd.