GILDED by Marissa Meyer was darker than I expected (though I am not complaining!) and the setting she created for this story is incredible! It had so many elements of the original Grimm fairytale, but taken to the next level--witches, spirits, dungeons, dilapidated castles, and more. loved it so much and I feel like October was THE PERFECT time to read it!

Gilded tells the story of Serilda, a storyteller who gets herself in trouble with the evil Erlking one night when she lies to him, saying she can spin straw into gold. What happens next is very Rumpelstiltskin inspired as the Erlking summons her to do just what she claimed, but cannot actually do.

At almost 500 pages, this book is LONG. And I felt it too. I had to slog through this, as there are lots of lulls in the story. However, Gilded is equal parts fairy tale and horror, and I really liked that mix. Serilda is easy to root for, and I enjoyed her a lot, especially her interactions with Gild. The Erlking is so wicked, but I had a really had time picturing what he looked like in my head and kept getting Slenderman flashes.

The thing that upset me most about this was the mega cliffhanger ending which I knew was coming, but still was not a fan of. I need my books wrapped up, even if it is a series. However, there is no mention of this being a planned series, but I really think it ended that way set up for at least a sequel).

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC. I recommend this one!

This book is magically, artistically written. Marissa really transported me to this world that I was so involved with and in love with. Her storytelling skills in this one really won me over, you can really see the growth in her writing.

Serilda is such a strong willed and unique character, the way she tells stories and the way her character transforms and grows in this book was so brilliant. I couldn’t help but fall in love with her, and the ending? She is such a unique character compared to what Marissa has written and she maybe my favorite she has written.

And Gild? I will leave the mystery of him to yo

This would probably be a 3.5 stars for me if there were half stars, I did round down because it wasn't strong enough for me to have it be 4 stars. This book was enjoyable enough, but the main struggle was the main character. I wanted to like her, and get on board with her, but she was difficult to root for at times and enjoy. There were characters that were fun and enjoyable, but weren't main characters. The writing was good, and I am a fan of the author which is why I wanted to read this book. The setting was darker than other books by the author, and it had moments that were well written and captivating, but overall this was not a favorite for me. Also, did not know it was going to be a duology, which made the ending interesting for sure. Overall, just an ok book that hoped would be more of a favorite.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC!

This was a unique tale told in Meyer's signature style. I found the rich settings easy to get lost in and the overall vibe delicious and mysterious. But I couldn't get attached to the characters and the plot felt only half finished at the end (there doesn't seem to be any indicator this story is going to continue?). So, not a favorite like Heartless, but still worth the read.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing this ARC for me.
I have been a fan of Marissa Meyer for a while and I really enjoy her books. As such, I was pretty excited to receive a copy of Gilded. There's a lot to love about this retelling- Meyer's writing style, attention to detail, and ability to build a world are all fantastic. That being said, there were a few things that made me enjoy this book a bit less than some of her other offerings. The main character, Serilda, was hard to relate to at times. She seemed to have a hard time comprehending the consequences of some of her actions, which made her hard to root for. The book was also surprisingly dark to me. I was expecting a more lighthearted fantasy, but I think this grittier style will appeal to a lot of people. All in all, Gilded was a worthy retelling that many people will enjoy.

I really enjoyed this retelling for the most part. It got a little bogged down in the middle and it is perhaps a shade too long. But I can forgive all that for the wonderful characters and the story that the author has created here.

I really liked Serilda. She is a tragic character that seems to have bad things happen to those around her, despite her good intentions. She also made some decisions that she knew were bad, but made them anyways. Her stories were wonderful though and she was incredibly brave in standing up to the Erlking. I also liked that even though she was repulsed by the ghosts in the castle, she was also sympathetic to them and to the horrible ways in which they died. She is a very loving and giving person, and will do anything to help someone in distress.

Gild was perhaps my favorite character. I just adored him and his pranks and how much he loved annoying the Erlking. His backstory is revealed slowly throughout the book even though neither he nor Serilda realize that it is his story. I loved the innocent nature of him and how tentatively he approached the relationship he develops with Serilda.

The Erlking was just ghastly and I loved to hate him. He was cruel for the sake of being cruel and really despicable. Many of the dark ones that helped him were also quite nasty and cruel. But it was interesting how easily Serilda was able to manipulate him at times.

The overall plot of the story was well done, but there were times when it lagged energy and got bogged down in minutiae. For example, the pages long descriptions of places that Serilda visited. I appreciate the world building and the descriptions, but it slowed the story down quite a bit. I won’t go into the plot much because I don’t want to spoil anything, but I really liked how Serilda’s stories became intertwined with the rest of the story. There are some rather gruesome deaths, which happen off page, but were rather hard to take as they involved characters Serilda cared very much for.

I had thought this was going to be a stand alone, until I got towards the end and realized that there was no way to wrap this story up in one book. No timeline that I could find about the next book and when we might expect it. But it will be one of my most anticipated reads whenever it comes. I really am looking forward to how this is all going to work out for Gild and Serilda. A wonderfully dark retelling of a fairytale that I think you will enjoy.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and Feiwel & Friends for granting my wish and allowing me to read and review this book! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I seriously didn't think I would ever get an ARC of this book and when I saw my "wish" get granted, you should have seen the shock on my face! I am greatly appreciative to be able to read an early copy an still have my pre-orders coming!

GILDED is about Serilda, an eighteen year old who hates spinning but spins many tales. Like the boy who cried wolf, not many people believe the tales told by Serilda especially the one where she meets the Erlking and had told him she could spin straw into gold. It all goes downhill when the Erlking comes back and takes Serilda to his castle and forces her to spin straw into gold before the sun rises. A young man comes to Serilda's rescue by asking for payment to use magic and spin gold out of straw. Little does she know, when the Erlking sees she wasn't "lying", she would be caught in a vicious cycle of being taken to his castle to make more straw into gold.

After reading Marissa Meyer's other books like the Lunar Chronicles, Heartless, and Instant Karma, I knew I would love GILDED just as much as her other books. I was definitely NOT disappointed.

I love Serilda and her tall tales. I love that she is not fully human and has strange eyes that set her a part from other people. I adore Gild and loved reading about the Erlking. The twists were great and the bond between Serilda and Gild is enjoyable. The humor kept me engaged and the world building is spectacularly done, I wish I lived in a world with more people like Serilda with her imagination and stories.

The writing is fantastic as always and Marissa Meyer just keeps getting better and better with each story she writes. I am looking forward to all of her future books and am waiting impatiently to find out if there will definitely be a sequel or prequel to GILDED.

5 stars!

Gilded is everything that a YA Fantasy Retelling should aim to be. It encompasses the dark and sinister aspects of the original German fairytales while creating something new and enchanting. It’s old and new all rolled into one. Meyer doesn’t hold back with the macabre aspects and doesn’t go overboard with the romance. There are no gimmicks or heavily-leaned tropes. It’s a beautifully balanced book with a lot of room to grow.

The book is compulsively readable from beginning to end. Easy to get sucked in and not stop. I actually thought it was a standalone until I neared the end and realized there was way to much to still fit in. And then I was relieved that it was a series because there is still so much that can and should happen. I’m excited and I don’t even mind the wait!

Serilda is gonna need some therapy, just sayin’. I’ll pay. But taking this journey with her through towns and tales and magic and evil was great. She’s young but not written too juvenile but also not 18 going on 45. She’s firmly in her age bracket and struggling in all the readable ways.

I had a couple little nitpicks, personal preference type things. A certain character was a little too boyish for my tastes but that really is all me. It makes sense for the tone and storyline, giving balance and needed light.

In the end, this Rumpelstiltskin reimagining is fantastic and I absolutely recommend.

A reimagined telling of Rumplestiltskin with a decidedly Marissa Meyer spin. Serilda lives in a small village with her father and stays away from most people because her eyes mark her for a storyteller known to exaggerate (and by that I mean lie). Her gift of stories makes her beloved to the children but gets her in trouble when she is brought before the evil Erlking who is terrorizing the locals with his bloodthirsty hunts. He and his legion of dark monsters, castle full of ghosts and the cursed make life hell for Serilda. Of course it helps that a handsome poltergeist named Gild is there to bale her out of her spinning straw into gold duties. Delightfully dark and creepy, this new world is a mixture of fairy tale and dark tales of vampires and monsters as well as a young girl yearning for the mother who is gone and the boyfriend she can't have. Young adults will devour it as we all do Meyer's other books and adults will become new fans. This will appeal to fans of gothic tales, horror classics and fairy tales for adults. My thanks to the publisher for the advance copy.

I expected nothing less than wonderful from Marissa Meyer and that is exactly what she gave! I actually cried out NO! when I realized when I got to the last page because I wanted more. She is an easy writer and she weaves her stories so well. A definite read.

I am insanely in love with GILDED by Marissa Meyer. I have been on such a fairy-tale-adaptation-with-grey-moral-heroines kick lately with LITTLE THIEVES and HARROW THE NINTH, and this beautiful Rumplestiltkin retelling has been the icing on the cake.

Marissa Meyer may just be the queen of YA retellings! First with her exquisite Lunar Chronicles, then the unique Alice in Wonderland retelling "Heartless", and now her newest Rumplestiltskin retelling! This is a little darker than her past books, but no less enjoyable. Definitely getting this for our collection, I know there will be a lot of readers excited for this one!

Four stars hurts, a lot.
I wanted to love this book so much, I tried so hard to ignore everything that I didn’t like about it. But the issues kind of just kept piling up so four stars.
There was no big thing that made me not necessary love the book, it was just a bunch of little things.
The story just didn’t seem to flow well, or fit together well.
I will continue to read the series, hoping it gets better with the next book.
I do recommend giving this book a try, it wasn’t for me but it could be for you.

I read the first 15%, and if it continues as it has, a solid 4 stars for our YA audience. They will certainly enjoy the new spin on the old tale.

I truly believe that Marissa Meyer can do wrong with fairy tale retellings. I admit to never particularly liking the Rumpelstiltskin story, but this reimagining goes so far beyond the original tale. It's definitely more dark than I'm used to with YA, but the way Meyer pulled it off actually makes it all the more compelling. Serilda and Gild are both utterly fascinating and immediately likeable.

This book, oh lord THIS BOOK. I went into this book with next to no expectations but I knew I loved Meyer’s writing from reading her previous novel Heartless. And Gilded did not disappoint even with no expectations. The plottwists were phenomenal, I couldn’t stop reading!! The world building was perfectly paced and something new happened pretty much every chapter. I swear I never saw one plottwist coming and I’m normally really good at that!! I was hooked so much that once I hit 50% I immediately preordered a copy because I just have to own a finished copy. Meyer’s retelling of the fairytale Rumpelstiltskin has become one of my FAVORITE books of 2021.

This book was great! A Rumpelstiltskin retelling, that leans more toward the darker side with ghosts, goblins, witches and more! The characters are great and the setting is in a German type fantasy world, which was interesting. The cover is gorgeous as well! All in all I had a fantastic time reading this!

I received this ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest and voluntary review. I was in no way compensated for this review.



Marissa Meyer returns to the world of fairy tales with her latest retelling, Gilded. If you thought you knew the fairy tale of Rumpelstiltskin, think again! In true Marissa fashion, she takes the story to whole new level, while still giving the nods to the original classic.

Serilda was gifted by the gods with the art of storytelling and she was also gifted with wheel spokes in her eyes. It makes looking her in the eye a little startling for her fellow villagers, so she’s naturally an outcast. Her only friends are the small children she helps to teach at the school. Then one night she finds herself helping out some faery creatures to hide from the Erlking who is out on the Hunt. When he confronts her, she conjures up a story to explain her present that eventually leads her to say that she can spin straw into gold.

Now if you know your fairy tales, you know that this king now wants Serilda to perform this very task for him. But he’s one of fae, so basically in this world, he’s pure evil. And he really is the villain of the story. When Serilda realizes what her storytelling has gotten her into and that her very life was on the line, she’s in despair. You have to give her props for literally trying to spin the straw into gold though and it’s then that a boy around her age magically appears. He says he can help her…for a price.

The boy calls himself Gild, he’s been a prisoner of the castle that magically appears every full moon for years now that he can’t remember anything from before. Gild is able to turn straw into gold but as he explains to Serilda, all magic comes with a price. He’s not the nefarious creature that we know from the original tale and I really liked this spin that Marissa took with his character.

This story was dark you guys, really dark. It’s not for the faint of heart. As with each passing moon Serilda tries to escape the Erlking’s grasp but fails and that only makes him angry and he’s not the type you want angry. There are other faery like creatures in this world as well, some are deadly, some are dangerous, and some are something else entirely. But you can definitely feel the fairy tale vibes in the air in this story, the original ones that were dark and gloomy and not meant for little ears.

Naturally, there is a bit of romance brewing between Gild and Serilda. Serilda has never really had luck in the romance area because of her eyes, friendships weren’t easy too. So seeing her develop feelings for this mysterious boy was sweet and endearing and to see Gild returning the affections. They are a lot alike in that way.

There is another bit of mystery going on behind the scenes in this one that involves the castle that magically appears every night of the Hunt. It’s one that involves the previous owners and what happened to them as there are gravestones nearby that are without names. The mystery doesn’t take up too much attention but it’s still there and it makes you curious as to how it will tie back into the current events.

I really enjoyed this retelling! Rumpelstiltskin isn’t one of your more popular fairy tales to choose in retellings as everyone is for the “princess” stories so I liked that Marissa picked one of the lesser known ones. Gilded is a dark and harrowing retelling of the classic Grimm tale that will leave you enchanted and needing more! The fairy tale retelling genre is one that needs to be built up more in my opinion! There are so many possibilities waiting in the tales of old and Gilded is one you will want to re-read again and again!



Overall Rating 5/5 stars



Gilded releases November 2, 2021

Listen, when I got to the end of this book and realized that it's the first in a series, I almost threw the book out the window. I NEED to know what happens next. The storytelling and world-building are intricate. You definitely want to keep up because the plot is always taking you in new directions. The only parts of the book that felt a bit slow were when Serilda kept going from the dark and creepy castle back into town. Those journeys didn't seem really necessary. Keep her in the castle. The castle is fascinating with monsters and nightmares, and a really hot gold-spinner named Gild. I also like that the main character is a plucky heroine. She's coming into her own by the end of the book, realizing her powers just as there is a huge plot-twist. I'm left wondering how she's going to get out of this next HUGE challenge, and I can't wait until the sequel.