As a big fan of The Lunar Chronicles, I was so excited that Marissa Mayer was returning to the fairy tale realm with Gilded, a reimagining of Rumpelstiltskin. The setting remains true to the original Grimms, taking place in a small village in the German countryside in the early 1800s. Serilda, the miller’s daughter, encounters the evil Erlking on the night of the full moon, as she protects two moss maidens from his capture. She talks her way out of situation by claiming she can spin straw into gold. At the next full moon, the Erlking summons her to his castle to do just that. In complete despair, Serilda’s crying brings the resident poltergeist Gild, who just happens to be a handsome young man who has been cursed by the Erlking rather than an unsightly imp, to her aid. Alas, he can spin straw into gold.

The first part of the book was a little slow paced for me as all the various storylines and characters are introduced. I wasn’t familiar with all of the beasts from German folklore or “the Hunt” at the full moon. However, once everything is in place, the story takes off as Serilda realizes that she is the one that must thwart the Erlking. I could not put the book down. Sadly, we are going to have to wait for a sequel to see how it all ends.

On a side note, this is a book for readers who can handle gore and violence. The Erlking is truly evil.