This book had everything I could have wanted in a story - dystopia, young adult main characters, some magic... I made it a little over halfway before I realized I didn't care what the story was about or what happened to any of the characters.

Interesting idea. Slightly different take on the dystopia genre. As it's the first book in a series, there is no resolution to this particular book so it's hard to judge it as a whole. I would like to read more and see where it goes.

This review is in exchange for a free e-galley from netgalley.com.

Unlike a lot of books I’ve read recently, this was more of a long read. In a really good way though, might I add. I took my time with it because there is so much detail within its pages that it was like looking in a history book.AS AN AVID reader, I have read more books than I can recall. Yet, it remains a pleasure to read something that proves I can still be swept off my feet. Gilded Cage, Vic James’ debut novel, is just that kind of book.

A surprisingly original fantasy - speculative dystopian fiction at its best. Interesting characters - and although not all likeable, you definitely feel the need to keep reading about them - esp. if you like reading different points of view. My least favorite part was the ending - knowing we have to wait for the next book!

feel as though there are so many new books to read and comment upon during February, March and April so I am going to keep my reviews short and encourage you to try some yourself – especially with Spring Break fast approaching. Let’s start with this post on YA titles, many of which are listed here with 30 other "Really Excellent YA Books You Need to Know About." That article is referring to UK releases and showing UK covers, but it’s still an impressive overview containing some titles - like PIECING ME TOGETHER - that we have already highly recommended.

GILDED CAGE by Vic James is one of several fantasy titles on that list. I liked how this debut novel – the first in a series – combines magic and political intrigue while commenting on social inequality. There is plenty of adventure and suspense as Abi, a servant, falls for the son of the ruling Jardine family and her brother Luke, forced to slave in a Millmoor factory, plots revolution. GILDED CAGE received starred reviews from Publishers Weekly and Library Journal which commented on its "solid YA crossover potential" and "appeal to fans of Suzanne Collins' The Hunger Games."

Live links in actual post:
https://www.buzzfeed.com/chelseypippin/32-ya-books-that-want-to-be-your-valentine?utm_term=.buP0dwmap#.edJBNpWV2 AND
http://treviansbookit.blogspot.com/2017/02/piecing-me-together-by-renee-watson.html

Emotional and action-packed series debut! Have vs. have-nots, slaves vs. Skilled, and a little romance thrown in to make things even more complicated. A refreshing dystopian read!

review book



Book Covertitle: Gilded Cage
author: Vic James
pages: 368
format: Kindle ARC
buy it: Amazon | B&N | Goodreads
rating: 3/5 (from hated to loved) or 6/10 (all books I've ever read)
recommended for: Fans of Blood Rose Rebellion by Rosalyn Eves, The Diabolic by S.J. Kincaid, or A Shadow Bright and Burning by Jess Cluess.
Not all are free. Not all are equal. Not all will be saved.

Our world belongs to the Equals — aristocrats with magical gifts — and all commoners must serve them for ten years. But behind the gates of England's grandest estate lies a power that could break the world.

A girl thirsts for love and knowledge.

Abi is a servant to England's most powerful family, but her spirit is free. So when she falls for one of the noble-born sons, Abi faces a terrible choice. Uncovering the family's secrets might win her liberty, but will her heart pay the price?

A boy dreams of revolution.

Abi's brother, Luke, is enslaved in a brutal factory town. Far from his family and cruelly oppressed, he makes friends whose ideals could cost him everything. Now Luke has discovered there may be a power even greater than magic: revolution.

And an aristocrat will remake the world with his dark gifts.

He is a shadow in the glittering world of the Equals, with mysterious powers no one else understands. But will he liberate—or destroy?

in depth


Though Gilded Cage was not everything I'd hoped it would be, it definitely satisfied my craving for a unique magical world. A good book, though not a great one, its solid characters, intriguing mystery, and dystopian/fantasy mix made it an enjoyable, quick read.

This is a world where aristocrats have magic, and the poor must tithe ten years of their lives to serve as slaves for them. Some people try to get it out of the way early, others wait until their golden years are done. A lot of my interest in this book rode on this premise of indenture with a magical twist. Abi and Luke are siblings separated: Abi and her family to the manor of a rich family, Luke to a crumbling factory town. There's a Hunger Games meets A Shadow Bright and Burning vibe that feels fresh in a genre that can become worn.

Where this premise faltered was in some of the execution. I liked Abi, though I found her characterization a little thin at times. I found Luke a little boring and so found myself thumbing quickly through his chapters trying to get past his POV. Abi wasn't a better character so much as she was at the manor house, and the goings-on there were more twisty and unexpected than the somewhat typical dystopian revolution brewing in the factory town. And then there were a bunch of other POVs thrown in so it felt a little discombobulated.

I also loved (LOVED) Silyen, the manor's youngest lord, enigmatic and secretly pulling the strings; he's solidly chaotic neutral, and James did a phenomenal job of truly riding that line with him. You never quite know whether he's a secret softie or whether he just enjoys watching the world burn. So really, I wanted this book to be far more about Silyen. Or even his elder brother, a cruel autocrat with a softening fondness for children. Or the cutthroat young woman who hopes to leverage a marriage to access power usually denied to her sex. Or the mysterious lords who want to end slavery. Basically, all the unequivocally good characters were kind of dull and all the ambiguous and evil ones were really fascinating.

Certainly, both Silyen and the cruel eldest (whose name escapes me) were far more interesting and complex than their younger brother, a blandly charming love interest for Abi (which strikes me as creepier than it did at the time, since I've been seeing so much conversation lately around the inherent problems of master-slave relationships, so it's fresh in my head as I write this; I don't think they're out of the question in fiction, but not if they're portrayed as idyllic, uncritically). It could also stand to be more diverse; there's a lot of white cis hetero-ness going on.

These kinks prevented Gilded Cage from being a favorite, but the premise and plot interested me enough to bolster the weak characters. There are layers of deception, political intrigue, and societal machinations that give it a Game of Thrones vibe. It's a chessboard of flawed players vying for power--or freedom. It's a brutal world where orphans are abandoned, where aristocrats leash humans like dogs, where none of the horrors are glossed over or excused. And there's this ongoing mystery around Silyen's power and his aunt's mysterious coma threaded through the primary plots of rebellion and power plays.

While I think other books have done parts of this better (see Red Rising, The Diabolic), I also found James' writing solid enough to keep me interested. She's certainly hooked me enough that I'll be waiting for the sequel--and more of my dearly diabolical Silyen, of course. Not for the faint of heart, it's a book that I imagine will curry a particular audience. There's a great deal of potential here, waiting to be unlocked. I think if the characters had been stronger, it would be much higher on my ratings list.

Also I really hope they give it a new cover because seriously...?


in a sentence

Gilded Cage is a raw mixture of dystopia and fantasy that leans heavily on a twisty plot and unusual premise.


rating




will i read this author again? Yep
will i continue the series? Yes, although I might not rush out on release day




Note: I received this copy from the author/publisher in exchange for an honest review. The price of the book and its origin in no way affected my stated opinions.

(incomplete review)

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1668709489

In an alternate reality version of England, the Equals rule all. These wealthy aristocrats possess not only wealth, but magic as well. Those that do not posses powers are required to spend 10 years of their life as a slave. The work is hard, brutal, and many die. Luke is a teenage boy suddenly split from his family as they enter their 10 years of slavery. His sister Abi, and the rest of his family, are sent to work at the estate of the most powerful family in England. Luke is sent to work in one of the worst slave camps in existence. While his family works under the control of the Equals, Luke meets a group of factory workers who secretly lead a resistance. Luke and his family are not prepared for the cruelty and malevolence of the Equals.

Vic James' novel, Gilded Cage, is another in a long line of novels set in a world much like our own, but overtaken by powerful rulers who enslave those who are different. Sound familiar? The storyline is fascinating, albeit a bit too close to current politics in the United States. While the tale is fascinating and holds the reader's attention when speaking about Luke and his family, it has a tendency to take on a pretentious tone when the Equals are the main focus. With their vicious cruelty and game playing, it was sometimes off putting to read the horrific things that happen at the hands of the Equals. People have limbs broken, are beaten within an inch of their life, and brought back as if nothing happened at the will of their captors.

Gilded Cage was an interesting first novel with fascinating characters. It feels like there is much more to this resistance story, if you can stomach yet another dystopian novel.

I received this ARC from Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group in exchange for an honest review, which I am a couple of weeks late getting out!

There are two types of people in Britain (and the world); those with skill, the Equals, and those with none, Commoners. Skill equals power, over nature and society.

"Government is not what defines us, Chancellor. Nor is power. Not wealth. Skill is what defines us…"

Ten years. All Commoners are required to do ten years slavedays. Ten years of serving the Equals as a slave. Abi is lucky, she and her family will complete their decade on the estate of the most powerful Equal family. She thought so anyway, until her younger brother Luke is sent to a slavetown instead. The slavetown are factory neighborhoods, six day workweeks under brutal conditions.

Things aren’t what they seem. The Equals aren’t known to be benevolent but are they entirely evil? Will Abi and Luke do their time or will they dismantle the very foundations of Equal rule?

"Your allies aren’t always who you think they are, Miss Matravers. And neither are your enemies."

This book is in no way reinventing the wheel. The troupe isn’t new but it is interesting. I’m keen on extraordinary powers and dystopia, this fits the bill. I will definitely read the next book in the series.

Three stars.

Publication Date: February 14, 2017

I had high hopes for this one but they didn't live up to them. I honestly barely made it through to the end. I just couldn't get into this world or care about these characters. I have read much better YA Fantasy.

It took me much longer than it normally would to finish reading this book, because I was so shocked at how Americans are really that terrible, insane, clueless and gullible. I will not rant anymore. If you want to read more about why I am so disappointed in our country, click here, but let's just say that I was not able to focus on reading while watching votes be tallied and going into shock after hearing something that I NEVER EVER EVER IN A MILLION YEARS thought could happen. EVER.

However, I did not let that influence my perception of this book. It's not the book that wants to put the country back in the 1950's... In fact, this book is set in the future, one that I pray we aren't headed straight for...

The basic premise of The Gilded Cage is that the wealthy, powerful people in the US have Skill (crazy, magical powers), and the normal people are required to sacrifice 10 years of their life to work as a slave (and all that entails), to keep the country functioning smoothly.

Luke's family decides that him, his older and younger sisters, and his parents will all do their 10 years of "slave days" together, and they have a plan they think will make it a primarily uneventful, "quick" 10 years, but of course, that's not how it goes. It wouldn't be a very good book if everything went perfectly according to plan, would it?

I like how Luke progresses rather quickly, from a teenager, whining about missing out on his last year in high school and hanging out with his friends, to a strong, confident man who wants to do whatever he can to help.

This book was awesome! The author did an amazing job of world building. He also made sure to include twists and turns that are completely unexpected, and the ending is something that I never would have come to on my own. With all those surprises throughout the book, I didn't know how the book would end, but there is no way I would have been able to guess the ending.

I absolutely loved this book, but I am very disappointed that I have to wait to see what happens next!

Although there is somewhat of a love interest included in the story, it doesn't shove it down your throat. It is only one of many small plots, interwoven into the grand scheme.

I encourage anyone who reads any kind of YA, fantasy, sci-fi, paranormal, or anyone else who just wants to read a really good book, to pick this one up! You definitely will not regret it! However, you may very well be upset that you have to wait to see what happens next. I know I am!

I was given a copy of this book by the publishers, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Thought while reading: I'm having the same thoughts and feelings for this book that I did for another and I'm wondering if I can just repeat most of that review."
Part of review I was thinking about: I was really hoping this would be a standalone. Mainly, because, at some point I did not want to invest any more time towards it.
It didn't really grab me. It just "was".

I never really found myself caring for any of the characters. Probably because we don't get much time with any one to actually know who they are.

Whatever background that led to the life everyone lives left me lost and confused. Why exactly do they have to serve ten years? And who decided it? Probably a big reason I didn't enjoy either, I had no clue what the overall point of the overall plot was.

Gilded Cage is a did-not-finish book for me. I've read a lot of the hype and agree with some of it, but I have my reasons for giving up.

Gilded Cage starts out with a scene that clamors for the rest of the story! The heartbreaking scene is meant to draw the reader in. One assumes the child in that first scene will have some significance. Then it is on to other characters. The child is forgotten, at least temporarily.

Within the first few chapters, several characters are introduced and Britain's social structure is painfully detailed. The idea of a gifted ruling class oppressing the poorer classes that have no magical ability is not exactly original. The 10-year slave sentence that every lower class citizen must endure is designed to make the reader indignant and start to choose a side. And it works. The first part of the story is dark, but hopeful.

The initial plot was actually compelling. Emphasis on plot. But after two weeks and still no finished book, I had to stop and figure out why. At about 60% read, I finally realized that there were no characters that I actually sympathized with. Abi and Luke, the lower class brother and sister serving their slave terms are meant to be main characters, but, to me, they lacked dimension. The most interesting character, the extremely gifted Silyen, is almost, but not quite, a character on the periphery of the story. I believe, had I finished the book, Silyen would have been the person I sympathized with whether he is good or bad.

While Gilded Cage is not my cup of tea, the potential is there. There will be those readers that are drawn to the plot enough to read through to the last page. But for me, it is on to the next book!

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

This book took me a bit by surprise. Not so much because I’d expected it to be bad, but that I’d expected something as heady as slavery and politics to be a slow read and not at all the fast-paced narration I’d encountered in Gilded Cage. So when I started reading, there were many things that I had to soak in and think about, things that I didn’t really see coming, and characters that definitely made me go “OMG X IS REALLY Y HOW CAN I TRUST THIS LITTLE SHIT EVER AGAIN?” by the end of the book.

The time of the Equals. First off, I did want to point out that one of the most interesting things for me is that this particular England mirrors more of a modern England than any other time period. There are cars and magazines and TV and technology. Heck, the opening scene follows Luke and his family during his sister Daisy’s 10th birthday, and already from the first few paragraphs we are shown that the Hadleys seem to be a regular family living a routine, regular life. Luke is attempting to study for his exams, his older sister Abi is reading a smutty romance novel, and his sister Daisy is partying with her friends. Nothing out of the ordinary, right?

Until, of course, we are told a page or two later that this seemingly ordinary English life is fitted within a city drenched in a history of slavery. And it is still happening as of the beginning of Gilded Cage. Instead of open rebellion against such injustice, Luke takes it in stride and mostly for granted up until his parents sign the entire family up into ten years of enslavement. Then things begin to change for the Hadley family.

Let me tell you, those first few pages in Chapter 1 were already a doozy. Imagine an England where citizenship is not allowed to non-Equals unless they consign themselves into a decade-long servitude. Imagine these non-Equals taking it for what it is and not opposing the government, because what can the Skilless really do against the Skilled Equals, whose mysterious powers are beyond their understanding. It’s pretty heady stuff, and right then and there I was already on the mindset that things were about to get pretty dark, pretty damn fast.

The book largely tells the story of Luke and Abi, brother and sister whose family enters into the slavedays contract, where they and their family enter into a period of slavery in order to fulfill their citizenship obligations. Abi, evidently the smartest of the three siblings, has managed to sign her entire family up into servitude at Kynestone, the household of one of the most powerful Equal families in England. It looked like a cushy 10-year position for everyone, except for one thing. By some mistake stroke of misfortune, Luke is separated from his family and taken to Millmoor–a town where slaves are treated like animals. Working conditions are poor, difficult, and very long at Millmoor, and to Luke, it’s only the start of what looks like the most miserable ten years of his life.

Enter the various points of view that really helped with the pacing. I had initially thought the main POVs would be that of Luke and Abi (and quite possibly Daisy, because many reviews mention her a lot), but the book itself had many more characters that were given chapter POVs. It really added a more in-depth look of the inner workings of the Skill and the characters who wield them. It also gave a more in-depth look at some of the character motivations on both sides. After all, it isn’t just Luke and Abi roaming the pages, there’s also Silyen, Euterpe, Gavar, and Bouda. At first I thought this would become problematic, considering a lot of these secondary character POVs only showed up once or twice, but honestly, their chapters helped to form the bigger picture of the world of the Equals.

Then there’s the Skill itself. As of Gilded Cage, not much is known about how it manifests in a few people, and what the limits of the Skill are. Some Skilled people are clearly kill-able, yet the how is still a little vague. In some cases, the plot conveniently kills off Skilled people in a fire. Yet others are burned and mutilated, yet somehow within minutes and quite possibly seconds, they are right as rain. There was a bit of explanation about why some siblings had a great deal of Skill while others didn’t, but it was only briefly touched upon, and not altogether fully developed. It will be interesting to see how the Skill continues to be unraveled within the later books.

I couldn’t say which place had been the most interesting part of the book. On the one hand, I thought Luke was getting more action within the story, having been mistakenly thrown into Millmoor as opposed as being stuck in the Jardine household. On the other hand, a lot of political bullshittery hit the fan within the Jardine household that I almost wished Abi had taken some sort of initiative and went out of her way to find out more about the household she served. I mean, there were parts where Abi did do something, but I thought she’d been sidelined as a character who pined for someone unattainable and slaved away as a secretary. She’s much more than that, and I really hope she gets a bit more into the plot in the next book (and from the look of things, it sounds like she will be!).

Be warned: This book ends in a cliffhanger ending. And you might want to cry just a bit if you get attached to certain characters. Because OMG HEARTBREAKING THINGS HAPPEN.

Did I think the pacing work for the book? Yes, I did! Did I enjoy the politics behind it? Surprisingly, I did! Honestly, I thought Bouda Matravers played a great game, though she wasn’t the only one with far-reaching ambitions. Do I want the next book now? Ugh. Don’t talk to me about another trilogy. Because of course I want the next book now.

Gosh, I had such high hopes for this book but unfortunately it fell flat for me. This book is in no way horrible, I just was expecting something else. First off, I was hoping for a great fantasy since the synopsis is based on magic. The Equal people have special Skills that allow them to do things that are more known as being magical. I was expecting a lot of magic but it was mostly explained to me. It lacked the special magic I was hoping for. More than anything, this book felt more like a historical dystopian to me. There was a lot of political talk between the Equals and the normal people, which made sense since it was the beginning of a Revolution, I just felt let down by it. This is a total, "it's not you, it's me" type of book. Maybe the next book in the series will get better. Not sure if I will be continuing the series, though.

Boring little book suitable for young readers without much fantasy literature experience. It's The Hunger Games with magic. Yawn.

I received a review copy of "The Gilded Cage" by Vic James (Del Ray) through NetGalley.com.

GILDED CAGE took me a little bit to get into, but once I did, it was easy to keep reading.

There really is a lot going on in GILDED CAGE. Not only with the characters, but the world and events that take place too. The world itself is run by the equals—they have magical gifts. The commoners—no magical gifts—are forced to serve the equals for 10 years of their life. They are slaves for that entire time with no rights and are not treated very well. As with any situation like this, there are those that don't agree with the system and throughout GILDED CAGE a revolution erupts and lines are blurred.

I think my biggest issue with GILDED CAGE was that there were a lot of different POV's. I'm not a big fan of jumping around in different brains and it was a little hard for me to have so many to jump around in. Having said that, I did enjoy the characters of GILDED CAGE. They were all well developed and brought different things to the story. I was really surprised by most of them at one point or another while reading.

I was less than thrilled with the ending of GILDED CAGE, but can't really explain why due to spoilers. I was left with a lot of questions and very little answers, but I am interested in seeing what will happen next and what will become of a certain character that pretty much lost what they were at the end.

* This book was provided free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Gilded Cage is the first installment in author Victoria "Vic" James' Dark Gifts trilogy. Welcome to the world of the Equals. Equals are those who were born with Skills that makes them superior to normal humans. Skills are an ability, origin, unknown, manifesting in a very small fraction of the population & passed down thru bloodlines. Some skills are universal like restoration, healing, alteration, persuasion, perception, and infliction. Whatever the Skill a person has, they dominate life in England and elsewhere. They even have their own parliament called the House of Light.

Then there is everyone else. Those who are required to serve (10) years of their lives as a slave in a location mostly chosen by the Labor Allocation Bureau. You can’t be a full citizen until your slave-days are completed. You can’t travel, or find a decent job, or even own your own home until your days are over. Slaves live in places like Millmoor. It is there where readers learn the real differences between those who have, and those who have not.

Gilded Cage revolves around several key players; Luke Hadley, his sister Abigail, Silyen Jarden, Bouda Matravers & Gavar Jardine. Outside of England, each country has its own separate rules when it comes too Skilled & Unskilled. I can say that according to this world, the United States is divided into two separate countries as it was during the Civil War. The Union States of America, which considers Skilled to be enemies of the State and bars them from entering, and Confederate States where Skilled live as they do in England. France is place where people rose up against the skilled and slaughtered them.


It is here where 16-year old Luke Hadley finds his own voice, his own friends, and ends up being one my favorite character. Luke meets a young girl named Renie, Doc Jackson, Hilda, Tilda, Asif, Oswald, and Jessica who do things that agitate those in charge of Millmoor. where one of our key players is sent after his own family is sent to slave for an aristocrat family named Jardine.

I have focused most of my time with Luke & Silyen because they are the most interesting. Silyen, for instance, is absolutely the most curious, and fascinating character in the entire book. He is powerful, scary, and may hold the answer to a whole lot of twists, and political shenanigans that take place over the course of this story. Silyen is not one to be messed with either. The fact his own brother is afraid he’s up to something that may lead to unknown changes, should say a lot.

After he is labeled as a surplus, 16-year old Luke Hadley is taken away from his family and brought to Millmoor. As an unqualified male, he is forced to work in hot, dangerous places where the likelihood of your survival is bleak. It is here where he finds his own voice, his own friends, and ends up being one my favorite character. Luke meets a young girl named Renie, Doc Jackson, Hilda, Tilda, Asif, Oswald, and Jessica who do things like grant wishes that agitate those in charge of Millmoor. Millmoor fundamentally changes Luke. As I said, Luke is my favorite because he gets the rawest of the deals from start to finish.

I have a whole lot of uneasy feelings for Abigail Hadley, the oldest daughter and the one with the supposed bright future who puts her medical school education on hold so that she and her family can serve their days together. It is Abigail who encourages her whole family to apply to serve under at Kyneston, the home of the Jardine’s. Yet, it is not really up to her where anyone ends up, which leads to Luke going to Millmoor. Abigail becomes enamored with Jenner Jardine who has no Skills of his own. A rarity in Equal families. Abigail's choices definitely deserve scrutiny whether she meant well, or not. Her final choice has solidified my desire to see what happens next to her, Luke, and Silyen.

Well, I'll give it 3 stars for uniqueness. I think what docked some stars for me were some of the vague aspects of the Equal's power. I felt like more should have been explained about form and limits. Perhaps that will come later in the series, but explaining the "rules" of power would have give a more concrete feel to the world.
Secondly, I wasn't a fan of the relationship in the novel. It didn't feel like either character had enough book time to make it feel believable. I couldn't feel for it at all.
Last, the sort of big revelations of who some of the characters actually were felt a little cheap. Why would the Doctor just pop off with such big news in the situation? It felt kind of foolish.
Still, Silyen as a character is interesting enough to make me possibly consider book 2. His mysterious motivation and power are intriguing, so 3 stars and a maybe on book 2.