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Hello everyone! Welcome to the Book Nook. Today we are going to be doing a review on The Gilded Ones by Namina Forna. I have seen this book floating around on Instagram, however, it wasn’t on my TBR list for whatever reason. But I finally read it and now here we are. Before we get started, I encourage you all to comment down below and tell me your thoughts. Also, make sure you are following the Book Nook on WordPress and Instagram (@thebooknook221). That way you don’t miss any of my reviews in the future. So, without further ado, let get into it.

*Disclaimer: spoilers ahead*

In the land of Otera, teenager Deka is about to participate in the blood ceremony; if her blood is red she will be fully accepted within the village. However, if her blood is gold she will be considered impure and shunned by her community and, therefore, she will face a consequence worst than death. Deka is devastated when her blood runs gold and has no choice but to accept her fate. Or does she? A mysterious woman offers Deka a chance at a different life; a chance to be a part of an elite fighting force for the emperor along with other girls just like her. Deka accepts this offer but she soon learns that everything is not what it seems. Deka is not like the other girls and if people knew her secrets the results could be fatal.

I thought this book was ok. It was cute. To be honest, I wanted more from it in certain areas. In an United by Pop article Forna mentions that the idea for the book came to her in a dream while she was in college. She also states that the book is set in a patriarchal world where women are considered inferior to men; which is pretty obvious. I will admit that I found the rules of purity to be so ridiculous; especially the one where women aren’t allowed to used knifes because you are considered impure if you have any type of scarring! I know, it’s stupid. However, there is a reason for that which comes up later in the story. But regardless, the rules infuriated me. And it’s also sad to think there are still many countries in the world that still have this old-fashion way of thinking. With that being said, I’m not trying to offend anybody’s way of life, however, woman have often been abused and degraded in these situations. And I just can’t possibly fathom how that type of behavior in any country is acceptable. I do like the idea of the girl characters breaking free from their bonds and becoming their own person. One thing that didn’t sit right with me though was how their blood was described as demonic.

When I read the plot, I thought these girls, known as alaki, were going to be specially trained to be the personal guard to the emperor; similar to the Dora Milaje in Black Panther. But that wasn’t the case. Obviously, I misinterpreted the synopsis, so that’s my fault. But the fact that everyone kept calling these girls demonic, and were being called monsters and was being abused left and right…it didn’t sit well with me. Even as the story progressed and the girls were becoming friends and they earned respect from others, there were times where their blood was being used as weapons and armor and they gladly gave it up. That was very crazy to me and once again, it didn’t sit right with me.

Before, I mentioned that I wanted more from this book in certain aspects; one of them being their training. At one point in the story Deka mentions that she can properly defend herself now. However, we don’t get to see that. We don’t really get to see any of the girls training. There’s one scene where the girls are training to run. And there’s another scene where Deka is sword fighting with another girl named Gazal but we don’t see them doing any hand-to-hand combat or fighting with the male members of the military. Which brings me to my next point. So, each alaki was partnered with a guy member of the jatu, which is the emperor’s elite guard. They are also referred to as uruni. So, basically both parties are suppose to be comrades in arms during their training. I really wished we got to see more of the alaki interacting and training with their uruni; especially if they’re suppose to be going into combat together. It would also give us more insight into how Deka and her close circle of friends became so close and friendly with the members of the jatu. Side note: I did like Deka’s best friend, Britta. I thought her character was entertaining and fun. I also feel like the author could’ve given us more with Deka and Keita.

Right off the bat you know these two are going to have feelings for each other; it was that obvious. But we don’t get to see the buildup to their relationship. They didn’t interact enough to make me believe they cared about each other. Again, there’s a scene where Deka is telling the audience that her and Keita have had conversations about his time in training. But I would’ve prefer to see those converations play out rather than having to hear about it after the fact. I did feel as though the author was just adding in random additional problems to the plot just to add some tension; especially when it came to the character of White Hands. Deka considered her to be manupulative but at some point she was grateful to her but then at another time she wasn’t sure if she could fully trust White Hands…there was just a lot of back and forth that was a little frustrating and confusing at times.

The pacing was pretty solid; it was pretty great. It did progress in a way that suggest that the book was going to be a standalone. However, there will be a second book coming out in May of next year. Honestly, The Gilded Ones could’ve worked by itself. I don’t think it necessarily needs a second part. But that’s just me. Like I said before the book was just ok to me. The pacing was great, Britta was one of favorite characters, but as a whole I wanted more showing and less telling. The book wasn’t bad by any means it just didn’t thrill me as much as I wanted it to. Will I read the second book? Probably, most likely.

Overall, I give it a 3/5

Until next time!