The Gilded Ones

by Namina Forna

In this book we follow Deka who’s a young woman in a world rules by men. All women are forced to serve men, but for those who are revealed to be different, serving the men in their lives sound like a dream. At fifteen, all girls undergo a ritual meant to separate the pure from the impure. Those who’s blue run gold are called alaki and they are tortured and murdered under the law. And when Deka is revealed to be one of them, she’s mutilated and tortured in the priest’s search for her final death, the method where Deka dies for good. But thanks to a woman she calls White Hands, Deka is rescued and brought to the emperor to train and fight as his elite force deemed to vanquish an enemy called Deathstrikers. An unholy band of beasts that slaughter humans for sports.

As Deka trains with other alaki, she forms friendships she never thought possible, and she earns for the freedom she’s promised once the her 20 years of service is up. But as time passes, Deka’s powers evolve, and for every truth she uncovers about her heritage and the gilded ones, dozen more questions arise. Who are the alaki, and why can Deka alone command the Deathshrieks?

I got an arc of this book from NetGalley, and I’m honestly really thankful for it. This book was everything it promised and more. It was an interesting and compelling read from beginning to end and I didn’t want to put it down. Deka is a lovely character, who’s struggling with her faith and living up to what she’s been taught a woman should be, while at the same time wanting to break her bonds and become more, become who she is.

The themes are strong here and it’s as much a story of patriarchy and how it comes to be, and equally a story of standing up for who you are and doing what’s right. It’s both a painful read, and I really fun and enjoyable one.

I think the author’s voice is really strong and the way it’s written is easy to read while at the same time being serious and honest enough to show that this is an important subject. Deka is truly a young woman to look up to.

The plot flows well and there’s always something happening, and there are twists and turns and the plot builds up nicely for the climax. It might be a bit too predictable, I wasn’t really surprised by the twists since I saw them coming from the beginning of the book. And at times it was a little tiresome reading what felt like the same scenes over and over again when the alaki were training and then sent to hunt down Deathshrieks. But at the same time, I didn’t mind it so much that it lowers my score of the book in any significant way.

This book is a great read, and I think everyone who likes fantasy should read it. There are interesting and diverse characters here, fun creatures and bad men and good men.

There’s probably only one thing that I really didn’t connect with here, and that’s the romance plot. The romance didn’t fit for me, it didn’t feel real. It would have been better to leave it out, in my opinion. Not only because it’s already such a small part of the book that it feels unnecessary and rushed, but also because it feels forced. There was no connection at all between the two characters unfortunately.

But overall, this is a definite 5/5 stars for me. So, buy this book and support author Namina Forna and buy this book cause you won’t regret it.