Lilibet Bombshell's Reviews > The Gilded Crown

I don’t know if it’s because I’m an oldest child or because I’m the self-sacrificing type or because I somehow was born with a mutation that makes me say, “I’m sorry,” for things that aren’t even my fault, but it’s been a long time since I’ve identified with a protagonist in a fantasy series as much as I found myself identifying with Hellevir Andottir in The Gilded Crown.

Did that make loving this book easier? Of course it did. Consider this, however: I truly dislike the love interest in this book and I still loved this book enough to give it five stars. That’s how much I liked this book.

The Gilded Crown has one thing I really dislike (slow burn) and a bunch of stuff I love. The slow burn in this book is tolerable only because it’s completely keeping in tone with the characters and the world of the book. There are a great many personal, physical, and cultural barriers that get in the way of any kind of intimacy (physical or emotional) between the love interests in this book, and so the slow burn is absolutely understandable. I can be reasonable when it comes to steam and spice, I’ll have you know.

Beyond that. Marianne Gordon has written a book absolutely stuffed with stuff I adore: Political intrigue, pagan religion versus organized religion, death personified, a female protagonist who has had to grow up too fast, a whole bunch of morally grey characters, a good amount of queer characters in the main cast, and animal companions (nature talks!).

This is a dark and emotional story that made me angry and made me cry more than once. I’m really looking forward to the next book.

I was provided a copy of this title by NetGalley and the author. All thoughts, opinions, views, and ideas expressed herein are mine and mine alo\ne. Thank you.

File Under: 5 Star Review/Book Series/Dark Fantasy/Fantasy/Romantasy/Fantasy Series/Folk Fantasy/LGBTQ Fantasy