Ratings14
Average rating4.1
INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The epic, hotly anticipated sequel to the instant bestseller The Gilded Ones about a girl with the power to remake her world—or destroy it. “Fans of Children of Blood and Bone, Mulan, and the Dora Milaje from Black Panther are going to adore [The Gilded Ones].”—BuzzFeed It's been six months since Deka freed the goddesses in the ancient kingdom of Otera and discovered who she really is... but war is waging across the kingdom, and the real battle has only just begun. For there is a dark force growing in Otera—a merciless power that Deka and her army must stop. Yet hidden secrets threaten to destroy everything Deka has known. And with her own gifts changing, Deka must discover if she holds the key to saving Otera... or if she might be its greatest threat. The Merciless Ones is the second thrilling installment of the epic fantasy series in which a young heroine fights against a world that would dare tame her. ★ "This book shimmers like gold."—School Library Journal, starred review
Featured Series
3 primary books4 released booksDeathless is a 4-book series with 3 primary works first released in 2014 with contributions by Chris Fox and Namina Forna.
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This is the sequel to The Gilded Ones which some of you may recall was one of my top reads from 2021. Might I just add, again, with this awesome cover???
This one was unfortunately less concise, and therefore, a disappointing sequel for me. This read like it was edited and changed many times over, but unfortunately it still showed. As some of you may have picked up on at this point, I truly despise and agonize over dream sequences in fantasy novels. This one didn't have them per se, but it had these memory sequences that were from the MC touching other people and seeing into them. It boils down to absolutely the same thing. Is what she's seeing real? Could it be? What does it mean? And therefore, utterly meaningless to the story. I can't stress that enough, a lot of my dislike came directly from this, and there were quite a few.
Otherwise this is still a feminist and representative read that is worth it for anyone, but especially a young audience. Find new characters that you love and admire even though they look nothing like you. I still found the author's writing to be well done just like the first, they just happened to come across the one thing I really despise. I also took a brief recess to read something else and normally I read multiples at once, not just stop completely, but this time I did. I think that lost the momentum for me for sure.
Personally a 3.5/5* for me, I'd still recommend.