Sunday, April 10, 2022

The Gilded Ones by Namina Forna - AVERAGE

The Gilded Ones by Namina Forna
, 415 pages. Delacorte Press (Random), 2020. $16

Language: G (0 swears, 0 ‘f’); Mature Content: PG-13 (strip search and examination, woman treated as objects); Violence: R (drowning, hanging, beheading, stabbings) 

BUYING ADVISORY: HS - OPTIONAL 

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE

All throughout Deka's life she has been groomed to become the perfect example of virtue, purity and humility. But when her tribe's annual purifying ritual deems her impure- her tribe and her family quickly turn against her. Soon a powerful stranger comes into her tribe and promises her an opportunity of a lifetime. Deka comes to relize that being impure isn't what it was deemed. With a purpose and a mission, Deka will have to overcome her personal trials to become what she is needed to be, a warrior. 

Forna's The Gilded Ones, was an immersive tale of prejudice, war and freedom. What I enjoyed about this novel was the diverse and exploratory characters it introduced, warrior women plus blood lusting priests but also I enjoyed the overall world building and idea of purification rituals, which I am sure Forna took inspiration from real life examples. What I didn't quite like was the overall plot, a big chunk of it just seemed like a training montage which was anti climatic. 

Kenzie Hoehne Reviewer 

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