Book Review: Gilded, Marissa Meyer

Title: Gilded

Series: Gilded

Author: Marissa Meyer

Published: 2nd November 2021, Faber & Faber
Pages: 512
Source: Netgalley
Format: Ebook
Rating: 4/5
All magic comes at a price, but love was never part of the bargain...

The look he was giving her. Serilda had never been looked at like that before... The intensity. The heat. The raw astonishment. He was going to kiss her.

Cursed by the god of lies, a miller's daughter has developed a talent for storytelling - but are all of her tales as false as they appear?

When one of Serilda's stories draws the attention of the devastating Erlking, she finds herself swept away into a world of enchantment, where ghouls prowl the earth, and ravens track her every move. The king locks Serilda in a castle dungeon and orders her to spin straw into gold, or be killed for lying. In despair, Serilda unwittingly summons a mysterious young man to her aid. And he agrees to help her, for a price. But love wasn't meant to be part of the bargain.

Gilded tells the story of Serilda, a girl who has been gifted by the god of lies and is, therefore, an amazing storyteller. However, she ends up telling one story too far and draws the attention of the Erlking, who then orders her to spin straw into gold. It is a retelling of the Grimm's fairytale Rumplestiltskin and from what I remember it sticks fairly close to the original story. But there are clear differences which keep it interesting. Gilded is a captivating read that intrigued me more and more the more I read.

Like the original story, Gilded is set in a German-inspired world. A lot of the creatures are based on German myths, legends, and folklore. 

Serilda did annoy me slightly, to begin with, but she grew on me. She did make some silly choices, but she really cares for the village children. She was really put through the wringer, and it's no wonder she became so close to Gild. And Gild... I really loved him! He reminded me a bit of Peter Pan (the animated Disney version) with his love for Serilda's stories. The Erlking was also a fantastic villain - truly evil. He reminded me a bit of Jareth from Labyrinth, but so much more evil.

I did find the story slightly predictable and did pick up on the hints for one of the big plot twists. But it was hinted at pretty heavily and I think it was something that the reader was supposed to pick up on before Serilda herself knew. But I did not pick up on the final few twists at all. My mind went in a different direction.

The pace was a bit of a mixed bag - some parts were really tense and fast-paced, but others were a bit more leisurely. The slower parts made it a bit of a struggle for me to want to read at times, but I couldn't get enough of the story as the pace picked up.

The cliffhanger has me really wanting to read the sequel, Cursed, now! I need to find out what happens to Gild and Serilda now. But I have almost a year to wait!

I really enjoyed the style of writing and the world. I liked the characters and the ending had me wanting more. I can definitely say I will read more of Marissa Meyer. Definitely Cursed, and I really need to read Cinder (which I've actually owned for years now). I'd definitely recommend Gilded to fans of YA fairytale retellings.

My favourite part? The last few chapters and the twist. Gild and Serilda's growing relationship.

My favourite character? Gild

Did I learn something? I ended up down a Wikipedia wormhole of German folklore

Will I read Marissa Meyer again? Yes!

Will I read the rest of the series? Yes!

Worth the price? Netgalley... but I think I'll buy when the Cursed is released

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