Gild: 1 (The Plated Prisoner Series)

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I had no idea that I’d be so invested in this series when I started and I wouldn’t have it any other way. It’s just amazing and these books have me in a chokehold. Auren has come a long way since being imprisoned in a golden cage, kidnapped by the Rot King, and falling prey to Midas again.

Queen lady / wife of Midas: ☆.5 stars - *0.5 stars for #girlpower and not trying to conform to the patriarchy. Being a Queen seems hard especially without Midas the abusive manipulator King. To bad she tried to murder a big chunk of her citizens for being upset that they were poor. -1000 stars for that. No one likes a dictator especially a homicidal one. What I've enjoyed so far about this series is how it's a metaphor about real, emotional issues Day Leitao, author of Kingdom of Curses and Shadows Series The “Plated Prisoner” series is meant for adults only, especially “Gild,” the first book, which contains multiple trigger warnings, including abuse, sexual violence, strong language, and enslavement. How many books are there in the “The Plated Prisoner” series?Raven Kennedy is the author of the Plated Prisoner series. She writes in many genres including adult dark fantasy and is best known for the Plated Prisoner series, the Hellgate Guardians and the Heart Hassle series. What is the Plated Prisoner Series About? An astonishing world with captivating characters and a story you won't be able to put down' Ivy Asher, author of The Osseous Chronicles and The Lost Sentinel Series

Also please no more Queen Malina chapters!! I know they are there to drive the political plot and see what the other parties are up to, but istg I was bored to tears that I wanted to k*ll myself while reading those chapters so I'm begging Raven Kennedy no more 😭 My mind can't handle being in King Midas and Queen Malina's POV.. that's too much negativ energy at once. Auren grows so much in this book, it’s impressive and it also felt so good to witness. She still struggles a lot with her feelings when it comes to Midas because even though she comes to realize that she was not exactly happy in her gilded cage, she still loves Midas and feels that she owes him her loyalty and life since he’s been the one that saved and protected her… That inevitably led to some frustrating choices on her end, but those choices created some delightful angst, and I just know that they will continue to add angst into the next book, so I am actually happy about Auren’s choices. I think it would have felt less realistic if she’d just done a 180o and suddenly decided that she didn’t want anything to do with Midas anymore. I am curious to see how she will deal with all her emotions though now that she realized how badly Midas is treating her, and how little he cares about her, but she is still forced to stay with him because he owns her (his words, not mine). Glow” is the latest book in the series by Raven Kennedy and includes everything “The Plated Prisoner” fans love and adore.Meanwhile, Malina is losing control of Sixth Kingdom (with Midas' help who is definitely not pleased after he learns what she's trying to do). Dare I say I still feel sympathy for Malina despite everything she's done? Yes. She's an interesting character and having her POV once again really make the similarities and differences between her and Auren stand out. They're both women who have been used by Midas, but they're highly different in the choices they make to break free of him. And I'm sure we all want to say we would act like Auren, but I'm also certain it wouldn't be the case. In that regard, Malina is also interesting as she asks the question of whether or not we would be capable of the same things to break free of a man who used us and to get our revenge. For ten years, I’ve lived in a gilded cage inside King Midas’s golden castle. But one night changed everything. There's more scheming and more secrets resurfacing and Auren will either have to follow her heart or remain in her gilded cage. After living amongst the terrifying army of Fourth Kingdom, I find myself, once again, in strange lands and a kingdom surrounded by liars. I loved the slow-burn and that, once again, Raven Kennedy knows how to write characters and relationships in a realistic way. It's obvious when you read the book how important this series is to her, how much she cares about her characters and that she's doing everything to stay faithful to them. The slow-burn between Auren and Slade is also very emotional and kept me on the edge. Their interractions were so amazing that I wasn't in a hurry for them to get together. I love them both so much and they're definitely one of my new favorite couples. This book and this relationship touched me so much that it's difficult to put words on it. As for the smut, I really liked it. It was both hot and emotional, and it wasn't just for the sake of writing sex scenes - it's a part of the story as much as the characters' development or plot. The only thing I didn't like was how many times the word "baby" was used - it's just not my thing but it didn't ruin the scenes either.

In the last book, Auren was just starting to realize who she was and that she deserved better, and she had started to develop budding feelings for the man who made her realize that worth. Those feelings were delicate, and so the sense of deep betrayal she felt (though overblown) was completely understandable when she discovered he'd withheld information and she found herself in the web of another king. I love them so much! Midas can go die and rot in hell (haha) This series is so fantastic and full of great moments. I can't even believe the depth of some of the topics (mental health, abuse) but Raven Kennedy managed to create a wonderful book that went into most of that with such ease and navigational skills. I mean, that takes some guts and talent.Are you catching a theme here? This is what I like to call the domineering man trope. At some point, someone discovered that men that taking control and commanding women in the bedroom is sexy, and that women finding pleasure from men using "dirty" words about their body (and commanding the women to use them) is sexy. Again, tropes are tropes for a reason, and while I think this is boring and formulaic, there's not a problem with it. EXCEPT when you take a woman who has just poured her heart out about living a life where people only saw her body and what they wanted from it. For him to then talk to her like he's directing the porno she's in, and for her to like it, felt really wrong because it's too much like how she was treated before (where she also thought she liked it). The couple heartfelt sentiments in there didn't help the overall feeling that he was in control and it was about what he wanted physically. Auren should have been able to feel truly cared for a good while before they had sex - there are plenty of ways to be intimate, and this didn't feel intimate, it just felt crass. The Booktok hit: The Plated Prisoner Series continues in book 4. This dark adult fantasy romance is inspired by the myth of King Midas and the gold-touched woman who realizes her true worth. An idea, a hope, a reach in the dark. It wasn’t until my fist closed around emptiness that I realized I was grasping for him.

I am not one of the many that seemed to love this book. In fact, it may have ruined the series for me. While I appreciated seeing Auren become more independent, I had some major problems with the romance. Also the ending, I feel like all it did was create more problems for these characters to have to overcome in the final book. At this point in the series I do not think we need to be introducing more hurdles, we have evils in Orea to defeat, we have the Fae in Annwynn to defeat, and now we also have to overcome complete memory loss?It’s so strange to think about—how I went from that girl begging on a muddy corner, to a woman adorned in a gilded castle. Life takes you on paths you don’t have a map for. Warning: this review contains major spoilers if you haven't read the first and second books. So go read them, because this series is amazing and deserves more readers. This story focuses less on the plot and more on Auren’s emotional and mental struggles and growth, but I still loved it so much! im not even really a character driven type of reader, but Gleam was so worth it. im thoroughly impressed at how Auren took charge and fought for her freedom. i thought that the H would be THE leading man saving her from all kinds of troubles, but i was wrong. Auren said she was choosing herself, and she proved it. even when i was scREAMing in my head, “wheres the H? this is his time to swoop in and BE THE HERO!” during Midas’ constant manipulation & abuse on Auren, he never came...which disappointed me a little, but at the same time i marvelled at how Auren managed to hold her own every single time. I promise myself right then and there, that from now on, that’s what I’ll do. I will always trust him, in all things, because he knows what’s best. He’s always right.