The Gilded Wolves | Review // This Street Team Member is FINALLY in on the epicness!

Greetings readers!

Have you ever uhhh been a part of a street team to promote a book and never actually read the book??? Yeah. I know. It’s a bad look.

But hey I don’t have that problem anymore because I HAVE FINALLY READ THE BOOK I’VE BEEN MEANING TO READ!

Round of applause for me for having done the absolute bare minimum! *claps for self*

In all seriousness though, I am very excited to be presenting this review for you today! I have been anticipating this book for a while and I am glad I have finally had the chance to read it!

The Gilded Wolves by Roshani Chokshi

Pub Date: Jan 15th, 2019
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Goodreads

No one believes in them. But soon no one will forget them.

It’s 1889. The city is on the cusp of industry and power, and the Exposition Universelle has breathed new life into the streets and dredged up ancient secrets. Here, no one keeps tabs on dark truths better than treasure-hunter and wealthy hotelier Séverin Montagnet-Alarie. When the elite, ever-powerful Order of Babel coerces him to help them on a mission, Séverin is offered a treasure that he never imagined: his true inheritance.

To hunt down the ancient artifact the Order seeks, Séverin calls upon a band of unlikely experts: An engineer with a debt to pay. A historian banished from his home. A dancer with a sinister past. And a brother in arms if not blood.

Together, they will join Séverin as he explores the dark, glittering heart of Paris. What they find might change the course of history–but only if they can stay alive.

The Likes

These Snarky Bantery Characters are to die for! We love a found family trope!

I love Laila. We can only stan a mom friend who is also sassy and loves some scandal. I adored her. Her compassion and loving kindness was unconditional. We love to see it.

I love Séverin. Mysterious and suave. He is all angst. He loves his brother and his friend-family! He tries so hard not to thirst, but my man is thirsty for ^ for 90% of this novel. XD And honestly we love to see it.

I love Enrique. A historian with wit sharp like a knife. He was unapologetically himself all the time even though he also struggled with his identity and figuring out his place in the world. He was charming and witty and we love to see it.

I love Zofia. Her chapters brought me back to my calculus days and while it was a little triggering, her chapters were always wildly interesting! I wish I could be half as intelligent and caring as she is! I loved that knew her boundaries and drew her lines, but was still brave enough to step out her comfort zone every now and then. We love to see it.

I love Tristan. So soft. So sweet. He was 16 but I felt like he read a little younger (then again it only added to his softness so I’m not really complaining) He was not as present in the book for reasons, but whenever he did show up on the page he was cheeky and sweet and yes, we love to see it!

And Hypnos. You know I suspected him for a bit, but I did ended up loving him. If you think Enrique was a charmer, Hypnos was The Charmer. Always had something suave to say and flirting is his first language. He added the fun and quips and we love to see it!

This world building was amazing! Set in 1889 Paris, on the eve of the opening of the Exposition Universelle, this book is chock full of history. You can tell Chokshi did her research and dug deep into what this world would be like. This was the age of invention and discovery for some, while it was also full of destruction. I loved that this book put the disastrous effects of colonialism front and centre. That it paints an authentic picture of what Paris would have been like for these characters of colour and other marginalized backgrounds.

What’s more is that this world is magic, for history is boring if you don’t twist and add some kick to it. The story of the Tower of Babel plays kind of a big part in the book, but it is explained so no need for any biblical knowledge really. I love how Chokshi created different houses that people belonged to (House Kore member here 😉 ). The seven deadly sins also play a really big part of this and I liked how she incorporated them. The Magical Society was super intriguing. It’s courts and politics messy. And yet it was glamorous. This was a world of opulence and finding rare and precious objects. AND YET it is also tied to colonialism and the theft of sacred cultural objects and people!

In terms of overall plot, I love me some heist stories. It packs in both the suspense and the mystery. It had action and analytics. You can definitely see the inspiration Chokshi took from National Treasure, as the characters search for artifacts and try to piece together a puzzle of riddles. The chase never lets up and just when you think the calm has settled, the storm comes crashing down once again!

The romance. This was a book of yearning. Lots of romantic and sexual tension. Some characters were more thirsty than others is all I have to say! There may even be a triangle of sorts going on…I’m not really sure how this will end up playing out, but I’m actually into this.

The Ending. I’m sitting there all happy and then BAM. Tragedy strikes and my heart literally breaks. The last 40 pages of this novel just brings down the hatchet on everyone’s neck! Seriously, Rosh wasn’t playing around!

The Questionable

I think I was just overwhelmed sometimes with information. I usually like when we get snippets of “direct sources” but for some reason the snippets we got in this book just confused me. I think they might have been a little too abstract for me and trying to find the connections to the actual story occupied my mind to much.

Overall, I very much enjoyed this book! I feel much better as a street team member now that I have read it and I don’t have to avoid spoilers like the plague! This book promised high stakes, treasure hunting, romance and suspense and it delivers! I cannot wait to see what happens in book 2 as every character has to face the choices they made in the end of book one!

Rating: 4 / 5 Stars

Recommend?: Yes!

Let me know what you think! Have you read this? Are you looking forward to the sequel? Who is your favourite character?

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Happy reading!

~ Rendz