Gild (The Plated Prisoner #1)

True kings don't give up their armies for cunts.

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Gild
Raven Kennedy
Plated Prisoner, book one
Audiobook, 9+ hours
Published October 16, 2020
ASIN B0D45XYS7C


The fae abandoned this world to us. And the ones with power rule.

Gold.

Gold floors, gold walls, gold furniture, gold clothes. In Highbell, in the castle built into the frozen mountains, everything is made of gold.

Even me.

King Midas rescued me. Dug me out of the slums and placed me on a pedestal. I’m called his precious. His favored. I’m the woman he Gold-Touched to show everyone that I belong to him. To show how powerful he is. He gave me protection, and I gave him my heart. And even though I don’t leave the confines of the palace, I’m safe.

Until war comes to the kingdom and a deal is struck.

Suddenly, my trust is broken. My love is challenged, and I realize that everything I thought I knew about Midas might be wrong.

Because these bars I’m kept in, no matter how gilded, are still just a cage.

But the monsters on the other side might make me wish I’d never left.

The myth of King Midas reimagined. This compelling adult fantasy series is as addictive as it is unexpected. With romance, intrigue, and danger, the gilded world of Orea will grip you from the very first page.

Please Note: This book contains explicit content and darker elements, including mature language, violence, and non-consensual sex. It is not intended for anyone under 18 years of age. This is book one in a series.

If you're in the mood for dirty words and depraved acts with an overly possessive MMC, this is your book. If sexist, unredeemable men are your trigger, steer clear. Abort mission. This is not and may never be for you. And while this book is many things, a tale of romance it is not. If, however, you're in the mood to fuel a raging fire of misandry and let your feminist flag fly, then by all means, this is going to give you your moment.

She is his most coveted possession. Touched by his hand, every part of her skin is gold. Kept in a cage. Never shared, not once, in the ten years she's existed in his care.

Until she becomes the bargaining chip in an alliance that will get Midas an army to join him against Fourth Kingdom.

Hate him. Curse him. Do your absolute worst. But Midas, the villain that he is, is a master of the chess board. And Digby! That Dark Rhysand turned king slayer that he was! And Sail! Oh, Sail. Not Sail!

Oof. My heart. I'll never hear that Awolnation song the same way again.

For the first dozen chapters or so, I was certainly questioning what I'd gotten myself into. But after that first twist... Oh, this was so much fun! Don't get me wrong, it's dark. So dark that I had the urge to vomit at one point. But Auren was a delight and the voice of the reader in the audiobook was superb. Definitely did the character justice.

5 out of 5 stars. To a book with zero romance. What the hell?

Available in ebook | hardcover | paperback | audiobook

Throne of Glass (TOG #1)

That's not even the best part!

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Throne of Glass
Sarah J. Maas
TOG, book one
Hardcover, 406 pages
Published February 14, 2023 (reprint)
ISBN 9781639730940


In a land without magic, where the king rules with an iron hand, an assassin is summoned to the castle. She comes not to kill the king, but to win her freedom. If she defeats twenty-three killers, thieves, and warriors in a competition, she is released from prison to serve as the king's champion.

Her name is Celaena Sardothien.

The Crown Prince will provoke her. The Captain of the Guard will protect her. But something evil dwells in the castle of glass—and it's there to kill. When her competitors start dying one by one, Celaena's fight for freedom becomes a fight for survival, and a desperate quest to root out the evil before it destroys her world.

"I hate women like that. They're so desperate for the attention of men that they'd willingly betray and harm members of their own sex."

Oh, Celaena. We do not owe loyalty to people because we are of the same sex. This 'women supporting women' bs needs to die and rot. Gender is irrelevent to being a decent person. Betrayal is betrayal.

So when Celaena isn't pissing me off... I like her. The woman can banter with the best of them. Even if her go to is always and forever going to be threatening bodily harm and she uses the same tactic to flirt with just about every human male that gets close to her. These Maas FMCs be on my nerves like it's their own personal vendetta.

Chaol. Dorian. Both have their merits. Both also have their faults, and the greatest of those was their responses to Celaena's menstrual cycle. Chaol ran away and Dorian, the damned idiot, thought his best course of action was to antagonize her. Oh hell no! Stab him. Stab, stab, stab!

In the garden, the Captain of the Guard stared up at the young woman’s balcony, watching as she waltzed alone, lost in her dreams. But he knew that her thoughts weren’t of him.

She stopped and stared upward. Even from a distance, he could see the blush upon her cheeks. She seemed young—no, new. It made his chest ache.

Still, he watched, watched until she sighed and went inside. She never bothered to look below.

Chaol was the better of the two. Although... his "What did you do to deserve it?" comment really did sum up what his mentality was towards her. Truth be told, I would have phrased it the exact same way because let's not pretend Celaena doesn't knowingly put herself in consequential situations.

Dorian's "Your scars are awful" was far worse.

How does one become the Captain of the King's guard without ever taking a life? That's some serious nepotism right there.

After The Assassin and the Empire, I did expect that losing Sam would have haunted her more. Granted, it's been a year and I suppose her hormones wield more power than her heart and brain at this age. Just a bit disappointed there. I do need her to learn how to just be friends with a male. There’s no need to keep kissing everybody.

She actually made me miss Feyre with that crap.

4 out of 5 stars. I have no intention of reading this entire series. Actually, I'm skipping to book three. Because, frankly, I don't give a damn about book two. I'm more than ready for Rowan to punch Celaena in the face.

Available in ebook | hardcover | paperback | audiobook

The Assassin's Blade (TOG novellas)

You're a damned idiot.
You're a moron and an ass and a damned idiot.

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The Assassin's Blade
Sarah J. Maas
TOG, novellas
Kindle edition, 451 pages
Published February 14, 2023 (reprint)
ISBN 9781619632219
ASIN B01865MIFK


Celaena Sardothien is her kingdom’s most feared assassin. Though she works for the powerful and ruthless Assassin’s Guild, Celaena yields to no one and trusts only her fellow killer for hire, Sam.

When Celaena's scheming master, Arobynn Hamel, dispatches her on missions that take her from remote islands to hostile deserts, she finds herself acting independently of his wishes—and questioning her own allegiance. Along the way, she makes friends and enemies alike, and discovers that she feels far more for Sam than just friendship. But by defying Arobynn’s orders, Celaena risks unimaginable punishment, and with Sam by her side, he is in danger, too. They will have to risk it all if they hope to escape Arobynn’s clutches—and if they fail, they’ll lose not just a chance at freedom, but their lives...

A prequel to Throne of Glass, this collection of five novellas offers readers a deeper look into the history of this cunning assassin and her enthralling—and deadly—world.

Included in this volume:
The Assassin and the Pirate Lord
The Assassin and the Healer
The Assassin and the Desert
The Assassin and the Underworld
The Assassin and the Empire

Read it fourth. Read it third. No, fourth. No, third. Read it first. Fourth! Third!

I almost didn't read this book because, godsbedamned, if everybody and their mother didn't have an opinion on what order to read the TOG series. But here we are. Here is where I ended up.

The Assassin and the Pirate Lord

Celaena sighed through her nose. This was why she’d been awakened? She tapped a slippered foot on the marble floor. “Then kill him,” she said.

Well damn, Celaena. As they say, did we just become best friends?

Sixteen year old, Celaena Sardothien, and her fellow assassin, Sam Cortland, are sent to deliver a letter to Rolfe, Lord of the Pirates, that, unbenownst to them, negotiates the purchase of a hundred slaves.

Things take a turn when Celaena and Sam decide to free the slaves instead.

The Assassin and the Healer

Celaena took a beating from her master, Arobynn, for her actions in the first novella and has been sent to the Red Desert for further training as additional punishment.

As part of her journey, Celaena stays a few days at the White Pig where she meets Yrene, a barmaid who longs to be a healer but whose powers have deserted her.

I imagine Yrene will reappear later in the series.

The Assassin and the Desert

This story... grated. Celaena needed to achieve in one month what Ansel has not achieved in eight years of trying. Do what I do and maybe it'll prove you worthy. Like, fool, why tf would she want to copy what you're doing? It's obviously not working for you, so...

Yeahno. Not a fan of Ansel.

Throughout though, Celaena's mind wanders back to her beating and Sam's cries as he screamed threats against their master while it took three men to keep him restrained.

Zero surprise that Ansel ended up the villain. Very surprised that Celaena didn't gut her with her father's blade. I hate that shit. When women kill men but spare women. Seriously hate that shit.

You were willing to end Gregory for getting caught but this bitch betrays her master and entire guild and you hand her her sword and send her on her way. What the actual fuck, Celaena?!

The Assassin and the Underworld

Celaena finally returns home. Sam is well. Alive, and with Lysandra's hand on his arm.

Oh, I do like a jealous Celaena. And this was easily the best of the five novellas.

The Assassin and the Empire

In saving the life of the Lord of the Silent Assassins, Celaena has earned enough gold to settle her debt with Arobynn. Hers and Sam's.

Free at last, they leave the Keep and settle into their own home atop a warehouse where all they seem to do is argue as if bickering is Celaena's love language.

I knew Sam was going to die. I expected it to happen, though, in book one. So, no, I was not prepared and I cried and I was sad because... why was she not with him? Why'd he die alone at the hands of a sadist??

So...

I do like Celaena. In certain situations. Such as when she's fighting or shopping. How can one truly hate a woman who invests just as much energy and coin into her cloaks and fighting leathers as she does into her heels and delicate undergarments. She seriously needs to chill tf out though sometimes.

4 out of 5 stars.

Available in ebook | hardcover | paperback | audiobook

Previously in the series:

Dance With the Devil (Mercenary Librarians #3)

See a problem. Stab a problem.

Available at Amazon.com

Dance With the Devil
Kit Rocha
Mercenary Librarians, book three
Kindle Edition, 352 pages
Published August 16, 2022
ISBN 9781250209399
ASIN B09C4FBKTB


POWER IS NEVER GIVEN, ONLY TAKEN

Tobias Richter, the fearsome VP of Security of the TechCorps is dead. The puppetmaster is gone and the organization is scrambling to maintain control by ruthlessly limiting Atlanta's access to resources, hoping to quell rebellion. Our band of mercenary librarians have decided that the time for revolution has come.

Maya uses her wealth of secrets to weaken the TechCorps from within. Dani strikes from the shadows, picking off the chain of command one ambush at a time. And Nina is organizing their community—not just to survive, but to fight back. When Maya needs to make contact with a sympathetic insider, Dani and Rafe are the only ones with the skill-set and experience to infiltrate the highest levels of the TechCorps. They'll go deep undercover in the decadent, luxury-soaked penthouses on the Hill.

Bringing Dani face-to-face with the man who turned her into a killer. And forcing Rafe to decide how far he'll go to protect both of his families—the one he was born to, and the one he made for himself.

Victory will break the back of Power. Failure will destroy Atlanta.

The long awaited culmination of Dani and Rafe's constant flirting and heated tensions... and it did not disappoint!

When Dani and Rafe have to go undercover in order to infiltrate the elite's most exclusive parties with the intent of making contact with someone from Maya's past, the two are forced to confront the feelings they've been long evading.

And they do so beautifully. With maturity and a sensible conversation. They actually talk. And from there, the job comes first. Their safety and the success of their mission.

I absolutely loved how this played out for these two characters. And I loved how whenever they gravitated to one another, the result was an embrace. Not lust. Not mindless passion. But they clung to eachother as if they'd finally connected to their lost halves.

3 out of 5 stars.

Available in ebook | hardcover | paperback | audiobook

Previously in the series: