The Gilded Wolves (The Gilded Wolves, #1)

by Roshani Chokshi

[Amber (The Literary Phoenix)]

Disclaimer: I received this book for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

The Gilded Wolves is a steampunk novel, set in an alternate Paris. There’s magic and the Great Houses guarding a secret. There are girls made from clay, consciousness, and bits of the dead. There’s dancers and secret doors and giant spiders and secrets. I really couldn’t ask for more from a novel. The adventure here is thick and fascinating and it was an easy read. Simply put, I loved it.

There are multiple POVs in this novel. My personal favorite was Zofia. She’s the closest thing to a budding mad scientist I’ve seen in a YA novel, and she immediately makes my list of all-time favorites. But if inventing and instability isn’t really your thing, there’s also the vengeful heir, the character a little too obsessed with creepy crawlies, the society defect, the actress, and the researcher. I thought some character stood out more than others, but they are all varied and interesting.

If you’re looking for relationships, widely cast books like this always bring a rush of different love stories. There’s a forbidden/rejected love story filled with tension. There’s well-meaning flirtation that goes awry. There’s a M/M relationship that I will just let you lovelies guess at until you read the book yourself.

The setting of Paris embraces the best of the city, but not the sites you would expect to see. I personally was thrilled to see the catacombs embraced as a setting, as well as the Expo. Chokshi flawlessly weaves her forging magic in with the turn of the century city, bustling with possibility. You get an excellent sense of the richness of this world. I found it really easy to slip into the story because of how vibrant the world was with mythology and possibility.

And I haven’t even begun to talk about the adventure. This is one of those plots that is just go-go-go. I can’t help but to compare it to Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark. The setting and characters are very different, but the feel has the same thrill and romance and dance between danger and that adrenaline rush of success.

I really have nothin but high praise for this book – it was a highly enjoyable read, and it set up the ending perfectly that I am itching to know what is going to happen next. The Gilded Wolves has the same spirit as Six of Crows and I think that it will be well-received by Bardugo’s fans.