The Gilded Ones by Namina Forna

Once upon a time, my idea of a great read was a well-written YA book. At that time, I could relate to those characters, understand them, and live through them vicariously. However, I did hope that more books inspired by African culture and lore would be present in the fantasy genre. It’s safe to say […]

Once upon a time, my idea of a great read was a well-written YA book. At that time, I could relate to those characters, understand them, and live through them vicariously.

However, I did hope that more books inspired by African culture and lore would be present in the fantasy genre. It’s safe to say that African lore and culture have become more popular in recent years, thanks to a few popular titles like “The Children of Blood and Bone.”

Although there are a few fantasy books out there that revolve around African lore, very few seem to hit the mark. Sometimes, it doesn’t just feel authentic. No matter how hard I try, I can’t seem to imagine it snowing in Abuja.

To be honest, it’s kind of hard to bridge the gap between being authentic and being creative—something the Gilded Ones does a fairly good job of. What else does this book do right, and what else could be done better? Let’s find out.

Blurb

This story revolves around Deka, our amiable female lead, who lives her life as an outcast and anticipates the day that she will finally belong—the day of the blood ceremony. But during the ceremony, the unexpected happens!

The ceremony’s outcome leaves her no choice but to leave the only home she had ever known and join an army of other girls like her (turns out there are others, who would have thought?). This journey allows her to discover much more about herself and the history of her world.

Thoughts

After reading the blurb, I can’t deny that my interest was piqued, and I felt excited at the thought of reading about female warriors (something I’d never be).

Now that I’ve read the book, it’s safe to say that the author did a good job of bringing her ideas to life and properly executing the story.

Themes

One of the things I liked about this story was the feminist themes—they were naturally done and definitely didn’t feel like they were being shoved down the reader’s throat.

It’s interesting to know that the author’s real-life experiences inspired it. That’s the thing about art forms like writing: They allow one to use one’s experiences as paint for one’s blank canvas.

It may be worth adding that while I think the story is solid, it does follow a few YA tropes, which is expected.

Writing

The writing style was quite simple, direct, and easy to read. Honestly, a ten-year-old could pick up this book and would know what was going on. And I’d rather have simple writing than try so hard that it feels forced.

However, as much as I appreciate the simple writing, I’d love to see the author develop a writing style that’s more unique to them.

World Building

The world-building of The Gilded Ones is honestly one of my favorite things about this book. You can tell that the author spent a good deal of time developing it.

Everything from the religion to the races was well fleshed out and well described.

Characters

While I don’t think there are any annoying characters in this book, I do feel like this is one of the areas the book falls short. I feel like I’ve seen these characters in many different books before. We have:

• Deka: The main character was timid and didn’t realize how special she was.
• Britta: The female lead’s funny and loyal best friend(very unique).
• Keita: The male lead is standoffish at first but grows warmer.
• White hands: A character that’s not all that they seem to be.
• Belcalis: Mean girl who has been through a lot and is not mean.

I could go on and on.

Verdict

The Gilded Ones was undoubtedly an interesting read. The book ends with a good conclusion and a foreshadowing of a sequel.