Set in Paris in 1889, with an incredible cast of characters and a fascinating magic system this was a great start to the series. Beautiful writing and dialogue, with a storyline that twists and turns and keeps you guessing.

It took me a little while to get used to the narrators and the accents they used but once I did I really enjoyed them. I do think I would have enjoyed the book even more if I had read it physically though as it can be hard to keep track of al the characters when you can’t flip back a few pages if you’re feeling lost.

A must read for fans of Six of Crows, a very enjoyable read.

I think I would probably enjoy this but DNFed the audiobook, the narrator just didnt do it for me. Shelved for now.

4 / 5 stars

It lacks spontaneity, and some plot was dragging, but the execution and the structure are amazing and astounding.

Chokshi managed to pull off a good heist in this novel. Some might say that it was a rip-off of Six of Crows and conceptualize it way back in 1889. The Gilded Wolves was a solid start for this series.

The first half of the story was amazing. Putting all this character building, and setting off a good foundation for the characters are great. The story of the characters slowly attaching itself to the readers and fully submerged them in the story. Not all of the characters are given a POV in this book, but it smoothly narrates and intertwines each character arc towards the very goal of the story. The second half was dragging and slow.

I loved the characters. It may resemble how I loved Kaz Brekker's crew, but Severin's crew are way different and sassy in time 1889.

One thing that dragged the whole story was focusing only on Severin's intentions and nothing else. We may have a POV of the different characters, but it always revolves around Severin. Don't get me wrong. I loved each character's story, but it exhausts me that it leads to what Severin intended them to do. Wrapping it up as, "this is why he hired them for this heist."

I wished to see more of that character building in the succeeding sequels.

One thing that hinged me to this story was Enrique. Enrique was a Spanish/Filipino descendant. His character was astounding, humorous, vibrant, and witty. I didn't expect that Chokshi will pull off a well-known history for the Filipinos. Jose Rizal and his colleague were brainstorming for the La Solidaridad, and to visit the famous, Exposition Universelle was nostalgic and priceless. She managed to make an astounding background for Enrique. Chokshi also imparts the Filipino language during Enrique and Marcelo Ponce's conversation. I would gladly put money on this series if Chokshi manages again to pull off Enrique's connection to the Filipino Illustrados of La Solidaridad.

I wished that Chokshi also expand and give more structure to the magic system this world has.

Overall, the first sequel to this series was good and has a nostalgic ambiance of the 1889 setting. Characters are astounding and the premise was redeeming.

Really enjoyed this audiobook.
Both narrators were fabulous and really brought the story to life.
Adored the book, off to find the other 2 in the series!

Ugh, i enjoyed the plot overall but my main issue was with the narrators ''doing'' the accents. Zofia sounded Russian, not Polish, for starters and was there really no actors available from all the backgrounds mentioned, to make it a truly unique experience. And why the narrator had an American accent??? It all just sounded wrong.

“That’s it, I’m done with YA fantasy.”
- sentence uttered by me, many times over the last few years.

I just can’t take it anymore. No other genre can hold a candle to the number of disappointments YA has brought me. The awesome premises, bogged down by underdeveloped characters, predictable plots and angsty teenage romance… Why do I even keep trying?!?
Then, every once in a while, one of those rare gems comes around, that restores my faith in the entire genre. Tiny gold nuggets that make sifting thought the mud all worthwhile. I think of Six of Crows or Strange the Dreamer, and can now add one more novel to that list: The Gilded Wolves.

The Gilded Wolves is set against the dazzling background of 19th century Paris and follows, what is essentially a heist of an ancient forged artifact of great significance. A seemingly mismatched group of friends and total strangers, each with their own specialty must learn work together to accomplish this feat.
- Severain, the protective leader of the group and heir to a powerful house of which the forged artifact in question was stolen.
- Laila, the charismatic Indian girl with a troubled past, who has the ability to “read” objects by touch, and tell their history by doing so. Also bakes a mean batch of cookies.
- Tristan, absolute sweetheart botanist who has a gift for plants and nature and is obsessed with his pet-tarantula. (view spoiler).
- Zofia, the engineer, who is probably somewhere on the autism-spectrum, based on her behavior. She loves math, chemistry and has the rare gift of “mind-forging”. She is never “labeled” as autistic in the novel, which I really appreciated: the characters just accept her for who she is, without making a big deal out of it. She is also wickedly funny at times.
- Enrique, the biracial historian with a deep interest for especially the cultural side of his profession. He can be a little shy, and probably has the least distinct personality of the group, but brings a lot of depth to the story in his quietness.
- And Hypnos, heir to an aristocrat, queer and probably the biggest drama-queen in history. Although this is a very “dangerous” character to write (for risk of being “the-token-gay-comical-relief”), Chokshi just managed to pull it off perfectly. Hypnos felt well-developed and genuinely funny, and ended up being one of my favorite characters in the end.

Characters are a very important part of a novel for me, and more often than not the difference between a favorite or an “okay” read. Reading about the cast of The Gilded Wolves felt like traveling with friends to me, a feeling I honestly haven’t had with any YA ever since finishing Six of Crows.
Chokshi is an artist with words, and with her beautiful prose, she brings to life not only the characters, but also the lush world she built. Where Ketterdam was bleak and dark, the world of The Gilded Wolves is vibrant and full of life, and it’s a joy to immerse yourself in it for hours on end. The magic system, based on forging is best left explored for yourself, but suffice to say: color me intrigued. I loved what we learned in this novel and really hope we expand further on it in the next.

In the end, The Gilded Wolves is not a perfect book (because, guess what: I don’t believe those exist), but came damn close to a perfect reading experience for me personally, especially with the added immersion of the audio-experience. Highly, highly recommend, not just for fans of YA, but also for those of you who (like me) at times lose faith in the genre: this might just bring it back!

A treasure hunt adventure in the shadows of magic and suspision. Trying to start a revolution in a foeign country through magic; you would think at first for this to be a twist on the traditional Les Miserables tale, however you would be mostyl wrong. Although yes the story does has that same feel to it, it does not keep have the same power; but it lack in that area it makes up for in humour and adventure. It made me think more of Six of Crows crossed with a bit of The mummy (without the evil mummy coming to life). The adventure takes you and the characters through mysterious paths while trying to unravel what is going on. Then when the adventure is over, the book turns into a bit of a romance in a way, going away from the orginal adventure of the book into what feels liek the after story of which half you want to read and know and the other half you do not need to.

The writing style was good and I did enjoy the first part of the book, however my attention just was not caught enough after that. It seems to sway off a bit and I could not quite get the connection to the characters I wanted and needed to get back into the story.

The narrator’s voice was lovely to listen to I have to say and I really enjoyed the way in which they spoke each character and gave them some extra depth.

Was not quite the book for me in the end. However the writing was good and the story line averagely good in my opinon. For fans of six of crows.