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A review by thebakersbooks
The Gilded Wolves by Roshani Chokshi
5.0
5/5 stars - engaging and full of wonderful characters
Roshani Chokshi's note at the end of The Gilded Wolves describes the inspiration behind the novel: her need to capture both the glamour and grotesquerie of France at the turn of the 19th century. She succeeded in building a beautiful, complex fictional world based in well-researched history.
The Gilded Wolves dealt deftly with issues of racial discrimination, colonialism, and cultural appropriation; the characters' backgrounds informed their behavior and motivations, adding a layer of unflinching realism. And speaking of characters—I've never been so invested in every single member of an ensemble-cast storyline before! Chokshi wove six character threads (four of which are POV) in such a way that I was never bored with one character's chapters or in a hurry to move on to a different character's subplot.
The plot itself was full of unexpected twists, making this a hard novel to put down. Dialogue and character relationships were some of my favorite aspects of the book; each voice was distinct and all the interactions between different groups and combinations of characters were an absolute treat. Between the characters and that heart-stopping ending, I'm more than ready for the sequel! (It doesn't even have a release date yet, so I'll have to find some patience somewhere.) In related news, I'm sold on Roshani Chokshi as an author and I'm excited to try the Star-Touched Queen series!
I recommend The Gilded Wolves to fans of ensemble fantasy in the vein of Six of Crows; also to people who enjoyed The Night Circus and Caraval.
[ETA: I'm seeing a lot of other reviews comparing this book to the Dregs (Six of Crows) duology, often unfavorably. While I saw the similarity in the ensemble-cast-committing-heists thing, I personally don't think there's too much overlap otherwise. I wasn't a huge fan of Six of Crows and never read the second book, but The Gilded Wolves ticked a lot of boxes for me, enjoyment-wise.]
Roshani Chokshi's note at the end of The Gilded Wolves describes the inspiration behind the novel: her need to capture both the glamour and grotesquerie of France at the turn of the 19th century. She succeeded in building a beautiful, complex fictional world based in well-researched history.
The Gilded Wolves dealt deftly with issues of racial discrimination, colonialism, and cultural appropriation; the characters' backgrounds informed their behavior and motivations, adding a layer of unflinching realism. And speaking of characters—I've never been so invested in every single member of an ensemble-cast storyline before! Chokshi wove six character threads (four of which are POV) in such a way that I was never bored with one character's chapters or in a hurry to move on to a different character's subplot.
The plot itself was full of unexpected twists, making this a hard novel to put down. Dialogue and character relationships were some of my favorite aspects of the book; each voice was distinct and all the interactions between different groups and combinations of characters were an absolute treat. Between the characters and that heart-stopping ending, I'm more than ready for the sequel! (It doesn't even have a release date yet, so I'll have to find some patience somewhere.) In related news, I'm sold on Roshani Chokshi as an author and I'm excited to try the Star-Touched Queen series!
I recommend The Gilded Wolves to fans of ensemble fantasy in the vein of Six of Crows; also to people who enjoyed The Night Circus and Caraval.
[ETA: I'm seeing a lot of other reviews comparing this book to the Dregs (Six of Crows) duology, often unfavorably. While I saw the similarity in the ensemble-cast-committing-heists thing, I personally don't think there's too much overlap otherwise. I wasn't a huge fan of Six of Crows and never read the second book, but The Gilded Wolves ticked a lot of boxes for me, enjoyment-wise.]