During my break, I continued reading this amazing series that I cannot describe how much I love it. I loved Gild and loved Glint and Gleam so so much, I am so excited for the next book in the series, Glow! I decided to do a joint blog post for books 2 and 3, so without a doubt, here are my thoughts!
This is a spoiler free, honest review and all thoughts and feelings are my own. Possible spoilers for book 2, Glint, in review for Gleam!
Glint by Raven Kennedy
Published: January 11, 2021
Publisher: Self published
Genre: Fantasy Romance
Pages: 441
Rating: 
Goodreads
For ten years, I’ve lived in a gilded cage inside King Midas’s golden castle. But one night changed everything.
Now I’m here, a prisoner of Fourth Kingdom’s army, and I’m not sure if I’m going to make it out of this in one piece. They’re marching to battle, and I’m the bargaining chip that will either douse the fire or spark a war.
At the heart of my fear, my worry, there’s him—Commander Rip.
Known for his brutality on the battlefield, his viciousness is unsurpassed. But I know the truth about what he is.
Fae.
The betrayers. The murderers. The ones who nearly destroyed Orea, wiping out Seventh Kingdom in the process. Rip has power sizzling beneath this skin and glinting spikes down his spine. But his eyes—his eyes are the most compelling of all.
When he turns those black eyes on me, I feel captive for an entirely different reason.
I may be out of my cage, but I’m not free, not even close. In the game of kings and armies, I’m the gilded pawn. The question is, can I out maneuver them?
This is the captivating second book of The Plated Prisoner series. It’s an adult epic fantasy story blending romance, intrigue, and beautiful imagery. Return to the seductive story of magic inspired by the myth of King Midas, and get caught up in the world of Orea.
Please note: There is explicit language and romance in this book, not suitable for those under the age of 18
FIRST OFF – this book is so freaking good and I devoured it so fast. I was in such a reading slump where I couldn’t pick anything up and finish it, until this book. I love Auren and her story and Raven has such a great way of building up a story until everything falls apart.
The Fourth Army gang was absolutely hilarious and as Auren grows more comfortable with them, the more I hoped she would get out of her head and see her gilded cage. Commander Rip is also so attractive just for the fact that he is so polite and respectful. Walk in on a person changing? Turn around and walk out without a word. The respect is so sexy.
And the friends that we make, I love it! I was finding myself fluctuating from laughing to grimacing to sweating in my seat as we work through Auren’s mind on how to get herself home. It was nice to have Auren away from the other saddles too because we get to see more of her thinking and personality away from Midas and his castle. And as we keep reading, I started hating Midas more and more and really didn’t want her to find her way back to him. It’s so agonizing!
By the end, my jaw was on the floor and I HATE her cliffhangers! It leaves me dying for more…
If you want to read the next review, feel free to hit continue! Be warned, if you haven’t read Glint, there will be spoilers in the review for Gleam! Continue at your own risk.
Gleam by Raven Kennedy
Published: May 31, 2021
Publisher: Self published
Genre: Fantasy Romance
Pages: 613
Rating:
Goodreads
King Midas made me the woman I am today. Notorious. Unattainable. His.
The thing about being confined is that you believe it’s to keep the bad out… Until you realize it’s about keeping you in.
I’m now in a strange kingdom surrounded by liars, with no allies of my own, but I won’t sit idly by and let myself wither. No, there’s something that’s bloomed from the pit of my repression. Something dark. Something angry.
But the last thing I expected was for my anger to call out to him. King Ravinger.
He’s sinister and powerful and entirely too seductive. I’ve learned my lesson with trusting manipulative kings, so why does my chest constrict every time he’s near? I need to tread carefully, or I’m at risk of losing much more than just my freedom.
Regret and revenge war inside of me, and I need to figure out a plan fast before I get tangled up in the schemes of kings and queens.
Because I won’t be caught in a cage again. No, this time, It’ll be me setting the trap… I just hope my heart comes out of this unscathed.
Okay, this book. This fucking book drove me MAD! Raven has a tendency to slow build her books, which means that the beginnings are slow and steady and slowly pick up pace until we’re falling off a cliff. This book was the slowest start of the whole series and it took a while for things to really pick up, but I loved it nonetheless.
Once Auren FINALLY realized that Midas is a big fat, fucking jerk, I was rejoicing. It made me so happy to have her eyes fully open and seeing all of the utter bullshit going on! And with all these new layers coming in, things start to get way more complicated and intense.
One thing I really wanted more of though was Auren and the Wrath scenes. We don’t get as many moments with them in this book and I really missed them. It makes me so sad…
But, we do get some really spicy, explicit scenes so if you’re someone who doesn’t like smut, run away. You will not enjoy this book at all. I thought that the beginning of Gild was intense, but wow, this book goes in to alllll the detail and nothing is left unsaid. It was really forward.
I loved loved loved the plot of this series and this book. Gleam made me want to scream the entire time and I had such a hard time putting this book down. It’s definitely a brick but I managed to read it in only a few hours, I could not stop myself.
And the ending? KILLER.
I’m still dying from it because Raven is the Queen of Cliffhangers and I’m dying! I need Glow in my hands right now, I don’t know how I can wait any longer.
If you liked these reviews, be sure to check out other books by Raven Kennedy!
We Write At Dawn 