Raven Kennedy's Gild is the first book in The Plated Prisoner series. The story is a dark fantasy retelling of the King Midas myth.

The novel follows Auren, a woman gilded in gold and kept in a golden cage in the palace of King Midas, the man whom we're told rescued her from a life on the streets in the flesh trade. At first glance, she appears to be living a life of privilege as the favored saddle to the king. (Saddles are women kept for the king's pleasure.) We're told that King Midas loved Auren so much that he gilded her in gold. The mystery is that most of the items that have been gilded are no longer alive. There's a gold bird in a cage that was once alive but is now a statue. The castle floors, walls and furnishings are solid gold, and the people wonder how Auren can still be alive in this condition.

Gild is full of slow-burn tension and mystery. This is a pretty typical fantasy romance, but it also shows character resilience, trauma and the beginning of a journey toward self-worth. Auren's character development is compelling, and we learn throughout the book that nothing is really as it seems.

The author leaves out just enough detail throughout the first half of this book to surprise the reader near the end with a twist that's perfect for the feminist audience -- although it was an easy guess to make by the time it was revealed.

The story uses a set of standard romantasy tropes such as morally gray characters, enemies to lovers, and incredibly slow-burning tension. In that respect, some of the plot points are formulaic and predictable. But the story is compelling enough to get away with it.

The pacing of the book can be slow and frustrating at times, and I believe the word count can be reduced significantly in the middle portion. But by the end of this book, the reader should be intrigued enough to start on the next in the series.

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