ARC Review--Cursed by Marissa Meyer

 

New York Times bestselling author Marissa Meyer concludes her young adult retelling of Rumpelstiltskin in Cursed, the sequel to Gilded.

Serilda and Gild attempt to break the curses that tether their spirits to Adalheid's haunted castle before the Endless Moon, when the Erlking means to capture one of the seven gods and make a wish to return his lover, Perchta, from the underworld. But as the story progresses, it becomes clear he doesn't want just one god—he wants to capture all seven, and force them to bring down the veil that keeps the Dark Ones separate from the land of the mortals. Serilda and Gild must try to thwart his plans, all while solving the mystery of Gild's forgotten name, freeing his younger sister who is trapped inside Gravenstone Castle, and trying to protect their unborn child.

Romance, adventure, and Serilda’s journey to finding her power as a woman, a mother, and a partner make this a retelling that Meyer fans—old and new—will treasure.

 

 

I received this ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest and voluntary review. I was in no way compensated for this review.

 

Marissa Meyer brings about an epic conclusion to her fantastic retelling of Rumpelstiltskin with Cursed! Gilded was a read that blew me away last year with its lush setting and descriptions! It truly read like a new fairy tale and Cursed is no different! The story is on uncharted waters though since Serilda was left in a predicament last time. The story will have you turning the pages eagerly, just to see how it will end, for as you may know, true fairy tales don't always end with happily ever after.

The story begins where it ended last time, Serilda is now prisoner of the Erlking and set to be his bride. The child that she carries, the one that she and Gild created, is going to be claimed as the Erlking's. She told him it was a simple farm boy whom she "laid with," and wouldn't be a problem. Though Gild still does not know the truth, but there is still their bargain to consider where she is to give him her first born in exchange for his help with turning the straw into gold.

Serilda is a spirit without a body still. Her body, along with Gild's, is being kept somewhere, hidden away. She and Gild continue to search for their bodies so that they might remove their curse and be free of the castle, but it has been slow work. In the meantime, Serilda tries to entertain the spirits of the children whom she used to know from her village that that Erlking killed to hurt her.

The pacing is a bit slow at these times, but it feels reminiscent of the pacing in the old fairy tales where things just took time to happen. True, those were shorter, so you jumped scenes a lot, this is filling in those moments so there's no time lapses. Either you enjoy a good long, detailed tale, or you don't. But the world-building and character growth along the way makes for great entertainment that I never found myself bored with it.

The Erlking though is working on his plans for Serilda and the old gods. His plan to be reunited with his dead lover, Perchta, is coming closer to fruition. He's also using Serilda's stories against her that will play into this plan for the gods. 

The romance between Gild and Serilda is still there of course. Though things are tense between them what with the "marriage" between Serilda and the Erlking. Serilda is unable to tell Gild the whole truth behind the marriage. So he doesn't even know the child is his. Tension runs thick in this one!

The ending was nothing short of epic! It was just the thrilling, heart-pounding kind of ending one could hope for in a fairy tale retelling! You think you know the story of Rumpelstiltskin, but you haven't seen anything yet with what Meyer will do to you!

If you're a fan of fairy tale retellings, this is one you will want to check out for sure! It takes what is a shorter fairy tale and lengthens the story. This is a wonderful blend of fantasy and fairy tale and bringing enchantment and magic in new ways to delight the reader! This was a story that held me captivated from beginning to end and it was one of the most perfect duologies I've read!

Overall Rating 5/5 stars

Cursed releases November 8, 2022