Early Review: The Gilded Cage (The Prison Healer #2)

The Gilded Cage (The Prison Healer #2)
By Lynette Noni

Published By: Hodder and Stoughton
Publication Date: October 7, 2021
Date Read: June 27, 2021
Genre: YA – Fantasy
Source: Bought
Format: eARC from Hodder
Pages: 448

From Goodreads:
Kiva trades one cage for another when she leaves behind a deadly prison for a deceptive palace in this dark and dangerous sequel to The Prison Healer, which Sarah J. Maas called “a must-read.”

Kiva Meridan is a survivor.

She survived not only Zalindov prison, but also the deadly Trial by Ordeal. Now Kiva’s purpose goes beyond survival to vengeance. For the past ten years, her only goal was to reunite with her family and destroy the people responsible for ruining their lives. But now that she has escaped Zalindov, her mission has become more complicated than ever.

As Kiva settles into her new life in the capital, she discovers she wasn’t the only one who suffered while she was in Zalindov—her siblings and their beliefs have changed too. Soon it’s not just her enemies she’s keeping secrets from, but her own family as well.

Outside the city walls, tensions are brewing from the rebels, along with whispers of a growing threat from the northern kingdoms. Kiva’s allegiances are more important than ever, but she’s beginning to question where they truly lie. To survive this time, she’ll have to navigate a complicated web of lies before both sides of the battle turn against her and she loses everything.

Not all scars are as visible as this. I dare say you have many more on the inside. But never forget that every scar is beautiful. And you should never, ever, be ashamed of them.”

Oh! My! God! The Gilded Cage was absolutely everything I could have wanted from this book and more. Last month I read The Prison Healer and fell head over heels in love with it. I was completely obsessed and said that it was my favourite YA Fantasy ever… well, let me tell you… that is absolutely nothing compared to this masterpiece!

The Gilded Cage picks up right where The Prison Healer left off, with Kiva out of Zalindov and on her way to enemy territory. Kiva goes through a massive journey through this one. She has to deal with her growing feelings for Jaren, and her feelings of accountability to her family. She really wars with these two sides of her throughout the book… with disastrous consequences.

I went through such an emotional journey throughout this book. I am absolutely head over heels in love with Jaren. He is just the sweetest and perfect guy and he is head over heels in love with Kiva. I just loved seeing their relationship blossom in this book. I was swooning and my heart was bursting one minute and then the next I was on the verge of an anxiety attack over what was happening. That is a sign of a fantastic author to make me feel everything so much. I went through such a rollercoaster of emotions while reading. My utter love of Kiva and Jaren. My absolute terror of what was going to happen. My utter heartbreak at that ending. I was left screaming “HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO ME LYNETTE?!?!?”

The Gilded Cage was utter perfection. It was packed full of emotion and it had the most incredible fast-paced plot. I was left reeling so many times from the twists and turns hidden around every corner. I couldn’t believe what was happening and couldn’t turn the pages fast enough. I needed to make sure my favourites were okay…. I am absolutely dying to get my hands on the third book in this series. I loved every single second! It was perfection! My favourite read of the year so far!

“I have no idea what the future will bring for us, but right now she deserves the chance to live her life and follow her dreams. I can only hope she’ll grant me the honour of being by her side on that journey.”

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