To be completely honest, for most of this book, at least 75%, it wasn't making me happy. And I wouldn't necessarily say the ending made me happy, but it at least made me feel a lot more than the rest of the book did. The plot of this series still is just not my favourite at all, and I so wish it was because I want to love these books. I will say I really love Hypnos. I have a head canon about him, that I would love to come true but am also not super optimistic because lol I've been disappointed many times before.

I'm definitely going to read the third book after that ending

I enjoyed the first one for this series and while I struggled through this one, it wasn't because it wasn't well done. It is a well done book and world building, I am no longer finding myself in these novels however and have gone on to others. But that's nothing against this book, it is without a doubt quite good.

⅘

The magic. The charm. The thrill of the mystery.
The sequel to The Gilded Wolves is a marvellous story that lives up to the first book while standing on its own with new characters and a group of people with secrets so dark and lonely it seems to fill in the cracks left behind after the events of The Gilded Wolves.

The Silvered Serpent, opens with a truth whispered between sheets and talked about in mirrors so others wouldn’t know it. A secret and a pain that comes off the page with such force that it grips you around the collar of your shirt and throws you through the next four-hundred and sixteen pages.

The group is fractured and the one empty chair in the observatory under the stars is more of a wound than a reminder. But no one is going to talk about it. And just as well since the group is taken on a new heist, with larger than life characters who seem just as odd as they are, and new land with impossible backgrounds and even more impossible tasks in order to save the one they love the most.

**Thank you to Wednesday Books, Netgalley, and Roshani Chokshi for a copy of this ebook in exchange for an honest review**

The second installment of The Gilded Wolves trilogy continues the adventure of our new fave gang since Kaz Brekker and the Dregs. Severin and Laila (and others) are back with a new mission - find The Divine Lyrics, a book that no one can agree on what it says, but everyone knows it's important. Severin needs it to become a God. Laila needs it to learn more of her past. The Fallen House wants it because it was theirs, but they can't find it because it was lost so long ago. It's a race to see who will uncover it first.

I was worried this installment would fall to the typical middle book syndrome but IT DID NOT. Middle books can sometimes be on the slow side because of setting up the plot in the third, but The Silvered Serpents kept the action and adventure going the whole time - with twists and turns and a stunning ending that I did not see coming.

For fans of Six of Crows and Enchantee, The Silvered Serpents continues the captivating, historical adventure that will take you through France and Russia - and everywhere in between - while deepening the magical story of these 5 friends.

This books picks up exactly where the last one leaves off. Emotional highway and dealing with death 😭
Definitely more action and more suspense than the first. Can't wait for the next one!

Amazing novel that is highly recommended for genre fans. This book will be purchased for library use.

“You cannot protect everyone from everything. You are only human, Severin.” With these words Laila inadvertently plants a seed in Severin’s mind: if he were immortal, he could save everyone. All he needs is the book, The Divine Lyrics. All he needs to get the book are his friends, the people he cares most about, the people he must keep at arms-length in order to reach his goal. With reluctance, the team gets back together and travels to the ice-covered location of the Sleeping Palace to find the book before the winter meeting of the magic-wielding Houses convenes. For when they do, the possible will become impossible.
This is the second in a series (hopefully only a trilogy!) It won’t make sense unless you read the first. The characters are individuals with their own quirks, desires, and opinions. Love them, though Severin gets pretty annoying in this title with his one-minded goal that tears his friends apart. I hope the spark remaining in him at the end will burn brighter in the next book.

This is the sequel to The Gilded Wolves and, perhaps, is even more intriguing. The end of the first book was devastating and created a division among the protagonists of this series.
Severin is the leader, however, he leads with a harshness that reflects his inner turmoil to what he has lost. Although he can be difficult, his main goal is always to protect his fellow team members, even if he doesn’t exactly show that.
Join Severin, Laila, Enrique, Hypnos and Zofia as they travel to Russia seeking the Sleeping Palace and The Divine Lyrics which will give them access to godhood. By reaching this goal, Severin believes he will forever be able to put his past and his emotions behind him by erasing feelings of guilt and sadness.
This sequel has a certain cleverness to its writing that can charm any reader. Match that with the elaborate plot and complex characters, and you get a truly great story. This world is so unique and delicious. Lavish details that will leave the reader fully satisfied. I highly suggest enjoying this enchanting creation. Pick up your copy on September 22, 2020.
Thanks for reading my review and happy reading!!!
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★ <i>I received an ARC by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review</i> ★

I want to start my review by stating if you absolutely loved the first book you will probably love this installment.
I really enjoyed the world building in the first book, but was not fully invested in the cast of characters and their relationships. I had high hopes, and was anticipating a deeper dive into the characters' development. However, the characters are all really depressed over the events of the last book, and have all split off from each other physically + emotionally. Which is understandable and would have been fine, except, this lasts THE ENTIRE BOOK!!! No one is working together properly, there is drama from unnecessary secret keeping, and Severin is being rude to everyone + dumb about everything. It was just too infuriating, all the new world building and magic introduced was fantastic, but I could not get over the characters and "plot twists" that were completely obvious. Also, there wasn't any real resolution in this installment, most of the plot was about creating ~drama~ between the characters and setting up the third and final book. I'm invested enough to continue reading this series to see what happens, but was pretty disappointed with the direction.

If you're a fan of magic, wonderfully deep characters, friendship, a touch of romance, mystery, intrigue and a tale which takes a darker note, this is one you'll gobble up and want more of.

Note: This is the second book in the series. I did not read the first one, which was a mistake. While it isn't too hard to settle into the second one without reading the rest of the series, it's clear that a lot of depth and richness is lost especially on the character end by not having the background information. So, I recommend starting with book one.

Severin is determined to find the one artifact that is said to enable mortals to turn into gods, especially now that his brother is dead and he'd like nothing more than to escape all emotions and the sense of helplessness. After a long and seemingly hopeless search, he happens across an unexpected clue and calls his group together. The friends all have been affected by the brother's death and let it hang over them like a dark shadow. Plus, each is battling demons of their own. Especially one of them has a heavy secret, which will only burden all five of them more. If they can find the artifact, there might be hope but there's more than a few secrets standing between them and that dream.

This is the first book I've read for 2020 and wow. The year definitely started off with a bang. To say that this one is well-written is an understatement. The author knows the craft and weaves the words into a very dark, emotional and well paced read. The scenes carry weight and come to life through details without ever nearing the brink of boredom. Emotions hit hard and are easy to identify with as each character sucks in with their own personality, fears and desires. It's definitely a read which grabs and draws in.

The book is written from the view of each of the friends. The author keeps this from growing confusing not only by labeling the person at the beginning of the chapter, but the writing and style for each one is fairly easy to identify right away. Kudos on this end, since that much head flipping isn't always easy. This, of course, allows the reader to sink into each character and gives the tale a lot of depth. Each character is amazing, each harbors horrible fears and secrets and each one has the reader feeling for them...even when some intentions aren't very pure and even, at times, slightly twisted.

The pacing is well done and holds steady the entire way through. On this end though, I did find that the constant head flipping took a toll. Although never slow, the main plot lost a tiny bit of steam sometimes as the characters were lost in their own thoughts and experiences. Also, some of the time jumps came a little sudden and I had to read back a paragraph to make sure the new paragraph was, in fact, a scene switch. A lot of this is due to the amount packed into the novel. There is a wonderful richness in character depth, and there are many secrets along with a large helping of intrigue. The story twists in dark ways and keeps emotions high. There's a lot to shoved into these pages, and the author does to a fantastic job of getting it all to settle in.

Also, this one is sold for the young adult audience, but I'd recommend it more for the higher end of this age bracket if not adults. The characters act very mature for their age and will settle in with older readers very easily, too. In any case, this is a wonderful read for darker fantasy friends.

This was absolutely amazing and a treat to read, despite how painful the angst and how much I wanted Severin to come to his senses earlier on in the book. I’m more eager than ever for what’s next!

This is definitely not the book to read first - getting into the characters, the world and the plot requires having read Book One (<i>The Guilded Wolves</i>). And unfortunately, the ending feels as though the author just stopped there and will pick things up in Book Three. Having a more sensible transition between books would definitely help.

However, if you have read the first book, rejoining the crowd pretty easy. They're all in bad places following their adventures trying to retrieve an artifact (no spoilers!). Trying to get and keep the gang together isn't easy, but for this mission they've agreed to try albeit for their own selfish reasons. There are some gaps in how things work, and what they're doing but eventually they end up in Siberia in a palace that has been virtually abandoned by the ostracized Fallen House. Again, the world here seems to be based on a "oh, we need this? ok, we've got it" basis leading to some leaps of faith on the reader's part.

And, again, that ending. It's just too abrupt for my taste.

eARC provided by publisher.

ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

**Spoilers ahead for The Gilded Wolves**

"Love did not always wear the face one wished it would. Sometimes it looked downright monstrous"

Roshani Chokshi has taken the beautiful, enthralling world from The Gilded Wolves and built upon in to create this masterpiece of a book! Fans of the first book will have their hearts broken, rebuilt, and broken again as they follow our beloved characters on their next adventure.

So what is this book about?

Following the rise of the Fallen House and the death of Tristian, Séverin and his team have drifted apart. After pursuing any leads on the Fallen House and The Divine Lyrics, the case has grown cold and their hope has dried up. But when a surprise lead pops up, the team will get back together for one last acquisition in order to avenge Tristian and stop the Fallen House. Journeying to the cold heart of Russia, Séverin, Laila, Enrique, and Zofia alongside Hypnos and his House, will learn exactly how far they'll go and how much of their souls they are willing sacrifice to save the ones they love... and maybe the rest of humanity.

In the first book, Chokshi introduced us to this beautiful, Forged world and to the wonderful characters that make up our team. I particularly loved how the POVs changed in order to introduce us to each character, their story, and to see their perspective of the story as it unfolds. In The Silvered Serpents it is no different, and Chokshi takes us even further into the depths of these beautifully complex and diverse characters. This way, we see the ice that has surrounded Séverin's heart after the loss of his brother, and his twisted and heartbreaking resolution to protect his friends further. This way, we see Laila as she approaches her birthday, and possibly the end of her life as well. This way, we see Zofia as she struggles to reconcile her natural family, with her sister sick, with the family she has created amongst her friends. And this way we see Enrique, still struggling to make his voice heard in the world and to gain respect for his work, all the while figuring out the state of his heart.

In this breathtaking sequel, Chokshi takes our team and their world and turns it on its head. The grief of their loss has changed each of them in their own way, affecting their work and relationships, while the world of the Order may be flipped upside down as well with the discoveries that they are about to make. What I enjoyed so much about this book was that Chokshi really leaned into the darker sides of each character and their personal struggle. She doesn't shy away from from the heavier emotions or the moral ambiguity that creeps into their lives. This lended an extremely human and realistic aspect to a world where everything seems Forged and made our characters all the more relatable.

Pushing further into this darkness, the lines between the "good team," i.e. Séverin & his crew, and the "bad team," i.e. the Fallen House, become blurred. The power that the Divine Lyrics offers is desired by all...what will they do to get it? What does it mean for the ends to justify the means? And who will they be at the end of it all?

Yet while this world is beguiling and beautiful, I wish that we could learn more about the art of Forging. This magical, god-like affinity that is so integral to the world Chokshi has built here is something that, even at the end of the second book, feels like it is under-explained. The art of it, how it comes to manifest in a person, and the extent to which Forging can be used are all things I want to know more in-depth....and this book doesn't necessarily give me the answers I wanted. However, this flaw, while important, doesn't impact the book as a whole, as the Forging concept is used as a mechanism for our characters' adventures, as they are the most important piece.

All in all, this is a character driven book that happens to be set in a beautiful, magical world. One of the things I love the most is the sheer diversity that Chokshi has brought to her characters. Biracial characters in the time where colonialism is still cool, a Jewish & ASD character when Anti-Semitism is on the rise and ASD isn't understood, and bisexual characters in 19th century. Readers will be hard-pressed to not find a character that they relate to in the slightest, and that is one of the many strengths of this wonderful series.

To put it lightly, I am in love, I am so sad this book was over, and I am dying for the next one. RIP my soul.

It took me longer than usual to get through this book, because I wanted to take my time and actually give it a fair chance.

I will be honest and say that I was extremely excited about the Gilded Wolves when I first heard of it and read the description, but ended up struggling through actually reading it. Mostly because the writing style and me just do not go together. I had a very hard time focusing, and unfortunately it was the same with the sequel. Which is not to say that any of this is "bad"; I actually really, really appreciate the author's vivid world and the intricacies they describe in both books. Atmosphere-wise, both are a win. I just found myself unable to fully immerse myself in it.

One thing that got a little easier with the sequel was following the characters. The first book throws you into this already existing group of .. friends, for lack of a better word. And everything essential is already established between them. That for me as the reader caused a severe disconnect. Same with the magic system. It's really not that hard to comprehend, but I feel it would have been more fun to learn about it if we'd had a charcter to follow who also sees all this for the very first time. As it stands, it was just confusing.

Now of course, it's a little easier to get into the story of the sequel, because this time we are familiar with the key points of it before going in.
Thus, even though it is probably just a bit of a "not for me" series (which I'm actually slightly grumpy about, because the idea of it IS great and is absolutely up my alley; just not the execution of it), I would recommend The Silvered Serpents to anyone who's either already a fan of The Gilded Wolves, but also to those who were kind of on the fence about the first book. I think it's worth it to give this one a shot and follow Severin and the others for a little bit longer to see if the world manages to pull you in or not.

This book grabs you and takes you on a trip to a world you could never imagine. In the 2nd book in the series Roshani Chokshi doesn’t disappoint. Hang on for the ride because you will feel like you are on a roller coaster. You will need to read the first book or else you will be a bit lost. I loved how she describes everything. It makes you feel like you are standing there in the middle of it all. The last book ended you go what no! This one will have you wondering what is going to happen next.
Severn has changed after they lost one of their own. Now he plans to pursue an artifact to have been said to whoever has it give the power of god. If he has that maybe things will be different. There hunt takes them to ice cold Russia and be careful who you trust as not everyone is what they seem. Secrets will come to light and betrayal is around the corner. Will the team survive this last job? I don’t blame to tell you so pick the book.
It will start out slow as she weaves her tale and before you know it she has you in her web. Enjoy the trip. I loved this book and can’t wait for the next one. If you have never a book by Roshani Chokshi do yourself a favor and pick one up.

While the premise was intriguing, the execution was abysmally subpar. The first thing I noticed was the prose (or lack thereof). The writing style is so choppy and coarse that despite the low complexity of the story itself I struggled to focus on what I was reading. There was almost no flow to the progression of the story and while I am no means a reader who requires the writing to be flowery and poetic I at least expect the writing to hold some semblance of structure. I got lost in the pointless, repetitive, and cringe-worthy dialogue and descriptors to the point that I wonder if this was ever proofread.

Ladies and gentlemen we have a big winner!!!! I proudly declare that I finished one of the best books of 2020 right now!

I cannot believe how much I loved this book, I gave four stars to the first one and but when I compare two of them, it’s only fair to give this one ten gazillion stars because this is so so so so sooooooooo much better. Can you hear I still slap my forehead for waiting too much to get this into my hands? BANG BANG BAN (Yes, my skull is too thick! Made by more woods than flesh!)

Our gang is back in business for another mission, both of them suffering from grief, toughened up, more serious and their bond got tightened. Severin is haunted the ghost of his great loss, building more walls around his heart not to show his feelings. He cares his teammates, especially one of them has the most special place in his heart but “love does not wear the face we wish” and he is about to learn it from the hardest way.

This book is darker and grimmer than the first one because the characters’ deep pain about their big loss following them behind like an ominous dark cloud and affecting their judgments, actions, mood swings. Of course witty dialogues and never ending sarcastic comments between Hypnos and Zofia thankfully save the most parts and makes us smile. I already admitted that I fell in love with those team members at the first book.
Every one of them were developed realistically make you feel like you have friends with them in your real life and you want to hang up with them, drinking coffee, talking about last twitter trends (okay I shut my mouth before I wear straitjacket again. Did I say again? Ups! Okay I should get a drink and stop typing.)

The rising tension of the book can make you say goodbye to your nails, to your hands and maybe entire arms. Stop biting them and concentrate on the pages! And I have to say something about incredible writing of Roshani Chokshi : the first book is great start but this book gave me skyrocket effect with its fast pacing, incredible story progression, exciting development, all those twists made my head spin so much and I’m still dizzy and confused right now! With her perfectly written, magical, philosophical, intriguing book with its amazing political references, she is taking you to a journey around Russia. She definitely worked her skills to create magical journey and made her words twist and dance around the pages, captivating us with this well-crafted story that we wish it never ends.

And after last revelation, I splash a big ice bucket on my head but I am still in shock, talking nonsense. Yes, I didn’t see it coming and I cry out louder in the middle of the night. My husband is begging me to stop screaming. But I cannot! Because this is torture to wait for what’s gonna happen next.
I
feel so lucky to have a chance to become one of the first readers of this book and I hope I will be also the one of first ones to read the upcoming work. (Last time I felt the same when I had to wait for two and half years for last season of GOT! Luckily I’m sure my waiting for this book will not result with full of frustration. This author is too gifted to write anything wrong.)

Special thanks to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for sharing this amazing masterpiece’s ARC COPY with me in exchange my honest review.

he Silvered Serpents by Roshani Chokshi is book two in her The Gilded Wolves Series.
The Silvered Serpents can be read as a stand alone. For best reading experience I recommend to read the books in order.
This is Severin and Laila's unique story.
I started redaing and at first I was a bit lost. I didn't know the world of them and it took me a minute to get into the story. But then oh boy what a storyline and what a wolrd.
Great read with great characters and a fantstic storyline. 4,5 Stars.

~~ I received an ARC copy of The Silvered Serpents by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review~~

The minute that I saw that The Silvered Serpents was already available for ARC, I squealed at the chance to get my hands on a copy. I remember the twists and turns and the way that The Gilded Wolves (the first book of this series) had sucked me in. It had been way too long since I'd read the first book and I couldn't wait to delve back in. My deep respect to Rokshani Chokshi who definitely did not hit a sophomore slump with this book. Each of the characters in this tale is changing, and growing and learning and I love that she gives the space for each character to evolve. The plot remains gripping as we follow the team in their search for The Divine Lyrics and to undo some of the things that happened in the first novel.

I love love loved this book and can't believe I have to wait who knows how long for the next one. This is one of the series that has definitely been worth the wait and Ms. Chokshi's masterful storytelling made it hard for me to put down. i can't wait to see what's next.

Rating: 5 of 5 Stars
Recommend: Definitely!
Review:

Oh sweet diggity-dog, this book took me for a ride and I am now angry that I have to wait over a year for the third book after that ending! I can't believe Roshani would write an ending like that and leave me crying in bed at 5 a.m. So rude!
Okay, so this book takes places a little while after The Gilded Wolves, with the team all still reeling and trying to cope with the loss of Tristan. Enrique is diving into his work and becoming an Illustrado, Laila is living as much as she can and being L'Enigme, Zofia is trying to figure out how to take care of her sister, Hypnos is being Hypnos, and Sevein is blaming himself and shutting everyone out.
This book starts with a serious bang and doesn't let up, not even on the last page. I adore the different POV, since it lets me really get to know all the characters, but also I get different perspective on events. There are plot twists on top of plot twists, the imagery is absolutely incredible, and that ending is going to throw some people into really deep bookhangovers.
Roshani absolutely blows me away with her world-building, this time taking us into the frozen heart of Russia, with creatures and palaces one can't even begin to fathom. The characters are all struggling in some way, have to deal with a betrayal, and an ending that is devastating.
I absolutely adored reading this book and I can't believe Roshani wrote down these beautiful words for me to devour. My only regret is how long I will have to wait for the third book.