This series!

It’s been SO LONG since I’ve felt about a series the way I feel about The Gilded Wolves!

The excitement, the intrigue, the drama! This book had me on the edge of my seat waiting to see what happened next. Even more so at its conclusion, knowing that there was still so much more of the tale to come.

Only recently have I started reading newer series that are still in the works, with upcoming instalments that have yet to be released. So, it’s been so long since I strayed from reading stand-alone novels or, if choosing to venture out into a book series, delving into one that hasn’t already been concluded. I forgot the feeling that grips you when reading an amazing, totally compelling book series without a complete finale. That insatiable need-to-know that can’t be fulfilled no matter how much you want it.

And The Silvered Serpents brought all that back to me. Oh so effortlessly.

Honestly, even looking back on the book series I used to love – checking religiously to see when the next installment in the series would be published and flying through them the second I could get them in my hands – I think The Gilded Wolves/Silvered Serpents blows almost all of them out of the water. I can’t think of any other book series I’ve read that include so many different literary genres, gripping plot-twists, imaginative world-building and unique, round characters.

And Chokshi manages to not only do so, but do it flawlessly.

The Silvered Serpents built off everything that worked in The Gilded Wolves, and made it even better. Chokshi obviously took advantage of the ~free real estate~ from an additional book to delve even more deeply into the fantastical (and thematically pointed) world-building of the international Order of Babel and the motivations of the main characters (which just made me fall in love with them more; as if that was even possible).

If her track record is any indicative, Chokshi is on a role. And, personally, I can’t wait to see what come next.

Thank you to the publisher, Wednesday Books/St. Martin’s Press, and NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC of this book. All thoughts are my own.

Hello Gemmies! I have a new book review to share with you today. Please note: I received a digital ARC of this book (via NetGalley) from its publisher in exchange for an honest and fair review.

The Silvered Serpents by Roshani Chokshi is the follow up YA historical fantasy to The Gilded Wolves. The Silvered Serpents picks up right where The Gilded Wolves ended. Immediately we see that our beloved characters are still dealing with the death of one of their own. Like Gilded Wolves, Silvered Serpents is very much a character driven story. This book really shines in the way it unpacks each characters grief and how they each deal with loss. Most are not dealing well and it is reflected in the choices they make and how they treat each other. I just wanted to reach through the pages and give them all a hug!! Or in Severin's case...shake him, really, really hard.

The action and stakes in Silvered Serpents are ratcheted up by 1000%. I think I gained one new grey hair with each plot twist and new puzzle unlocked. The world building is incredibly detailed. Roshani Chokshi artfully created lush decadent imagery on every page. With many of the scenes set in Russia, we get vivid images of ice creatures and ice palaces. There are also a plethora of fabricated creatures including one leviathan. The Silvered Serpents has underlining themes of duty, family, love, loss, and acceptance of one's self. To put it shortly, The Silvered Serpents is great!

If you are a fan of historical fiction, heists, travel, found families, action, mysteries, heartbreak, and love then go read this book! Published by Orbit, The Silvered Serpents is available for purchase from all major booksellers. I give The Silvered Serpents 4 out of 5 gems. I look forward to reading more stories set in this universe. Happy Reading!

Chokshi has brought another winner! I loved The Gilded Wolves and found this one to pick up the pace perfectly. The characters and story are compelling and draw you right back into this world and magic system. I love the adventures the characters take on and how they interact.
Highly recommend for the fantasy lovers. Definitely not a second book slump for this series!

#TheSilveredSerpents #Netgalley #StMartinsPress #WednesdayBooks

After thoroughly enjoying The Gilded Wolves, I was thrilled to get an advanced copy of Chokshi's latest work. The Silvered Serpents. Severin is desperate to make a name for himself, and after his last encounter with the Guild, starte the pursuit of an even more dangerous venture: an artifact to make himself a god. Each member of the team has their own secrets and insecurities, can they overcome them to find what they seek?

I liked this a lot more than the first one, perhaps because I listened to and read the book simultaneously. The narrators are not my favorite, and I tend to lose track of who is talking when I listen to them. So reading it along with the readers actually helped me get drawn into the story more easily. Why didn't I just read it? Because there are many Russian and French names, as well as phrases here and there, and I like to hear how the words are pronounced--it helps me to increase my understanding of the meaning.

As for the story, there was more that was developed in this 2nd book that made me intrigued, both about the way magic works, and also the mystery of the book, The Divine Lyrics. Without giving away too much from the first book (just in case you haven't read it), the first book ended with a huge loss that has the whole team reeling and Severin has decided he's going to just not love his team to protect both himself and them--at least that's how he treats them throughout. Honestly, I just wanted to wring his neck, except I felt bad for what he went through. To me, it's as if the logic completely erodes all sense of humanity. As for the rest of the team, I like how they learn to trust and lean on each other while still trying to protect Severin. There is a lot of push and pull in this second novel and you go between wanting to slap some of them and feeling like your heart is being torn out because they're suffering so much. Yes, this book made me feel so much more than the first book, and of course, this book leaves you completely hanging and I just want to see this team not suffer anymore! The bottom line is that I like this book so much more than the first one and I can't wait for the conclusion, which I hope is coming next year!

FTC Disclosure: Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) provided by the Author and Publisher via NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

The Silvered Serpents is a great YA novel. Loved the characters and the setting. I believe this is part of a series, however, I read it and enjoyed it without reading the first book. I highly recommend it.

“Life is cruel, and often without cake.”

This quote may or may not appear on my tombstone. TBD.

I think I liked The Silvered Serpents 5x more than I liked Gilded Wolves, mainly because the quest to find the lost treasure just felt more personal which kept me glued to the pages. There were also so many secrets to unfold!! I dare you not to be excited for the unveiling of the deceit.

And also, I love me some Enrique.

Like, you all can keep super dark emo boi Severini (I know it is Severin). I’ll stick with Enrique. If this story was all about Enrique and Zofia I’d still read this gem of a book, because they are couple goals. They understand each other, care about each other’s opinions, listen to each other…. even though Enrique is going out with Hypnos. Hypnos is interesting. He wants so badly to belong and be a part of the group. He tries too hard; I like that Layla notices this. He wants to be close to Severin but Severin doesn’t give him the time of day due to a slight done when they were kids (for that matter Severin doesn’t confront him about it either which is super frustrating!).

So yeah, Enrique and Sofia are couple goals, but on the other hand Layla and Severini bring the PASSION and romantic tension. Uuuuf, they are fire on the page. I love Layla’s character complexities, she contains multitudes. She is kind, yet confident. She is a baker who at night plays the role of a diva cabaret dancer! How cool is that?

In the Silvered Serpents they are all under such a dark cloud of emotions it is easy to understand why they burrowed into their darker selves. Severini does take it to the next level though by acting like a complete ass and pushing everybody away. It made for an interesting read. Layla on the other hand will not take pity on Severin and doesn’t even tell him she is dying *le gasp* she is not here to advance a male character’s story that is for sure ❤

I am super pumped for the sequel!

I loved this book, I think this is by far the best book of 2020!! I love reading good YA books.

I devoured this book in one sitting. Thank you so much for the chance to read and review..

WHHHHHYYYYYYYYYY HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO ME!!!!!!
How long do I have to wait till the next one? OMG I can’t cope literally WHAT THE HELL.
This is torture you are torturing MEE!!!!
Gah why did this book have to be so damn brilliant and mysterious and like the best book I have read this year.
Why did I read it so fast.... now I have AGES TO WAIT TO FIND OUT WHAT HAPPENS NEXT and it’s not fair.... you can’t leave it there.
That ending was too much... how will I go on?
Also how dare you do this to me again, just when I love someone you snatch them away from me - it’s not ok.
Now two of my favourite characters are lost and I want you to bring them back!

I've been a fan of Roshani's books for a long time, and when I first read The Gilded Wolves, I was hooked and knew I needed more of Séverin and his team of misfits! Even though the pub date changed for The Silvered Serpents, it was sooo worth the wait! The backdrop for this book isn't set in Paris like the first book - which I love a book set in France - but I'll tell you what, I am dying to visit Russia after reading this one!

Every page of this book is beautifully written. Without giving too much away, the tension is even higher in this book, and the romance... gah, the angst! Prepare for your heart to skip a few beats, be handed to you on a platter, and then slowly start beating again. I was enthralled to the very end of this action-packed sequel! Bring on the next book! Please, I beg of you!

This book took my heart in its hand and just kept squeezing until everything hurt. Then, the book ended and of course there's a major cliffhanger and of course book three is a long way out since book two just came out. So I'll just be in pain for a while until it comes out, no biggie.

Honestly though this was a great book. I adore the writing and the characters. The plot is great are there are some fun twists throughout the story that kept me on the edge of my seat. But oh, the characters. I love these characters so much and they really came to life in this book. I felt their joy, their anger, and their pain so clearly.

I'm so excited (and also so scared) for the next book to come out!

"𝘓𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘸𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘢𝘤𝘦 𝘸𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘴𝘩."⁣⁣⁣
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The Silvered Serpents is an extremely exciting follow up to Roshani Chokshi's The Gilded Wolves. I devoured this second book in the trilogy in less than 24 hours. The Silvered Serpents takes place not long after the first book ends, when many of the characters are still suffering from the events that took place in the previous book.  ⁣⁣⁣
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Severin gets the gang together again, for one last treasure hunt. They're looking for a book called the The Divine Lyrics, which The Fallen House seemed to have, and also is really needed by Laila to stay alive.  The hunt takes them to an impressive but creepy mansion in Russia, full of ice animals that attack as if they're real.  This book absolutely did not disappoint! I am really going to struggle now in my wait for the final book in the trilogy. Can't wait!! ⁣⁣⁣
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𝘋𝘪𝘴𝘤𝘭𝘢𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘳: 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘲𝘶𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘦𝘹𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘢𝘯 𝘶𝘯𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘰𝘧 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘐 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘦𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 St. Martins Press 𝘢𝘯𝘥 NetGalley 𝘪𝘯 𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘮𝘺 𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸.⁣⁣⁣
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The Silvered Serpents is the second book in The Gilded Wolves series by Roshani Chokshi. Ann intriguing young adult fantasy that is sure to take your breath away. I absolutely devoured The Silvered Serpents! From beginning to the very end, I was hooked.

In this sequel to The Gilded Wolves and middle book in her trilogy, Roshani Chokshi treats the reader to another treasure hunt/adventure. The treasure? The Sleeping Palace and The Divine Lyrics. The setting? Cold, icy Russia. The gang is still reeling from the events of the first book when Séverin finds a lead on the location of the Sleeping Palace and brings them all together again.
I’m totally entranced by the world Roshani has created. It’s such beautiful mixture of science and magic, I want go live there. It is of course aided by her wonderful writing.
The characters all given their due, time to grow, their own emotional story arch’s. All of their flaws and strengths add to the story, propelling it forward. The tension kept rising with each discovery as the group got closer to their goal. Roshani plotted it masterfully so I kept coming back and turning pages.
I loved The Gilded Wolved and I love The Silvered Serpents. I can’t wait for the final book in this series.
Overall 5/5

I received this book as an ARC through the lovely folks at Netgalley.

When I first read it, I opened it with trepidation. I loved The Gilded Wolves, and I was moderately afraid of this book. The first book was so intense, and spent so much time on character development, that I really didn't know what Chokshi would do in this title. I needn't have worried. Chokshi delivered a fantastic story that was brimming with a fast-paced plot and incredible character development.

Without being too spoilery, the treasure hunters of the first book have changed greatly by the time this title begins. They've been forced to examine what they always wanted. Here, they set new goals for themselves. However, since so many of these goals are shaped by the scar tissue of their pasts, and they have to decide if, once again, they're actually chasing something that anyone should actually possess.

Chokshi's imagined world of Houses and Forging and pieces of Babylon grows ever richer in this book. It's not a comfortable world, and her characters are not comfortable people. But I will read anything set in this world and with these characters.

4.7
This book has a more polished feel and it'ss not as confusing as book 1. There were times I wasn't sure about this book (Severin!) but the last quarter pulled it together and the last few chapters- wow!! The ending held a few surprises, and not many books have that ability.

Severin is the key: the one that pulls them together for heists, the one that saves them in the end. This book starts off with them devastated by the loss of Tristan (end of book 1,) with many of them having gone their own ways. Until Severin decides to pull off one last heist that would set them up forever.
The path he takes had me a bit angry, as he seemed taken in by the path of greed, towards godhood. And while that is true, and he's certainly lost in his grief, in the end he stays true to his family.
A story of love and family formed from friendships that have endured chaos, the height of victory and loss. The bonds that won't break and die despite wanting (and trying) to be rid of them, of everyone that could cause that kind of pain again. Redemption and grace. Betrayal and deceit- there were times I couldn't decide which character to root for, who was evil and who was hiding in plain sight!) The bad guy at the end was a devastating revelation, for all that it meant to the rest of the characters. My mind is still a mess sorting through it all!

"I wish my love was more beautiful."

Just take my heart, rip it out, grind it into shards of ice, and burn it. This sequel was spectacular but I CANNOT FORGIVE IT for doing what it did. What a beautiful, terrible, heartrending piece of fiction. Everyone should read it.

Writing: ★★★★★
Plot/Pacing: ★★★★
Character development: ★★★★ 1/2
Enjoyment: ★★★★★

This book is a sequel, and so my review will have SPOILERS for the first book in the series. Please don't read if you don't want SPOILERS for The Gilded Wolves. You can read my review of The Gilded Wolves here.

*****

...Are they gone? Good!

Alright, so let's just dive right in. First off, how dare she—the author has done us dirty, folks. Roshani Chokshi has written such a beautiful world with wonderful characters, and she keeps hurting them! And now we have to wait a whole year for the next book. Brutal.

The Silvered Serpents picks up shortly after the events of The Gilded Wolves. The team is fractured beyond repair following the surprise death of Tristan, one of their own, and all of them are (not) coping.

Severin has decided that the best way to not fail his friends again is by... failing them every day with a numb, cold caricature of himself. Laila is quickly approaching her birthday and knows that her days are numbered—she needs to find the book that can keep her alive. Zofia, Enrique, and Hypnos are caught in Severin and Laila's crossfire and it's not looking pretty—and they all have dramas of their own.

And then the group gets a lead on the Fallen House's Sleeping Palace, which seems to hold the answer to all of their problems. It has The Divine Lyrics, the book Laila desperately needs. Severin is also newly interested in the book, but for different (darker) reasons. And the rest of the team just hopes that this quest will lead to a happy ending.

But the night gets darkest before the dawn...

Filled with heists, drama, intrigue, stunningly lush descriptions, and shocking betrayals—this sequel has it ALL. I could not believe the amount of character development and plot development that Chokshi was able to cram into this novel. It doesn't even feel forced—it's that well written.

Like in The Gilded Wolves, this series' focus on the grim underbelly of colonialism and Western "might is right" politics was a cutting commentary, and that increases with this novel too. I love the diverse backgrounds of the crew and how their backstories unfolded to reveal more secrets and some interesting tie-ins to the discussion of race, class, and politics.

My favorite aspects of this series continue to be its world building, the setting descriptions, and the nuanced relationships between all of the characters. (And the angsty romances? SO WELL DONE.) Each of the POVs adds an extra layer of secrets, intrigue, and motives... and in this installment in particular, it was fascinating to see the pieces of the pie assemble into the final conclusion.

Which, without giving away any spoilers..... that conclusion gutted me. And was extremely surprising. If you thought the ending of The Gilded Wolves was big, strap in. This one is bigger.

I can't wait to see what Chokshi brings us next.

Thank you so much to St. Martin's Press via NetGalley for an ARC of this title in exchange for an honest review.

I missed my little wildly flawed found family of attractive misfits!

The Silvered Serpents may be better than its predecessor, The Gilded Wolves. Let me tell you why.

Plotting in Serpents is more clever and incorporates more topics grounded in real history, a fantasy element that I personally really enjoy. There's still a lot of confusion surrounding the various Houses and Forging magic which doesn't fully get cleared up in this book since the focus is more on the next great Heist and the character dynamics; however, there are loose ends tied up from book one and some explanations that shed light on previous actions. And the character dynamics are GOOD - characters are growing, becoming more and more fleshed out, intriguing new characters are introduced, and the alternating POVs are golden (or gilded, if you will). The final 20% of the book is unputdownable.

That being said, I genuinely don't think that you need to read book one in order to enjoy this installment. Which is a weird statement concerning a series of books that are ostensibly carrying on an overall cohesive tale. I wish there was more incorporation of recaps from book one to tie things together better. There seems to be a switch in focus from book one to book two that is mostly glossed over so it's a tad awk.

Overall, I was happy to be back in this world and back with these characters. While there is an awkward shift in focus and lots of elements remaining largely unexplained, there is clearly going to be a book three of this series and I will happily snatch it up when it arrives.

I really enjoyed this YA fantasy title. It was unique and the world building was exciting, fresh, and well developed. I felt connected to the characters and the plight of the story. I hadn't realized when requested that this title was a second book so I happily read book one first and felt truly invested in the books. The writing of Chokshi was equally as gifted as the development of the world building. This author pulls you in expertly while leaving you thoroughly reeling over the plot and characters.

Thank you to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for providing me with an advanced copy of "The Silvered Serpents" in exchange for an honest review.

This book was heartbreaking and wonderful all at the same time. Chokshi can take myths and history and twist them into something so vibrant and magical.

The first book in the series, “Gilded Wolves,” was much of what I hoped for from Chokshi. I was missing some of the poetic language from her past works, but the dialogue more than made up for the void. I loved every character, and the banter between them all was such fun. I also appreciated the mix of history, mythology, and forging. At times, it was a little challenging to keep up with all of the information and puzzles, but it makes sense to have such a diverse mix of culture considering everything connects to Babel.

“The Silvered Serpents” has all of the same elements, but it is a much darker tale. Séverin, Laila, Enrique, Hypnos, and Zofia travel to Russia in search of The Divine Lyrics. They are all wrenched by the death of Tristan, and some are processing his death in healthier ways than others. But, the stakes are high, and in the end, each much decide who to trust.

This is a story of love, but not a beautiful love. This is the kind of love that manifests itself in the form of heart twisting sacrifice. My heart was aching for these characters, and I am so anxious to see how their stories end.