I didn't realize this was a sequel when I requested it. Since then I have checked out the first book and really enjoyed it as well as this one. Well done YA fantasy with a solid edge. I highly recommend it for purchase.

This was a good YA sequel. Great character development, plot, intrigue. A couple of the same issues I have from the first book, in that it seems a little too…happy for the setting. Kiva is too optimistic/happy etc for how she was in this deadly prison for most of her life.
But I do enjoy the story. I usually don’t read YA anymore but broke back into it for this series!

I am so grateful to have been given the opportunity to read and review this book, thank you very much.

I was absolutely obsessed with Noni’s first instalment in the Prison Healer series and when I saw this book I JUST HAD TO HAVE IT!

This series is so captivating and intriguing with an abundance of twists and turns keeping the reader on the end of their seat.
I love this book and am very excited for the third instalment.

The Prison Healer ended with such a bang that I couldn't wait to dive into this. I needed to see where Kiva's story went. There were so many complexities with the first book that I loved and really hoped that this one had those same complexities. I was not disappointed at all.

Out of the prison, Kiva is now struggling with her loyalties between her family and the royals. As she gets to know the royals more, especially Jaren, the lines start to blur. When she is re-united with her siblings, everything once again gets more confusing.

When this first started, I was shocked. It didn't start like I expected it too and didn't go in the direction that I thought it might go. So, it did take me a while to get past that as I was just a little shocked.

But, I loved it. The deeper I dived in, the more I was invested in the continuation of the story. Kiva being so torn between her loyalties was perfect. It really left me questioning a lot about where she was going to really going to side between all the revelations that were happening.

The ending, much like The Prison Healer, ended with so more bombshells that left me reeling. This was a wonderful sequel that still had so much tension. The author did a wonderful job of setting up the ending to this and I can't wait to see where it goes.

Big warning for cliffhangers :(

This book has such a remarkable story filled of betrayal, romance, complex and found family, plus magic, created a combination filled with the best of all worlds.

Characters from the previous book appear, and I enjoyed seeing everyone outside that dreadful prison, especially my fav character and cutie Tipp. And except for the obnoxious sister, this sequel adds more great characters, which makes the plot much more enjoyable and the conflict all much more interesting (shootout to Caldon!). As always Jaren and Kiva have fantastic chemistry and a charming and engaging romance, to the point where their exchanges feel genuine. However, aside from being Kiva's love interest, Jaren doesn't really have a character, which is a shame because I know he has a lot of room to improve. They're perfect in any case!

Lynette’s writing style is excellent, this book doesn’t suffer from the info dump the precious one has, it’s dynamic and exciting with scenes intertwined in witty and funny dialogues that leave your heart beating for more. Honestly, I don’t see a fault in this book, excluding the annoying villains. But it lacks that unforgettable element that I can’t quite describe to make it unforgettable and a five-star review.

My suffering with the ending was INTENSE and I can’t wait to get my hands in sweet book three.

Wow, this installment was even better than the first book! I loved all the characters (except Kiva's sister. She was nasty!). Usually sequels aren't as good as book 1, but this exceeded my expectations. The plot was fast-paced and I really couldn't predict what would happen next. I felt invested in both Kiva's and Jaren's stories. A lot of questions I had while reading book 1 were answered in this book, but omg did the author leave us with a cliffhanger!! I can't wait for book 3!

Ok so this book took me FOREVER to read— that being said i did have school and finals during it—but i’m still mostly pinning it on the fact it was boring. There was a cute scene here and there, and I really liked Caldon, but it wasn’t until the last ~70 pages I started to really be interested in it. I’ll keep this spoiler free, so all I’ll say is I was very angered by some main character decision making. Also the author attempted political intrigue but I really couldn’t have cared less. Because of the ending, I have slight hope for the next book. I really loved the Prison Healer so I’m going to give book 3 a try! Typical middle book syndrome?

After devouring The Prison Healer and giving it five stars I had very high hopes for The Gilded Cage. It mostly delivered on those hopes. The twists were a little more predictable than the first book for sure, which is I think what prevented me from giving it five stars again.

The world building was what truly brought the writing to life for me. Since Kiva was trapped in Zalindov the entirety of the first book, we were not provided with much of the lore and knowledge of Wenderall that we would typically be provided earlier. Good world building makes or breaks a book for me, and Noni aced it in The Gilded Cage.

Lastly the characters were phenomenal, and the new ones didn't disappoint either. The relationships, dynamics, and politics between them all was written flawlessly and I kept wanting to know more. I think it was these dynamics that made me not able to put the book down!

Overall, I adore this series and I cannot wait for the final book especially after that last cliffhanger!

lynette noni has got me in a chokehold and i am not mad about it ONE SINGLE BIT.

the gilded cage is addictive, gripping and such a strong sequel to the prison healer. i loved the prison healer so, so much and was terrfied that this wouldn't live up to it but oh my god it DID. i am in love, love, LOVE with every bit about this.

after the last page of the prison healer, i was STRESSED to see how things would play out with kiva's identity and being surrounded by the enemy in the capital. i was sat on the edge of my seat the entire book because i was so scared for her. and after the ending of the last page of the gilded cage, i am afraid that i will go crazy if i do not read the blood traitor in the next five minutes.

i loved meeting new characters and to see noni build a bigger world than what was in the prison healer. it was so easy to feel as restricted and claustrophobic as kiva did in the prison healer when he spent the entire book in the death camp, but to see her out and in the capital was a (scary) delight.

PLUS THE ROMANCE??? i am still in love with jarren and their interactions made me so warm inside. butterflies did not go away whenever he was on the page.

i cannot wait for the blood traitor. the gilded cage was full of politics, anxiety and twists, so i KNOW the next book is going to rock my world.

IIIIIIIII- this book has an average rating of 4.5 ⭐️ but my rating is ~2.5 ⭐️ ~
I just think the first half was so much build up, truly no real plot development happened until almost page 200!? It was really slow up to this point and if that’s your thing sure but i don’t think it was mine considering it took me a whole month to get through those 200 pages. It could have been written differently, could have been more engaging without a doubt so those first 200 pages were a big disappointment to me.
Secondly I felt at the end there seemed to be multiple glaring plot holes popping up!? Literally (and heavy spoilers from now) kiva says she isn’t going to help the rebels anymore but is still so so focused on finding the dagger and giving it to zuleeka, girl for what purpose when u literally just decided not to do this behaviour and this is so unaddressed by kiva so at that point I couldn’t figure out if kiva lied about not working w the rebels anymore or not?
Also why did kiva keep trying to surprise her magic after her grandma literally died and explained to her why she shouldn’t like what did she not understand? It wasn’t even addressed that kiva didn’t believe the grandma or anything so that was weird
Zuleeka is also so sus the entire time!! But literally despite that every time she does something weird kiva is like no I forgive her bc she is my ~sister~ but zuleeka is insanely suspicious like omg
Also I think the ending of the book just came together way too fast compared to the first half and it was too cliched “how..could..you..”-jaren 🤮
I wanted it to be way more original and by the time the end came I was mostly rage reading. Who knows if I’ll read the next book or not like maybe I’ll skim read it? The third one could be better but overalll ugh this was unoriginal and disappointing I thought and it could’ve been so much better!!

That was a great sequel and I’m mad at myself for reading it four months before the third one comes out! I need the conclusion now!!

I don’t have much bad to say about this book. If I am really honest, I would say it took a little while in the beginning to really get into the story, but once the plot line kicked in, story really moved. Much like the first one, I couldn’t put this one down.

I really like the world that Lynette Noni has created here. The characters are really complex too. I knew Zuleeka would be an evil bitch but had no idea that the other character would be evil too. I don’t want to spoil it, but that was a surprise!

The ending was great. I really don’t know what Kiva will do. At first, in this book I was a little perturbed how often she found herself in the role of damsel in distress. She didn’t appear as strong in this book as in the first, depending on Jarren or her siblings a lot of the time to get her out of trouble. I am hoping in the third book, she channels a lot of that strength she once had at Zalindov to survive. It seems like she will really need it in this third book.

Overall, great story, great fantasy read, 4.5 stars. Really excited to see how this story will wrap up!

The Guilded cage has some great writing moments, but the book as a whole falls flat for me. Plus I couldn't get myself to like any characters this time around. If you were already thrown off by the out-of-the-blue twist in The Prison Healer, then I would suggest not bothering with this book. If you’re curious about what happens, it’s an easy read, just not a great one.
Full review to come on YouTube.

WHAT ON EARTH DID I JUST READ?!

Truly, Lynette Noni has become one of my favorite authors with this series. I loved the exciting and fresh feel of THE PRISON HEALER and I loved it just as much in THE GILDED CAGE. I didn't think this book suffered from second book syndrome at all. What it did do was make my heart warm up, make me swoon, make me happy, make me scared about the bad things about to happen, and left me destroyed with that cliffhanger ending that just got me the same way the ending in THE PRISON HEALER did. I loved watching Kiva struggle with her loyalty to her family and her loyalty to Jaren and the Valentis family, who she finds to be so much different than she anticipated. Jaren is like the world's most perfect book boyfriend and the chemistry between him and Kiva made me swoon so much. I also teared up at the end where lots of betrayals are revealed and crap hit the fan. He wrecked me. Kiva wrecked me. The romance was sweet, raw and real and that is a testament to how much time that Noni spends on that. Her character development was something else and was really wonderful. But as I was saying, Noni's sense of pacing and subtle foreshadowing was phenomenal in this book. I felt like the more I felt happy for Kiva the worse I would feel when Noni broke my heart and there was a sense of anticipation in that that kept me turning pages. I didn't want to look away. And truly, the ending had so many elements I didn't see coming. This series has quickly become a favorite and I really need THE BLOOD TRAITOR now or I may die. THE GILDED CAGE was an excellent second act to TPH and it took me down in the best of ways. Truly, I have to leave the review and the details really vague, but there was nothing I DIDN'T love about this book, and I am now wanting it to be June so I can see what happens next!

“The Gilded Cage” is a continuation of Lynette Noni’s “The Prison Healer,” where young Kiva has escaped a life of prison and is now living with the royal family in their palace. Kiva is struggling with the knowledge of her past and the choice that she needs to make: love or family. While she contemplates this struggle, she learns more of her healing trade and discovers secrets that were well-hidden involving her family’s history. This story ends on a cliffhanger, leaving the reader wanting to know if the protagonist will live or die within the next novel. A great young adult fantasy novel that will captivate the reader’s attention all the way until the end.

At the ending of the Prison Healer, the last few lines blindsided me a bit. I had suspensions that something was going on behind the scenes but surprised I was caught off guard! I had mixed emotions so I had to read the sequel and I am so glad I did! The emotion was there, new characters introduced, the twists and the end, and I loved being able to read more into these characters to learn why certain things were happening! This is a really fun series and I am ready for the next book! Highly Recommend!

I enojyed this book, although not as much as the first one. I loved the twists and turns that the story ended up taking and I am excited to see how the story ends. I enjoyed the exploration of friendship and familial ties that we saw in this book and I was not prepared for that ending! The only fault that I found in this book compared to the first one is the indecisivness of the main character. I understand why Lynette Noni had it in the story but I did find myself getting annoyed when the main character kept flip flopping. That being said this was still an amazing story and I would recommend anyone who loves political, romantic, YA fantasy to definitely give this series a go!

I absolutely loved The Prison Healer so there was a lot of high hopes and anticipation for The Gilded Cage. Let’s just say, it didn’t disappoint!

Something I love about fantasy novels is the fact that they act as a safe space that allows for the fun of magic and romance, all while touching on heavier issues surrounding politics, ethics, death, and more. ​This book isn’t a heavy one, in the sense that it’s quite easy to escape into. However, there are still lessons to be learned.

If you’re back from The Prison Healer for more romance I would say there’s just enough in this one! Although I wouldn’t say romance is the main focus of this story, there’s is a perfect sprinkle that will have you waiting for the next book!​

So, what is this one about if it’s not about romance? MAGIC, TENSION, SECRETS, and MORE. This plot is action-packed!! I don’t know want to give more away, but a LOT goes on so get ready for the ride!​

My last thought of reading this book is much like for the first book of the series: I WANT MORE PLEASE!!

It started right where the first opus ended which is always a plus. Also, this cliffhanger ya'll... you're not ready!
A great continuation for this amazing series.

I received a digital copy of this book from Edelweiss and from Netgalley for an honest review.

This was a really great second installment to the series. It kept me engaged until the end even though I found Kiva's internal struggles a little tedious at times. I also would have liked more Naari and less of Jaren. Book 3 should be good....can't wait.

The second book in The Prison Healer series.

This starts up almost right after the conclusion of the second book, and I was so happy to see these characters again! I loved watching Kiva battle with who her loyalty lies with and coming to terms with her decisions. I still wish to protect Tipp at all costs, and I adore him with my whole heart. I also thoroughly enjoyed the introduction of new characters such as Rhess, Torell and Zuleeka. I found all three to be so intriguing and I was so invested in how they played into the overall story. The second book is slower than the first, but it didn't feel like it lagged at all. I like how this had more of a focus on the political side of things, and gave us more of an understanding of life outside the prison we didn't get in the first installment. The first book was full of twists and turns I didn't see coming, and this installment was the exact same thing. At times, my jaw was on the floor from what happened in the story and where it was going.

I went into this book thinking it was a duology... I was expecting a nice conclusion to Kiva's story and then BAM heartbreak. I don't think you understand my SHOCK and SORROW of having to wait until JUNE 2022 before I know what happened to my babies. I love this series, and these characters so much, this series has quickly become one of my favourites of 2021.