While Deka and her friends might have been surprised to learn she was the Nuru, destined to free the goddesses at the end of The Gilded Ones, you won't believe the final twists and turns of The Merciless Ones. What Namina Forma has done here is nothing short of amazing! What started out as a female empowerment, fight the patriarchy tale quickly turned into a story focused on finding power in true friendship and overcoming the very deities Deka fought so hard to free. I cannot wait to see what happens next!

I really enjoyed the Gilded Ones and was excited for this sequel, but unfortunately I didn't love it as much as I liked the first book in the series. I have a sense that this was mostly setting up for a third book in which more action will take place, but this one felt like it was meant to be more about world building and exploring the religion/mythology of Otera. The main character, Deka, is pulled in many directions as she learns more about the Gilded Ones, the goddesses who ultimately created her, but as she begins to question some of what she has learned, the reader gets swept into a back and forth between competing divine entities, and it's a bit of a challenge to know who is telling the truth. I will finish out this series for sure, but this one was just a little on the slower side for me.

This book was such a great read! I flew through this book in one afternoon because I loved it so much. The main characters were unique and interesting which is something I love in a book. It was a very interesting and fast paced read which made me never become bored. Great book!