Summary
King Midas made me the woman I am today. Notorious. Unattainable. His.
The thing about being confined is that you believe it’s to keep the bad out… Until you realize it’s about keeping you in. I’m now in a strange kingdom surrounded by liars, with no allies of my own, but I won’t sit idly by and let myself wither. No, there’s something that’s bloomed from the pit of my repression. Something dark. Something angry.
But the last thing I expected was for my anger to call out to him. King Ravinger. He’s sinister and powerful and entirely too seductive. I’ve learned my lesson with trusting manipulative kings, so why does my chest constrict every time he’s near? I need to tread carefully, or I’m at risk of losing much more than just my freedom.
Regret and revenge war inside of me, and I need to figure out a plan fast before I get tangled up in the schemes of kings and queens. Because I won’t be caught in a cage again. No, this time, It’ll be me setting the trap… I just hope my heart comes out of this unscathed.
My Thoughts
Raven Kennedy just keeps making the Plated Prisoner series better and better as the books go on. Gleam is incredible, and I love it so much. I’m glad we picked up the pace in book 2, because this new plot pace is perfect for the story.
Our characters are now all together and interacting and I AM HERE FOR IT! King Ravinger vs Midas in a battle of who can out wit the other? Yes, 1000x yes.
I really wanted to focus on the growth of Auren in this review, because she made a lot of progress in book 2, but it is blown out of the water in proportion by the progress in Gleam. She is not going to take Midas’ shit any longer – she will NOT be in the cage, she will NOT be controlled, she will be allowed to LIVE or she will live on her own accord.
It simply was beautiful watching Auren deal with everything Midas threw at her, and he threw a lot to say the least. She stood up and took it and played the game just enough to have freedom to do what she needed, but she still stood up and went toe to toe with Midas on the big issues… and for the most part, won. She is amazing! For a woman who has been through this much abuse and trauma, it is incredible to see her stand up for herself against her abuser.
Now Midas is the ultimate perfect villain, and I say this because I was cringing with disgust several times throughout the book at what he did. the emotional abuse, attempted manipulation, drugging, physical abuse, needless murdering, torture, mind games, the fake golden happy facade… and I am sure I am missing stuff!! He was written so well, and I hated him so much.
Then we have King Ravinger – can he take me away to his rotted kingdom? I am ready. His persistence with Auren and his willingness to push her to her own conclusions was so heartwarming.
You’re not the villain in my story.”
“I am,” he says without remorse, his sharp jaw tight with tension. “But I’ll be the villain for you. Not to you.”
MY HEART <3 Now that is just the most dark romantic thing I have ever heard!! He is sexy, smart, caring, strong, kinda broody, and cares for Auren so much it is adorable.
I am SO GLAD we got to have the Ravinger + Auren pairing finally!! It took way too long for me, I wanted it so much sooner. I feel like it was written perfectly, but I am impatient and the angst and build up drove me wild! Their scenes were so spicy and sexy and I loved it so much.
The ending? Fabulous. Wonderful. Perfect. Amazing. OMG.
Let’s just say Auren is a bad ass and while I am crying I am also shouting ‘Fuck yeah go Auren’! This girl let’s nothing stop her and I am here for it. I can’t wait for what happens in book 4!
Overall, Gleam by Raven Kennedy as part of the Plated Prisoner series was an inspiring, amazing, intriguing, heart wrenching novel and I recommend it to everyone!
Worthy of a re-read.
See what other books I think are worthy of a re-read here.
Read my reviews of Gild (1), Glint (2), Glow (4), Gold (5), Goldfinch (6).
