Gild

The Plated Prisoner Series, Book 1

By: Raven Kennedy

Narrated by: Anthony Palmini, Lilly Drake

Length: 9 hrs and 16 mins

Publisher's summary

The fae abandoned this world to us. And the ones with power rule.

Gold. Gold floors, gold walls, gold furniture, gold clothes. In Highbell, in the castle built into the frozen mountains, everything is made of gold. Even me.

King Midas rescued me. Dug me out of the slums and placed me on a pedestal. I'm called his precious. His favored. I'm the woman he Gold-Touched to show everyone that I belong to him. To show how powerful he is. He gave me protection, and I gave him my heart. And even though I don't leave the confines of the palace, I'm safe.

Until war comes to the kingdom and a deal is struck.

Suddenly, my trust is broken. My love is challenged, and I realize that everything I thought I knew about Midas might be wrong. Because these bars I'm kept in, no matter how gilded, are still just a cage.

But the monsters on the other side might make me wish I'd never left.

From bestselling author Raven Kennedy comes the first book in the BookTok hit Plated Prisoner series, perfect for fans of Sarah J Maas and Jennifer L Armentrout. The myth of King Midas is reimagined in this compelling adult fantasy series that is as addictive as it is unexpected. With romance, intrigue, and danger, the gilded world of Orea will grip you from the very first word. Intended for mature listeners.

Newly recorded in duet-style narration by Lilly Drake and Anthony Palmini.

©2020 Raven Kennedy (P)2024 Podium Audio

Shadow Daddy & Plot Potential

Overall, I surprisingly really enjoyed this book as I have been burned several times by “BookTok” recommendations in the past.

Pros: Dual narration was really well done - the narrators were very well chosen. The plot build-up was mapped out nicely with lots of potential for interesting development in later books. The author definitely hinted at some major character development for the FMC, MMC (shadow daddy potential) and some side characters. A lot of reviews stated that the plot was really drawn out/not much happened but I actually thought it was relatively well balanced and not rushed for the sake of getting to the point faster.

Cons: Not to contradict my last sentence but some parts could have used some “slight” editing. At times, the author used a few too many sentences to describe a moment the FMC was experiencing or describing a certain train of thought/feeling. However, the slightly excessive writing was still well-written. A “Possible” Con is that this storyline/plot has the smell of “obvious conclusion” about it that often accompanies YA Fantasy novels. But, as this is more geared to an Adult Fantasy genre, my hopes are high and I definitely will be listening to the next book.

Fantastic narration with an engaging story

I absolutely loved the narration! I’ve been looking for a good fantasy book with dual narration. Both narrators do a fantastic job at embodying the different characters within the book. I recognized the male narrator from the full cast ACOTAR in which he played Rhysand and he did a great job in this book. The female narrator fits the FMC really well in my opinion and does a great job at conveying the span of emotions she goes through, even down to the chapter titles. The author does go into quite a bit of detail into the FMC’s mind, so it takes a bit of world building,but I personally was engaged the entire time. Looking forward to listening to the entire series as it was so well done in narration!

Elevated by the performance

I enjoyed this book more than expected. I went in with low expectations for a good time and that’s what I got. I think if I had tried to read the physical copy I wouldn’t have gotten very far, but Lilly Drake’s performance and narration elevated the writing. Things that might have sounded cringe in my own head were humanized and made enjoyable by her reading. I’d rate it 3.5 if I could give half stars, but I’m looking forward to the sequel when it’s released, as my understanding is that this book is very preliminary to the rest of the series and I have higher hopes moving forward.

Very enjoyable

Great performances by the dual narrators. Excellent quality and very enjoyable. I am a big fan of this series.

King Midas Retelling

I was thoroughly enjoying this book. I hate Midas like wtf. The way he manipulated her irritated me. I like that she has ribbons that she can control. That moment in the Barrens almost made me cry. Also why do I hate and love Commander Rip already. I also feel like this book was a great setup for a big fantasy series.

The voice actors made this book come alive!

A fantastic book, told by great performers! I couldn’t stop listening! The story was woven so well, nice twist at the end, ready for the next one!

Binged in Days

This story is so beautifully written and spoken. Not a single thing about the voice acting felt out of place when listening.
As for the writing; sublime. The world drawn is great, characters seem full enough for placement without question. The deeply described details are breath taking, striking but not overdone. Definitely gives off fairytale vibes. The characters and plot create an environment of excitement you don’t want to disengage with. I love that the female protagonist doesn’t feel overly leaning to the damsel side or the unearned badass side of the spectrum.
I immediately preordered book 2!

Amazing performance by all!

Incredible job by these voice actors. They really make all the characters sound different, which is tough to do well! Captivating story line that hooks you! Love this book.

Not my favorite narration

I enjoyed the story, and feel like my interest was held from the beginning. However, the narration with this book was choppy and sounded more like Lilly Drake was questioning what she had read instead of a proper narration. I felt lost a lot of the time before purchasing a physical copy of the book to read along.

Good narration

I enjoyed the book as it was an easy light read. Some items moved slowly in the book. A few good twists and turns but nothing super surprising.