Title: Gold Shadow (Bronze Rebellion #1)Author: L.C Perry
Publication Date: December 2, 2017
Format: Mobi File
Rating: ★★★★
Goodreads Page
Synopsis:
In the North American continent, eighteen year old Ebony has been living as a slave for as long as she can remember. The underground cities, the tattoo, the scars and the shackles are a part of the only world she has ever known. She knows that in order to survive, she will have to stay strong. And she will stay strong, cursing those in power, until her very last breath. She waits for a meaningful way to die as she quietly pushes her body to its limit…but that all changes when rebels from the surface drop down right in front of her.
Now, Ebony is challenged to envision a life beyond slavery as she and the other escapees are thrown into the center of a rebellion against the monarchy. She has to embrace this glimmer towards a real life…this glimmer called freedom. But what can she contribute to a rebellion that is doomed to fail like those before it? How can they stop a corrupt monarchy that has lasted for a century? Among the lower class, those with hope are hard to come by, but Ebony has found refuge with people full of it. And through their strong desire, an idea emerges…one that has never been done before. The princess of the country is coming of age and what better way to send a message to the king and queen than to kidnap their only daughter?
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Going into this I had no idea what to expect. I knew this would be a YA dystopian version of North America with a monarchy government and aspects of slavery. What I got was a slow-paced, character-driven story following the perspectives of both a well-written yet insufferable princess and a slave who has never had the opportunity to hope for a better future.
Gold Shadow does feature fairly dark subject matter, which was an aspect of the story I enjoyed, but for others who may be upset by certain things mentioned, I'd like to give a content warning for the following; violence/brutality/physical abuse, mentions of rape/sexual abuse, and strong language.
Before we get into the bulk of this review, I'd like to mention that Gold Shadow is the first book in a series and any of the minor issues mentioned below may be improved upon or developed within the continuations. Also, the second book of the Bronze Rebellion series, Emerald Dream, will be published May 29, 2018.
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PLOT:
Overall, this story seems to focus more on setting up the world and introducing characters, while the plot is minimal and doesn't resort to gimmicky plot twists to add a false sense of action. The first 20% of this is pretty slow-paced but uses this time to develop our main character, Ebony, and set up the slavery aspect of this world. From there, the pace picks up and we see a bit more action as Ebony's situation changes and we move into the events mentioned in the synopsis. For the last 15%, the story returns again to a slow pace as certain things are coming to a close. I did feel that the story had ended a bit abruptly and would have liked some kind of epilogue or another chapter to tie everything together after the climactic event of the abduction and bridge the gap between Gold Shadow and Emerald Dream.
The abduction is mentioned in the synopsis in a way that makes it seem as though it will be the focal point of the story, but when the time to plan it actually comes, we don't see that buildup. Instead, we follow the other perspective until the actual abduction takes place. Because this is divided between two perspectives, I feel the need to mention that most of the plot in this story takes place in Ebony's chapters, but I think this is done to really show us what Irene's life is like, even though the activities may be considered mundane.
Something I really enjoyed in this is the lack of romance. There are some hints at what may develop into a romance, but in this first installment, the romance is practically nonexistent.
There were a couple scenes that really stuck out to me that I would like to mention. At one point, Ebony begins strength, reflex, and combat training. There is one scene in particular where she is training and completely failing to hit her target, a failure for which he mocks her. After missing over and over again, she continues to get back up and eventually she takes her opponent by surprise and hits him. I really loved the message this sent and what it showed the reader of Ebony as a character.
The other scene I thought worth noting takes place after Ebony has become involved with the rebels. While dancing with friends, Ebony hears the beat of the music and experiences what is essentially PTSD. The stomps she felt coming from the everyone in the crowd causes her to flashback to when she was a child and saw the people in her village systematically murdered. I felt that this scene helped to develop Ebony a bit more by not only showing us a part of her childhood but by showing us how it has continued to affect her.
The abduction is mentioned in the synopsis in a way that makes it seem as though it will be the focal point of the story, but when the time to plan it actually comes, we don't see that buildup. Instead, we follow the other perspective until the actual abduction takes place. Because this is divided between two perspectives, I feel the need to mention that most of the plot in this story takes place in Ebony's chapters, but I think this is done to really show us what Irene's life is like, even though the activities may be considered mundane.
Something I really enjoyed in this is the lack of romance. There are some hints at what may develop into a romance, but in this first installment, the romance is practically nonexistent.
There were a couple scenes that really stuck out to me that I would like to mention. At one point, Ebony begins strength, reflex, and combat training. There is one scene in particular where she is training and completely failing to hit her target, a failure for which he mocks her. After missing over and over again, she continues to get back up and eventually she takes her opponent by surprise and hits him. I really loved the message this sent and what it showed the reader of Ebony as a character.
The other scene I thought worth noting takes place after Ebony has become involved with the rebels. While dancing with friends, Ebony hears the beat of the music and experiences what is essentially PTSD. The stomps she felt coming from the everyone in the crowd causes her to flashback to when she was a child and saw the people in her village systematically murdered. I felt that this scene helped to develop Ebony a bit more by not only showing us a part of her childhood but by showing us how it has continued to affect her.
CHARACTERS:
The change in perspectives can be a bit jarring as there is no indication that the perspective has changed and it didn't follow an ABAB pattern. That said, you can figure it out pretty quickly which character your reading about. The story is described as having a diverse cast of characters, and I will agree with that to an extent. There is a racially diverse cast and mentions of a hijabi character, and an albino character. However, both are minor characters, and neither are developed very much. This is an issue I had with quite a few characters, we're introduced to so many, but most aren't mentioned more than once or twice, making it easy to confuse the characters' names and descriptions. This is something I'm hoping will be developed with the continuations. Gold Shadow also features several strong female characters, again some of them being background characters. There were a few characters I would have liked to see more of, but they've been set up in a way that gives the impression they will play bigger roles later in the series. Below I'll talk a bit more about the two character's perspectives we follow.
The change in perspectives can be a bit jarring as there is no indication that the perspective has changed and it didn't follow an ABAB pattern. That said, you can figure it out pretty quickly which character your reading about. The story is described as having a diverse cast of characters, and I will agree with that to an extent. There is a racially diverse cast and mentions of a hijabi character, and an albino character. However, both are minor characters, and neither are developed very much. This is an issue I had with quite a few characters, we're introduced to so many, but most aren't mentioned more than once or twice, making it easy to confuse the characters' names and descriptions. This is something I'm hoping will be developed with the continuations. Gold Shadow also features several strong female characters, again some of them being background characters. There were a few characters I would have liked to see more of, but they've been set up in a way that gives the impression they will play bigger roles later in the series. Below I'll talk a bit more about the two character's perspectives we follow.
Ebony - Of the two perspectives, Ebony is definitely my favorite character. She starts and ends the story as a total badass, but grows stronger throughout, and becomes someone who is doesn't just exhibit strength, but wields it like a weapon. I felt that her character was realistic in her reaction to the world above ground and the confusion and wonder she feels as she learns more about it. Ebony frequently reflects upon the idea that she is unfeeling and does not care about others, but she shows us over and over that she does, by doing things such as stepping in to take another's punishment or going out of her way to help another person. It almost seems as though she can't help but care for others, and unintentionally forms bonds with them, which is something I thought was absolutely adorable.
Irene - Irene is a very unlikeable character, but I think that's a testament to how well written she is. She is painfully ignorant of the world around her, incredibly spoiled, and shallow, all traits which feel authentic to her character. Characters that are realistic are not always likeable and I can really appreciate the 'unlikeable female character' aspect being a part of this story. Given how the story ends, I think we'll see major character development from her as the series continues. And despite Irene not being a favorite character of mine, I did enjoy the satirical view of the superficial and wealthy elite that we get in her chapters.
Another thing I enjoyed was the characters' lack of traditional family that appears throughout the story. Ebony and many of her friends do not have any family or they belong to a non-traditional one and consider each other to be close loved ones. Even Irene, who has both parents alive and well, does not have a typical family. The emotional closeness she lacks towards her parents shows up in her relationships with certain palace workers. There appears to be this running theme that family is those you care about and those who care about you, not people you share DNA with. This is something I love seeing in books, but only when it is done well, which I feel is the case with Gold Shadow.
SETTING:
This story opens in a city where most of the citizens are slaves and sets the tone for this side of society pretty quickly. The beginning is brutal, but brutal in the best way and it really adds to the vibe of this world. The other perspective follows the character's life inside her palace as she prepares for her coming of age. I will say, my only complaint with the setting was that I had a hard time picturing the outside world. To be fair, the story takes place primarily underground, in a palace, and in a building, so we don't see much of the world overall. Hopefully, this is something that's explored further in the sequel, but I would have liked to know more about what this world looks like and how it came to be given it is a dystopian world.
WRITING:
The writing is straightforward and not too flowery, which I appreciated. Though the author does demonstrate a knack for metaphor/simile usage and uses descriptions and phrases that add to the darker atmosphere of the story.
QUOTES:
- "If she were to let dreams back in, she would have to say hello again to nightmares too."
- "Reminding a person of how weak they were was one of the cruelest things they could do to one another."
- "Hell has been in my backyard for a long time now. And Death is a good friend of mine."
RECOMMENDATIONS: I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys YA dystopian stories with a strong female lead and dark subject matter. It was hard to find a book recommendation for this because the two perspectives we follow have two completely different vibes, but I think I've found a couple that fit. If you enjoyed An Ember in the Ashes, you may like this for Ebony's perspective as the slavery aspect is similar and Ebony as a character is strong in a way akin to Laia. And I think anyone who liked Of Fire and Stars may enjoy reading this for Princess Irene's perspective, as she, like Princess Dennaleia, is a royal who is buried under the burdens of being a Princess with little involvement of the less pleasant parts of the world around her.
✿ Let me know in the comments if you have read Gold Shadow and what you thought, or if you have any thoughts or questions about this review. And if you liked this review, feel free to subscribe to BookSass for more reviews and bookish goodness. Thanks for reading!
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