Cursed is the sequel to Gilded, the Rumpelstiltskin retelling by NYT best-selling American author, Marissa Meyer. It’s the summer solstice, some seven weeks since Serilda has been cursed by the Erlking, her spirit tethered to Adalheid Castle, just as Gild’s has been, and the day she is to wed His Grim. She’s carrying Gild’s baby, due on the Winter Solstice, but holds back that information from the Erlking and Gild both, afraid of the reaction. Each full moon when the Erlking takes the dark ones out to hunt, Gild and Serilda search the castle for their not-quite-dead corpses although, even if Serilda finds hers, could she free her spirit and leave? While the ghosts of five children so dear to her, killed by the Erlking, are still under his control and prevented from eternal rest in Verloren, she has to stick around, see out the deal she made: marry the Alder King, pose as the happy Alder Queen, hand over the baby at birth. Except the baby was promised to Gild in payment for gold-spinning… The conclusion of this tale is just as enthralling as the start, taking several twists in the lead up to a nail-biting climax, before a satisfying resolution and the requisite happy ever after. There’s plenty of magic, villainous demons, monsters of all stripe and colour and inclination, and this half features a feisty young self-crowned queen. There are revelations and reunions, shocks and surprises. Meyer manages to insert humour and heartache, and gives her characters some wise words and insightful observations about human nature and life. Often, Serilda sees her gift as a curse: “Have you been cursed by the god of stories? Does every word out of your mouth somehow land everyone you love in danger?” When she is finally able to make that complaint to Wyrdith in person: “I do understand,” said Wyrdith. “Stories are powerful.” They threaded their fingers through Serilda’s. “What you don’t understand is that you have not yet written the ending.” While there is some recap, it really is essential to read the first volume before embarking on this one: assuredly not a hardship. Encompassing two volumes, Meyer’s retelling of this folk tale runs to almost a thousand pages, yet the reader is never bored; rather, impatience to learn where the story will next go keeps the pages rapidly turning. So enjoyable, this is Marissa Meyer at her best. This unbiased review is from a copy provided by Text Publishing.

I've never been the biggest fan of fairy tale retellings but I have absolutely loved this series. I've enjoyed that it was dark rather than fluffy and spooky rather than nice. A great mish mash of a few different fairy tales and I love how Serilda goes from being ordinary to extremely important with her gobbledegook fortellings and slightly loopy adorableness. The writing was so excellent I really felt Serilda's panic over wanting to get her body and baby back from her ghostly state.

The vividly immersive and gorgeously woven sequel to Marissa Meyer’s spectacular reimagining of Rumplestiltskin continues where Gilded left off, returning us to Adalheid, the ErlKing and his malevolently dark court. Following the shocking turn of events, Serilda now finds herself ensnared in a deadly game with the Erlking, who is determined to propel her deeper into the castle’s lies and secrets. Determined to free herself—and Gild from the Erlking’s clutches, Serilda works with Gild to help him solve the mystery of his forgotten name and past. But the Erlking’s plans aren’t as clear cut as Serilda first thought, for he doesn’t just want to bring back his dark huntress lover… he also seeks vengeance against the seven gods who (long ago) trapped his court of Dark Ones behind the veil, in a effort to protect the mortal realm. If the ErlKing succeeds (and Serilda and Gild cannot break the curse that tethers them to the castle, or learn to utilise their unique gifts before the Endless Moon) —then the mortal realm will be forever doomed… I was absolutely enamoured of the rich and deliciously atmospheric world building we encountered in Gilded and loved how Meyer expands on it in Cursed. Although just as vividly detailed as the first, the tone definitely felt a little darker with it’s hauntingly bleak and slightly macabre imagery that was reminiscent of the Grimm’s original. Though what I loved the most was Meyer’s expansion of the lore, delving into the backstories of the ErlKing, Gild and the Gods he soo despises. Our loveable protagonist and gifted storyteller, Serilda has really matured since the events in Gilded and watching her progression definitely highlighted her emotional development from her rash and impulsive tendencies. Likewise, Gild’s roguish charm and mischievousness was offset by several nuanced and emotional scenes surrounding the loss of his memories and an unexplainable sense of guilt, which I felt brought new dimension to his character. The chemistry between the pair was still fairly swoon-worthy but their dynamics were certainly angstier this time around. We do get to meet some new characters this time around, several of which were super interesting—not the mention all the secrets and intrigue that Serilda manages to stumble into. I enjoyed getting to see more of the creatures within the menagerie and the inclusion of Serilda’s folktales really helped to flesh out the backstory of the Gods, beasts and the ErlKing’s nefarious deeds without adding too much exposition to the plot. Overall, Cursed is another fabulously refreshing, plot twisty and utterly addictive YA fantasy that fans of Marissa Meyer or dark fairytale retellings simply must read! And if you haven’t already, I highly recommend checking out the first book in the series, Gilded. I also wanted to say a massive thank you to Divya for the giveaway which allowed me to read one of my most anticipated reads of the year

The Cursed Sampler brought us right back into the thick of things in Serilda's cursed experience! As I've grown to expect from these samplers, of course I was left wanting and will devour this full book when it's released! So far, my feelings are that this will be another five stars! Meyer continues to elicit the spooks and the grotesque gore I learned to love in Gilded, and I cannot wait to find out what she does with my ghost-boy, Gild! Update after finishing: Cursed was so much darker than I expected it to be! Even after how dark I found Gilded, it was still a bit of a surprise! But I loved how Cursed concluded the duology–I swoon for Guild and Serilda! I’m so happy Serilda found herself in this book and all she did for not only Guild, but all the ghosties. Of course this gets 5 stars and I’m so glad to have found Meyer to be a new favorite author!

3.5 rounded up We return once again to the Court of the Erlking, the Alder King, where Serilda lives with five little ghosts whom she dearly loves. In the morning she’s to live a lie and marry the Erlking but they are, of course, at odds. He is determined to use Serilda for his own nefarious plans whereas she has only one aim which is to help Gild, the forgotten prince, to recover his true name and his past. Can they break the curse that binds them both to Adelheid Castle before the Endless Moon when it will become unbreakable? The plot is very creative and there are some excellent visual images especially of the multitude of fantastical creatures they encounter. Initially, it’s very funny with some sparkling dialogue especially between Serilda and Erlking. Their wedding is a bit of a ‘shot gun’ affair and there’s delicious irony and mockery which is very entertaining. The whole novel is peppered with fun, games, ghosts, ghouls, poltergeists, some magic spells, fairytales, gods and some romance! It’s certainly a packed plot as Erlking becomes more audacious in order to achieve his goals. Along the way there’s an abundance of lies, guilt and betrayal. Characters make discoveries and have to make sacrifices, facing cruelty and vengeance. The second half is much darker and more macabre than the first and I don’t enjoy it as much. It’s overly descriptive which means it’s too long, it could easily lose 100 pages and still be a good read. It builds to a good versus evil, love versus hate ending. After all the build up it’s maybe resolved too quickly but it is immensely satisfying. Overall, a good read but not as enjoyable as Gilded which I loved.