Gilt Review

Title: Gilt
Author: Katherine Longshore
Publisher: Viking Juvenile
Release Date: May 15th 2012
Source: ARC for Review (Thanks Penguin Canada)
Buy: Amazon / Book Depository

Summary:



In the court of King Henry VIII, nothing is free--
and love comes at the highest price of all.
When Kitty Tylney's best friend, Catherine Howard, worms her way into King Henry VIII's heart and brings Kitty to court, she's thrust into a world filled with fabulous gowns, sparkling jewels, and elegant parties. No longer stuck in Cat's shadow, Kitty's now caught between two men--the object of her affection and the object of her desire. But court is also full of secrets, lies, and sordid affairs, and as Kitty witnesses Cat's meteoric rise and fall as queen, she must figure out how to keep being a good friend when the price of telling the truth could literally be her head

Review:

I'm not a huge fan of historical fiction, and I wasn't really expecting to like Gilt. Turns out I ended up loving Gilt quite a lot. I have never read a book that takes place so far back in the past, the 1500's, learning about life in the court of Henry the eighth is much more interesting than it sounds.

The drama that took place about 5000 thousand years ago is much more scandalous than it is in our time and age. Gossip, forbidden relationships, and executions are just a few of the everyday things that Kitty and Cat have to deal with on a daily basis. The way that Katherine Longshore writes in this book in the dialogue and the plot really gives the feeling of being in the 1500's. I love it!

Kitty and Cat are both alright characters, they each have qualities that I like and dislike. Kitty is unlike most girls her own age who spend their times hooking up with boys, which I admired in her. But she follows in Cat's shadows too much, and we don't get to see who she really is until late in the book. Cat is reckless and will pretty much do anything she desires, and she does so when she becomes Queen. I amdire her detication to get what she wants even though she can be really mean at times. This book is a very character driven book.

Throughout the book I was enthralled by how people lived back then and all the restrictions they had. The thing that had me with my jaw open was how they executed people, it was very gruesome. It was awesome! I was also amazed by what little things would get a person killed, you have to watch your every move beacuse one wrong step could get you killed.

The last couple of chapters up until the conclusion left me desperately wanting more. I'm looking forward to see what happens later in the series with all new characters and all new drama. If you're like me and don't tend to like books in this genre I would suggest giving this book a shot, it's really good. Love and betrayal have never appealed to me more.