Gilded in Vengeance / Lyssa Mia Smith / Book Review

GILDED IN VENGEANCE

Two years ago, two girls attended a magical ball. One was given the sponsorship of a lifetime. The other was never seen again. But she's been waiting.

Two years after being framed for fraud by the Society of the Charmed, Emmy Vallilo waits in her magic-proof cell plotting revenge. Because it wasn't just a coincidence or bad luck that the wealthy turned on her that night. She thought Grace was her best friend, but now she knows that Grace is the one who ruined her life, who took everything away from her.

When her cell wall explodes one evening, Emmy jumps at the chance to be free. To seek vengeance, perhaps. She knows she should run and not look back, but... Jack Fontaine, one of the Society's (former) favorite sons, is waiting for her. He was framed, too, or so he tells her. And he needs her help for the revenge he has in mind.

THOUGHTS

This book was... kind of a frustrating read. Normally, when I give a middling-high rating to a book, like 7 out of 10, it is because I found the book to be good enough without personally connecting to the story or the characters. That's not the case here. There were instances in this plot, in these character arcs, that were so good... and some of the little things, the technical faults, really hindered that connection. It didn't feel as polished as I wanted, and that's so unfortunate.

PROS

Frustrating	As much as I was frustrated by this read in a bad way, this book can be frustrating in a good way, too. These characters are cunning and sharp. They're trying to infiltrate high society of the magical kind, and they're trying to execute the takedown of a lifetime. But as cunning as they are, their opponents are just as crafty. Even when the opposing parties don't fully realize what game is afoot, our protagonists always find themselves just one step behind. And that's frustrating in the best way possible -- scheming foiled again and again, but victory right there, just in sight.
Gilded Age	Historical fantasy is rare enough. Gilded age with magic? What impeccable taste this author has. It's glitzy. It's glamorous. It's set in an age of immense innovation and great wealth disparity. There's so much to dig into here, and adding that spice of magic just is the cherry on top.
Romantic	I'm usually pretty neutral about the romantic subplots that YA seems to demand, but I really liked the main couple in this book. I liked their character arcs, the trajectory of their romance. I didn't like Emmy's denial of their mutual attraction as much, but hey, you take what you can get. I liked them together as a couple. They're a great compliment, and everything unfolds so... organically. With a twist at the end that really pulls it all together. I liked it, and that's pretty rare. So definitely a win there.

CONS

The biggest issue this book has is pacing. There is a lot of scheming happening. There should be more scheming happening, in my opinion. And... more acting on the schemes. There's a lot of waiting. An incredible amount of downtime. And we the readers have to be a part of it, because we're constantly told about the waiting, too. So much waiting. And hoping. And so little doing. We don't need to be there for every moment of a story, as readers. Waiting and waiting and waiting: that's not very fun.	Waiting, Waiting, Waiting
Waiting... and hoping. Hoping, hoping, hoping. Because as clever and cunning as these characters are, most of their plans really hinge on luck. And it's a big task, what they've set out to do. Of course some luck would be involved. But it felt like almost everything was just down to them getting very lucky. The characters themselves don't have much agency, because there's not much they can do to sway the outcome. I wanted to get behind them, to really back their scheming and their vengeance, but I never felt like they could actually do something. So what am I rooting for? Everything hinged on luck, no skill or cunning, and that's not a very good plot device, either.	Lucky Dogs
This one is more of a personal pet peeve than a real flaw in the writing, but I don't particularly like the type of magic system employed in this book. It's a very limited magic system. You get what you get, no way to really improve or learn better as you practice. You might marginally increase your skill, but there heights of power here aren't very high. You can power up with the right charm, of course. Marginally. And without the right charm, like when your charm is taken away, you'll be back down to your normal power level (and drain yourself to try to reach anything close to what you could achieve with a charm to enhance it). And all this... is fine. It's fine. But it doesn't really speak to me, I guess. Being nearly powerless without an artifact in hand? Fair enough. But not that exciting.	Power Scale?

Rating

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
7/10

Fans of Gail Carriger's Etiquette and Espionage will like this campy new historical fantasy. Those who liked Allison Saft's A Fragile Enchantment will like the inspiration this book takes from real historical immigrant woes.

Details Publisher: Storytide Date: November 4, 2025 Series: N/A Add to Goodreads Buy it HERE

Note: I was provided with an ARC by the publisher through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions here are my own.