Today I have a mini review of the novella GILDED CAGE by Dani Wyatt, a standalone title in the Legends and Lovers series. It’s a quick monster romance read that had me raising my eyebrows.

Author: Dani Wyatt
Series: Legends and Lovers #3
Age Category: New Adult
Publisher: Self-Published
Publish Date: March 29, 2022
Print Length: 98

Find Gilded Cage on Amazon*, or read for free with a Kindle Unlimited subscription.

*This is not an affiliate link and I do not make a commission from any purchase made using this link.

Official Synopsis

A horrible curse has turned me into a monster. It keeps me from the one thing in this world that makes me want to live.

Calliope wanders the halls and rooms of the golden castle, unable to leave cursed by the same dark forces that will to keep us apart forever.

Night and day from the edge of the woods, I watch. I stalk her, pacing as she wanders the lonely halls and rooms of the golden castle, the same dark curse that has trapped her there confining me to life inside this monstrous body in the darkness.

The forces arrayed against us, keeping us apart, are strong, but my will is stronger. The mere sight of her is the balm to the rage inside my twisted body, even knowing I can never touch her.

But I know I must find a way.

Will the magic we create together be enough? Will it break the dark curse and allow us the life I so desperately want to give her?

Or will the forces of evil prevail, tearing us apart again, this time forever?

Author’s Note: These star-crossed fated mates will do anything do break the curse. This read is safe, no cheating and the steam level is H I G H. Enjoy this quick read while you lose yourself in the fantasy world of Aramoth where love always finds a way.

LEGENDS AND LOVERS is a collection of dark legends and star-crossed love stories from nineteen bestselling authors. Woven with mystery and magic, love and lore, romance and suspense, this multi-author collaboration promises to make your heart pound and keep you reading late into the night. Discover all the books in the series at legendsandlovers.com

*This is a standalone title part of the Legends and Lover’s paranormal series.

My Review

I decided to read GILDED CAGE because I saw it described as a spicy Beauty and the Beast retelling. The beginning of the story was fairly par for the course, introducing a curse, some very light worldbuilding, and fated mates. But it quickly went south for me and not just because I realized I was accidentally reading a monster romance (human and orc, for those who want to know).

The story quickly gets to the smut of it, which isn’t a bad thing, but in this case I felt it was because I found the descriptions and situation wholly unbelievable. But this is fantasy, you say, so does it need to be believable? For me, yes. I just cannot fathom how a certain anatomy part can be the length of a human thigh, but not cause destruction when used. It’s completely distracting, and not in a good way. Moreover, the preamble and dialogue to all of the action felt stiff, pun not intended.

Anyway, I can’t vouch for the rest of the novellas in this series, which have different authors. But I just can’t recommend GILDED CAGE. The only reason I finished it was so I could complete a Trope-ical Readathon challenge. Since this novella is only 98 pages, I’ll stop my whinging here because I think you get the point.

Rating: 2.25
Content warnings: sexual content, gore
Reading format: Kindle e-book