“The Gilded Ones” by Namina Forna is a young adult fantasy novel. Deka is sixteen years old and will have her blood let at the Ritual of Purity in her village along with all the other sixteen-year-old girls. If her blood runs red, she is human and pure, but if it runs gold, that means that she is a demon and must be killed. Deka is dark-skinned like her mother and has to deal with racism in her mostly white village. Deka’s blood does run gold and her father disowns her and kills her. However, that is not the end because “Alkai” (demons) can resurrect themselves until they experience their true death. For some that is by drowning, or beheading, or burning, but Deka survives all these deaths. She is recruited for the emperor’s new Alkai army to fight the Deathshrieks, who are monsters that are attacking villages and becoming more and more aggressive and dangerous.

While the beginning of the novel was interesting, with the backstory about the rituals and demons and then her long journey to get to the army training grounds under the care of a woman she calls “White Hands” and another Alkai named Britta. I liked the world setup that Forna has done and reading about outcast teens learning about their powers. Unfortunately, the book spends about 2/3rds of the novel on the setup and training and then rushes through the actual battles and discoveries. The ending feels over very quickly, and everything is tied up in a neat bow.

For teens and young adults, “The Gilded Ones” is not a must-buy for your YA collection, but could be a good addition if your young adult fantasy novels are popular.

Reviewed by Kate Radke, Walker Memorial Library, Westbrook.