Audiobook Review: The Bronzed Beasts (The Gilded Wolves #3)

Author: Roshani Chokshi

Narrators: Laurie Catherine Winkel & P.J. Ochlan

Audiobook Length: 11 hours 53 minutes

In love they breathed. In destiny they believed. In the end, will divinity be their demise?

After Séverin’s seeming betrayal, the crew is fractured. Armed with only a handful of hints, Enrique, Laila, Hypnos and Zofia must find their way through the snarled, haunted waterways of Venice, Italy to locate Séverin.

Meanwhile, Séverin must balance the deranged whims of the Patriarch of the Fallen House and discover the location of a temple beneath a plague island where the Divine Lyre can be played and all that he desires will come to pass.

With only ten days until Laila expires, the crew will face plague pits and deadly masquerades, unearthly songs and the shining steps of a temple whose powers might offer divinity itself… but at a price they may not be willing to pay.

Find It On: Goodreads / Amazon

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The Bronzed Beasts is the final novel in The Gilded Wolves trilogy. Over the course of the series, the group has gone from Paris to Russia and now they are off to Venice. This story picks up right where the last one leaves off as Séverin has fled with the Divine Lyre and is continuing his quest to become a God along with Ruslan, the Patriarch of the Fallen House. Since the reader is dropped right back into the action, it does take a bit to recall the details of the story. For me, I was lucky that I recently completed the previous novel, but I most likely would have needed a recap or some type if more time had passed.

Separated from Séverin, Laila, Zofia, Enrique, and Hypnos continue on their own quest. While Séverin, Laila, Zofia, Enrique, and Hypnos are all in the same area, they are not together and, naturally, the group dynamic has changed. Laila now has ten days left to live, Séverin is still on the quest to be a god, Zofia is facing her fears, Enrique still is trying to find confidence, and Hypnos wants to find a place to belong. These individual journeys have not changed since these were first introduced, and it was interesting to see how the factors from each story affected their journeys. The overall stakes may be similar to the first two novels as each character goes through their own journey, the obstacles and triumphs all come together to build up to this novel where all the conclusions will be reached.

I love that this series took different turns that I expected not only throughout the three novels individually but within each story. It also has a different pacing style than usual trilogies as most third novels have a faster pace and a larger climax. Although this story does build to a final climax and conclusion, it is not as dramatic as I expected. The romances and friendships in this story all wrap up, although I would have preferred a little more showing and less telling. The ending itself does have a rushed feel as everything comes together, but I have come to expect it from the series as it is too rare to find it where this does not happen. While I still prefer everything to be explored more, I did find it satisfying and would reread this trilogy.