The Iron Knight by Julie Kagawa

Source: Publisher

My name my True Name is Ashallayn’ darkmyr Tallyn. I am the last remaining son of Mab, Queen of the Unseelie Court. And I am dead to her. My fall began, as many stories do, with a girl.
To cold faery prince Ash, love was a weakness for mortals and fools. His own love had died a horrible death, killing any gentler feelings the Winter prince might have had. Or so he thought.
Then Meghan Chase a half human, half fey slip of a girl smashed through his barricades, binding him to her irrevocably with his oath to be her knight. And when all of Faery nearly fell to the Iron fey, she severed their bond to save his life. Meghan is now the Iron Queen, ruler of a realm where no Winter or Summer fey can survive.
With the unwelcome company of his archrival, Summer Court prankster Puck, and the infuriating cait sith Grimalkin, Ash begins a journey he is bound to see through to its end a quest to find a way to honor his vow to stand by Meghan's side.
To survive in the Iron Realm, Ash must have a soul and a mortal body. But the tests he must face to earn these things are impossible. And along the way Ash learns something that changes everything. A truth that challenges his darkest beliefs and shows him that, sometimes, it takes more than courage to make the ultimate sacrifice.
I adored this series. As sad as I am to see the end of the series, I was glad to see all of characters develop and become stronger. Puck was just as funny as the first book. His one liners were amusing. I also loved Grim. He is so snarky and honest. Ash seemed to grow up a lot and I still adored him as much as I did him in the first book. I missed Meghan's point of view and wished that it wasn't just Ash's point of view. Her voice and attitude were more engaging to me. The plot wasn't as exciting either and not as many remarkable events happened. Even with those drawbacks, I still enjoyed the book. This was partly due to Kagawa's flawless writing and how the stories were resolved. If you haven't read the first three books in this series, I would recommend reading those books now. You won't regret it.

The Iron King by Julie Kagawa

Rating:
Characters: 18/20
Plot: 19/20
Originality: 19/20
Writing: 20/20
Recommendation: 19/20
Overall: 95/100 or A
Source: Gift
Meghan Chase has always felt like an outsider, luckily she has her good friend Robin Goodfellow on her side. That is until her brother is replaced by a changeling and taken away into the land of Faeries. With the help of her best friend, who is really the Puck, she enters an exciting adventure to find her brother. Meghan also finds out that she is the daughter of the summer faery king. Now she will journey into the depths of Faery to face an unknown enemy . . . and beg the help of a winter prince who might as soon kill her as let her touch his icy heart.

I related to Meghan. She was fearful of the future and what could happen to her, when something suddenly happens. She was also unsure of herself, but had to take a chance on it. She was also very feisty and was set on she wanted, I admired that quality of her. Puck was really funny and made me laugh. He was a great friend to Meghan and was very loyal to her. I LOVED Ash! He was super sweet and awesome. He truly cared about Meghan even though it was against his family and who he was. Ash was totally swoon worthy. Grimalkin also added humor to the story and really made me laugh. He had the cat attitude and was very kick ass. Neverever was a vivid setting with a lot of amazing aspects in faeries.

I liked how it followed normal faeries rule like not being able to touch iron and such. I also love the idea of portals to the moral realm and how technology had created a new type of faery. I found this to be such an interesting and unique aspect that I enjoyed immensely. Romance is usually overdone or not done well in paranormal books, especially faery books. Kagawa made a balance between the adventure and the romance. I am sure that it will continue to develop in the next book. Kagawa is such a great writer. I loved how original and honest her writing was. She wrote a book that anyone can fall in love with. I would highly recommend it to anyone. The Iron Daughter comes out in August and I can't wait to read it.

Waiting on Wednesday (Week Nineteen)

Title: The Iron King
Author: Julie Kagawa
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Release Date: February 2010
When sixteen-year old Meghan Chase's little brother is abducted by the Unseelie Court, it throws her for a loop; she never believed in faeries. But with her best friend Robbie Goodfell—who turns out to be the infamous Puck—by her side, she ventures into Faeryland to get him back, only to discover it wasn't the Unseelie fey who kidnapped her brother after all, but a brand new species of faery led by Machina, the Iron King. These fey, born from the dreams of technology and progress, are completely immune to iron, and are a deadly threat to the courts of Summer and Winter. In the search for her brother, Meghan discovers her own faery heritage, falls in love with a dark prince of the Unseelie court, and confronts Machina in his realm of iron, to save herself and everyone she loves.
It is about fairies. I love fairies. I really want this book. It is also a tenner book and Julie is so nice.