Book Reviews; The Iron Daughter, The Iron Queen, The Iron Knight

In lieu of the fact that I will be releasing my The Lost Prince tomorrow, I decided it would probably be a good idea to review The Iron Daughter, The Iron Queen, and The Iron Knight first. I have decided that I would be writing three mini-reviews for them. Before reading these, feel free to head over and read my review of The Iron King.

Author: Julie Kagawa
Publisher: MiraINK
Published: 15th April 2011
Pages: 406
Format: Paperback
Source:: Library Copy
Add It: Goodreads, Amazon UK, TBD

Summary:
Half Summer faery princess, half human, Meghan has never fit in anywhere. Deserted by the Winter prince she thought loved her, she is prisoner to the Winter faery queen. As war looms between Summer and Winter, Meghan knows that the real danger comes from the Iron fey—ironbound faeries that only she and her absent prince have seen. But no one believes her. Worse, Meghan’s own fey powers have been cut off. She’s stuck in Faery with only her wits for help. Trusting anyone would be foolish. Trusting a seeming traitor could be deadly. But even as she grows a backbone of iron, Meghan can’t help but hear the whispers of longing in her all-too-human heart.

As mentioned in my review of The Iron King, I adore Julie Kagawa’s writing. There is something so unique about the way she writes and it is no different in The Iron Daughter. Meghan is now the prisoner of the Winter Court due to her binding promise with Ash, but when a war breaks out between Summer and Winter, she knows that she has to get out and it is Ash who helps her along the way. I really enjoyed this book in the series. It was full of action, adventure, fun moments and sad moments as well. While Meghan did start to be less of a heroine in my eyes – I cannot pinpoint what it is about her that started to slip for me but I just didn’t feel so much love for her – Ash, Puck and Ironhorse took my breath away and made me want to continue to read more about them.

Overall, this second book in the series was captivating, interesting, and held a brilliant plot that just kept coming at you. It kept you needing to turn the page and continue reading even when you had other things to do. There were parts that made me cry, but there were also parts that had me laughing out loud. It was the perfect combination. Fortunately, the ending led to an exciting build-up for the next novel. It wasn’t a cliffhanger but it kept your curiosity peeked enough to know that you want to continue the series.

Author: Julie Kagawa
Publisher: MiraINK
Published: 21st October 2011
Pages: 384
Format: Paperback
Source:: Library Copy
Add It: Goodreads, Amazon UK, TBD

Summary:
My name is Meghan Chase.

I thought it was over. That my time with the fey, the impossible choices I had to make, the sacrifices of those I loved, was behind me. But a storm is approaching, an army of Iron fey that will drag me back, kicking and screaming. Drag me away from the banished prince who’s sworn to stand by my side. Drag me into the core of conflict so powerful, I’m not sure anyone can survive it.

This time, there will be no turning back.

The war between Summer and Winter is over but now there is a war against the Iron Fey that threaten to ruin the entire fey world, and all the traditional fey in it. It is up to Meghan as a half-fey to do what she can to save her beloved fey-world once and for all. This third book in the series was really interesting to read and I truly enjoyed reading it. Just like the previous two books in the series, it had enough action within it to really capture the readers’ attention and just when you’re certain things will calm for a moment, something else will happen causing you to be caught unawares. In this story, there is some heart-breaking scenes, some heart-warming scenes, and some scenes that even in the middle of the war, will have you laughing out loud. It just goes to show that Julie Kagawa is simply brilliant at bringing these stories to life.

In summary, this was a book that took a step further for Meghan and Ash. A book that was compelling, action-packed, and full of every emotion under the sun. It was beautifully written making it truly easy to see the world that it was set within. I also really liked getting to see more of the Iron Fey in this story and all of the things that they represented. It was good to see that there was more to them that met the eye, it made them feel more realistic. This book had a heart-breaking ending which made me incredibly happy to realise that there was one last book in which my heart may have a chance to repair itself.

Author: Julie Kagawa
Publisher: MiraINK
Published: 6th January 2012
Pages: 368
Format: Paperback
Source:: Library Copy
Add It: Goodreads, Amazon UK, TBD

Summary:
“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.

The Iron Knight is, without a doubt, my favourite book in the entire Iron Fey series – yes I am counting The Lost Prince in this. I loved reading from Ash’s perspective but really it was also the plot of this book that truly blew me away. Not happy with spending an eternity without Meghan by his side, he takes a vow to do everything in his power to change his destiny. With the help of Puck and Grim, he travels to the end of the Fey world to do this. I was enthralled with all the different challenges that arose throughout this journey, I thoroughly enjoyed the relationship between all of the characters – but I especially enjoyed the friendship between Ash and Puck and all of the complications that arose from it. My favourite part of the book, however, was right at the very end of the book when they finally reach their destination – but don’t worry, that’s all I’ll say so as not to ruin it.

This book was, in my opinion, the perfect ending to this series. It was a great, fun, emotional, powerful story that literally took you on a journey and showed you the many strengths of the secondary characters in this series. It was interesting, unique, and really enchanting. I was overjoyed while reading this book and I just really loved the ending of it to pieces. I truly enjoyed Ash as a narrator and simply could not recommend reading this series just to read this book more. The series as a whole was really enjoyable, but it was this book that really tipped the scale for me. So, what are you still reading this for? Go and get started on the Iron Fey series NOW.

Faye