Review: The Iron Queen

The Iron Queen (The Iron Fey #3)
Julie Kagawa
Paranormal fantasy

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.

You can read my reviews for books 1 and 2 here.  If you've read those you'll see that each time, I came at these books expecting to love them but then was disappointed. 

The cover is beautiful, the premise is original, everyone seems to adore the series. And yet, I could only just tolerate the first two. However, The Iron Queen redeemed the series for me- I don't love it yet, but I can tell that I will by the end of book 4.  

Meghan started off as annoying as ever, treating Puck like trash but then running back to him for help the second she needed him. Her concerns were ASH ASH ASH. 

But then, miraculously almost, she experienced what we call 'character development'. ROUND OF APPLAUSE PLEASE, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN. Took her three darn books. Seriously, Ms. Kagawa. She starts to care about BOTH of her companions and the kingdoms relying on her, and goes lengths to secure her human father's safety and mental health. She takes charge when she can and yields results. It was fun and refreshing, if a little unbelievable at times when she beats people with way more skill and experience than her at sword fighting. Whatever- I'll take whatever improvement I can get.

Ash opens up much more, and we can see that there's A LITTLE BIT OF PERSONALITY in that 'piece of ice he calls a heart' (Thank you, Puck). Speaking of Puck, he (and I) finally begin to accept that Ash and Meghan will be together and he stops trying to woo her. 

Hands down best character is Grimalkin. When the answer has been obvious to me for 150 pages Grimalkin loses his patience with Meghan and says, annoyed

"Really, human. Sometimes I despair." 

....

HE UNDERSTANDS ME

And he goes on throughout the book with many sarcastic remarks, much like me in this review. 

One last problem. The novel contradicted itself in some places and just plain didn't make sense in others. Like how a certain person survived in the end? Whaaa

Okay, okay. RANT OVER. In the good, I did enjoy this novel in spite of myself. I guess that's why I continued all the way to book #3. But the best news is-

BOOK 4 IS ALL ABOUT PUCK AND ASH. TOLD FROM ASH'S POV. 

I could throw a party. 
Rating: 3.5 stars. If you know how to cut pictures, please enlighten me.

Review: The Iron Daughter

The Iron Daughter (The Iron Fey #2)
Julie Kagawa
Paranormal, Faeries

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.

You can read my review of book 1, The Iron King, here.  So as you know, I was overall disappointed with the first book of this series. There was too much insta-love. And I'm not just talking about Meghan and Ash, but also Oberon (Meghan's fey father) and Meghan. The latter I felt needed a lot of delving into because it'll be important to Meghan's future in the Nevernever. 

I enjoyed this sequel a little more than the Iron King, but not so much that I'm running for book 3. Honestly, quality wise it wasn't much better- I'm  just familiar with the characters and the world now. The series isn't character based- as in, it's not the character's PERSONALITY and DECISIONS making things happen, but rather random obstacles thrown their way. The big motivation for Meghan in this installment is ASH ASH ASH. Even when he broke things off with her, he was her number one consideration. IT WAS SO ANNOYING. This isn't Mockingjay, when Peeta and Katniss legit LOVE each other and want each other alive for completely selfless reasons and those are unquestionable facts because we were right there for the whole process. Not to mention in Mockingjay there was an actual reason to worry about Peeta. Here I just couldn't buy anything Meghan did because the reason she did those things was her love for Ash WHICH I DIDN'T EVEN BUY IN THE FIRST PLACE. 

Another thing I didn't buy was Ironhorse's undying loyalty. I understood when he said he would accompany her for reasons X, Y and Z but not when five minutes later he wants to sacrifice his life for her. We were given a hint at then end for the reason of this but I wish it could have come earlier and prevented my frequent eye rolling throughout the novel. 

AND THE LOVE TRIANGLE- *growls* it's obvious who she should be with and it's obvious who she will be with and unfortunately they are not the same person. 

Once again, I felt that this book was brimming with possibilities but fell short. Fans of Julie Kagawa, do forgive me, but I think that in the hands of a different author this series would be INSANE. We could have some amazing Puck/Ash dynamic- I was sure we'd get tons after we found out the mutual history but unfortunately was disappointed. The prom scene could have been EPIC but ended up being rather boring. So much build up and not much pay off.

Ending: EYE ROLL

Rating:


My apologies for being AWOL this week. Missed you guys! Life should be easing up now and hopefully I'll be back to normal. 
Hope you had great holidays!
Esty

Review: The Iron King

The Iron King 
Julie Kagawa
YA Paranormal, Fantasy 

Meghan Chase has a secret destiny; one she could never have imagined.

Something has always felt slightly off in Meghan's life, ever since her father disappeared before her eyes when she was six. She has never quite fit in at school or at home.

When a dark stranger begins watching her from afar, and her prankster best friend becomes strangely protective of her, Meghan senses that everything she's known is about to change.

But she could never have guessed the truth - that she is the daughter of a mythical faery king and is a pawn in a deadly war. Now Meghan will learn just how far she'll go to save someone she cares about, to stop a mysterious evil, no faery creature dare face; and to find love with a young prince who might rather see her dead than let her touch his icy heart.

I was soooooo sure I was gonna love this. I mean, look at the above! This is exactly the kinda thing I would adore! Sounds like Wicked Lovely, or the Mortal Instruments. Brooding hot guy, hilarious best friend, faery world- it's exactly my cup of tea. 

Except it wasn't. I was so excited but it fell flat. The characters were just so.... one-dimensional. Like, nothing they said or did showed any personality at all. If I didn't know who was speaking, I would never have been able to tell the voices apart. The only exception to this rule was Puck. Good God, I loved that boy! He made me laugh and and cry each in turn. He was the only redeeming person. Ash, much as I wanted to be obsessed with him, didn't charm me. He was nothing special, honestly. There was only one bit where he really talked, and even then it was just like reciting his personal history. It wasn't that he was devoid of feeling- he (and everyone else but Puck) were devoid of personality. (I don't know, does that make sense??)

The one thing I liked was the world and it's rules. I've seen a lot of different interpretations of the fey- In Apprilynne Pike's Wings, the faeries of the various of the differ seasons differ in power. In Wicked Lovely there are 4 courts. The Iron King's theme was similar to that, with two different courts (kingdoms) who thrive on the imagination of humans. I thought that was pretty great. The twist is this- humans are imagining new things now. Technology and development, therefore creating new fey- iron fey. Yay originality!! That was cool. 

I've decided to give the Iron Fey series the benefit of the doubt. I'm assuming the reason the characters didn't go anywhere was because the author was busy with world building. I feel like the series has a lot of potential and that the plot will thicken and the characters will develop and I'll be happy. Hopefully. 
Rating: 2.5 stars


Still no internet, still hanging at friends' houses to blog. Oh well.
Love, Esty