Review: The Iron King by Julie Kagawa

Title: The Iron King
Series: Iron Fey

Book #: 1
Author: Julie Kagawa
Pages: 368
Publisher: Harlequin
Reading Level: Young Adult

Rating: .7

"I Shivered as my stomach twisted into a tight little ball. This still felt like something out of a nightmare. But Ethan was gone, and faeries were real. I had to accept that now." -Meghan

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.

Taschima's POV:

Why is it that every time I pick up a faerie book there is always some kind of reference to A Midsummer's Night Dream?

Ash is... Wait a minute, the book is about Meghan is it not? Let's start there then. Meghan is at the beginning a sort of normal teenager. Though not popular by any means, she manages to capture your attention since the first few pages because Meghan is her own person. She doesn't pretend or wants to be anyone else, a quality I most like. In the day of her 16 birthday Meghan starts seeing weird stuff like shadows in the corner of her eye, or deadly strangers in black horses who seem to be there a minute but not the next... That is the day her brother is kidnapped by the Fey; that is the day she discovers a whole new world; that is the day her life begins. Meghan swears she will find her brother, and with the help of a few frenemies she ventures into the dangerous yet enchanting world of The Fey.

This book was surprising to say the least. All consuming to say the most. With every page that you turn danger encounters the characters. The battles in this book will leave you breathless, and the fierce cold romance will make you want more. I read this book with no expectations, I am not a fan of fairies by any means, but by the end I was left with my mouth open and I swear that this book has set the bar VERY high for The Iron Daughter; scratch that, for ANY fairy book I read from now on.

Meghan is a normal teenage girl who kind of knows who she is but that is unaware of her darker side. Or at least that is how she starts... As you continue reading the book you will be glad to know that character development shows it's ugly head, and Meghan the timid little farm girl blossoms into something much more beautiful and fierce. Mind you, Meghan still has a heck of a lot to learn. I really liked how the author didn't just made the character learn a lot of stuff from one day to the other. Like, Meghan didn't become powerful over night, it certainly took it's time. I find this realistic and highly likable (though at times I wanted to either kick Meghan or help her because Hey she don't know how to fight).

The Fey are pretty much not a new story. As I said before I believe that in every book about fairies you are going to encounter the same main kings and Queens, the only thing that really varies is their personality. I didn't like any of The Fey Royalty. Wait, that is a lie, I did like one of them...

Ash... I whisper his name and it makes me swoon. I picture him in my head and I can't imagine why did I ever loved Edward Cullen. Ash is like, wow. He is seriuosly the ultimate bad boy. He could tell you he is destined to kill you and kiss you in the same whisper. And you know what? YOU WOULDN'T MIND! That is the scary part. I kept repeting to myself, hey he is a bad guy, he is going to kill Meghan, but, he's just so... tantalizing. This right here is one of my favorite quotes of the book...

"War?" Something cold touched my cheek, and I glanced up to see snowflakes swirling in a lighting-riddled sky. It was eerily beautiful, and I shivered. "What will happen then?"

Ash stepped closer. His fingers came up to brush the hair from my face, sending an electric shock through me from my spine to my toes. His cool breath ticked my ear as he leaned in.

"I'll kill you," he whispered, and walked away...

... freaky, yet swoon worthy.

I believe that Robbie doesn't stand a chance against Ash -FYI Robbie is Meghan's best friend and the second guy on the LT (love triangle)- but well see how things play out. I will only warn you, the best friend always has a very little window of opportunity before the BB (Bad Boy) steals the girl, and I am afraid Robbie's window has long expired.

What else, what else... The truth is I could discussed this book and every single detail about it, but, I can't because it would take the surprise away of you reading it and finding the asnwers on your own. Just know this. Ethan is kidnapped, Meghan is trying to save him, she encounters frenemies on the path and bargains with them so she can have some kind of defense in the quest to finding Ethan, oh and of course, Ash is hot, even though he is from the Winter Court.

PS For those who HAVE read the book; The cat? Alice in Wonderland much?

Other stories I thought of when reading this book: has some Blue Bloods elements (looove triangle), Alice in Wonderland (THE CAT! And the wacky-what-the-hell path!), The Mortal Instruments (Action, action, action), and A Midsummer's Night Dream (duh).

Should you read it? HECK YEAH! This is one of my favorite reads this year! I never believed faeries could be so much fun!

Cover Comments: Wow... Though she is too pretty, I imagine Meghan to be tough around the edges, then again this could be Meghan without the glamour... Meghan is true faerie form I believe. I just love everything about it.