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The Iron Daughter by Julie Kagawa
The Blurb On The Back:
I’ve been in the palace of the Winter fey for a while now. How long exactly? I don’t know. If If I ever get out of here, I might find a hundred years have passed and all my family and friends are long dead.
I try not to think about that, but sometimes I can’t help but wonder.
My name is Meghan Chase.
Half Summer faery princess, half human, Meghan has never fitted 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 the prince who betrayed her, 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.
Fulfilling her contract with the Winter Prince, Ash, in THE IRON KING, 16 year-old Meghan Chase is now a prisoner of the Winter Court. Unable to access her Glamour, she’s vulnerable to the cruel games of Queen Mab and her faeries, but this bothers her less than the fact that Ash, who she thought loved her, wants nothing to do with her.
When Meghan stumbles on an Iron faerie plot to steal the powerful Sceptre of Seasons in order to spark a war between Summer and Winter, no one will believe her except Ash, but having betrayed her once, she’s loathe to trust him again. Helped by Puck and Grimalkin, they must reclaim the Sceptre from the Iron Court, in the process uncovering dark treachery. The further they travel together, the harder Meghan finds it to ignore her heart …
Julie Kagawa’s sequel to THE IRON KING is essentially a YA paranormal romance with love triangle window dressing and beautifully evocative imagery.
I adore Kagawa’s visual imagery, particularly her depiction of the Iron Court in all its techno-magical glory. Her descriptions of the individuals who comprise the Iron Fey are evocative and stunning and I love the way she marries technology with faerie tradition, e.g. the technical gremlins who wreak havoc and devour power. For me, the descriptions are the best reason to read the book.
However, I’m not a romance fan and this is one long relationship story. Kagawa tries to inject tension with a love triangle involving Puck, but there’s no doubt where Meghan’s heart lies. My biggest problem though is that I don’t understand what Ash or Puck see in Meghan. She cries on almost every page and when she’s not crying, she’s stifling sobs. She’s also learnt nothing from her adventures in THE IRON KING, falling for basic tricks and traps and reliant on the boys to help her out all the time. Even when she does start to investigate her own power, she’s too slow to stand up for herself.
Ash and Puck are cyphers for their courts, complete with opposite characteristics. Ash is too brooding and cold for my taste and Puck too inane, but I liked Grimalkin who frequently voiced my own exasperation with the others.
I’ll keep reading the series because the descriptions are so good, but fans of YA paranormal romance will get more from this book than I did.
The Verdict:
Having enjoyed THE IRON KING, I was really looking forward to reading this sequel. However while I love Kagawa’s imagery (and the descriptions of the Iron Court and the Iron Faeries are wonderful), I’m not a big romance fan and love triangles in particular leave me cold. The romance/love triangle in this book is no exception and my big issue with it is that I never understood why Puck and Ash would be fighting over Meghan who is completely useless. That said, I will continue reading the series because I love the visuals so much.
I try not to think about that, but sometimes I can’t help but wonder.
My name is Meghan Chase.
Half Summer faery princess, half human, Meghan has never fitted 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 the prince who betrayed her, 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.
Fulfilling her contract with the Winter Prince, Ash, in THE IRON KING, 16 year-old Meghan Chase is now a prisoner of the Winter Court. Unable to access her Glamour, she’s vulnerable to the cruel games of Queen Mab and her faeries, but this bothers her less than the fact that Ash, who she thought loved her, wants nothing to do with her.
When Meghan stumbles on an Iron faerie plot to steal the powerful Sceptre of Seasons in order to spark a war between Summer and Winter, no one will believe her except Ash, but having betrayed her once, she’s loathe to trust him again. Helped by Puck and Grimalkin, they must reclaim the Sceptre from the Iron Court, in the process uncovering dark treachery. The further they travel together, the harder Meghan finds it to ignore her heart …
Julie Kagawa’s sequel to THE IRON KING is essentially a YA paranormal romance with love triangle window dressing and beautifully evocative imagery.
I adore Kagawa’s visual imagery, particularly her depiction of the Iron Court in all its techno-magical glory. Her descriptions of the individuals who comprise the Iron Fey are evocative and stunning and I love the way she marries technology with faerie tradition, e.g. the technical gremlins who wreak havoc and devour power. For me, the descriptions are the best reason to read the book.
However, I’m not a romance fan and this is one long relationship story. Kagawa tries to inject tension with a love triangle involving Puck, but there’s no doubt where Meghan’s heart lies. My biggest problem though is that I don’t understand what Ash or Puck see in Meghan. She cries on almost every page and when she’s not crying, she’s stifling sobs. She’s also learnt nothing from her adventures in THE IRON KING, falling for basic tricks and traps and reliant on the boys to help her out all the time. Even when she does start to investigate her own power, she’s too slow to stand up for herself.
Ash and Puck are cyphers for their courts, complete with opposite characteristics. Ash is too brooding and cold for my taste and Puck too inane, but I liked Grimalkin who frequently voiced my own exasperation with the others.
I’ll keep reading the series because the descriptions are so good, but fans of YA paranormal romance will get more from this book than I did.
The Verdict:
Having enjoyed THE IRON KING, I was really looking forward to reading this sequel. However while I love Kagawa’s imagery (and the descriptions of the Iron Court and the Iron Faeries are wonderful), I’m not a big romance fan and love triangles in particular leave me cold. The romance/love triangle in this book is no exception and my big issue with it is that I never understood why Puck and Ash would be fighting over Meghan who is completely useless. That said, I will continue reading the series because I love the visuals so much.