The Iron Knight by Julie Kagawa
Age Group: Young Adult
Pages (Paperback): 386
Series: The Iron Fey (Book 4)
Source: NetGalley
ISBN-13: 9780373210367
Genre: Fantasy (Faeries)
Author: Website | Twitter | Blog
Series Reviews: Book 1 (4.5★) Book 2 (5★) Book 3 (5★) Book 3.5
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…
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Overview:
I have spent the last 300+ pages indulging in my secret love affair with Prince Ash. What is entirely unique about this story from the other books in the series is that Ash is on an impossible mission to keep his vow to Meghan. From the beginning we know what the plot of this book is and it is just a matter of whether or not he succeeds or fails. It is an interesting journey that in the end is gripping and you won't want to put it down.
Review:
Julie Kagawa has perfected the fairy tale ending. The ending to The Iron Queen was devastating and left a void in our hearts where closure belonged for surely that could not be the end to Meghan and Ash. What Julie gave us in this book was magnificant; a journey of sheer impossibility but bold strength and devotion. Twists, turns and confrontations were the key to unraveling the mystery that Prince Ash was.
For the first part of this series, we were in our story from the eyes of Meghan, the human who's fate had become saving all of Nevernever. In Summer's Crossing, we have a brief glimpse into the chaotic yet striking personality of Puck. But here, in The Iron Knight, we grow intimately close with the monster, the pain, the anger, and pure love that Ash is as he begins to grow and sort through his mess of entangled emotions. The true depth of this character had been sealed off from Meghan, and the reader, and this book unleashes a flood of what it means to be Unseelie. In seeing Ash's history as Winter Prince and knowing who he is now, we can see that this is a tale about overcoming, a strong ideal that all of us are our own person.
The other character favorites we love, Grimalkin and Puck, accompany Ash on this treacherous journey and we are introduced to some new faces that bring an interesting dynamic to the trio. This book, while about Ash, gives a little more insight into Puck; through his interactions with Ash, the prince and the readers begin to have a little bit more of an understanding about the pain that Puck really tries to hide. As an extra bonus, you don't even really have to miss Meghan; Julie has done a fantastic job of intertwining all of the favorite characters.
I loved the characters and I loved the journey that Ash was on to maintain his vow but there was still something missing from this book that I thought was pretty prevalent in the other books: mystery. It isn't anything detrimental and I still loved this book, but from beginning to end we know the journey that Ash has embarked upon and it is only a tale of whether or not he succeeds; can he succeed? It traded mystery for suspense and a long, timeless journey and while the action that occurred was riveting, I felt the journey was just mildly off-pace for such a phenomenal ending.
This book comes with an Epilogue that returns to Meghan's point of view and serves as a non-encompassing ending that still allows our imagination to bloom into the "what shall become of them" and fills that void that we had after The Iron Queen. Also included in the book is a small interview with the author and some wicked guests. The interview actually made me giggle out loud. It was witty and a great addition/end to a book. Also be sure to check out the letter that Ash wrote to Meghan before embarking on his journey. This was released at the Twitter launch party and is a great piece to the puzzle.
Rating out of 5:
