Review: The Iron Knight by Julie Kagawa

Title:  The Iron Knight
Author:  Julie Kagawa
Series:  Iron Fey
Publisher:  Harlequin
Publication Date:  October 25, 2011 
Links:  Amazon | Goodreads
Rating: 

From Goodreads:

Ash, former prince of the Winter Court, gave up everything. His title, his home, even his vow of loyalty. All for a girl… and all for nothing.

Unless he can earn a soul.

To cold, emotionless 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 solemn 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. At least, no one has ever passed to tell the tale.

And then Ash learns something that changes everything. A truth that turns reality upside down, challenges his darkest beliefs and shows him that, sometimes, it takes more than courage to make the ultimate sacrifice.

Review:

I was pretty ecstatic when I heard the news that Julie Kagawa would not be ending her Iron Fey series with The Iron Queen but would instead lend Ash’s voice to his own story in a fourth book in the series. Switching voices midstream in a series (or mid-book) can be hit or miss for me, but this author has proved before that she is quite capable (see Puck’s story), and I’m quite pleased with Ash’s narrative in this final book.

And Ash has quite the story to tell. He is attempting to earn a soul, after all, and nothing in the Nevernever is easy. Not only does he have to face monsters and fey of all types, but he also has to face some harsh truths about himself. Luckily, Puck and Grimalkin are along for the ride, as well as a couple of unexpected companions.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading Ash’s tale of sacrifice, love, and longing. His voice was just so honest, and his determination to reach his goal is unrivaled. But I stand by my previous assertion that The Iron Queen was the best in this series. The ending was just so genuine; it didn’t feel forced or that a happily-ever-after was necessary. Things may not have ended beautifully for our trio, but there was still hope. I much prefer an ending like that than a perfectly-planned, the-stars-have-all-aligned kind of ending. But that’s me. Also, I think I just really missed Meghan’s voice. Her character had really grown on me over the course of the series, and I really felt her absence in The Iron Knight.

Julie Kagawa is an exceptional writer and is fantastic at world-building. She is truly talented, and even though The Iron Knight wasn’t my favorite in this series, it was still an awesome addition to the Iron Fey series and has undoubtedly already earned itself a place on my bookshelf. And I think it goes without saying that this series is my favorite based on the fey. It was just too much fun to read! So, obviously I was delighted beyond words when I learned that Julie would be writing an Iron Fey spin-off series, along with a post-apocalyptic vampire series, both of which are expected to have 2012 publication dates.

I received a copy of this book for review from Netgalley.