The Iron King

3,5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️✨
This story is something I would have liked a lot when I was younger. It's a good example of a fantasy YA book. I loved the mysterious fae land and all the mythical creatures. The story itself was quite predictable to me at some moments. The Iron King and court I didn't see coming and although it was a creative concept I'm not sure if I really liked the Iron Fae characters in this world. But that's because I'm a sucker for the original Fae and Elves and everything about their world. Also, Julie probably didn't write them with the idea for them to be likable

The Iron King is a fun, fluffy read with a little danger, a little romance, and a lot of faeries. Also a little Alice in Wonderland - that part left me a bit flabbergasted...exactly how does the Cheshire cat fit into the faery world of redcaps and chimeras? But ok. It was definitely interesting. The hands down BEST part of this book is all the descriptions of the various fae, the Winter, Summer, and Iron Courts. I haven't read many books based around the fae, so to me at least the Iron Court construct was entirely new and OMG IT MAKES SO MUCH SENSE. Holy shit balls batman. Consider me successfully creeped out and a little sad.

The characters...well, the MC is actually not that compelling. I was not a real Meghan fan, but I definitely didn't hate her. Her motivations I could understand though, and her love for her little brother melted my heart. Her loyalty was also something I could relate to...Meghan is incapable of putting any goal or end result before the people she cares about, even when the result would be the greater good. Now Robbie, I loved. I hope we see a LOT more of him in the next books! Ash was...ooooh, look, tall-dark-handsome-brooding-powerful-hero = instalove. SIGH. He had some cool powers though. The romance was meh. Meghan is very young and naïve and...well, maybe that's my almost-30-year-old self being jaded but I just wasn't feeling it AT ALL.

3.5/5 stars overall. I'm looking forward to the next book and can't wait to see how this Iron Court thing plays out! It wasn't a true hangover ending but it's SO wide open for more possibilities...
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I won an e-book of this from a blog giveaway ages ago, and finally got around to reading it! Sadly I don't remember which blog.

3.5 stars

I really enjoyed this book. The story line reminds me of Labyrinth with David Bowe. I loved the twist on faerie lore.

Terribly written. The story is okayish and because of who I am I cannot help but want to finish the series. It is interesting if predictable. There are serious syntax errors though that should have been edited out. There are story issues as well. At one point Ash calls Meghan to get her attention and then two pages later he says her name again and Meghan thinks “this is the first time he called me by my name” uh...two pages ago he also called you by your name... There are half a dozen issues like this. But if this book is on the best sellers list, then there is hope for other iffy authors like myself

The Iron King was a really, really good book. I would have given it 5 stars if it wasn't for the fact that Ash was nearly unbearable. He just seemed very bipolar and I wanted to punch Meghan in the face for not recognizing that he was bad news. One minute he was all sweet and open, and the next he was all, “ERMAGERD, GET AWAY FROM ME, PRINCESS.”

For starters, Meghan is a great MC. She's not super athletic or super smart, but she gets things done. She is very normal and recognizes it, but doesn't let it stop her from chasing after her dreams. Not to mention, she cares a lot about her younger brother and reacts appropriately to the weird things happening in her life.

The humor in the book was spot-on. The character Puck was a fantastic comic relief, and was a very sassy character. He was probably my favorite character in the book and seemed to have a smart remark for everything. Perhaps this was my favorite line of Puck's, “‘Oh, we're playing nice now?' Puck remained seated, looking anything but complaint. “Shall we have tea first? Brew up a nice pot of kiss-my-ass?'”!

The plot itself is very well crafted and had twists and turns all the time. It wasn't boring at all, and I enjoyed learning about the different creatures in the Nevernever. I'm very excited for the next one and hope that it's even better than this first one was.

Personally, I enjoyed this book. The only reason I gave it four stars is because Meghan acted like a complete bumbling idiot half the time. Whether it was making deals with fey (which is a big no no unless you absolutely know what you're doing), or almost getting herself killed (multiple times I might add). But her daring heroism to save her brother makes up for it in the end. The Iron King really drew me in to NeverNever and the faer folk, bringing in old faces from A Midsummer Nights Dream, like Oberon, Puck, and Titania (who really seems like a frigid bitch with a stick up her ass in this book. She's more of an ice queen than Queen Mab, IMO). If you're the kind of person who loves stories with faeries, dragons, and other mystical creatures of all sorts, I'd recommend it.

Edit: 21/7/2014
When someone first finishes a book, he is still caught up in a daze. I always change my ratings after a while, and so I am changing this one to just 3 stars.
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At first, Meghan was really stupid but she got better afterwards. I hope she improves her way of speaking, meaning, I hope the writing style would become better. hmmm.. It is not BAD in that sense, but it is just not that good, you know?

Imagination, well, there was lots, but was it enough? I can't tell, really. Was it spectacular, unusual and ahead of her time? No.. not really. She just stuffed everything in there together. Anyone could have done that if possessing the same idea.
The book was a major disappointment of course.

I wanted to give 3 stars throughout the whole first 70% of the book, but then I changed my mind. It deserved a bit more the more I read into the book.

Would I recommend this book to anyone? Honestly, I only recommend the books I find SPECTACULAR, AMAZING, and ONE OF A KIND. So technically, when choosing a book to recommend to people, this would not be my first choice.

Si me hubiera dejado guiar solamente por el prefacio, lo más seguro es que hubiera dicho more

I had two problems with this book. First, I hated Megan's character for most of the book. By the end, she grew on me. But she was whiny and weak and terrible for most of it.

Second, the chapter titles contained spoilers! I always knew some of what was going to happen because of them, and that bothered me to no end.

Overall, I'm glad I read (listened to) it. And I'll start on the sequel tomorrow.

This story had a bit of a slow start not too slow and not for very long but what I mean is that it didn't automatically grip me from the very beginning. Meghan, our heroine, is a sort of an outcast at school and she also feels that way in her own home. Her family is poor, her step-father doesn't seem to care for her all that much and at school the popular kids i.e the cheerleaders and jocks look down at her and tease her for living on a pig farm way out in the boondocks. But once I got pass the slow start, the set up of Meghan's life, and into the actual story I couldn't help but love this book more with every page. Read More

The characters in this book literally shine off the page! Meghan and Puck (Robbie) have this easy banter between the two of them that makes the book a delight to read from the very first page. I was reminded of friends that I have the same type of relationship with, and there were times when I giggled out loud! It really made me invest myself in their story, which is so important to my enjoyment of a book. Plus, I must say that Meghan is one fiery heroine! Her courageous “never say die” attitude allows her to take her place in the ranks of my all time favorite female protagonists, and trust me, it's hard it get in there.

After reading so many different versions of the land of the fey, of the Summer and Winter courts, I was a bit afraid that this book would blend into the others. Faerie books are rather popular, and sometimes they blur at the edges. Can I say, I had absolutely nothing to worry about! Julie Kagawa manages to create a whole new faerie story where nothing is what you expect it to be. She throws new elements into the well worn land of the fey and I cannot say enough how much I loved reading all about NeverNever! Terrifying and beautiful at the same time, I almost wish I could find a portal into this land. Especially if it meant I could have Grimalkin as a guide. Who would have thought I'd ever fall so in love with a cat?

Now, now I know you're reading this review and wondering out loud “Well where does she stand on the Puck vs. Ash debate?” but hold on, I'm getting to that! It's just a matter of explaining to you what I love about each of them. Puck is funny, he's wild and one of those characters who just oozes charisma without even trying. On the opposite side of the spectrum (or love triangle if you will?) is the cold, hard, and yet still deliciously attractive Ash. My final verdict? I can not seem to choose! I love them both equally. I'll admit I am leaning a bit towards the Team Puck side, but I have yet to read The Iron Daughter so we will see. Oh yes, we will see.

Without a doubt this was one of my favorite reads of this month! Julie Kagawa is an amazing writer, and I cannot wait to see what she has in store for us in the next installment. More Meghan, more Puck and more Ash....what could be better?