Book Review - The Iron Queen/Summer' Crossing/Ash's Letter

The Iron Queen
Author: Julie Kagawa
Series: The Iron Fey #3
Genres: Fantasy | Young Adult
Release Date: 25th January 2011
Publishers: Harlequin Teen
No. Pages: 358
Source: Purchased
Rating: 
Buy From: Amazon | Book Depository | Barnes and Noble | Waterstones

I thought it was over. That my time with the fey, the impossible choices I had to make, the sacrifices of those I loved, was behind me. But a storm is approaching, an army of Iron fey that will drag me back, kicking and screaming. Drag me away from the banished prince who's sworn to stand by my side. Drag me into the core of conflict so powerful, I'm not sure anyone can survive it.

The following review may contain spoilers concerning earlier books in the series.
If you have not read the previous installments, please proceed with caution.

After giving The Iron King and The Iron Daughter 3.5 stars each, I knew I was only picking up The Iron Queen out of duty to complete my read-a-long and because I now owned the entire series, so it's fair to say, I wasn't expecting much; I'd come to learn that high expectations get crushed if set too high, so I don't know whether it's how low my expectations were or whether this book was just on a whole new level better than it's predecessors, but I was amazed. I have this thing I sometimes do when I've finished books and it usually involves curling my hands into half fists, and launching them from close to my face outwards in mind-blowing surprise with my face in an O shape, and that's exactly what I found myself doing at the end of The Iron Queen; I was insanely pleased, surprised, thrilled and stupidly excited for the The Iron Knight.

The first third of the book was focused heavily on the romance between Ash and Meghan and while I have come to completely invest and be sold on their relationship, I still wasn't particularly happy with how little action was involved, however, I did get that later on, much to my overthrowing happiness. Before The Iron Queen, I was still unsure about the relationship aspect between Ash and Meghan; there was something too similar to insta-love about it for me and I couldn't help but find Ash a little too protective and controlling over Meghan, making clear that she was his and he wouldn't lose her, rather than considering how many other people would lose Meghan if the whole plot of this book fell flat on it's backside; I wasn't thrilled by this aspect, but Ash admitted his faults and I even began to respect the whole scenario because I understood the tradition behind his vow to Meghan; yet it was still a little controlling for me though. I was also very pleased with how Kagawa had managed to control the blow of Puck and Meghan's secret and how she made sure that all the characters spoke it out rather than fought it out, which only complimented the growth between the trio throughout this book, especially Ash's. I won't lie, at this point in the book, I was still infuriated with how naive and immature Meghan was and expected to doll out another 3.5 stars; how wrong I was..

My compliments to Kagawa for sending this series into a complete 180 degree angle with Meghan; she suddenly went from silly teenage girl to powerful, independent woman with support, skills and power and I could hardly contain my excitement to see her develop into the character I wanted at least a book ago; it was long on the cards. I began to feel proud of her for all the struggles she'd been through in the Winter Court, in how much of her family she'd lost and just how much was resting on her shoulders, yet she took all that weight and turned into a weapon, she became strong and powerful and used good old fashioned gusto and stubbornness to become the person she had to. She finally took the lead in this story, pushing aside the protectiveness of Ash and Puck from her and letting herself fight with them rather than letting them fight for her and this only worked in their favour with their friendship which starts to gain it's feet once more. To keep this review as spoiler free as I can, I can't delve into the plot points, but only into how great those plot points and twists were; it was exciting and thrilling, even in some of the most mundane scenes I was always immersed into the scenes and that's all down to Kagawas writing and her amazing world. She has this amazing talent were in a world so vast with so many creatures, hidden corners, and such much going on, especially with the worlds of Winter, Summer and Iron, I'm never lost in the world and I never once feel like anything talked about or mentioned or included isn't important in some way to the backbone of this story. I've never found myself so compulsively obsessed with somebody's writing like I have with Kagawa's and I'm so glad I found her work when I did.

Of course, as will all original final books, the final third involved one of the biggest and most amazing battles I've read since the Battle of Hogwarts and while it will never hold the top spot for best battle in literature, it's still up there on my list. Meghan stood out as brave and demanding, putting her leadership skills to the test, as well as her power and her resistance against Oberon and Mab while all of the other minor characters established there place in the overall story and it was fantastic to see so many of my questions answered about the entire series; who the false king was, especially when I should have guessed who it was, how Meghan was going to defeat the false king, which by the way was so insanely creative and clever I never even considered it until it was said out loud, and the final questions, how Meghan was going to survive. I'll admit, I shed a tear during her and Ash's final scenes and I couldn't get out of my head just how much Meghan grew in this book, there aren't enough words to describe, only the words that would encourage you to read it.

In the end, I hate to admit, but fans of The Iron Fey series are right. While The Iron King might not be impressive, it does set the scene for this series and the spin off, and it introduces some of the best and most wonderful characters I've ever read about, especially that of Grimalkin, Ironhorse and in the end, Meghan too. The Iron Daughter does develop the plot further and does give room for Meghan to grow, but I felt it was too centred around trying to re-introduced the love triangle when in fact, subtle, there are essential clues and hints throughout that made everything in this third book make a whole lot of sense. Unlike other fans were though, I am glad that there's a fourth, because after finally appreciating Ash and Meghan's relationship, I at least want some sort of happy ending for them before Kagawa tears it away in The Call of Forgotten series and I want to see the world of Faery through Ash's eyes, however, I am so pleased with how the book ended, I was overwhelmed with all these positive emotions I hadn't experienced throughout the rest of the series and that's why this book is rated so much higher than the rest. If you're at all like me and were seriously wondering whether it would be worth continuing on with the series, I would definitely say yes, even if it's just to appreciate and experience Kagawa's writing and the world of Faery for longer, but trust me, the closing of this book will make you happy you saw it through.

Summer's Crossing
Author: Julie Kagawa
Series: The Iron Fey 3.5
Genres: Fantasy | Young Adult
Release Date: 1st June 2011
Publishers: Harlequin Teen
No. Pages: 72
Source: Purchased - The Iron Legends
Rating: 
Buy From: Amazon | Book Depository | Barnes and Noble | Waterstones

A Midsummer's Nightmare? Robin Goodfellow. Puck. Summer Court prankster, King Oberon's right hand, bane of many a faery queen's existence—and secret friend to Prince Ash of the Winter Court. Until one girl's death came between them, and another girl stole both their hearts.

Now Ash has granted one favor too many and someone's come to collect, forcing the prince to a place he cannot go without Puck's help—into the heart of the Summer Court. And Puck faces the ultimate choice—betray Ash and possibly win the girl they both love, or help his former friend turned bitter enemy pull off a deception that no true faery prankster could possibly resist.

The following review may contain spoilers concerning earlier books in the series.
If you have not read the previous installments, please proceed with caution.

After finished The Iron Queen, I seriously began to feel withdrawal symptoms from the world Faery and Kagawa's writing, even if it had only been 10 minutes since finishing The Iron Queen, but there was no time to waste, I wanted to devour this novella and devour it I did; it was over before I knew it. Summer's Crossing, told through the perspective of Puck was the refreshing pick me up I needed after my previous whirlwind of emotions and as was to be expected, I found myself smirking, smiling and quite a fan of Puck once more, but not because of his trickster ways, but because I finally got to see the other side of him.

Throughout The Iron Fey series, it is common knowledge that Puck, along with Ash, fell in love with Meghan and out of the two, Puck drew the short straw. While I never actually considered Puck to have a chance with Meghan, I did find myself feeling sorry for him throughout the series, yet by the time I'd reached The Iron Queen, I was less forthcoming with my feelings for him and considered him extremely jealous, frustrating and generally nothing like the trickster jester we saw in the first two books, yet Summer's Crossing brought Puck out from his wallowing pit, Kagawa gave him a voice and hey presto, Puck was back. I think it's fair to say I was finally pleased to have found out exactly how Puck felt about the whole Ash and Meghan relationship instead of through the eyes of Meghan and I was impressed by just how much Puck would give for Meghan's happiness; he showed how much love and care her had for her, and he appreciated that he was never going to be the person to make happy, even after Oberon, who quite frankly is the most infuriating, annoying, stuck up pompuss puff I've ever read about, tried to convince Puck to turn Ash in, and honestly, that was the turning point in this novella for me. After three books worth of tiffing, fighting it out and sarcastic comments between the two of them, both Puck and Ash really began to gain some of their previous friendship back which for me, was wonderful, because while one girl drew them apart, another one brought them together through her love for them and I couldn't help but get excited for their friendship to continue to grew again through The Iron Knight. Of course, we can't forget just how fantastic Puck's plan in this novella really was, and while I would have appreciated more information on how he'd managed to concoct the whole plan and a little more detail, I really really enjoyed it.

For me, this novella was the connection that was needed to bring Puck and Ash together for The Iron Knight, it developed their trust in one another once more and ensured that they both knew exactly where the other stood and how their feelings were. In the end, this was the light-hearted, funny and fresh take on the world that I needed after three books and novella from Meghan's point of view; it was lovely to see Puck in his natural home, him at his best, his most powerful, his most damaged, most caring for everyone involved and most mischievous.

Ash's Letter To Meghan
Author: Julie Kagawa
Series: The Iron Fey 3.6
Genres: Fantasy | Young Adult
Release Date: 2012
Publishers: Harlequin Teen
No. Pages: 1
Source: Free
Rating: 
Buy From: Amazon | Book Depository | Barnes and Noble | Waterstones

The following review may contain spoilers concerning earlier books in the series. If you have not read the previous installments, please proceed with caution.

Being just a single page long, I don't know what I thought this letter would contribute to the story, but after having read The Iron Queen and Summer's Crossing, this letter from Ash to Meghan really adds another level and bridge between The Iron Queen and The Iron Knight. When I read The Iron Queen, I became completely invested in Ash and Meghan's relationship; where in the past I had been dubious about the whole connection and how it reminded me at times of insta-love, I found myself quite in love with their love for one another and this letter highlighted Ash's love even further. I could hear and feel Ash's voice throughout this letter, it sounded so true and honest, and thoughtful and just full of raw and complete emotion that it's hard not to have your feelings grow for Ash. I really understood after reading Summer's Crossing how Ash's feelings for Puck had changed, and this letter highlighted just how much trust and faith in Puck he had, knowing that if his quest should fail, that Meghan would not be alone; Ash himself knows first hand how long an eternity can be alone without love, and he ensures, if only it be to himself, that Meghan will never be alone. I fell in with the Unseelie Prince more with each line of this letter, and while I will always love Puck for his joker ways and sense of humour, I can only invest in Ash and Meghan's love even more. All I can say now is good luck to Ash...