Review: The Iron Knight by Julie Kagawa

The Iron Knight by Julie Kagawa

Paperback, 386 pages

Expected publication: October 25th 2011 by Harlequin
Source: NetGalley, for review
Buy the book: Amazon : B&N : Goodreads

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.

The Iron Fey series sits atop my "Favorites of Time" list. It has definitely been one that I compare many others to. A friend of mine loaned me the first couple of books and I quickly fell in love with them. I burned through them in a matter of a few short days. When The Iron Knight was announced, I literally did a dance. It's comes from one of my favorite characters point-of-view, Ash. I had anticipated for this book to be the culmination of all the emotions of the previous books. Well, it did all that and more!

The book picks up right were Iron Queen ended. Ash and Puck are traveling to find the path that leads Ash to his mortality. The quirks that Kagawa puts in between the two characters are hilarious. Their bantering keeps a great pace throughout the book. The reader finds out a lot of background info on both Ash and Puck through their traveling. A lot of it justifies previous decisions in life and shows them an alternate future for them. Their traveling group grows quickly and increases the readers interest. The ensuing twists and turns blooms into drama and action that makes the pages turn quickly. The "truth" that Ash discovers is a game-changer. There's several chapters spent on this and it is worth every one of them. It gives another perspective to Ash about his quest and helps him come to final decision. The concluding chapters will take your breath away.

While we've been with these characters for three books, there still was plenty of growing for them in this book. We get to see Ash in so much more depth in this book. There are many things that have just been touched upon in the past that are brought to life and a lot of it affects his future. His strengths and weaknesses are brought to light and you can see just how "human" he actually is. You will fall in love with him all over again. Puck gets his fair share of the lime light in this one as well. His meanderings keep Ash in line, whether either of them want it or not. Like Ash, his character is bared right down to the bone and you can see exactly what makes him tick. Before now, I regarded him simply as a quirky character. After reading this book I have genuine respect for him. He adds the comic relief, but also comes in when a voice of reason. I know, that doesn't sound right for Puck, but when you read it you'll understand! Meghan and other characters add substance to the journey and ensuing trials and tribulations. You will be holding on to this book till the very last page.

This conclusion to this part of Iron Fey series is absolutely breathtaking. It wraps up so many emotions while evoking many new ones. Ash's journey leads to the perfect ending for characters whose lives have just begun. I look forward to any and all of Kagawa's books. Her writing style and characters flow so well and are so easy for me to love. I have added all of her future books to my "to be read" pile and anxiously await every one of them.