The Iron King by Julie Kagawa - Review

 "Its rider was tall and lean, garbed in silver and black. A dark cape fluttered from (his) shoulders. Through the rain, I caught the barest glimpse of a face: young, pale, strikingly handsome... staring right at me. My stomach lurched and I caught my breath." p. 46, The Iron King

 

***74,206 ratings and 6,848 reviews on Goodreads as of the moment ***

[ WARNING: Blogger's first ever attempt of doing this bookie stuff ;) you may proceed at your own risk.

YOU. have been warned. ]

       I have only seen the Iron Fey series early this year on Goodreads, and to be honest, my attention was caught by the beautiful covers and the titles respectively. Eventually, I got to sift through flashy bookcovers and put it on my To-Read shelf. I remember I had scheduled to start reading The Iron King on a Friday night, since I don't have to go to work on the weekend and I can stay up late. Of course, I kind of already had an idea what the book is about after having read teasers/overview and I went to reading, thinking it will be my first ever read about faery or the fey, so to speak. Since it's a YA novel, I have expected the heroine to be of the age of 16 or 17 or along those numbers... and well, I wasn't entirely hooked with the name "Meghan" at first. I was like, "wow, I've only seen "Megan" as a girl's name... but never with an H wedged into it and hmmm...it's kinda unique".

 Meghan Chase has a secret destiny-one she could never have imagined…

             From the first chapter, I have loved Meghan, she's simple...an ordinary highschool girl, a poor one from the swamp to be specific, a kind sister and a good daughter -- with a bestfriend who's happy-go-lucky nature masks a secret. Now, approaching her 16th birthday, things go a little weird for Meghan...she catches glimpses of things that no one but her sees, her little brother Ethan always telling him about the bogeyman in the closet and his stuffed rabbit -- Floppy telling him things. Going home on your 16th birthday (which no one seems to remember) to find your little brother missing isn't a typical occasion. Plus, knowing your bestfriend turns out to be none other than the famous Robin Goodfellow a.k.a Puck from A Midsummer Night's dream are one and the same is just whoaaaa... and how about knowing you are part fey? Meghan just turns out to be the daughter of the high and mighty Summer King, Oberon making her, half human - half Summer fey. But, lo and behold... she keeps having glimpses of a boy....

 "... a tall, lean figure dressed in silver and black. A boy, perhaps a little older than me, though it was impossible to tell his exact age. His body was youthful, but there was a stillness to him that hinted at something far older, something incredibly dangerous. (...) Thick, raven-wing hair tumbled to his shoulders, not quite covering (his) delicate, pointed ears. He wasn't human. He was one of them, one of the fey. (...) He was gorgeous. More than gorgeous, he was beautiful. Regal beautiful, prince-of-a-foreign-nation beautiful. (...) Still, it was a cold, hard beauty, like that of a marble statue, inhuman and otherworldly. His slanted eyes, beneath long, jagged bangs, glimmered like chips of steel. p. 81-82, The Iron King

              Transported to the Nevernever, she meets the caithsith Grimalkin who "guides" and "helps" her to reach her father and seek help to retrieve Ethan from his yet unknown captors. Things just get better and better knowing Titania, Oberon's Queen just hates Meghan to the core. Learning the ways of the Fey who are somewhat "tricky" and "shrewd" that a human should be wary and careful of doing and owing "favors" (You can't even be careless to say thank you), She also finds out about the Seelie and Unseelie courts. And Meghan finally comes to know who the beautiful dark boy is.....

 

ASH
Winter Prince, The third and youngest son of Queen Mab - the Unseelie Queen.


The dark gorgeous Winter Prince who
"Up close, was even more beautiful, with high cheekbones and dark tousled hair falling into his eyes."

 

 

I just can't help but be hooked in reading the book, with Prince Ash clearly as one of my ultimate fictional boyfriends. Really, I could go and on with the story but of course, anyone who would be reading this would be bored that they might as well just read the book. (Ooops...My apologies) Anyways, Any #IronFey fan would know all the fey stuff that I'm talking about. After Meghan falling for our Winter Prince and saving Ethan with the newly evolved kind of fey which is the Iron Fey (caused by the human world's modern technology), it seems that she still has a big role to play in the grand scheme of things. After all, she made a bargain with Ash to go back to Tir Na Nog with him, as a captive of Queen Mab in return for the favor of him helping her rescue her brother Ethan and with both courts - Summer and Winter still not believing that a new kind or breed of fey is existing.

As every bookworm and YA lover know and for future readers to know, The Iron King is just the first of a most amazing series by Julie Kagawa and I can honestly say that I am in awe with her coming up with this beautiful and unforgettable story. Hands down...she's one of the best storytellers out there, in this generation. Combining faery tale with the modern elements of this modern times, It is just unique in it's own way. It's refreshing to fictionally know that the fey, who are enchanting, magical and ethereal still thrives because humans still remember them in stories...making them immortal.  I have read alot of YA novels but never a faery story until The Iron King, I am so grateful to this being my very first faery-read so to speak. And I think with the Iron Fey series taking precedence to every faery-book/story that I will ever read in the future, the standard has been set HIGH. :)

Sooooo.....

 

For THE IRON KING