The Iron Daughter

author: Julie Kagawa

published: August (or maybe July 27th)

series: The Iron Fey, book 2 of 3

publisher: Harlequin Teen

format: paperback

pages: 359

The following synopsis comes from Julie Kagawa's website.

Half Summer faery princess, half human, Meghan has never fit in anywhere. Deserted by the Winter prince she thought loved her, she is prisoner to the Winter faery queen. As war looms between Summer and Winter, Meghan knows that the real danger comes from the Iron Fey, iron-bound faeries that only she and her absent prince have seen. But no one believes her. Worse, Meghan's own fey powers have been cut off. She's alone in Faery with only her wits for help. Trusting anyone would be foolish. Trusting a seeming traitor could be deadly. But even as she grows a backbone of iron, Meghan can't help but hear the whispers of longing in her all-too-human heart.

My Thoughts:

The Cover:

The cover looks even better in person! I was at my Borders store looking for a book to buy when The Iron Daughter caught my eye. It was sitting there, facing me. It wasn't supposed to be out yet! So, naturally, I immediately grabbed a copy, snapped a picture, and bought it. The cover is really beautiful and I like it more than The Iron King cover. This cover is quite purple and it looks great. Among the thorny borders there are little butterflies! They're too cute! I love this cover.

The Book:

First, I want to recommend that before reading The Iron Daughter and after reading The Iron King that you read the free (until July 31st) novella, Winter's Passage. (Which is quite great! It ended in a way that made me super eager for The Iron Daughter.)

Now. In this sequel, Meghan is stuck in the Winter Court. The poor girl! She has no friends. She can't trust anyone. Ash is acting as though he hates her, and maybe he does. The Iron Daughter takes this series to a new level for me. There are a few new characters and some that were only mentioned before like Ash's family: Queen Mab, and his brothers, Sage and Rowan. And of course, Meghan, Ash, Puck, and Grimalkin! Grim is still Grim. And he's still my favorite. I love that cat. Puck is still sick and in the tree as he was at the end of The Iron King and Meghan has no way to contact him or even find out if he's awakened while she's in the Winter Court. She is worried about him and, poor thing, can't even find out what's happening with him. It could be centuries before he wakes up. Meghan's journey and mission, if you will, in this story tests her in new ways and she even discovers a few things about herself that she didn't know before. It's a great growing experience for her and it's clear throughout that this entire journey will change her forever. It's awesome!

I highly recommend The Iron Fey, especially to fans of faeries. It's a great series and I can't wait for the final installment, The Iron Queen. I can't help but hope that there will be another novella in between!

Winter's Passage

Winter's Passage is a free novella from Julie Kagawa. It's only available as an eBook and I suggest downloading it here.

The Iron King is the first in the Iron Fey series. It's fantastic!

I highly recommend it to faerie lovers everywhere.

It takes place after The Iron King so you probably shouldn't read it until you read The Iron King.

The next novel in the series is The Iron Daughter which will be released August of this year! :D

The Iron Daughter Cover!

The Iron Daughter, the sequel to The Iron King, has a cover! Julie Kagawa posted today that The Iron Daughter is appearing on NetGalley. Of course, I had to check this out. And I am thrilled to see a cover!

It looks awesome as far as I can tell! It's too small to post here so click the NetGalley link about and it's the second one! Woo hoo!

The Iron King

author: Julie Kagawa

published: February 1st 2010

publisher: Harlequin Teen

format: paperback

pages: 363

genre: fantasy

The following synopsis comes from Julie Kagawa's official website.

MEGHAN CHASE HAS A SECRET DESTINY- ONE SHE COULD NEVER HAVE IMAGINED...

Something has always felt slightly off in Meghan's life, ever since her father disappeared before her eyes when she was six. She has never quite fit in at school...or at home.

When a dark stranger begins watching her from afar, and her prankster best friend becomes strangely protective of her, Meghan senses that everything she's known is about to change.

But she could never have guessed the truth- that she is the daughter of a mythical faery king and is a pawn in a deadly war. Now Meghan will learn just how far she'll go to save someone she cares about, to stop a mysterious evil no faery creature dare face...and to find love with a young prince who might rather see her dead than let her touch his icy hear.

My Thoughts:

The Cover:

I absolutely LOVE this cover! It is so gorgeous. I find that it accurately represents The Iron King. I love that the title is raised and that the vines or thorns stem from it and are also raised up. It's so fun to touch! The cover is just beautiful.

Another awesome thing about the physical appearance of the book, is that on each of the chapter openings there is a border-type thing like the vines or thorns on the front. And then, on the pages where the different parts are separated (the book has three parts) the same vines or thorns (or maybe it's iron) are around the edges of the page, but even more so than the chapters. I think that's a really nice touch. It makes the inside pretty!

The Book:

I am a HUGE fan of the Fae. Faeries are officially my favorite mythical creature, so I am predisposed to want to LOVE The Iron King. The thing I like about books that are about mythical creatures is that they often all have a similar (if not the same) basic mythology behind it. The folklore is often the same. And I love seeing how different authors can take the same creatures and the same basic backstory and make completely different stories out of it.

The Iron King is (basically) about a girl named Meghan Chase who doesn't fit in and goes on an adventure to save her brother. Meghan is such a strong girl. She will do anything for those that she loves and I think that is admirable. On this adventure she meets many characters and they are amazing! The characters are all different and all lovable in their own ways. Puck brings a comedic feel to the story making stressful situations a bit less stressful. Grimalkin is a funny little guy. He's exactly as a talking cat should be. Then there's Ash. Swoon! He's gorgeous, he's dangerous, and he's actually quite sweet.

I love that I recognized some of the characters from A Midsummer Night's Dream. That was an awesome bonus to this story. I am a huge fan of the play and seeing those characters here, in a new light, was awesome!

The Iron King is such a compelling story and I can't stop thinking about it. I laughed a lot, smiled plenty, and cried a little bit. I was completely engulfed by it and couldn't put it down. I had to know what would happen next.

The Iron King gets five out of five stars!

The sequel, The Iron Daughter, hits stores in August 2010.

Here is the beautiful book trailer for The Iron King.