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4.03 AVERAGE
4.03 AVERAGE
Well, to be honest, this was my least favorite of the series. I didn't hate it. I didn't even not like it. I just wasn't thrilled with it (prepare for the zombie apocalypse as my twin at A Jane of All Reads had opposing feelings and when we don't agree, worlds die). Suffice it to say, I don't think Ash's is the best set of eyes to get behind. Unless you actually like the brooding spawn of Louis Point du Lac, then you'd like it. But the boy pinned far too much for my liking. All of his brooding and internal ponderings in this one book outnumbered Meghan's in all three of her books. She's a chick and even she didn't think in terms of the (heinously) overused irrevocably and End of the World and some such.
But the thing is, Meghan's story was done. Ash's soul-searching, literally, couldn't have been done from anyone else's eyes and Meghan's story, at this point, would have been a little dull if we just sat on her shoulder and watched her rule a kingdom. Except with the story told in Ash's POV, aside from the endless brooding, the surroundings aren't as magnificent as they were in the rest of the books. I think that's because that's Ash's home. That same wonder and awe is lost on him, even as he traveled through areas of the Nevernever that he'd never been to. That wondrous shine that was there for the first three books is dulled, I think simply because the POV switched to the eyes of a local. They're going to see things differently.
And that means seeing other people differently. Grimalkin remained the same, which I loved. But Puck? For the first half of the book I wanted to run him over with a truck. While in Meghan's eyes he's quirky and bouncy and just normal jokster Puck but from Ash's eyes, he's nails on a chalkboard while rubbing a cat backwards and scraping a fork against a plate. I really stopped liking him. It leveled out a bit when the story got a little more serious but holy crap. Kagawa really nailed just how Ash viewed Puck and it made me twitchy.
Ariella added an element that threw a wrench into Ash's spokes but in very odd ways. Ultimately her seer abilities dropped to being the Seer of the Obvious. All of her "real" seeing happened off page, before Ash even came upon her again so anything she "saw" after that, for me anyway, had me going 'duh' a lot. But she ultimately served a greater purpose than just being a hitch in Ash's story and when she does fulfill it I will say it brought tears to my eyes.
As did the ending of the story. What can I say? I'm a sap. It is a very poster fairy tale ending but if you didn't expect that going in, then you're obviously not familiar with Kagawa's writing. The overarching plots in her stories wrap up and if you honestly thought Ash would say eff it all and keep being Fey, you need to just go home. But it's not the ending that makes the book. While it got me teary, I'm ultimately not a fan of such cookie cutter endings, simply because they're too neat. Not that Ash didn't earn it, or Meghan didn't deserve it. They just never sit right with me, in any context. In THE IRON KNIGHT's case, it's the story that gets Ash to that standard end that really matters.
And overall, I did like it. I liked seeing all the new parts of the Nevernever (although I probably would have liked them better if I was seeing them through Meghan's eyes) and the Big Bad Wolf is pretty sweet. Although I would have liked to have seen him more threatening. That was another thing. The threats that would have been threats to Meghan weren't to Ash so any big action scene was kind of tampered. You knew going in he'd get out of it relatively unscathed and Puck would barely have a scratch on him. So the underlying expectation was much higher here. You could guess with greater certainly what was going to happen with Ash's story. It's just what he would face next that would remain a mystery.
I was surprised that I ended up liking THE IRON KNIGHT as much as I did because I had two reviewers whose reviews I trust (my twin and Sya at The Mountains of Instead) warn me that I probably wouldn't like it, so I was worried going in. But it really wasn't that bad. Nowhere near the pine factor of TWILIGHT (and I'm kind of insulted that the blurb 'Julie Kagawa's Iron Fey series is the next TWILIGHT' is on the cover) but Ash is up there with Louis. If you haven't read INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE by Anne Rice, go do it and you'll see what I mean. Just almost constant brooding and pinning for a life one doesn't have and contemplating one's soul, or lack of one, and being human and blah blah blah. At least in Louis's case I could tell him to get a tan. But with both books, there was more going on than tons of internal mooing that it held me and I actually really liked IWTV. Except I haven't read further in that series. Had THE IRON KNIGHT been the first, I most likely wouldn't have gotten this far. But I did, because the other three books totally rocked and, really, THE IRON KNIGHT isn't so bad either.
Just be warned that Ash is a perpetual brooder, always contemplating something to within an inch of its life. But the writing is just as phenomenal and the book closes out the series nicely. It's not necessary, I don't think, to read THE IRON KNIGHT but it's not necessary to read 'Winter's Passage' or 'Summer's Crossing' either but it's the enrichment that's worth reading. It makes the world that much more dynamic and the story more beautiful for how many eyes you get to see it through. I just won't be glimpsing through Ash's again. I've had enough of his brooding to last me a lifetime.
Just read it. I think you'd like it, if for nothing more than Kagawa's awesome writing. That should be enough.
But the thing is, Meghan's story was done. Ash's soul-searching, literally, couldn't have been done from anyone else's eyes and Meghan's story, at this point, would have been a little dull if we just sat on her shoulder and watched her rule a kingdom. Except with the story told in Ash's POV, aside from the endless brooding, the surroundings aren't as magnificent as they were in the rest of the books. I think that's because that's Ash's home. That same wonder and awe is lost on him, even as he traveled through areas of the Nevernever that he'd never been to. That wondrous shine that was there for the first three books is dulled, I think simply because the POV switched to the eyes of a local. They're going to see things differently.
And that means seeing other people differently. Grimalkin remained the same, which I loved. But Puck? For the first half of the book I wanted to run him over with a truck. While in Meghan's eyes he's quirky and bouncy and just normal jokster Puck but from Ash's eyes, he's nails on a chalkboard while rubbing a cat backwards and scraping a fork against a plate. I really stopped liking him. It leveled out a bit when the story got a little more serious but holy crap. Kagawa really nailed just how Ash viewed Puck and it made me twitchy.
Ariella added an element that threw a wrench into Ash's spokes but in very odd ways. Ultimately her seer abilities dropped to being the Seer of the Obvious. All of her "real" seeing happened off page, before Ash even came upon her again so anything she "saw" after that, for me anyway, had me going 'duh' a lot. But she ultimately served a greater purpose than just being a hitch in Ash's story and when she does fulfill it I will say it brought tears to my eyes.
As did the ending of the story. What can I say? I'm a sap. It is a very poster fairy tale ending but if you didn't expect that going in, then you're obviously not familiar with Kagawa's writing. The overarching plots in her stories wrap up and if you honestly thought Ash would say eff it all and keep being Fey, you need to just go home. But it's not the ending that makes the book. While it got me teary, I'm ultimately not a fan of such cookie cutter endings, simply because they're too neat. Not that Ash didn't earn it, or Meghan didn't deserve it. They just never sit right with me, in any context. In THE IRON KNIGHT's case, it's the story that gets Ash to that standard end that really matters.
And overall, I did like it. I liked seeing all the new parts of the Nevernever (although I probably would have liked them better if I was seeing them through Meghan's eyes) and the Big Bad Wolf is pretty sweet. Although I would have liked to have seen him more threatening. That was another thing. The threats that would have been threats to Meghan weren't to Ash so any big action scene was kind of tampered. You knew going in he'd get out of it relatively unscathed and Puck would barely have a scratch on him. So the underlying expectation was much higher here. You could guess with greater certainly what was going to happen with Ash's story. It's just what he would face next that would remain a mystery.
I was surprised that I ended up liking THE IRON KNIGHT as much as I did because I had two reviewers whose reviews I trust (my twin and Sya at The Mountains of Instead) warn me that I probably wouldn't like it, so I was worried going in. But it really wasn't that bad. Nowhere near the pine factor of TWILIGHT (and I'm kind of insulted that the blurb 'Julie Kagawa's Iron Fey series is the next TWILIGHT' is on the cover) but Ash is up there with Louis. If you haven't read INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE by Anne Rice, go do it and you'll see what I mean. Just almost constant brooding and pinning for a life one doesn't have and contemplating one's soul, or lack of one, and being human and blah blah blah. At least in Louis's case I could tell him to get a tan. But with both books, there was more going on than tons of internal mooing that it held me and I actually really liked IWTV. Except I haven't read further in that series. Had THE IRON KNIGHT been the first, I most likely wouldn't have gotten this far. But I did, because the other three books totally rocked and, really, THE IRON KNIGHT isn't so bad either.
Just be warned that Ash is a perpetual brooder, always contemplating something to within an inch of its life. But the writing is just as phenomenal and the book closes out the series nicely. It's not necessary, I don't think, to read THE IRON KNIGHT but it's not necessary to read 'Winter's Passage' or 'Summer's Crossing' either but it's the enrichment that's worth reading. It makes the world that much more dynamic and the story more beautiful for how many eyes you get to see it through. I just won't be glimpsing through Ash's again. I've had enough of his brooding to last me a lifetime.
Just read it. I think you'd like it, if for nothing more than Kagawa's awesome writing. That should be enough.
I just love this world so much. And there is so much nostalgia in this series for me. I'll probably love it forever.
This book was such a surprise! I wasn't expecting to like it as much as I did, because I wasn't a huge fan of the first three. But WOW. This was so good! My favorite part was the three tests. So amazing!
I've read this book (well entire series but this book in particular) 17 times. I'm no word of lie it is still my favourite series to ever grace this planet. I laugh, I cry and I love it more each time I read it. And I would read it again in a heart beat. Julie Kagawa you are amazing.
adventurous
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I didn't enjoy Ash's POW as much as Meaghan's and I definitely didn't like a 'lost' character returning. It felt too forced, which, ironically, it was kind of meant to.
"The Iron Knight" marks the fourth and final full book in Julie Kagawa's "Iron Fey" series. Much of what I have to say about it is along the lines of "What a ride" and "What a rush" - I really enjoyed the story, and the series, overall. Even with Megan's narrative ending in the previous book, "The Iron Queen," I'll admit I liked reading Ash's account of things in this book, though I'll admit I had a few qualms to start and in the duration. I really didn't like the re-emergence of a love triangle in this book with the appearance of a certain character - I'm not going to spoil it in the context of this review - but I was worried about where that would go and what Kagawa would do with the character. Regardless, I don't think the re-emerging character was really that bothersome, I just thought the terms of her "coming back" were really icky, at least to me. I somewhat guessed early on what would happen to her, and I'll admit that did take a toll on my enjoyment of the story a little, but everything else about the book, from Ash's banter with Grim and Puck, to the overarching journey, and even Ash facing his inner demons in the trials were interesting to watch.
There are a lot of people who would say it was quite a bit of angst, but I actually felt like Ash had more wiggle room to grow as a character from this book. In a good part of the initial stages of the series, you see him as this cold character who does so many heartless things and rages in his fey form, but as he fell in love with Meghan, and ultimately in the journey he undertakes in this novel, he does undergo some significant changes of his own, especially in the trials when he has to embrace aspects of claiming his soul. And of course, the ending left me content and was quite sweet.
Overall, I thought this was a fitting conclusion to the Iron Fey series, and I'm looking forward to Kagawa's latest efforts in the following series to this, starting with "The Lost Prince."
Overall score: 3.5/5
There are a lot of people who would say it was quite a bit of angst, but I actually felt like Ash had more wiggle room to grow as a character from this book. In a good part of the initial stages of the series, you see him as this cold character who does so many heartless things and rages in his fey form, but as he fell in love with Meghan, and ultimately in the journey he undertakes in this novel, he does undergo some significant changes of his own, especially in the trials when he has to embrace aspects of claiming his soul. And of course, the ending left me content and was quite sweet.
Overall, I thought this was a fitting conclusion to the Iron Fey series, and I'm looking forward to Kagawa's latest efforts in the following series to this, starting with "The Lost Prince."
Overall score: 3.5/5
I like the adventure, but I don't always want a happy ending.