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A review by shanaqui
The Iron Children by Rebecca Fraimow
adventurous
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Rebecca Fraimow's The Iron Children packs a lot into quite a small space. The basics are easy: there are two nations at war, and one of the tools used by one side against the other is the ability to turn people (Dedicates) into mechs, who are deployed under a fully mechanical commander who can take control of their bodies when needed (or wanted).
We get just a glimpse of how things are supposed to work, before things go south and Asher -- a young training officer, still human for now -- has to take charge of the situation. It's all pretty claustrophobic as we follow the unit through an avalanche and into a cave system, and we know that one member of the group is a traitor. It's not immediately obvious who, because their sections are written in first person. The switching between first and third is a little odd sometimes, but it makes sense for telling this particular story.
There's a heck of a lot of potential to the world, but mostly the story stays focused on this particular group and the frictions between them, which helps it feel very immediate and urgent. Like I said, claustrophobic, as well.
The ending feels slightly unsatisfactory; it's not clear to me exactly what Asher intends to do, or how she and Barghest are going to conceal the fallout of what happened -- if they are. Won't people work it out quickly? I don't always need my stories wrapped up in a tidy bow, but I could've used a little more here at the end. Otherwise, though, I found this one pretty compelling.
We get just a glimpse of how things are supposed to work, before things go south and Asher -- a young training officer, still human for now -- has to take charge of the situation. It's all pretty claustrophobic as we follow the unit through an avalanche and into a cave system, and we know that one member of the group is a traitor. It's not immediately obvious who, because their sections are written in first person. The switching between first and third is a little odd sometimes, but it makes sense for telling this particular story.
There's a heck of a lot of potential to the world, but mostly the story stays focused on this particular group and the frictions between them, which helps it feel very immediate and urgent. Like I said, claustrophobic, as well.
The ending feels slightly unsatisfactory; it's not clear to me exactly what Asher intends to do, or how she and Barghest are going to conceal the fallout of what happened -- if they are. Won't people work it out quickly? I don't always need my stories wrapped up in a tidy bow, but I could've used a little more here at the end. Otherwise, though, I found this one pretty compelling.