The Iron King by Julie Kagawa

The Iron King

Meghan Chase has never fit in at her small-town high school, and now, on the eve of her 16th birthday, she discovers why. When her half brother is kidnapped, Meghan is drawn into a fantastical world she never imagined--the world of Faery, where anything you see may try to eat you, and Meghan is the daughter of the summer faery king. Now she will journey into the depths of Faery to face an unknown enemy . . . and beg the help of a winter prince who might as soon kill her as let her touch his icy heart. The Iron King is the first book in the Iron Fey series.

There has been such a boom with fey/vampire/warewolf books that I was rather afraid to read this one. I didn't want it to be another cliched story of a girl falling in love with an immortal. And since it's the first book in a series, I'd feel guilty if I didn't end up liking it.

I'm wrong a lot of times, and this was one of them. To put it simply, the iron king is great kind of neoclassical feel. It has the classic fantasy (not just fey) lore but also modern in a way that feels of this century.

Although there were some cliche lines (fiber of my being), I wouldn't blame anyone. It's kind of hard avoiding cliches (tell me, I know).

Meghan was, at first, a whiny character. I didn't instantly connect with her but as the story progressed, I liked her more and more.

Robbie was my favorite character. He brings out the real laughs and I think he's the one stealing the spotlight here.

I have something to say about Ash and Meghan, though. Seriously? This was the thing I was trying to avoid, the oh-he's-so-dangerous-but-I-fell-in-love-with-him syndrome. Nevertheless, it sort of grew on me so, I've accepted it...for now. (shh, I'm team Robbie).

The plot was original. It was slow in the middle but picked up near the end. It's such an awesome cliff-hanger end that you'll be wanting more.

In one sentence:
"Almost like a new YA genre, neoclassical."

Plot: 4
Characters: 4
Writing: 4
Cover: 5 (I just have to say, it's one of my favorite covers ever. Just so beautiful.)
Overall Feeling: 4
Average: 4.2