Book Review: The Iron King (Iron Fey #1) by Julie Kagawa

Summary:

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.

Review:

This was an outstanding book.  It was a great mix of the things I liked best about many other books.  Julie Kagawa combines the creativity of Incarceron, the relationships of City of Bones, and the imagery from Wondrous Strange and Darklight.  Not since Wicked Lovely have I enjoyed a faery tale so much. 


I liked The Iron King from the beginning, but it really picked up about 100 pages in.  From that point, I couldn't put it down.  The writing is excellent, the story flows well, and the pace is just right. 


I'm looking forward to reading more from Julie Kagawa.  This is YA at its finest.

Just One Gripe:

I think the love story could have been better developed.  It seemed to move from fear/dislike to love too quickly to me.

The Best Thing About This Book:

I liked the combination of the faery world we know plus the unexpected twist of the Iron Fey.

Appropriate for a younger audience:

Yes

Score:

Characters:  4/5

Plot:  4/5

Setting/Imagery:  5/5

Originality:  5/5

Ending:  5/5

Total Score:  23/25