Review: The Iron Knight by Julie Kagawa (Iron Fey #4)

Title: The Iron Knight by Julie Kagawa
To be published: October 25th, 2011 by Harlequin
Source: NetGalley for Review
Grade rate: A+

Ash, former prince of the Winter Court, gave up everything. His title, his home, even his vow of loyalty. All for a girl… and all for nothing.

Unless he can earn a soul.


To cold, emotionless faery prince Ash, love was a weakness for mortals and fools. His own love had died a horrible death, killing any gentler feelings the Winter prince might have had. Or so he thought.

Then Meghan Chase—a half human, half fey slip of a girl— smashed through his barricades, binding him to her irrevocably with his oath to be her knight. And when all of Faery nearly fell to the Iron fey, she severed their bond to save his life. Meghan is now the Iron Queen, ruler of a realm where no Winter or Summer fey can survive.

With the (unwelcome) company of his archrival, Summer Court prankster Puck, and the infuriating cait sith Grimalkin, Ash begins a journey he is bound to see through to its end— a quest to find a way to honor his solemn vow to stand by Meghan’s side.

To survive in the Iron realm, Ash must have a soul and a mortal body. But the tests he must face to earn these things are impossible. At least, no one has ever passed to tell the tale.

And then Ash learns something that changes everything. A truth that turns reality upside down, challenges his darkest beliefs and shows him that, sometimes, it takes more than courage to make the ultimate sacrifice.

My Review

Oh My Gosh! Wow! Awesome! (glad to get that off my chest!)  I don't even know how to start describing how good this novel is.  I have loved the Iron Fey series from the beginning as well as falling in love with its characters.  If you have ever visited my blog, you will notice the proud display of my Team Ash banner.  The Iron Queen was a bittersweet read for me and I cried like a fool (or so my hubby told me ;) I was ecstatic when the fourth and final book of the series was announced.

The Iron Knight is told from Ash's point of view and it was a brilliant decision.  Ash has always been surrounded by mystery and in this installment we get to know him like never before.  We know his hopes, his regrets, his feelings, and his thoughts and it was an amazing journey.  Ash, Puck and Grimalkin set up to find the End of the World in order for Ash to earn a soul, and in the way they find other companions.  Ms. Kagawa added here a very unexpected twist and needless to say my mouth was hagging open for a full minute (just like Puck's, I'm sure.)  This is an adventure of epic proportions, full of trials, challenges, danger, and excitement.

The writing was flawless, I bow to you Ms. Kagawa, for your style and insight.  The plot is packed full of action, but it also allows the time we need to get to know Ash (and Puck) better and for him to come to terms with his feelings.

The Iron Knight is in short brilliant and it's by far my favorite book in the series.  I hope that when we get Ethan's story in Ms. Kagawa's next series, we get a glimpse at Meghan, Ash, Puck and the other characters that we have learn to love to well.  I wish I could tell you more, but alas, I strive to keep my reviews 'spoiler free.'

About the cover:  Is just beautiful, just as I imagine Ash to be (except the eyes that are silver.) It has be same feel as the other covers in the series, with similar swirls and font. What can I say? Perfect!  

Feature and Follow Friday #7

Feature and Follow Friday is an awesome blog-hop hosted by Parajunkee's View and Alison Can Read

This week's features are Emma @ Belle Books and Stuck in Books and the questions is:

If you could write yourself a part in a book, what book would it be and what role would you play in that book?

This is a very hard questions to answer. How many times while reading a book you think to yourself 'I wish I could be there'.  I'd love to be Jo in Little Women, or be Meghan from the Iron Fey series (kissing Ash would be a great plus, right?)  I'd love to meet Harry Potter, and Edward Cullen. I'd love to meet Vincent from Die for Me, and Will from Angelfire.  So many choices....

What role would you play in a book? 

Review: Rot & Ruin by Jonathan Mayberry (Benny Imura #1)

Title: Rot and Ruin by Jonathan Mayberry
Published:  December 15th 2010 by Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing
Source: Library
Grade rate: A+

In the zombie-infested, post-apocalyptic America where Benny Imura lives, every teenager must find a job by the time they turn fifteen or get their rations cut in half. Benny doesn't want to apprentice as a zombie hunter with his boring older brother Tom, but he has no choice. He expects a tedious job whacking zoms for cash, but what he gets is a vocation that will teach him what it means to be human.

My Review

I absolutely loved Rot and Ruin. This is the first zombie book that I read and I have to say that I found it very interesting.

 

The book takes place is a ‘post apocalyptic’ world where a suspected virus starts spreading like wildfire and turning everyone into flesh eating zombies. You can turn zombie by being bitten by one or if you die and your spine is not severed you can wake up as one. Since there was a lot of unknowns at the beginning of the epidemic, the government made a series of fatal decisions that more of less cornered the survivors into little fenced-in towns throughout (in this case) California. Can you imagine a life without electricity? Without TV, radio, movies, your cell phone? Internet, microwave, cars, traffic, travel, etc? Fourteen years after the terrible attack started adults live in fear and teenagers live questioning why they live the way they do.

Benny, like all teenagers must find a job at age fifteen and he becomes his brother Tom’s apprentice in the family business. The characters are well developed and most seem very mysterious, with hidden agendas and secret pasts.  It seems incredible to me how the whole population can give up so easily. 

 

Rot & Ruin is long, but it doesn’t seem like it,  it has to be this way in order to set up the scene and background information of life before and the contrast to the life after. The writing is flawless, easy to read, and addictive.

 

This is a trip of discovery for Benny. Discovery about the Rot and Ruin, about Tom, about family, about love and friendship, and that evil exists everywhere, human or zombie. I am looking forward to the sequel 'Dust & Decay' that comes out at the end of this month.

 

About the cover: It is freaky, isn't it? That big green eye makes you scared somehow, but don't be intimidated by it because Rot & Ruin is so good!

 

Waiting on Wednesday: Halflings by Heather Burch

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine

Title: Halflings by Heather Burch

Published by: Zondervan Publishing

Release date: January 2012

After being inexplicably targeted by an evil intent on harming her at any cost, seventeen-year-old Nikki finds herself under the watchful guardianship of three mysterious young men who call themselves halflings. Sworn to defend her, misfits Mace, Raven, and Vine battle to keep Nikki safe while hiding their deepest secret—and the wings that come with.

A growing attraction between Nikki and two of her protectors presents a whole other dang

er. While she risks a broken heart, Mace and Raven could lose everything, including their souls. As the mysteries behind the boys’ powers, as well as her role in a scientist’s dark plan, unfold, Nikki is faced with choices that will affect the future of an entire race of heavenly beings, as well as the precarious equilibrium of the earthly world.

Why I want to read it: The premise sound so good. Three protectors for one girl, sign me in! The allusion to danger, angels and a mystery.  Isn't the cover so pretty too *sigh*

Top Ten Series and Standalone Novels

Top 10 Tuesday is a weekly meme created by The Broke and the Bookish

This week the theme for the Top Ten Tuesday is free for us to choose and I decided to compile a list of my Top Ten Series and Standalone Novels (btw, that makes 20.) 

First the series - I selected these because I love each one of them.  Other series that are begining (like Divergent, Die for Me or Angelfire) are not included because there is only one book published so far, besides there are so many series nowadays that is hard to select just ten.

1. Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling

2. The Mortal Instrument by Cassandra Clare (even if I was happy with it being a trilogy :)

3. Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead

4. Twilight Saga by Stephenie Meyer

5. The Iron Fey by Julie Kagawa

6. Wolves of Mercy Falls by Maggie Stiefvater

7. The Soul Screamer by Rachel Vincent

8. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

9. Wondrous Strange by LesleyLivingston

10. The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting

Now some of my favorite standalone novels (I can read these over and over again):

1. The Truth About Forever by Sarah Dessen

2. Morning Glory by LaVyrle Spencer (adult novel)

3. Dash and Lily's Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn and David Leviathan

4. The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson

5. Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

6. Book of a Thousand Days by Shannon Hale

7. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

8. Going Too Far by Jennifer Echols

9. Saving Grace by Julie Garwood (adult novel)

10. Beastly by Alex Flinn

What are your favorite series or standalone novels?  What is in your Top Ten this Tuesday?

Review: Crushed by K.C. Blake (The Witch-Game #1)

Title: Crushed by K. C. Blake
Published: July 13, 2011 by Smashwords and Amazon
Source: Provided by the author for review
Grade rate: B-

Each year they play a secret game: Crushed. The girls pick their targets carefully and blow enchanted dust into the boy’s faces, charming them, but this year Kristen makes a grave mistake. She chooses the wrong boy and almost dies that same day. Coincidence? Maybe.

But something isn’t quite right about Zach Bevian. He doesn’t behave like a boy who’s been Crushed. He goes from hot to cold, from looking at her with contempt to asking her out on a date. She doesn’t know what to think. Does he hate her or is he truly falling for her? Is he trying to kill her, or is he trying to save her?

My Review

‘Crushed’ is a fast read that has an original premise based on a game played by three teenage witches.  Is an interesting take in the world of witches and wizards. There are no wands, but instead there use their power and spells.

The characters were well developed, even if they seem to come across as very volatile and immature at the beginning.  Kristen is a complex character that undergoes an incredible transformation, at the beginning she acts the way Zach assume she is: the typical spoiled, popular, overachiever; but he soon discovers that you cannot judge a book by its cover (don’t we know that!)  The Noah sisters are triplets, but opposite in every way.  Kristen is the responsible one, Brittany is the explosive one, and Cindy is the peacemaker that mediates between her sisters.  I was a little taken aback by the dynamics between the sisters (that’s all I’m saying since I don’t want to give anything away.)  It was also weird that the over-controlling (and often absent) father left three teenagers unsupervised.   I loved Zach, although I don’t know if I could be as forgiving as he was. I also liked Grandma Noah quite a bit.

The plot was good, if a little predictable.  The scenes with Zach and Kristen were enlightening and very sweet.  Ms. Blake’s writing was easy to read and light.  I found it a little weird and unbending they way that witches (or wizards) lost their power, it didn’t make sense to me. 

Overall ‘Crushed’ is a quick and interesting read and I am looking forward to get to know the Noah sisters a little better.  Thank you to Ms. Blake for providing me with a copy of ‘Crushed’ for my review.

About the cover:  The cover shows Kristen (blond, red lips) wearing a witches’ hat.  I like the cover, although I don’t care for the block font.  The small print under the author’s name says: “Beware. Games can be Deadly”

The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater - Animated Trailer

The brilliant and multi talented Maggie Stiefvater created the music and animation for this awesome animated trailer for her upcoming book 'The Scorpio Races' that will be published in October of this year.
Enjoy!

In My Mailbox #11

IMM is a weekly meme inspired by Alea at the Pop Culture Junkie and hosted by the wonderful Kristi at The Story Siren.  All links are to Goodreads.

From the Library

The Mostrumologist by Rick Yancey - Author Maggie Stiefvater gave this book five stars in Goodreads and I trust her recommendation.

The Girl in the Steel Corset by Kady Cross - I have been waiting to get this book for a while.  It has one of the most eye-catching covers I've ever seen.

Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier - Another book that want to read so bad, happy I was able to find it!

Illusions by Apprilyne Pike - Wondering what will happen in this love triangle... this is the third book in the Wings series.

Bought

Where She Went by Gayle Forman - This is the sequel of 'If I Stay', one of my favorites reads last year. 

Won

Change of Heart by Jodi Picoult - I won this book from the wonderful Anne Bennett from My Head is Full of Books.  Thank you Anne for the giveaway!

For Review

The Iron Knight by Julie Kagawa - I have the lovely conclusion of the Iron Fey series waiting for me in my Kindle.  Thank you Harlequin for granting me this galley (from NetGalley.)