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A review by munderoon
The Iron King by Julie Kagawa
3.0
Gosh, I just wrote one big hell of a review and it vanished into thin air -_- Not going to do that again, so here's the short cut:
If it wasn't for the end, the book wouldn't have made it up to three stars. This one clearly was the introduction book, full of information and less plot. At some point, I couldn't enjoy new fey-thingys as much as I did before, which was sad. But the rats, those little helping hands of the "real" Iron King, were the best example for me, that I did enjoy some of those inventions in the book. For me, there were simply too much.
The one thing that kept me going was Puck. Never been so obsessed with a less important character. In the end, he was gone - again! - and what kept me reading then was Ash's (sudden) transformation.
I already heard the rumour, that he's going to be different in time and when it came to that point, it was like a big sign, reading "I'M DIFFERENT FROM NOW ON!" Until that moment, I didn't like Ash. I think, mainly because the author already knew, that Ash wasn't as bad as he acted, but somehow he had to seem bad. And I think/know that things like that are hard to write. So that moment, after slashing this weird dragon, you can literally see that border between "Playing cold-hearted bastard" and "Who's the handsome Winter Prince?". The one thing that was strange about that was their conversation, heavy with meanings and problems, such as "What should we tell the courts?" ... I was confused, first. Because, hey. Two pages ago, you weren't even looking at each other closely and now your tragic romance is dangerous for the two courts of yours? Oo Come on!
But enough with the negative things in this book - i'm gonna stop right here, before it comes down to Meghan, because finding something positive about her would mean to wait until the very last pages of the first book - and hello positive things!
So, although Ash's character development was weird at first, I did like him in the end. It feels like, his emotions are real, his feelings for Meghan, but on the other side, he is a prince of the Wintercourt and he knows his duty. Since the moment he told a little bit more about his past, I can understand Ash, being all silent, much better.
As I already mentioned: Robin Goodfellow is my hero. He surely made the book much more enjoyable and I miss him. (Thats one argument for keep on going with the series).
I loved the end. From the moment they killed Machina, I loved the mood and the decisions and the scenes. Was close to perfect, that particular bit. I already started with the second book and I could still make a ton of comments on every word, Meghan says, but it feels more like a book that invites on journeys, than learning the fey's different rules, courts and creatures.
All in all this book did strange things to me: Falling for the guy, who gets friendzoned over and over again. Watching character developments very closely. Not liking the main character until the end. And cheering for the bad guys. I mean it! Machina, for example, was a character, which felt more dangerous and sharp and well written than Meghan and Ash at that particular moment. Somehow I'm kinda sad, that he had to die! He was scary, but perfect.
Which leaves me to my final question: Did anyone else had Queen Mab from the Merlin movies with Sam Neill in mind, evertime it came down to her? :D
If it wasn't for the end, the book wouldn't have made it up to three stars. This one clearly was the introduction book, full of information and less plot. At some point, I couldn't enjoy new fey-thingys as much as I did before, which was sad. But the rats, those little helping hands of the "real" Iron King, were the best example for me, that I did enjoy some of those inventions in the book. For me, there were simply too much.
The one thing that kept me going was Puck. Never been so obsessed with a less important character. In the end, he was gone - again! - and what kept me reading then was Ash's (sudden) transformation.
I already heard the rumour, that he's going to be different in time and when it came to that point, it was like a big sign, reading "I'M DIFFERENT FROM NOW ON!" Until that moment, I didn't like Ash. I think, mainly because the author already knew, that Ash wasn't as bad as he acted, but somehow he had to seem bad. And I think/know that things like that are hard to write. So that moment, after slashing this weird dragon, you can literally see that border between "Playing cold-hearted bastard" and "Who's the handsome Winter Prince?". The one thing that was strange about that was their conversation, heavy with meanings and problems, such as "What should we tell the courts?" ... I was confused, first. Because, hey. Two pages ago, you weren't even looking at each other closely and now your tragic romance is dangerous for the two courts of yours? Oo Come on!
But enough with the negative things in this book - i'm gonna stop right here, before it comes down to Meghan, because finding something positive about her would mean to wait until the very last pages of the first book - and hello positive things!
So, although Ash's character development was weird at first, I did like him in the end. It feels like, his emotions are real, his feelings for Meghan, but on the other side, he is a prince of the Wintercourt and he knows his duty. Since the moment he told a little bit more about his past, I can understand Ash, being all silent, much better.
As I already mentioned: Robin Goodfellow is my hero. He surely made the book much more enjoyable and I miss him. (Thats one argument for keep on going with the series).
I loved the end. From the moment they killed Machina, I loved the mood and the decisions and the scenes. Was close to perfect, that particular bit. I already started with the second book and I could still make a ton of comments on every word, Meghan says, but it feels more like a book that invites on journeys, than learning the fey's different rules, courts and creatures.
All in all this book did strange things to me: Falling for the guy, who gets friendzoned over and over again. Watching character developments very closely. Not liking the main character until the end. And cheering for the bad guys. I mean it! Machina, for example, was a character, which felt more dangerous and sharp and well written than Meghan and Ash at that particular moment. Somehow I'm kinda sad, that he had to die! He was scary, but perfect.
Which leaves me to my final question: Did anyone else had Queen Mab from the Merlin movies with Sam Neill in mind, evertime it came down to her? :D