Book Review: The Iron Knight - Julie Kagawa

Title: The Iron Knight (The Iron Fey #4)

Author: Julie Kagawa

Release Date: October 25th 2011

Publisher: HarlequinTEEN

Age Group: Young Adult

Source: Bought

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My name - my True Name - is Ashallayn’ darkmyr Tallyn. I am the last remaining son of Mab, Queen of the Unseelie Court. And I am dead to her. My fall began, as many stories do, with a girl…

To cold 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 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. And along the way Ash learns something that changes everything. A truth that challenges his darkest beliefs and shows him that, sometimes, it takes more than courage to make the ultimate sacrifice.

Now this is how you end a series. The Iron Knight provided all the closure I could wish for - although the novella Iron's Prophecy ruins all of that, not that I'm complaning - and it just made me a very happy fan. The book kept all the unpredictability and constant thrill of the previous books, but for some reason it was just... better.

Even if it takes a hundred years, I will be with her in the end.

I'd known that it was written in Ash's POV but that didn't truly sink in until I had already started reading. In the first three books, Ash felt like an enigma, even when he had already opened up to Meghan, so to be able to enter his head was so much fun. His cool, indifferent facade as the Winter prince hid all his confusion and worry, but here he was finally an open book. And although I've always known him to be strong, the strength he showed in this book was just something different, something more substantial, because it was his inner strength.

Before reading this, I thought Ash wanted to become an Iron faery - don't know where I got that idea since that didn't turn out so well for his brother Rowan - so when I learned of what he was really planning... wow. I didn't even know it was possible, but of course love can make anything possible. If Ash was going to be with Meghan in the Iron realm, he had to earn something while giving up the identity he'd known his entire life, and for someone of his stature, that sure took a lot of guts and determination.

Being away from Meghan took its toll on Ash, but I have to admit that it was more than nice and enjoyable seeing him alone with Puck, Grim, another ally who I shall not name because I seriously did not expect him to enter the picture, and her. Jesus. As if Ash needed something more to add to his confusion. At one point I even got the notion that he was only going on his quest because of the oath he swore to Meghan that he'd find a way to be with her. One thing's for sure: Julie Kagawa sure knows how and when to pull her plot twists. And to torture her characters.

Packed with equal parts action and emotion, The Iron Knight is a worthy conclusion for this series. I don't imagine anyone would be disappointed because it's just that good. I have loads of love for the epilogue, but I'm not sure if I'll be reading the Call of the Forgotten series anytime soon because I hate waiting! >_<;

MY FAVORITE PART was Ash and Puck going fishing in the River of Dreams =))

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