Saturday, February 26, 2011

Review Comparison: The Iron King by Julie Kagawa

Review Comparison: The Iron King




Review Comparison is a new feature I'm trying out where I am pulling out the pros and cons of the featured book mentioned in my review and other bloggers' reviews. Please let me know how you like this new feature and if you have any suggestions on how to make it better. I'm still playing around with the format.





Click for my original review: 

The Iron King by Julie Kagawa 
Rating: 3.5 out of 5
Team: Puck

The following bloggers kindly allowed me to include their reviews in this feature: 

Rating: 5 out of 5
Team: Ash
Rating: 5 out of 5
Team: Ash 
Rating: 4.5 out of 5
Team: Puck
Rating: 3 out of 5
Team: Pash
Rating: 3 out of 5
Team: Ash

Please click on the links to read their full reviews!


~Conclusions~ 

Grimalkin was unanimously liked, and all but one mentioned the characters as a strength of the book. World building was another notable strength. The plot was overall liked, but two reviewers noted significant inconsistencies. 

Three reviewers mentioned that they enjoyed the book even though they don’t usually like fairy books. Three reviewers felt the book did not live up to the hype, but they did enjoy it nonetheless. 
 
       

 
 ~Characters~

General:
  • Vivid and lifelike personalities (The Bookish Type)
  • “They all had at least one attribute that I latched onto” (Brooke’s Box of Books)
  • “I’m really attached to the characters” (Paranormal Indulgence) 
  • With the exception of Grimalkin, they all felt a tiny bit lacking (Small Review)

Meghan:
  • “Ultra-relatable” (Paranormal Indulgence)
  • “Surprisingly relatable heroine” (The Bookish Type)
  • “Will strike a chord with young adult” and adult readers (The Bookish Type)
  • Admirable and refreshing, never whiny (The Bookish Type)
  • Refreshing attitude (Brooke’s Box of Books)
  • “Likable character who has her priorities in order” (The Book Vixen)
  • She grew throughout the story (Amaterasu Reads)
  • "I like her, but I don't love her" (Small Review)
  • Great narrator, “there wasn’t too much thinking or over-analyzing” (The Book Vixen)
  • Nice narrative voice, not overly introspective (Small Review)
  • “Her true nature remains mysterious” (The Bookish Type)
  
Ash:
  • “Not the typical hero…” (Amaterasu Reads)
  • “Makes me want to swoon” (Amaterasu Reads)
  • Allure heightened by intrigue (The Bookish Type)
  • “Pretty darn hot…” (Brooke’s Box of Books)
  • Hot (Small Review)

 Puck:
  • “A fun, lovable character” (Amaterasu Reads)
  • Entertaining and endearing, entirely lovable (The Bookish Type)
  • “…Managed to annoy me and crack me up all at once…adds to his charm” (Paranormal Indulgence)
  • “Great sarcastic lines,” snarky (Brooke’s Box of Books)
  • Likable, but not as developed as I would have liked (Small Review)

Grimalkin:
  • Liked him, humorous (The Book Vixen)
  • “The most interesting supporting character I’ve read in a while” (Amaterasu Reads)
  • “I absolutely love Grimalkin!” (Amaterasu Reads)
  • “Steals the show” (The Bookish Type)
  • “[Kagawa] personifies the aloof and condescending attitude of a cat perfectly and hilariously” (The Bookish Type)
  • “His sarcasm lightened the mood for me…” (Paranormal Indulgence)
  • “I laughed a lot because of him” (Paranormal Indulgence)
  • “I adore Grim” (Brooke’s Box of Books)
  • He’s the character I wonder about…” (Brook’s Box of Books)
  • "If Grimalkin was a human, I'd totally be Team Grimalkin" (Small Review)

  ~Plot & Writing~


  • “Swept me away from the moment I turned page one” (Paranormal Indulgence)
  • “Sucked me in without me even knowing it” (Brooke’s Box of Books)
  • Fascinating (Paranormal Indulgence)
  • Engrossing (The Bookish Type)
  • “Lacking in some areas and flourished in others” (The Book Vixen)
  • A number of inconsistencies (The Book Vixen, with page references for support)
  • Some inconsistencies and characters not making sense (Small Review)
  • Unique, engaging, “phenomenal” world building (The Book Vixen)
  • Great world building, fascinating (Amaterasu Reads)
  • Good world building, "I lost myself entirely in her world" (Small Review)
  • “Brilliantly created” (The Bookish Type)
  • Antagonist is fresh and unique (Amaterasu Reads)
  • Thought-provoking (The Bookish Type)
  • Never a dull moment (Small Review)
  • Fun, light, and jovial (Brooke’s Box of Books)
  • A lot going on, but not overwhelming (The Book Vixen)

 ~Romance~


  •  “It took some time before I got to see some embracing… [this] added to the appeal of their relationship” (Paranormal Indulgence)
  • Romance “develops slowly and tantalizingly” (The Bookish Type)
  • Doesn't develop too quickly or monopolize the plot (Small Review)
  • Romance is formed fast, but liked that Meghan kept her focus on her mission (Brooke’s Box of Books)
  • Romance is cute, but predictable (Brooke’s Box of Books)
  • “Even Team Puck fans will find themselves holding their breath…” (The Bookish Type)
  • Wish Puck had been given more of a fighting chance (Amaterasu Reads)
  • Finds the romance interesting (Amaterasu Reads)

16 comments:

  1. Oh man, I LOVE this idea! Serious, you're like a genius, it's definitely be useful for people debating whether or not to read this series. I'm definitely gonna keep a lookout for your Review Comparisons :) awesome post! Go PUCK!

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  2. This is an awesome feature. I never thought I'd ever get quoted, much less compared to other reviews. Very interesting thing you have here, looking forward to your other posts! Thanks for including me! :)

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  3. Ooh, please do more of these! I love book comparisons. Very helpful!

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  4. I love this feature. For the record, I think I consider myself Team Ash. :-) So glad to be part of this post!!! Thanks for thinking of my review!

    ~Brooke

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  5. I love this feature! Please continue it and I'd be happy to continue partaking in it. It's so helpful and very interesting!

    I feel so special. Lol.

    Asher K.

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  6. Audrey, :D You’re so sweet. I’m very happy you find this feature helpful. Yay for Puck!

    Kai, Thank you :) I’m so glad you let me include your review.

    Alissa, I definitely will!

    Brooke, Thank you! Ooh, thank you for your Team. I’ve edited my post. Thank you again for letting me include your review :)

    Asher, I’m so glad you do! I will definitely be continuing it. Thank you again for letting me use your review :)

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  7. Good review Small. There wasn't much hype out when I read this. I read it when it first came out so I loved it- you and I part ways on the fairy thing. You need to continue on with the series. I have Iron Queen but haven't read it. I'm kind of upset that the author chose to drag it out to another book. I know it's successful but still. Find something else to write.

    Heather

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  8. *hangs on to every fascinating word*

    Very true about Meghan being the type to not be overly introspective or over analyze. That helped me like her more. If only Mac (Fever series) would take note. *sighs*

    I could never get behind Puck as a love interest for Meghan. He gave off to much of an friendship/immature vibe.

    Now Ash on the other hand.. got to agree.. HOT

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  9. This is a really great idea!! I'm sure it took you a long time to put this together, so thanks!! It's interesting to see everyone's different opinions!

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  10. I think this is such a fun feature idea! Thanks so much for including me =) It's helpful to see what everyone thought side-by-side like that.

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  11. This is such a great post!!
    You have such refreshing ideas, keep them coming =)

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  12. I love this feature! It's a great way to get more than one perspective on a book, especially for those of us to who tend to have go-to blogs and sometimes forget to expand a little.

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  13. WOW - great idea. The effort seems like a lot, but the results are awesome. It's a very comprehensive review post that gets it all out at once. Nice!

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  14. I love this feature, I definitely think you should do more of them in the future!

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  15. Love the comparisons - it's like reading several reviews all at once. Totally saves me time (yes, I'm lazy). I especially love the conflicting viewpoints too!

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  16. I'm with the consensus here, I like this idea! I can't imagine how much time it took to compile everyone's views into one post. I hope you continue this feature :)

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