Book Review: The Iron Daughter by Julie Kagawa

The Iron Daughter by Julie Kagawa
Release Date: July 27, 2010
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Pages: 359
Received: Library 
Series: Book 2
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Goodreads Page

Summary

From Goodreads (highlight to read): 

Half Summer faery princess, half human, Meghan has never fit in anywhere. Deserted by the Winter prince she thought loved her, she is prisoner to the Winter faery queen. As war looms between Summer and Winter, Meghan knows that the real danger comes from the Iron fey—ironbound faeries that only she and her absent prince have seen. But no one believes her. 

Worse, Meghan's own fey powers have been cut off. She's stuck in Faery with only her wits for help. Trusting anyone would be foolish. Trusting a seeming traitor could be deadly. But even as she grows a backbone of iron, Meghan can't help but hear the whispers of longing in her all-too-human heart.

Review

Here and back again

I actually did enjoy The Iron King, even though I don’t usually like fairy books. Julie Kagawa changed my world when it comes to fairies. Given that good experience, I was looking forward to really enjoying this one. I was even more excited because I’d heard most reviewers say that this one was even better than the first.

But I’m so not one of those reviewers. I didn’t love this book or even like it as much as the first. The first book was a steady, fast-paced action/adventure with a romance in the background. This book moves in fits and starts with a slow beginning, romance in the foreground, and some really great action in the background. The action parts are what I prefer, so I was disappointed that they took backseat to the (irritating) romance.

Meghan and Ash sitting in a tree K-I-S-S-I-N-G

I still love Grimalkin. Only this time I almost wished he would totally screw over Meghan because she was really starting to bother me. I gave her the benefit of the doubt in the first book. She’s new to this world, she’s young, and she’s learning how to cope with all this fairy stuff. Ok. But now? Now she’s run out of excuses.  

The first 100 pages Meghan is taken over by the spirit of Bella Swan during the time when Edward made it very clear he wanted nothing to do with her and she responded by stalking him, fawning, and crying. A lot. Ash is a jerk to Meghan and she just keeps crying over his jerky snubs and telling him she loves him. I was embarrassed for Meghan. I even cringed.

I found this whole part to be very boring and I had a hard time getting into the book. I can see why I like Ash. He’s hot, he’s a skilled fighter, he has a tragic history, and he looks hot when he fights. Sounds pretty good to me. Added bonus, he’s not a jerk to me. But why does Meghan love him so much? He hasn’t been particularly nice to her, he helped her under compulsion, and he made it pretty clear to her that he’s not on her side. On top of all that, he’s still carrying a flaming hot torch for his former woman. Oh baby, oh baby. What more could you want in a lover? Meghan lost major respect points from me.

Excuse me while I fangirl

In the first book I liked Puck, but this second book made me solidly Team Puck. I had mentioned in my review for the first book that I thought he was more of a sidekick character. He comes more into his own in this book, though still not as much as I’d like. I’m hoping book three gives him a little more depth and page time. He’s so close to being amazing, but he isn’t quite “alive” yet for me.

But still, compared to Ice Boy, Puck is a pretty sweet choice. He’s been Meghan’s best friend for years, so she actually, you know, knows him. He’s proved himself to be loyal, too. Where Ash refused to go against his queen, Puck pretty much told Oberon to shove it and helped Meghan even though he was risking punishment from the Big Bad Summer King. He’s funny, nice, and a pretty impressive fighter himself. Plus, he’s hot too. So Meghan gets a big “You’re an idiot” from this Team Puck girl.

Back to the review

You want to know about the book though, right? My crushes don’t do it for you? Fair enough. When Meghan isn’t swooning over Ash, the plot of The Iron Daughter is just as interesting as The Iron King. There are a number of action scenes that are a ton of fun. I was speeding through these parts. The story of the Iron kingdom became a lot more interesting and the impending war hanging over their heads was tense and exciting. The climax of this book was also a lot more hard-hitting than the climax of The Iron King.

Except, we go to prom. Uh huh, you read that right. Meghan finally stops moping and the action finally picks up and I’m all “I’m so into this!!” and then we break for prom. Yep.

Oh yeah, and right before this whole prom digression Meghan loses major cool points from me.

Spoilers:

Her dearheart Ash is saved by Meghan’s awesomeness, but he’s gravely wounded. Instead of rushing to his side and whisking him off to a healer, she….checks out her bedroom? Apparently mom replacing her furniture is a bit more pressing than saving the life of her one and only. Puck’s all like, “Um, hello, Princess? The guy you’re ditching me for even though I love you and am so much better for you than him is bleeding out in your living room. Could you maybe check out your bedspread later?” And she’s all, “But I want to make sure mom didn’t mess with my anime posters.” What??

When prom ends, the action picks up again and everything is pretty much made of awesome for the rest of the book. I gave The Iron King a half star more than this book, but if I could have hacked out a bunch of scenes and dropped Meghan’s annoying stuff I would have given the book four stars. So much potential, though readers who don’t mind prominent romance (especially of the Ash hating on Meghan variety) shouldn’t have any problems with The Iron Daughter. 

Of endings and sequels

This is the second book in the series and you really have to read the first book (The Iron King) to make sense of this book. Like the first book, I thought The Iron Daughter ended really well and felt like a satisfying, complete ending. I still want to read more about the characters, but there are no big annoying cliffhangers or anything like that here.

The first book was good, but it did read like a debut in a lot of ways. This second book shows marked improvement in her writing and characterization. Her world building is still phenomenal. I will be reading The Iron Queen, book three in the Iron Fey series*

*I’ve since read the third book and OMGAAHH!!! *happy dance*

 Explanation of rating system: Star Rating Key 

This book satisfies the following challenges: 

• YA Series Challenge
• Wish I'd Read That Challenge
• Library Reading Challenge
• 350 Page Books Challenge
• 2nds Challenge
• Most Awaited YA Releases Challenge

More Iron Fey:

The Iron King (book 1) review
The Iron King Review Comparison

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