Review: The Iron Knight by Julie Kagawa

Book: The Iron Knight, Julie Kagawa

Series: The Iron Fey #4

Publisher: Harlequin Teen

Release Date: October 26^th, 2011

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.

Ash, our favourite Winter Prince, finally gets his own story in The Iron Knight. We’d left The Iron Queen with Meghan as the rightful ruler of the Iron Kingdom – however this means that due to the fact that Winter and Summer fey can’t touch iron, that Ash is forced to stay away from Meghan. Does this stop our dangerous warrior? Of course not! He’s determined to be with his beloved no matter what, even if that means doing the impossible: travelling to the End of the World to undergo a series of trials to receive a soul and become mortal so iron won’t affect him.

And what’s a dangerous journey without our favourite trickster and cat in tow? Puck, Ash and Grim all set off on this quest to help Ash be with his true love. Old friends are met along the way and Ash truly learns what it means to be human.

This book did drag a little at times, which lost it a star, sadly, as the majority of the book is the three characters travelling. It wasn’t until Ash started performing the trials that the book got really compelling. I loved the way Kagawa created them; they were in a really unique way that accurately taught Ash what it meant to be human; both the good and the bad parts.

I also loved the brotherly relationship between Ash and Puck! Ash often remarked how annoying Puck was and that he would kill him someday, but he was always secretly relieved to see him survive battles. I think with Meghan and the love triangle officially over, (so they didn’t have to compete for her love), it really allowed them to improve their relationship in the best way possible.

Ash’s POV was also a nice change from Meghan; I loved seeing inside that sullen and serious head of his.

This is the end of Meghan and Ash’s story. Fans got the closure they needed for their relationship and what it’s like being in Ash’s head. This is the story of how they got their happily ever after. I may not have been officially on Team Ash, but I was still ecstatic when he finally got everything he deserved.

Fans of this series will adore this finale that brings an end to the Iron Fey series. Now onto Ethan’s story (as soon as I get a copy of the book, that is!)