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
‘Katniss Everdeen better watch out.’
– Huffington Post onT he Immortal Rules
'Julie Kagawa is one killer storyteller.’—MTV
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- ISBN13 9780778304463
- Publish Date 1 May 2011 (first published 1 January 2010)
- Publish Status Active
- Publish Country CA
- Publisher HarperCollins Publishers
- Imprint Mira Ink
- Format Paperback
- Pages 432
- Language English
- URL http://harpercollins.co.uk
Reviews
Angie
The Iron Daughter picks up soon after the ending of The Iron King with Meghan being held as a kind of prisoner at the Winter Court. She’s cold and alone, and doesn’t have access to her magic, at least not in the way she thinks. Of course, she has to get out of there eventually or things would get pretty boring. Iron fey have broken into the palace, stolen a very powerful item, killed a prince, and disappeared. Who does Queen Mab blame? The Summer Court, obviously! No one believes that the iron fey exist, so Meghan and Ash have to go out, find the missing scepter of the seasons, and put the blame were it belongs. Easier said than done.
I didn’t enjoy The Iron Daughter quite as much as the first book, but it was still a fun and enjoyable read. While the plot didn’t always hold my interest, the world building more than made up for it. I loved seeing more of the Nevernever, as well as the new Between, and some of the fey hang outs in the mortal world. We’re also introduced to several new characters who either help Meghan on her journey or majorly hinder it in some way. There’s so many different type of fey and I really enjoy getting to learn a little about them. Ash’s brother, Rowan, is also a significant character this time and he is such a slime ball!
The best part of The Iron Daughter is, of course, IRONHORSE! As soon as I see those all caps lines, I can’t help but smile. Is Ironhorse suppose to provide comedic relief? Even if he’s not, I find him ridiculous, hilarious, and utterly lovable. He steals every scene he’s in, which may not be a good thing, since he tends to be very distracting. We did get to see some new tricks from him, and he’s not a total jerk like I original thought.
I still don’t like this romance between Ash and Meghan. It should have been postponed a bit to not feel so insta-lovey and dumb. However, I grudgingly accept it, since it doesn’t appear to be going anywhere. It also causes some great drama between the Summer and Winter courts, and I’m curious where that will lead (if anywhere), especially after that ending.
The end of The Iron Daughter was a little strange, but I liked it. It feels to me like something huge has to happen in order to set the next book in motion, and I’m eager to find out what that is. I have a theory, so of course I want to know if it’s right.
Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.
Sam@WLABB
Vicki
liz089
When I first started reading this one it took me some time to remember how the last one ended. I was really happy to find out that the writer added some information in the beginning chapters about how things went in the first book. It made the transgression a lot easier and I barely had any question marks left about the story in the fist one. Really liked that !
You got sucked right back in the world of Nevernever with Meghan and the Iron Fey. I enjoy how they keep the original story of the Summer Court of the Seelie and the Winter Court of the Unseelie alive. I really enjoyed how the Fey worked and how she didn’t fit in that world but tried to fit in to protect herself. In the beginning she is “taken captive” by Queen Mab and the Winter Court and misses Ash. Damn ! How mean Ash was to her !! I could just strangle him for the way he spoke to her and how he made her feel ! On the other side, did I felt she kind of overreacted sometimes but well.. I also enjoyed the drama.
I loved her father for trying to get her back, he seems so uptight sometimes, but you can see he loves his daughter.
Bah ! How I disliked Rowan, mean prince. He tried to humiliate her and hurt her, asshole. I’m curious how thing will progress with him in the next part, I hope he will die horribly. On that note, why did Sage die !! He did not deserve that at all ! I was kind of curious about what he wanted to talk about with Meghan.. but now we will never find out ! LAME.
I felt like I was in a rollercoaster most of the book, we went from one place, to another, to another, a continues battle against time and evil.
I liked when they went to Leanansidhe in the Between and met Charles and some of the street rats. I did not like when they went shopping though.. seemed kind of unnecessary ? Why did she add that ??
Just like the part with ehm.. that guy she really liked before she got to Nevernever but played her, she goes on and dances with him ! When someone has been so mean and nasty to you.. you don’t just dance with them and act like everything is fine !! I would have told him who I was and give him the fingers when walking away ! Girl Power !!
I liked the mystery around Charles and I’m curious if we’re going to see more of him in the following parts !
I did not like the love triangle.. Just chose one !! Okay it is nice not to have one guy but a choice in the matter, and Puck and Ash were both really cute.. But it was obvious from the beginning that only Ash was good enough, and she loved him way more then Puck. I felt sorry for Puck.. like she was playing him !! She keeps thinking about Ash but tries Puck out ? Come on ! Bad move !!! If you love someone you should stick with it and not run towards someone else the minute things get hard ! And then get all jealous when he flirts with others.. LAME.
I do hope though, she will leave Puck alone and not hurt him anymore in the next books! So I’m a mix between team Puck and team Ash, because I like Puck better.. but I also thinks he deserves better then Meghan.. so Ash can have Meghan XD and I will take Puck home J Good deal right ?
Oooeee I really liked IronHorse in this part ! He was cool, tough and shouting a lot ^^ He was very loyal and I felt sad when he came to an end L Also Grimalkin !!! Yeah !! He was bad-ass !! Mister I-don’t-give-a-damn always comes through in the end and saves the day haha.
I liked the plot, it was fast paced most of the time and had some action in it as well. Some secrets came to light I didn’t aspect to happen and the ending was kind of surprising in its own. I enjoy the whole Iron Fey versus the “normal” Fey with the current technology improvements, and I am curious as how the next part will proceed with this.
bookishzelda
Be warned there might be spoilers
I really liked how this book started out, with Meghan already captive in the Winter kingdom. She reflects on Ash and her journey to there and that Mab pretty much tossed her in a room to deal with her later. She also already has an established frenemie. At first Meghan seems a little bit on the sappy love sick side but I think it makes sense. When the going gets tough she snaps out of it and I like the fact that she has a hard time being mad at Ash even though she wants to.
I felt the journey in this book was more heart wrenching then the previous. I found myself loving characters I previously hated and getting annoyed with ones I previously loved. Not Ash of course he can do no wrong. :o) Some of the dynamics between the characters change and you kind of pause and think hmm.
Of course what's a good book series without a love triangle? It was in the first book but I think it really takes form in the second book. I like that Meghan however isn't just bouncing from guy to guy. She is very truthful about her feelings and doesn't skirt around her own faults in the situation.
The world of Faery that Julie Kagawa has created is addicting. I find myself get a little jolt of excitement when they are going to take a new trod or experience a new area. It's easy to create vivid images in my mind from the detail she puts in to each part of faery.
Charles! I knew it from her second encounter with him. I hope we get a little bit more on that in the third book.
ladygrey
It's like the book version of a CW show: I love you but I can't be with you - oh being away from you is tearing me apart - I know you love someone else, but I'm always here - Don't ask me that again - oh why can't I let you go!
If I were a fairy in this world, I think my glamour would totally be fueled by angst.
I mean, there's a plot too. And it's also better than [b:The Iron King|6644117|The Iron King (The Iron Fey, #1)|Julie Kagawa|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1327877670l/6644117._SY75_.jpg|6838626] with more going on and it's more deft and stitched together more smoothly and it's subtle which is both infuriating and exciting. There's some good layering in for the next book which I'm anxious to read. The characters all develop as we spend more time with them and become more interesting. But really, all the angst is just sumptuous.
Amber
Amanda
Original review: http://onabookbender.com/2011/09/09/review-the-iron-daughter-by-julie-kagawa/
Fair warning: I hate love triangles. Abhor them. The only love triangle I only kind of but not really supported was the love triangle in The Mortal Instruments series because I understood the necessity of it. The love triangle in The Iron Daughter had me wanting to bang my head on my desk, and what started off as heart-warming and romantic moments were completely and utterly ruined by the love triangle rearing its ugly head. You know why I hate love triangles? Because I always know exactly who I want, and I get pissed off when anything interferes with getting what — who, rather — I want. So, I was not happy with this book, and I was ready to rate The Iron Daughter a solid B…until I read the ending. That got it a + plus from me, but that’s it. No more! I cannot condone the use of love triangles.
I find that, although this series is incredibly fascinating and it certainly pulls me in, it is predictable at times. Predictable as in I know how the characters (vagueness included lest I spoil it by saying who) will get out of dire situations before they do. It’s obvious. And it’s not even explained or even explored why it is the way that it is. Neither are Meghan’s fey powers, really. I’m definitely an information whore, and I wished this aspect was somehow touched on rather than simply accepting its existence (or lack thereof).
Other than all that, The Iron Daughter was an engrossing read, and I am interested to see where Julie Kagawa takes the characters next.