Book Review: The Iron Traitor by Julie Kagawa

I know, I know. Some of you are probably thinking, faeries? Aren't they tiny, glittery creatures concocted for the imaginations of three-year old girls bedecked in tutus and crowns? Call me a kid, but I've been enchanted by Julie Kagawa's "The Iron Fey" series ever since I read the first book. I think a little piece of me died when I read the final book in the original series, only to be revived when "The Iron Fey: Call of the Forgotten" series was announced! "The Iron Traitor" is the second book in this sequel series, and was released just last month. And let me tell you, the fey in the books are not your typical frilly faeries.

"Normal" is not possible when it comes to the life of Ethan Chase. Being the younger brother of one of the most powerful fey in the Nevernever wasn't meant to be easy, and, after an unexpected journey to the land of fey, "normal" is out of the question. But when he learns that his nephew Kierran is missing and seeking any means possible to save the summer faery he loves, Ethan finds himself sucked back into magical mischief and fey politics. Now, however, the stakes are even higher. Not only does he have to protect his stubborn girlfriend Kenzie, but Ethan also has to stop Kierran before he does something unthinkable, something that will give rise to the dangerous fey known as the Forgotten, and fracture the human and faery worlds forever.

The characters in "The Iron Fey" series have always, without fail, made me fall in love with them. I remember becoming so invested in the adventures of Meghan, Ash and Puck that I devoured even the in-between novellas in the series--I just needed more! Luckily for me, they make reappearances in "The Iron Traitor", and it really is like meeting old friends after a long time. Puck is as mischievous as ever, and it was thrilling to see Ash show up again (though this may or may not be because I ended up having a creepy fictional crush on the guy). And, of course, you have Grimalkin, the Cheshire Cat-like character, ripe with sarcasm and wry "better than thou". I think I squealed a little when he showed up in the novel! The way Ms. Kagawa ties in the original and sequel series together is both generous and exciting, and builds on the world she'd created previously in ways that continue to astonish you at every turn.

The main characters of this series, however, are Ethan, Kenzie and Kierran. Being in the perspective of a male protagonist is always interesting to me, especially when it comes to YA novels. I love reading about Ethan's emotions and thoughts throughout the novel, especially as he comes to terms with his feelings for Kenzie and letting some of that 'tough guy shield' go as he exposes himself to more vulnerability. The ways in which Ethan's character develops as the story progresses allow for greater reader investment in the novel, not to mention establish a connection between the main character and the reader. I do have to say, however, that I don't quite feel as invested in his character as I did in the original series, though this may not have anything to do with his portrayal! Kenzie, though admittedly a little annoying at times, is still a strong, determined character who is a perfect match for Ethan, helping him crumbles the walls he'd erected for self-defense. The most intriguing character in "The Iron Traitor", however, is Kierran, since the entire novel centers around his actions as he tries to save Annwyl. I loved their tragic romance, and to see him change as he struggles to save the faery he loves was extremely interesting to read about.

As always, Ms. Kagawa does an incredible job in expanding the world of the novel. She takes us to New Orleans, full of mystic and voodoo and all that jazz (pun intended), creepy, abandoned houses, and, of course, Nevernever. It's always intriguing to enter the land of the fey, what with all the court politics, exotic and entrancing creatures, and wickedly beautiful landscapes. And what's all the more intriguing is that Ms. Kagawa evokes this entire, expansive world through words alone! The writing itself is never purple, nor is it simplistic, with just the right balance of descriptions and action to set the novel at a quick and engaging pace. The storyline never really dropped, and always remained exciting until that one heckuva cliffhanger!

Overall, "The Iron Traitor" is an incredibly delectable addition to "The Iron Fey" series, with a wonderful cast of characters you can't forget, a deceptively enchanting world, and an engaging, fast-paced plot. I highly recommend this series to anyone looking for a good adventure--or to indulge in their childhood obsession with faeries!

Rating: 4/5

Book Review: Born at Midnight by C.C. Hunter

There's nothing like a delicious YA novel to get you through an otherwise stressful time. So, while I was neck-high in exam revision, I clung desperately onto the lifeboat of C.C. Hunter's "Born at Midnight", the first book of the "Shadow Falls" series. This book was on my recommended books list on my Kindle, so I decided to give it a go after seeing the good reviews. Plus, the title itself sounds pretty juicy, doesn't it?

Sixteen-year-old Kylie Galen doesn't drink or do drugs. Heck, the farthest she's ever gone is kiss her now-ex-boyfriend Trey. When she's caught at the wrong party with the wrong people, Kylie finds herself whisked away to Shadow Falls Camp, a camp for troubled teens nestled deep in the woods of a town called Fallen. But within hours of arriving, Kylie becomes painfully aware that her campmates aren't just troubled. Instead, she's surrounded by vampires, werewolves, witches, fairies and shapeshifters who are trying to learn to control their magic and live in the human world. Kylie's never felt entirely normal, but she sure isn't a paranormal freak either. Or is she? As if that wasn't enough, Kylie finds herself drawn to both Derek and Lucas, a half-fae and a werewolf who couldn't be more different, but have a powerful hold on her heart. But with all her uncertainties, Kylie soon becomes certain of one thing: Shadow Falls is exactly where she belongs.

If you just read the synopsis, it becomes pretty darn obvious that there's one serious love triangle going on between Kylie, Derek and Lucas. Unfortunately, I felt like this time, it was one of those love triangles where you end up finding the girl stuck in the middle incredibly annoying. Sure, Derek and Lucas are both good lookin' and warm and mysterious in their own ways, but that doesn't mean she has to make out with both of them! Oh, and it gets worse. Instead of just having two boys like any normal YA heroine, Kyle has three! So she ends up kissing Derek, Lucas and Trey. Kylie sure gets around. And while she does (sort of) try to stop herself so that she can sort out her feelings, she just doesn't exactly seem to care whoever she ends up making out with. Now don't get me wrong, Kylie's a sweet girl who's a pretty realistic teenaged character, but sometimes you gotta draw the line with these boys! What I think especially emphasized the whole annoying-player vibe with Kylie was that there hadn't really been enough build-up between any of the potential couplings to make the development of their relationships really believable. Instead, it was the boys just flocking towards Kylie for some reason, and that was that!

Wow, that was a long rant. But it's not as bad as I may have made it out to be, trust me! She just kisses too many guys in a 400-page span. Other than that, "Born at Midnight" is a great book to read. I like the idea of a camp for paranormal teens. It kind of reminds me of Percy Jackson and Camp Halfblood, except with vampires and other things that go bump in the night. The characters are really fun to read about, especially the friendship between Kylie, Miranda and Della. The three seem to get into such amusing situations, like the perverted piano teacher who turns into a toad whenever he thinks inappropriate thoughts! The way their friendship developed was sweet and believable, and you can tell that they'll always have each others' backs, no matter how many times they bicker or tease each other.

The plot of "Born at Midnight" can best be described as introductory. There's a lot of Kylie getting used to the idea of paranormals and trying to figure out who and what she is, and establishment of different characters and their personalities. In terms of tension in the storyline, I feel like there wasn't much of a climax or real action-y plot to follow. Instead, we read about Kylie and her friends at Shadow Falls Camp. The ending, however, definitely suggests that there'll be more antics and possibly a bigger picture to things, and hopefully the next books in the series will have some thrilling adventures of sorts.

Overall, "Born at Midnight" is a fun start to the "Shadow Falls" series, with a nice cast of characters (despite the easy-lipped heroine) and build-up for some potential excitement and tension. I'd recommend this book to anyone looking for an easy YA read, or anyone who is head-over-heels in love with paranormal creatures.

Rating: 3.5/5

Book Review: Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare

To me, one of the greatest things about urban fantasy is its ability to take the world as you know it and completely transform it into a place of otherworldly magic. That's probably one of the reasons why I fell head over heels in love with "The Mortal Instruments" series by Cassandra Clare, which, obviously led me to a fit of squeals and shrieks when I found out a couple years ago that a sister series "The Infernal Devices" was coming out! Even more demons, angels and Shadowhunters, oh my! Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end--in this case, in the form of "Clockwork Princess", the third and final book in "The Infernal Devices" trilogy.

Tessa Gray should be happy--aren't all brides happy? Yet as she prepares for her wedding with Jem, the silver-haired, gentle boy she's found herself falling in love with, a net of shadows begins to tighten around the Shadowhunters of the London Institute. Mortmain is lurking from a distance, but he only needs one thing to complete his army of merciless automatons: Tessa. As she deals with Jem's fatal sickness and her conflicting feelings for Will, Tessa knows that it's only a matter of time before Mortmain comes for her, and she'll stop at nothing to protect the two boys she loves and the family she's grown into at the Institute--even if it means making dangerous choices that could threaten the survival of all Shadowhunters.

What I found extremely impressive in "Clockwork Princess" was, of course, the way Ms. Clare played out the love triangle between Tessa, Will and Jem, romance being one of the ever-present elements of the series. Usually you see the whole annoying thing where the heroine constantly wavers between the two boys, with melodramatic spiels on how she thinks she loves Boy #1, but wait, Boy #2 is not too shabby looking himself. Which, inevitably, leads to kissing both boys and messing around with them. But in "The Infernal Devices" trilogy, you get a romantic conflict that's dealt in a pretty mature manner, which I am ever grateful for. Tessa's a responsible, strong and loving heroine who's a delight to follow throughout the novel, and, on a completely different and not-so-salient note, all the more likable now that I know how she looks like! I mean, how beautiful is the cover? But I digress. I don't entirely know how I feel about how the love triangle turned out, but I definitely know that it was very clever of Ms. Clare, very clever indeed! Plus it's quite fitting considering everything that's happened in the series, and surprising in a pleasant, warm way.

And, like any other novel in the rows and rows of books on shelves, the characters in them are of utmost importance. "Clockwork Princess" is chock full of engaging, wonderful characters who really end up forming an expansive, protective family you can't help but warming to. There's the iron-willed yet caring Charlotte, her kooky and adorable husband Henry, Gideon and Gabriel Lightwood, Will's sister Cecily, the brave and scarred Sophie, even Bridgett and Cecil! And, of course, Tessa, Jem and Will. I liked how the novel jumped around between different points of view of the characters, because you really get to know them all so intimately. There's so much to say about all the characters, but I don't want to go on and on and bore you, so I'll just stick to the two ever-important boys, Jem and Will. The bond between the two parabatai is so palpable and unbreakable, despite the fact that they're as different as night and day. I loved the way their pasts were revealed in "Clockwork Princess", and how each of their pasts made them who they are in the present. But one thing I especially love is Will's humour. My goodness, it had me chortling at one point--in fact, I have to share it:

"Mr. Rochester never courted Jane Eyre," Tessa pointed out.

"No, he dressed up as a woman and terrified the poor girl out of her wits. Is that what you want?"

"You would make a very ugly woman."

"I would not. I would be stunning."

For some reason, that had me giggling! Like Jace from "The Mortal Instuments" series, Will is just so full of dry, sarcastic wit that just gets me going and makes him that much more likable. Jeez, no wonder Tessa loves both of them.

One of the more disappointing elements of "Clockwork Princess" was the plot. While it did remain sufficiently engaging throughout, I felt like the plot was a little stretched out and lingered too much in unnecessary places, such as Will's ride to Wales. I definitely think the novel would've been more exciting (though, I deceive you not, it's plenty exciting!) if it had been a little more fast-paced. I sometimes found myself skimming over some parts, which is never a very good sign. Another thing was how quickly the climax seemed to be done and over with. There wasn't much of a struggle in the final scene between Mortmain and Tessa, and it was just poof-kill-and done! So maybe that could've been a little more well developed, since, after all, this is the very last book of such an amazing trilogy.

Overall, "Clockwork Princess" is the not-to-be-missed final installment to "The Infernal Devices" series, with a great cast of characters and beautiful, compelling writing that had me tearing up--something that books I've read recently haven't made me done in a while. It's bittersweet to be saying goodbye to these people you've gotten to know and grown to love, but the wonderful, magical thing about books is that you can always go back and revisit them! I highly recommend "The Infernal Devices" trilogy, as well as "The Mortal Instuments" series if you haven't read that yet!

Rating: 4.5/5

*News flash!* I just found out that there'll be a brand new Shadowhunters series called "The Dark Artifices" in 2015, centering around one Emma Carstairs (Jem's relative?!). Hopefully things won't become repetitive with the whole Shadowhunters/demons/angels business. Geeeeee I'm excited!! I can't wait. (:

Book Review: The Lost Prince by Julie Kagawa

Don't you just love a good urban fantasy book? I just finished "The Lost Prince" this morning, and the elated feeling in my chest hasn't gone away yet. The imagination it takes to combine two very dissimilar worlds--in this case the land of faeries and the human world we live in--is no small thing, but its results are all-encompassing. After gobbling down the parent series "The Iron Fey" in just a couple of short weeks, I knew I was enamoured with the world of Nevernever. When I saw that the story was continuing from the heroine's brother's perspective, I think I squealed and did a little shimmy--it's that fun.

Seventeen-year old Ethan Chase isn't your typical bad boy. Sure, he has the rep and the attitude to go with it, but when your life is spent avoiding mischievous fey, nothing is really ever as it seems. Don't look at Them. Never let Them know you can see Them. That is Ethan's one unbreakable rule. But when half-breeds and exiled fey begin to disappear from the human world, Ethan must abandon his instincts and seek help from his sister Meghan in the one place he has vowed never to return to: the Nevernever. There, he will meet friends from Meghan's own journey, and make new ones himself as he tries to protect the one girl he never thought he'd dare fall for--and save all fey.

Having read the first "The Iron Fey" series from Meghan's point of view, I found it exciting to be in the mind of her little brother (though not so little anymore!) in the "Call of the Forgotten" series. It's thrilling to see how characters from the previous series have developed and grown, and I'm extremely happy that I won't have to fully say good-bye to Meghan, Ash and Puck yet! The fact that the book was told from a guy's perspective added a fresh twist as well, because it's not really something that you see in many urban fantasy novels. Ethan as a narrator is personal and wry, which gave me a particularly vivid understanding of what he's like: bad-ass but with a caring, more vulnerable side to him. Ms. Kagawa makes it seem as if Ethan's really talking to you as a speaker would to a listener, and this really drew me into the story. I feel like we're somewhat best buds!

The other characters in the novel were equally as fun to be with. I think I'll start off with Razor, even though he's not technically even a main character. I have such a great image of him as an electrical, mechanized Furby, hopping around everywhere and yelling "bad kitty, bad kitty!" in a cute, well, Furby-like voice. He's just such an endearing little critter and makes me wish I had my very own Razor to accompany me on my journeys and such! But moving on. Kenzie to me is a pretty likable character, but not someone I'm dying to meet or anything. She's pretty cool, but at times she just seemed  almost a little annoying with her constant upbeat attitude and stubbornness. Though maybe that makes me a little bit of a cynic or something. Kierran is an incredibly interesting character, with many different facets to him that are revealed throughout the story. After reading "The Iron Prophecy", the 'epilogue novella' to "The Iron Fey" series, I kind of know what may happen sometime in the later books (don't worry, no spoilers!), and I'm curious to see how everything plays out.

Plot-wise, "The Lost Prince" never dipped in tension to make me lose interest. In fact, I became so invested in what was happening that I had to force myself to stop reading at times! Everything is consistently fast-paced, and altogether makes for a fun ride. My one complaint is that the apparent climax of the story was over too quickly--it just seemed like Ethan and his gang got out of the mud too easily, without any major obstacles or trials.

Overall, "The Lost Prince" is a must-read for any urban fantasy lovers out there. With an engaging, interesting narrator, fun characters, fast-paced action and an enchanting world, the "Call of the Forgotten" series is not to be missed! Plus, if you haven't read the first "The Iron Fey" series, I highly recommend reading that first before starting this one. Trust me, you'll whizz through the books in a matter of days--they're that fun.

Rating: 5/5

P.S. If I haven't convinced you enough, check out the book trailer! I love the quite epic soundtrack.