The Iron Daughter by Julie Kagawa

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, iron-bound 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 alone 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. [via GoodReads]

I loved The Iron King but I must say that Ms. Kagawa has really surpassed my expectations for The Iron Daughter. I absolutely loved this book. You know, I normally don't expect sequels to surpass the greatness of the first in the series, but I must say that this one definitely did!

The story picks up right after The Iron King left off. And for those of you who haven't already, I do recommend that you read the novella, Winter's Passage, so that you do get the complete journey Meghan and Ash traversed in order for the story to start with Meghan at the Winter Palace (it is not direly needed to pick-up this novella, but I do recommend that you do to get the full scope of the story).

In The Iron Daughter we learn more about the inner workings of the fae courts, there are new characters introduced, some loose ends that are tied, some revelations and many more paths that the story can take. There is just as much, if not more, action, adventure, peril, romance, friendship, passion, drama and love, then in the first in the series. Ms. Kagawa has amazing imagination and her world-building continues to astound me.

I really want this review to be as spoiler-free as possible so I won't give you too much info - but I leave you with some teasers: In it we definitely learn more about Ash, and the events that have made him into the boy/man that we know today. Puck is back as are Grimalkin, as well as some other characters we initially meet. We also get some details as to what the beef is between Ash and Puck. There are some unexpected ally's and some even more unexpected turn of events. The ending left me very satisfied, and even though there is a continuation, it really wasn't one of those oh-my-God cliff-hangers, although I still cannot wait to get my hands on the next book. I must know what happens next, NOW!

With that said, this is one of the best YA fairy series I have had the pleasure of reading. The characters are unforgettable, the world-building is breathtaking, and the romance/adventure is thrilling. I am hooked and cannot wait to see what is in store for our characters next. A must-read!

This book was provided for review by Harlequin through NetGalley.