Saturday 29 January 2011

Review for The Iron Witch by Karen Mahoney

Donna Underwood isn’t your typical teenage girl, she knows secrets, secrets about magic, other realms, secret societies and faeries and to top it off when she was a kid she was in a freak attack with a fey monster leaving her with mangled hands and arms and a dead father. After excruciating magical treatments Donna’s arms are left healed with Iron tattoo’s, giving her inhuman strength and a powerful iron enhanced weapon against the evil wood elves that attacked her and her father. So when the fey start kidnapping the people Donna loves and replacing them with faerie doppelgangers Donna knows it’s up to her to save them, and so with the help of gorgeous half faerie half human Xan Donna sets off to put an end to the evil wood elves who have haunted her nightmares all of her life even if it costs her the ultimate betrayal… I’ve read a few faerie books and I have to say that none of them have really impressed me. I was pretty much ready to just accept that maybe faeries weren’t for me when I heard about The Iron Witch. It sounded completely original and not like any other fey books I’ve read with the alchemist element thrown in and so I decided to give it a go. The Iron Witch had me intrigued pretty much straight away. I’m a sucker for all things magical so the alchemist part of the story really interested me and I loved how Karen Mahoney connected it in with a faerie world. The books fairly short but it packs a punch and for a debut novel to a brand new series it definitely has me wanting to know more about this world. Karen Mahoney answers just enough questions to leave you closing the book satisfied but at the same time has developed this world that has so much potential that you can’t help but wonder what’s going to happen next. As for characters I really loved Xan from the moment I met him but that’s not to say that I didn’t like Donna’s best friend Navin too. Although the romance was fairly limited in The Iron Witch I can definitely see a love triangle developing in future books and I have a feeling that Donna won’t be the only one torn between the boys! I found Donna to be a really interesting lead character. Her Iron tattoos and the abilities that come with them fascinated me and was a really original concept to the story. She was a strong, clever heroine and I especially enjoyed reading her journal entries as they really gave an insight into how Donna was feeling and I felt like I got to know her a lot better during that time. I can’t wait to learn more about her and the alchemists and their magic in future books. Overall I would recommend The Iron Witch to fey fans looking for a new take on the faerie worlds they’ve come to know and love and even to those none faerie lovers like me there’s still an enchanting, dark, new world to discover making The Iron Witch an enjoyable read for everyone. My Rating 3.5/5 stars ***1/2 Thanks go to Random House for sending me this book to review

10 comments :

  1. Faeries usually bore the crap out of me...except for The Replacement, so far. This sounds like it has promise for someone like me. Great review, Jess! :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. I haven't read any faerie books so this one might be a good start, especially for the Out Of Your Comfort Zone Challenge. Thanks for the fantastic review, Jess!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I really enjoyed this book! Xan was amazing and I loved all the alchemy. Great review! :D

    ReplyDelete
  4. I rally need to read this and find outwhether I am Team Xan. Great review.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Fae books aren't all that great sometimes but I always end up enjoying it either way! I can't wait to get my hands on this one. It just sounds really awesome. Thanks for the review!

    ReplyDelete
  6. I've been eying this one because I do love fey books and this one sounds gritty which is another thing I love when it comes to fey books. Glad the main character was interesting. I think I'll checking this one out. Thanks for the review!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Faeries are usually not my thing either, but I've read a lot of good reviews for this one, so I'll try to check it out at some point, and I'm interested in seeing what this guy Xan is like too!

    Thanks for the great review! xo

    ReplyDelete
  8. Great honest review - may read this for the challenge!

    ReplyDelete
  9. I loved reading your review! I really enjoyed this book.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Good review...I felt the same way. My review is out later this week. I thought the Wood Queen was a little safe. I expected the scenes in the woods to be a little more menacing.

    Jen

    ReplyDelete

Your thoughts, opinions, and input make my day and help make this blog a better place, I reply to all comments so don't be a stranger!

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...
 
Blog design by Imagination Designs using images from the Valentine Owls and Valentine's Day clip art kits by Pink Pueblo