The Iron Daughter by Julie Kagawa

What the back of the book says:
"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."

What I've got to say about it:

Yes, I started this book this morning. And yes, I already finished it. I don't know if that means I have no life or if it's a testament to how much I love this series. *Shrug*

So the book starts out in the Winter Court, where I feel pretty bad for Meghan. Ash goes jerk on her, and she's pretty upset. I get that, and it was well written enough that I hurt for her. But then the action picks up and we are flung into a new crisis involving those darn Iron Faeries that Queen Mab is less inclined to believe in. Instead, she blames a theft and the murder of one of her sons (no, not Ash, thankfully) on the Summer Court. But Meghan knows it wasn't the Summer Court, and only she and Ash have the knowledge it takes to recover what was stolen and keep the two courts from going to war.

And again Sagawa keeps you guessing with the random twists and turns of the plot. The whole "Forbidden Romance" thing is great. It almost brings to mind 'Twilight', only Meghan is way cooler than Bella (sorry to all you Bella fans!). I could go on about how much better I think Meghan is, but suffice it to say that I think she's a refreshing change to the "damsel in distress" stereotype. As far as the other characters go, my favorite cat is still hanging around, but only because being around Meghan is entertaining. I have officially fallen in love with Ash, and Puck is there for comic relief and to occasionally up the ante. The ending actually surprised me a little bit, and since I know there's a 3rd book, it makes me really wonder what Sagawa has up her sleeve for The Iron Queen.

Final thoughts: WIN! I'm already pushing the series on my friends, and to any random strangers on the internet who might read this. So go to your library and pick up a copy of the series (I mean, read The Iron King first, obviously). And if you like the series too, spread the word!