The Iron Sword by Jocelyn Fox

Rating

No, Dean we aren't fighting the fairies in this one.

Synopsis The Fae must be saved, and only the bearer of the Iron Sword can do it. The Iron Sword can save and curse by the same means--iron is poison to all fae, no matter how powerful. However, there is a half mortal/half fae child bound in the mortal realm that was prophesied to bring salvation to her people. Queen Mab send a letter and a Knight to retrieve the one chosen to wield the Iron Sword. And then there is Tess O'Connor, a full mortal, who is vacationing with her friend, Molly, and her family while her beloved brother is fighting overseas. Molly ignores the letter, but when a wisp o' the willows visits Tess in her dreams. Tess urges Molly to answer the summons. Tess promises her best friend that she will be with her every step of the way. So the deal laid before the Named Knight is where Molly goes so does Tess. After almost dying on the way, Tess learns why it so important for the Sidhe to be saved. While Molly's destiny takes her down another path.

Characters The characters are realistic in their emotional reactions, even if they are alien in appearance. The introduction to the cast of characters is gradual, so that unique scenes can be created for each one. Most are likeable in their own way and all show that they are fully formed people not just character sketches.

World This book contains the best explanation of why the Fae exist that I have ever come across. The narrator wouldn't know the names of plants, but she would know how her body felt on this alien world. While not as detailed as some world masters, from the perspective of a first person narrator the world was established enough to be unique, but didn't hamper the pacing by being described down to the nth degree.

Pacing Pacing is my favorite thing to judge a book by--it's either there or it's not. Pacing turns the book into a movie in your head. The movie might be six hours or more long but with the right pacing you don't even feel it. The pacing was excellent in this book, nothing gets bogged down. The developing friendships, backstory reveals, and action are balanced and lead seamlessly into one another.

Writing The writing was detailed, but kept the story going. No time was wasted and the tension was created and maintained expertly. The history of the Fae was touched on but not fully revealed. What was used was used for a purpose and brilliantly woven into the story. Even the downtime in the plot was used to reveal character traits.

Plot The Chosen one with a twist. I shall not spoil it, but it was really well done. There was the now required love story that's in every YA, but it wasn't overly drawn out. The story was cut off before the climax of the plotline.

The GoodIt's free for Kindle on Amazon. And as I mentioned the writing, the world building, characters, pacing and the plot twist.
The Bad They chopped up the book. I'm an impatient person I want a complete plot when I open a book not a serial. So I had to give it a four star, instead of five.
Recommendations

Both my recommendations on the surface have a lot in common with The Iron Sword: they are young adult and feature the Sidhe.

Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer

I recommend this series if for kids and adults alike. I love these books, the first is definitely the best but the way Eoin tackled the Elves is unique. The Elves live underground and, instead of a medieval society, are technologically advanced. The characters are well thought out and lovable even the antagonist.

Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr

Wicked Lovely is an older young adult novel than Artemis Fowl, but not as old as The Iron Sword. It features a love story, but my favorite part is the descriptions of the Unseelie and Seelie, very old school and very not human. They almost have an alien quality--but they aren't humans are more alien to the natural world than the Fae. The Sidhe are human looking, but are alien in other ways.

I ♥ the Tuatha da Danann, whether they are called Elves, Sidhe, Fae, Fairies, or the Fair Folk. They aren't sweetness and light in fact, they are more cautionary tales of not allowing yourself to be seduced by the pretty. I like when the old tales are given new life and introduced to a new generation, or when someone takes the mythos and turns it completely on it's head. I guarantee you will love all three of these books, at least I did. If not please tell me why?

Game of Thrones by George R. R. Martin

Rating

Purchase here
I know I'm late to the party. I'm not a big fan of political books or traditional fantasy, but Game of Thrones is so much more than the sum of it's parts. I got addicted to the show, and then had to read the books.
Synopsis In the Game of Thrones, power can change hands in the blink of an eye. Robert Baratheon is king of Westeros married to Cersei, the only daughter of Tywin Lanaster, and content in his heir apparent Joffery. He travels from the Southern Kingdoms to the North to enlist his boyhood friend's aid. The Seven Kingdoms are at peace but, "Winter is coming" as Lord Eddard, Ned, Stark is quick to point out. Danger seethes both within the Kingdoms and without: to the North the Others, along with Mance Rayder and the Wildling horde; to the East the last of the Targaryen house, the previous royal house Robert rebelled against and won; as well as the sudden death of the King's Hand, Jon Arryn. Ned decides to accept being the King's Hand and travels south with his two daughters. A decision that has lasting consequences for everyone in the Seven Kingdoms. Characters The cast is massive. Everyone is a complete character with motivations, parts to play, but also interests of their own. Tyrion Lanaster is my favorite character both in the book and on the show. He's smart, a master of the sarcastic arts, and has all the makings of a proper villain. Most characters are victims of their own making; their virtues or vices lead them into dire consequences. The houses that are important are the Lanaster, Targaryen, Baratheon, Stark, and to a lesser extent Tully. But there are important characters that aren't in houses, and Castle Black where house loyalties are supposed to be left behind when the person takes the Black.
World Martin is in the top bracket when it comes to world building. Like Tolkien and Rowlings, he could write textbooks on the history, myths, religions, and science of his world. In fact, he could probably create a large series of factual textbooks. No question, Tolkien is king of world building--fantasy didn't exist before him. But Martin masters world building in a way most authors don't bother with. There are hints of a larger world than the story that is being told in every aspect of this book. An author once called these clues "red shoes", and I love that image of a tantalizing hint of a past or story untold. Red shoes: Andels, the Children, the Old Gods, the New Gods, The Wall, the Kings of the North, and the Dothraki garden of fallen gods are just a few of the things never delved into that I would find interesting reading. Pacing Pacing was the downfall of this book. Because there is so much world building and establishment of place, the immediacy and tension in the story suffers. Minor characters and places are described ad nauseum, the mystery of John Arryn's death takes way too long to solve, and the daily lives of Arya and Sansa are largely unimportant but are well established in this book. But since this a first book it can be a slower pace as world takes precedence.
Writing The writing itself was a let down, from the detailed scene descriptions I thought sex and body descriptions would be more graphic. But other than three sex scenes, a bathing scene and a post coital scene the novel is surprisingly tame when it comes to sexual content. And the scenes themselves weren't overtly erotic. I realize this is a first book, so I'll let the emphasis on world building and character introduction go, but the lack of emotional connection was unnecessary. The conflicts between characters are more vivid and finely wrought than the positive emotional connections. Dani and her husband's building connection is barely touched it's sacrificed for the conflict between her and her brother. John and Sam's friendship is two scenes, but the conflict between John and Thorne is reinforced in several scenes. The book focuses more on the hate than the love, except between John and Aria. I actually liked that relationship. Plot The plot is a big part of the story so, I'll not give it away. I will say the main plot for the entire series is about Who controls the Iron Throne, and with it the Seven Kingdoms. The subplot for this book focuses on Castle Black and the dangers winter brings.
The Good The world building is epic and detailed. The plot full of twists and sufficiently grand for a saga. The characters are very realistic, even the minor ones. Dialogue is very quotable.
The Bad Pacing was inconsistent with some relationships glossed over or barely touched for the sake of brevity, but some scenes were left in and described in utter detail that took way too long for the action that took place. The writing was very factual, the minute details described in the tourney for example made it extremely vivid, but emotional scenes lacked depth.
Recommendations
Harry Potter and The Sorcerer's Stone by J. K. Rowling

Yes, if I was late talking about Game of Thrones, then recommending Harry Potter to a post Potter world is even more timely. However hear me out, if you haven't read the books, i.e. only watched the movies, then you are missing out. Rowling builds a world brick by brick that is filled with depth, history, and magic. She takes an entire page to describe the contents of the sweets shop. That's why I picked them to recommend in addition to Game of Thrones. Because she doesn't just tell you Harry's story, she makes you live in the Wizzarding World without having to go to Universal theme park.
Kushiel's Dart

This book is more in line with Game of Thrones as it is dark, adult themed and political. It is also a very decent series. The world is full of plots and subplots that Phedre has to navigate.