The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa

Title: The Immortal Rules (Blood of Eden #1)

Author: Julie Kagawa

Publisher: Harlequin Teen

Release Date: April 24, 2012

Source: ARC from Publisher

Buy the Book: Amazon / Book Depository

In a future world, Vampires reign. Humans are blood cattle. And one girl will search for the key to save humanity.

Allison Sekemoto survives in the Fringe, the outermost circle of a vampire city. By day, she and her crew scavenge for food. By night, any one of them could be eaten.

Some days, all that drives Allie is her hatred of them. The vampires who keep humans as blood cattle. Until the night Allie herself is attacked--and given the ultimate choice. Die or become one of the monsters.

Faced with her own mortality, Allie becomes what she despises most. To survive, she must learn the rules of being immortal, including the most important: go long enough without human blood, and you will go mad.

Then Allie is forced to flee into the unknown, outside her city walls. There she joins a ragged band of humans who are seeking a legend--a possible cure to the disease that killed off most of humankind and created the rabids, the mindless creatures who threaten humans and vampires alike.

But it isn't easy to pass for human. Especially no around Zeke, who might see past the monster inside her. And Allie soon must decide what--and who--is worth dying for.

I love vampires, dystopians and Julie Kagawa so you can imagine how excited I was to have all that thrown together into one book. Let me just say that The Immortal Rules was absolutely fantastic. There was nothing not to love about this book, and I already wish I had more to read.

All her life Allison has hated vampires. Vampires are the reason her mother is dead and the reason Allison has been living in the Fringe and doing everything she can to stay alive. And she's barely doing so. But then she gets attacked by rabid vampires and is given the option either to die or stay alive as a vampire. And Allie, not wanting to die,  chooses to become everything she hates in order to stay alive. With the help of her new mentor, Allie learns what it means to live as a vampire. But soon enough, Allison is forced to run away from everything she knows and finds herself joining with a group of humans searching for a legend. And Allie will soon have to test just how human she is and how much of a monster she is.

I can't even begin to express how much I loved this book. The entire premise made me a little doubtful at first but Julie Kagawa definitely pulled it off. She presented a world that was dominated by vampires where humans lived in fear and that felt completely real. Everything Julie Kagwa described I could easily picture. The other thing I loved about The Immortal Rules is that despite the length, it never felt like the story was lagging. There was always something happening and the story really captivated me from start to finish. And let me just say that during the last 150 pages or so my heart just kept breaking over and over again. By the time I finished the book, I just wanted more.

A lot of the book focused on the idea of humanity and what it means to be human. That whole debate made Allison's character very interesting. At the beginning of the book Allie was a human teenage girl who lived a hard life, struggling to survive. Then she became a vampire and worried about becoming a monster. But then as the story progressed, it was almost as if being a vampire made Allie more human than she ever was as a human. It was like worrying about becoming a monster made her start to care more about the people around her than she ever did before. And I loved seeing that whole transformation happen in Allison, especially around Zeke, but I don't want to say too much. Just know that you will inevitably be rooting for Zeke and Allison.

The Immortal Rules was a fantastic read. Julie Kagawa wrote the start to what promises to be an amazing new series and I absolutely cannot wait to find out what will happen next.

Win The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa

Thanks to Harlequin Teen I am lucky enough to be able to offer one of you lucky readers a finished copy of Julie Kagawa's upcoming book, The Immortal Rules. Julie Kagawa is a fantastic writer and I loved her Iron Fey series (definitely check it out if you haven't already). I've heard nothing but good things about The Immortal Rules and look forward to reading it myself.

So if a lovely hardcover copy of The Immortal Rules might be something you are interested in getting your hands on, be sure to fill out the Rafflecopter form below. Giveaway is open to US/Canada only. Good luck to everyone who enters!

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The Iron Queen by Julie Kagawa

Title: The Iron Queen (The Iron Fey #3)

Author: Julie Kagawa

Publisher: HarlequinTEEN

Release Date: January 25, 2011

Source: Purchased

Buy the Book: Amazon / Book Depository / Indigo

My name is Meghan Chase.

I thought it was over. That my time with the fey, the impossible choices I had to make, the sacrifices of those I loved, was behind me. But a storm is approaching, an army of Iron fey that will drag me back, kicking and screaming. Drag me away from the banished prince who’s sworn to stand by my side. Drag me into the core of the conflict so powerful, I’m not sure anyone can survive it.

This time, there will be no turning back.

****SPOILER ALERT!!! DO NOT READ THIS REVIEW IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THIS BOOK OR THE PREVIOUS BOOKS IN THE SERIES!!!****

The Iron Fey series is simply amazing and The Iron Queen wasn’t anything less. If I though the first two books were fantastic, I don’t even know how to describe this one. I am completely in love with the world and the characters that Julie Kagawa created and I just can’t seem to get enough.

Meghan is back in Louisiana, after having been banished from the Nevernever by Oberon. This time, though, Ash is with her having also been banished from the Faerie Realm by Mab. Thinking she will finally have some time to relax. Meghan decides to go home. But the Iron King is still after her, and threatening to take over the entire Nevernever. Now, Meghan has to find a way to stop the false Iron King before he destroys Ash’s world, and maybe even Ash in the process. But will Meghan have the strength to do what needs to be done. But more importantly, will she be able to do it all before the Nevernever is destroyed forever.

I was so happy to be able to get back into the world that Julie Kagawa created. There are just so many layers to it, every time I think I have it all figured out, there is something new that appears. There’s always something new to learn about it, and personally I eat it all up. I also absolutely love all the action. There just isn’t ever one dull moment, or if there mysteriously is on it definitely doesn’t last very long. But all of this would be nothing without Julie Kagawa’s amazing storytelling. The way the story is written just draws you in right from the get go and only releases you after the very last word. And the story is full of twists and turns that just make you want to know exactly what’s going to happen next.

Meghan is a majorly awesome heroine. She never backs down and just takes whatever comes her way. Some of the decisions she has to make I’m not sure that I would be able to make them myself. But Meghan just does whatever she has to, no matter how much pain it will cause her. As for the two boys, I may not be so sure who I want Meghan to be with anymore. Don’t get me wrong, Ash is still pretty much amazing but sometimes his behavior just bugs me. As for Puck, I just love him and find myself leaning more and more towards him. I guess I’ll just have to wait and see what happens next.

The Iron Queen was even better than The Iron King and The Iron Daughter if that is even at all possible. It’s an unpredictable, fast paced, action packed story that will just leave you begging for more. Now I can’t wait to read Ash’s story in The Iron Knight.

The Iron Daughter by Julie Kagawa

Title: The Iron Daughter (The Iron Fey #2)

Author: Julie Kagawa

Publisher: HarlequinTEEN

Release Date: August 1, 2010

Source: Purchased

Buy the Book: Amazon / Book Depository / Indigo

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.

I had loved The Iron King when I read it over the summer and I can honestly say that I loved The Iron Daughter even more. The story, the characters, everything is better. I had an amazing time reading it and getting reacquainted with Meghan, Puck, Ash and Grim along with meeting all sorts of new characters. I also have to say that I am now officially Team Ash and good luck getting me to change my opinion.

Meghan is being held at the palace of the Winter Court, wondering when if she’ll ever get to see Ash again. Or if her father will ever consider coming to her rescue. Or how much time has passed out in the real world. Is her family even still alive? When Meghan finally sees Ash, the reunion is quite far from what she expected it to be. And on top of everything else, war is threatening to break out between the Summer and Winter Courts, which would only allow the Iron Fey to come in and take over the Nevernever. Despite her efforts to prevent a war between the two courts, Meghan has to run away and to find and return the Scepter of the Seasons, the item that is causing all this trouble. But what about Ash, was he really playing her when he told her all those things.

I love Meghan Chase. She is a pretty awesome heroine, and one that doesn’t let others walk all over her...except sometimes where Ash is concerned. He just has this way of getting to her. But other than that I just love Meghan. She just has this great personality and I just can’t help but like her. I really don’t think I could ever not like her. My favorite side of Meghan is really how she is when the action really starts. The ends to which she’ll go to help those she loves are just incredible sometimes. And I wouldn’t be honest if I didn’t admit that whenever she was with Ash I kinda sorta wanted to trade places with her.

Why there is even a Team Ash - Team Puck debate is a mystery to me. I love Puck a lot but he’s just no Ash. Puck is great, I love his humor and how he is with Meghan. I wouldn’t mind having Puck to myself. He just has me laughing pretty much every time he opens his mouth to speak and I really look forward to seeing him and finding out what stupid thing he’s going to do or say next. I felt bad for him at the end even if I was really happy with the way things turned out. And now I will say it: I am absolutely in love with Ash. Half the time his behavior completely gets on my nerves but the rest of the time I am more or less in awe of him. I totally understand why Meghan feels the way she does about him. I mean, how could she not? There is so much more I could say about Ash but it would be way too spoilery and I don’t want to ruin it for those who haven’t read the book.

I liked the the story from The Iron Daughter better than I did the story in The Iron King. Both are really great and I loved both of them but there was something this time around. It might be that the action started pretty much right away. The Faery world was already all established and we could just jump right in to the good part of the story. I found that there was a lot more action and I really liked finding out more about the Iron Fey and how their court worked. I just love the mix of imagination, magic and adventure that’s present throughout the story, it’s not something that’s everywhere.

The Iron Daughter is an amazing sequel. After reading The Iron King, I didn’t think it could really get any better but it did. And I’m sure it will get even better when The Iron Queen comes out in February.

The Iron King by Julie Kagawa

Title: The Iron King (The Iron Fey #1)

Author: Julie Kagawa

Publisher: HarlequinTEEN

Release Date: February 1, 2010

Source: Purchased

Buy the Book: Amazon / Book Depository / Indigo

MEGHAN CHASE HAS A SECRET DESTINY--ONE SHE COULD NEVER HAVE IMAGINED...

Something has always felt slightly off in Meghan’s life, ever since her father disappeared before her eyes when she was six. She has never quite fit in at school...or at home.

When a dark stranger begins watching her from afar, and her prankster best friend becomes strangely protective of her, Meghan senses that everything she’s known is about to change.

But she could haver have guessed the truth--that she is the daughter of a mythical faery king and is a pawn in a deadly war. Now Meghan will learn just how far she’ll go to save someone she care about, to stop a mysterious evil no faery creature dare face...and to find love with a young prince who might rather see her dead than let her touch his icy heart.

Once again I picked up The Iron King because of all the great things I had heard about it. It seems that these days that’s the only thing that comes into play when I choose what book to read. And like for many of my recent reads, I am glad I picked up the book. It was a really good read and yet another take on the Faerie world, this time adding some new elements. The fact that I am a sucker for Faerie stories probably makes me biased but it was a really good book.

Meghan Chase has always been the invisible girl in school, sometimes even at homes. The only people who really know her are her best friend Robbie and Ethan, her four-year-old half-brother. But on the day of her sixteenth birthday weird things start happening. Ethan who was afraid of monsters essentially becomes the monster and Robbie reveals his true identity as he takes her on a trip to the Nevernever, the land of the Faerie. Between being shot at by the Winter Prince and abused by the Queen of Faeries, Meghan discovers a whole new world she may be closer to than she thinks.

Meghan slowly grew on me. At first I wasn’t really sure about her but then when the action really started I began liking her more and more, especially her determination in finding Ethan. There is just something about someone doing whatever they need to do in order to save someone she loved. I also liked that she wasn’t too quick to accept the whole Faeries exist thing, for the longest time she was denying her origins. What really got to me was how much she was willing to give to help those she cared for, even if she had only known them for a short period of time. By the end of the book, I was totally sold on Meghan and I was rooting for her all the way.

The other characters had me highly amused. Robbie and Grimalkin had me laughing throughout the book. Robbie was always playing tricks on everyone and in a cheery mood regardless of the situation. He would be in the middle of a duel with someone and all of a sudden cracking jokes at the same time as he was attempting to stab his opponent. Grimalkin’s humor was more subtle but there all the same. There is just something about having every word that comes out of a cat’s mouth being ironic, he had me smiling and laughing many times. And then there was Ash. Like for Meghan, I wasn’t too sure about him at first but then you realize that it’s all just a front he’s putting up. By the end of the book, I wanted him to be mine, let’s just leave it at that.

I have read so many Faerie stories and it was fun to see one that added a court that had never been talked about before. What made it even better was that, a totally logical explanation for its existence. The only thing I have to say about the story is that at first it sort of drags on. As much as I loved the book once I was done reading it, it took me a while to get into it at first. Once it picked up, I couldn’t put the book down and the story moved at an incredible pace. Like I said, when I finished reading, I loved the book.

The Iron King was an amazing read and such an interesting take on the Faerie world and how it came to exist. Now I’m (im)patiently waiting for the second book, The Iron Daughter, to arrive in my mailbox.

Also, can anyone tell me how the actual Faerie courts work and who rules what. I’ve read so many different stories with so many different combinations of rules and courts. Any help would be greatly appreciated.