The Iron Sword

Written by Julie Kagawa

Narrated by Vikas Adam

As Evenfall nears, the stakes grow ever higher for those in Faery…

Banished from the Winter Court for daring to fall in love, Prince Ash achieved the impossible and journeyed to the End of the World to earn a soul and keep his vow to always stand beside Queen Meghan of the Iron Fey.

Now he faces even more incomprehensible odds. Their son, King Keirran of the Forgotten, is missing. Something more ancient than the courts of Faery and more evil than anything Ash has faced in a millennium is rising as Evenfall approaches. And if Ash and his allies cannot stop it, the chaos that has begun to divide the world will shatter it for eternity.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperAudio
• Release date: Feb 2, 2022
• ISBN: 9781867245650

Julie Kagawa

Born in Sacramento, CA, Julie Kagawa moved to Hawaii at the age of nine. There she learned many things; how to bodyboard, that teachers scream when you put centipedes in their desks, and that writing stories in math class is a great way to kill time. Her teachers were glad to see her graduate. Julie now lives is Louisville, KY with her husband and furkids. She is the international and NYT bestselling author of The Iron Fey series. Visit her at juliekagawa.com.

Reviews for The Iron Sword

[shelleyraec · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

“The end has begun. Evenfall is coming. Faery and every living creature that exists under the sun are doomed.”While it’s not strictly necessary to be familiar with the Iron Fey series which includes the four books of The Iron Fey (The Iron King, The Iron Daughter, The Iron Queen and The Iron Knight) and The Iron Fey: Call of Forgotten trilogy (The Lost Prince, The Iron Traitor and The Iron Warrior), plus various novellas, you do need to have read the first book of this spin-off series, The Iron Raven, to enjoy this direct sequel.The Iron Sword begins where The Iron Raven ended, though this time the story is told from Ash’s point of view, as Ash, the unseelie Winter Prince with a soul, and his wife, Megan, the human Iron Queen, learn that their son, Kierran, King of the Forgotten, is missing after his realm in the Between was corrupted by a shadow monster. Joined by Puck, assassin Nyx, and Grimalkin, the party sets off in search of Kierran while trying to learn more about Evenfall, and the shadow monsters invading Faery. Their journey takes them into the mortal world where Kierran is protecting the survivors of his kingdom, and it’s here, with some help from Megan’s half brother, and his wife, Kenzie, that they will find the answers they all seek.With Ash taking centre stage as the narrator of The Iron Sword, Megan and Puck are essentially sidelined. Ash is not a terribly complicated character, and I felt his narrative reflected this. His internal monologues were quite repetitive, declarations to protect his family at any cost, and a debate, influenced by the negative emotions stirred by the various shadow monsters, about the consequences of unleashing, or failing to unleash, his full unseelie nature.Fortunately there’s plenty of fast paced action in The Iron Sword because Ash is a dynamic fighter, A few smaller skirmishes eventually lead to an impressive multi-staged battle that the group seem on the verge of losing until some surprising allies step in. Kagawa is skilled at conjuring these scenes so that it’s easy to visualise the chaos of swords and magic as the hero’s and monsters clash.I don’t want to spoil the particulars of what Evenfall is, but I do think it works well within Kagawa’s established lore. I also liked the connections she drew between the real world and fae elements.Unsurprisingly the book ends on a cliffhanger, with the whole of faery, and the mortal world, in danger of shattering. I expect it will be Megan who will tell the final instalment of the trilogy, and I’m looking forward to it. The nightmare of Evenfall is upon us.