Ironside by Holly Black

        

Ironside
(The Modern Faerie Tales #3)
by Holly Black

Summary from Goodreads:

"In the realm of Faerie, the time has come for Roiben's coronation. Uneasy in the midst of the malevolent Unseelie Court, pixie Kaye is sure of only one thing -- her love for Roiben. But when Kaye, drunk on faerie wine, declares herself to Roiben, he sends her on a seemingly impossible quest. Now Kaye can't see or speak to Roiben unless she can find the one thing she knows doesn't exist: a faerie who can tell a lie.

Miserable and convinced she belongs nowhere, Kaye decides to tell her mother the truth -- that she is a changeling left in place of the human daughter stolen long ago. Her mother's shock and horror sends Kaye back to the world of Faerie to find her human counterpart and return her to Ironside. But once back in the faerie courts, Kaye finds herself a pawn in the games of Silarial, queen of the Seelie Court. Silarial wants Roiben's throne, and she will use Kaye, and any means necessary, to get it. In this game of wits and weapons, can a pixie outplay a queen?

Holly Black spins a seductive tale at once achingly real and chillingly enchanted, set in a dangerous world where pleasure mingles with pain and nothing is exactly as it appears."

Rating:

After reading Tithe and Valiant, I expected Ironside to clash all the characters from both books to this one. But to my dismay, Luis was the only distinct character from Valiant that appeared on this third instalment of the Holly Black’s Modern Faerie Tales. 

Roiben and Kaye’s relationship had somehow developed in this book but I still think there’s more to establish. Luis and Corny’s relationship was one I did not really expect! But the connection was deep and was built robustly. 

I don’t really have much to elucidate about Ironside; it was enjoyable to read but not much of an enthralling tale. I loved the mystery and the cleverness of the plot but I guess I’m really more of an action-packed book enthusiast. Although I have to admit, Ironside provided the reader with a good wrap-up for all three books. It pictured what was coming ahead for the characters even if the tales end here.