4 stars. Three pivotal characters, three unique novellas.
Like I do with these novella anthologies, I will compile all my Delirium novella reviews into 4 stars. Three pivotal characters, three unique novellas.
Like I do with these novella anthologies, I will compile all my Delirium novella reviews into this review to save virtual shelf space and keep things organised.
Hana This is told in Hana’s POV and covers the summer before she is cured, before Lena escapes to the Wilds.
Hana is one of those girls who is carefree and wild, wanting to live life to the fullest before it is taken away from her. I really love her voice. It’s fun and bubbly but almost bittersweet, weighted down with jealousy and a pressure to be perfect. I can relate to Hana almost as much as I can Lena.
Having read this shortly after Requiem, I can now compare the voice of an uncured Hana to a cured one. I loved that contrast, that irony; how Hana was the one who dared for freedom but Lena was the one who fell in love and escaped, while Hana ended up cured. It’s like their paths were switched.
I love the conclusion her jealousy amounted to but, though she pays for it later, I can’t help but feel sorry for her. It’s what I would have done, were I in her shoes.
Annabel Told in alternating chapters of ‘now’ and ‘then’ Annabel tells the story of Lena’s mother, how she met her father and what led her to those years in the Crypts.
Annabel’s voice drips with emotion, love and a yearning for freedom. It was good to see what happened to her in the Crypts, to see why she acted that way in Requiem. We got to see a bit more of how Lena was like as a child through Annabel’s memories. One story I found particularly cute was where Lena picked up spiders from the pavement to prevent them from getting stepped on.
This would have been more emotional for me if I had read it either before or after reading Delirium. Since I read it such a long time ago, I can’t really remember what Lena thought of her mother’s story and what she was like while Lena was growing up. I also could not connect or relate to her and that’s where it really didn’t work for me as relation is the main reason why this series is such a hit with me.
Raven Raven tells her story jumping from past to present: when she escaped to the Wilds with Blue to when she helped Lena rescue Julian Fineman.
This was my most anticipated novella in this book. Raven is one of my favourite characters in the Delirium series and I could not wait to learn more about her. Her voice was strong but poignant and heartbreaking, like Raven herself. We are given insight on her past and how she came to be this strong and independent woman she is when we meet her. We see how she was treated by her father, how strongly she felt for Blue, and how she first met Tack. I would have liked to learn what her name was before and who named her Raven in the Wilds (I hope it was Tack) but neither of these questions were answered.
Speaking of Tack, the romance between him and Raven suits them so well. It’s mature, sweet, and understanding. I love them.
One thing that ticks me off though, is Lena’s turquoise and silver necklace. It was mentioned in both Alex (short story in Requiem) and Raven but never in Delirium or Pandemonium. It’s almost like Lauren Oliver threw it in at the last minute. It’s just a tiny detail but it bugs me all the same.
I had suspected the ending since reading Alex, but having it confirmed and knowing the outcome of Requiem made it that much more emotional. Reading it before Requiem, not after, would have helped though.
In conclusion, Raven is probably my favourite though I wish it was longer.
A character's voice is often hard for an author to capture. But Lauren Oliver masters it. You can really see the contrast between Hana, Annabel and Raven's voices. Though these novellas are all beautifully and uniquely written, they don’t captivate me like the main books do and that’s understandable. Like Julie Kagawa’s The Iron Legends, they are simply quick fixes that expand on characters and the overall world. You do not have to read them for the story to make sense but some events in the main books will be clearer if you have the knowledge from the novellas. I highly recommend them so you can get the most out of this world Lauren Oliver was built for us.
Also, at the very end of the book, after the unnecessary Requiem excerpt, there is a section called (Un) Approved Entertainment. It quotes books and poetry that are forbidden in the Delirium world. I didn’t get anything out of this and felt it was rather limited in its choices. There is also a quiz on what kind of fighter you are but I found it rather pointless.
Now I must acknowledge that this series is well and truly over. *sniff*...more
3 stars. If you're just looking for a quick Iron Fey fix, you've come to the right place.
The Iron Legends consists of the three ebook novellas: Winter'3 stars. If you're just looking for a quick Iron Fey fix, you've come to the right place.
The Iron Legends consists of the three ebook novellas: Winter's Passage, Summer's Crossing and Iron's Prophecy, along with a guide to the world, a Q&A with Julie Kagawa, a glossary, a character guide, and a quote quiz.
As much as I love the Iron Fey series, this book just wasn't enough on its own. It still has our same lovable cast, sneaky fey, and hilarious one-liners that the series is famous for, but, for me, it would have had more of an impact if I read this right after finishing The Iron Knight. But now, one month after finishing up the main four books, I still love it, but the fangirly high is gone.
The novellas really aren't must reads. You don't have to read these for the rest of the series to make sense. Like another reviewer said, they are sort of like canon fanfiction, just the little fillers. But I suggest you purchase this book anyway, for the bonus material. They are very funny and helped me remember events I had long forgotten. They give a lot of information about the various places in the Nevernever and recap of the storylines of each of our characters. What I found funny was Grimalkin, constantly popping up in the guide, grumbling about how dumb humans are. This guide will be very useful when I re-read the series. If I forget what colour someone's eyes are, instead of going back and trying to find the page, I can just look it up in this guide.
Since this was my first time reading the novellas, I will compile all of my reviews into one big review, to save virtual shelf space.
Winter's Passage Plot: Meghan must uphold her side of the bargain and travel with Ash to Tir Na Nog as his prisoner.
Reading this reminded me of how much Meghan annoyed me in the first book. She's whiny, dumb, naive and stupid, as per usual. She also didn't do any fighting and instead just stood there, staring at Ash. I wanted to stick a butter knife into the book and force her to fight with it.
This novella also reminded me of how closed-off and cold Ash was at first. The funny thing is, I swear I've already read his 'emotions-are-a-weakness-in-Winter' talk (& kiss) he had with Meghan in the cave. I'm not sure where though...
The villain, I did not find scary or vicious at all because I have already read The Iron Knight.
Overall, nothing special, Iron Fey series-wise. Could have gone without it.
Summer's Crossing Plot: Puck and Ash have been called by Leanansidhe to retrieve her violin from the clutches of Titania.
How I love this novella so. I've always loved Puck because of his sense of humour. Now, with a whole novella in his POV? I was laughing almost the whole way through. I say almost because, since we are inside his head, we are exposed to his feelings on Meghan, Ash and Meghan and Ash's relationship. He was jealous, he was sad, he was angry, but it was great to hear his side of the story.
I especially loved seeing Puck in his true nature, pranking the Summer Court into shambles. And seeing Ash completely out of his element never hurts either. My favourite of the three novellas.
Iron's Prophecy Plot: Meghan and Ash are called back from Elysium by the return of the Oracle who brings a dire warning about their first-born child.
This is the only one of the three where I don't know what comes next. I have not yet read The Lost Prince, so I don't see how this all ties in yet. It will probably all fall into place once I read it and I will be grateful to have read Iron's Prophecy to help it make sense. I'm kind of scared to read Lost Prince though. What I saw in the oracle's vision was foreboding and mysterious, and I wish the stupid tree didn't pull them back before she finished talking. Also having the Lost Prince excerpt doesn't help.
As much as I love Meghan and Ash, it's SO weird to think of them as parents. They just still seem so young to me. This concept of the fey never aging makes things weird. Even so, I loved the sweet (and steamy) scenes of Meghan and Ash.
As I read the novellas consecutively, I went through a major time warp and really got to see how much the characters have grown. No more whiny Meghan, cold Ash and jealous Puck in Iron's Prophecy. They've all grown into responsible (somewhat, in Puck's case) adults who are happy with who they are in their lives.
It makes me happy.
Now onto those cover models: I really don't like them. Especially Puck. Where's the red hair and the mischievous smirk? I guess he's supposed to look jealous but Puck would never let someone take a picture of him that way! Ash and Meghan are okay, I guess, but they're really not how I picture them.
I definitely recommend it to all Iron Fey lovers. It's the extra icing on top of an already delicious cake....more
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