Ironside: A Modern Faerie Tale

Holly Black

Jul 2008 · Sold by Simon and Schuster

About this ebook

As bonds of love threaten to break forever, the faerie courts will never be the same in the “decadent and deadly” (Kirkus Reviews) conclusion to New York Times bestseller Holly Black’s critically acclaimed Modern Faerie Tale series.

As the darkest day of the year approaches, 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 love in the realm of faerie is no simple matter, and when Kaye declares herself to Roiben during the celebration, he sends her on a seemingly impossible quest to find a faerie who can tell a lie.

Unable to see Roiben until she has fulfilled his quest, Kaye calls upon her friends to help her. Their adventure will take them on a dangerous path, where Kaye finds herself at the center of the battle of wits and weapons being waged over Roiben’s throne.

Ratings and reviews

I have been looking forward to this book ever since I finished TITHE, and Holly Black most definitely does not disappoint. IRONSIDE picks up soon after the events in TITHE and VALIANT, and takes the reader on another breathless journey into the amazing and deadly world of Faerie. Things have been uneasy ever since Roiben assumed the throne of the Unseelie Court, and with the threat of war in the air and Roiben's coronation drawing near, everyone is on edge. Changeling Kaye Fierch knows that she loves Roiben, but she feels increasingly unwelcome and out of place in the Unseelie Court. So the night of the coronation, determined to prove herself to Roiben and the rest of the court, she makes a formal declaration and pledges herself to him as his consort. However, faerie custom demands that a quest be undertaken before anyone can sit as the Lord's consort, and Roiben grants Kaye an impossible task: to find a fairy who can tell an untruth. Now she is forbidden from seeing or speaking to him until she completes something she knows cannot be done. Kaye doesn't know where to go, because she has been feeling uncomfortable at home as well, knowing that she stole a human child's life. In a moment of desperation, she tells her mother the truth: that she is a changeling that was switched with Ellen's real daughter, the real Kaye, and she vows to retrieve her from the Seelie Court and return her to Ellen. She feels that this, at least, is something she can do, even if there's no way she can complete Roiben's quest. But with all the tension between the courts there is nowhere safe, and in venturing into the Seelie Court to find her human counterpart, Kaye puts herself within reach of Lady Silarial. Silarial wants Roiben's throne, and she's willing to do anything, including using Kaye, to get it. Once again Kaye finds herself in the middle of Faerie politics, but this time Roiben's not there to save her, and she may not have a way out. In my personal experience it is rare that a sequel ever lives up to the first book, but IRONSIDE does just that. Full of court rivalry, deception and betrayal, sword fights and murder, faerie curses, new romances, and even characters from VALIANT, IRONSIDE is another wonderful foray into the dark, gritty world of Faerie and will not leave readers disappointed. It will make you laugh, it will make you cry, it will make you pound your pillow in frustration and clap your hands in delight. My one and only complaint is that this is the last book set in this amazing world. **TRT Gold Star Award

Freaking perfect. Loved seeing all the characters come together. Could not ask for a better book!

Was a wonderful balance of fairy tale and modern to keep you reading

About the author

Holly Black is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of fantasy books, including the Elfhame books, The Coldest Girl in Coldtown, The Spiderwick Chronicles, and the Charlatan Duology, as well as an Arthurian picture book called Sir Morien. She has been a finalist for an Eisner Award and a Lodestar Award, and the recipient of a Mythopoeic Award, a Nebula Award, and a Newbery Honor. Her books have been translated into thirty-two languages worldwide and adapted for film and television. She currently lives in New England with her husband, daughter, and son in a house with a secret library. She invites you to visit her online at BlackHolly.com.