I love Puck so I was really excited to read this one. The only reason it took me this long was that it was my dyslexia got really bad during lockdown.

This had all the elements of a great Julie Kagawa book. Adventures, Puck and Ash at each other's fronts, a little helping of Grimalkin and even a bit of Meghan! It was nice to see the old gang all back together again, even if they've changed so much since the first book.

I really liked Nyx a lot. I love the concept of the forgotten and having a sexy moonlight powered assassin just added some icing to the top of a really interesting cake!!

Can't wait to read on to the next book!

Having never read the Iron Fey series before I was really excited to pick up this new sub series and what a great audiobook! I understood things really quickly and - though I’m sure it adds a world of context - it didn’t feel necessary to have read Megan’s story prior to this. Puck’s story was engrossing and I’ll certainly pick up more of Kagawa’a Iron Fey books as the world is utterly prismatic!

I have read Julie Kagawa books before and I loved them! She has a captivating way of telling stories and that is what makes her one of my favourite authors when it comes to fantasy books! Now, with “The Iron Raven” a new series start that tells the story of Puck, King Oberon’s right-hand jester from Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Which is a rather interesting one, as Puck or Robin Goodfellow if you prefer, is not a simple person.

Puck is all fine, minding his own business when he comes across a monster older than time and more evil than all monsters in the realm. But he is not alone in his path. Kierran, King of the Forgotten is actually the one that has first met that monster and he asks Puck to be his messenger. His trusty assassin, Nyx, a forgotten so powerful that Puck hasn’t seen in a good while, will accompany Puck. Together, they have to inform the realm about the danger that lies ahead and try to defeat it, without getting killed in the process. They meet up with the Iron Queen Megan Chase, Puck’s friend from a long time ago, and the consort prince Ash. Along with their companions, they set foot on a path they hope to get some answers from. The new oracle must know what is happening. Apart from her memories, she has the old oracle’s memories as well, so she should be able to tell them what’s coming.

Like I said, this book is the first in a new series, but not the fist in the Iron Fey Universe. Seven books have already been published before this one and all the characters we meet here, or at least most of them, are already known to the fans. However, this was my first book in the Iron Fey Universe and the explanations and background information given here, were enough for me to understand the whole plot, the politics and the dynamics between the courts and the characters.

I loved how the book started, with the glance back to Puck’s past. Who he was, how he acted and how he went to live in King Oberon’s court. I liked the snippets of the past, in order to get more understanding of the relationships between the characters. And I also liked how the new story unfolded. The fast pace and the action that kept coming were well received, as I like reading fantasy books with battles!

I really liked the parts where Robin Goodfellow used magic the way he hasn’t used it it a very very long time. Like since he was a person everyone was afraid of. However, I would like to see more of that power, more of that magic. I hope we get to see it in the next books!

I enjoyed Josh Hurley’s narration of the story so much! HE brings all characters to life and it’s so easy to follow the dialogs. I particularly enjoyed Grimalkin, who is a witty character and his narration was really amazing!

Thank you to NetGalley & HarperCollins UK Audio, HQ Young Adult for an advance copy of this book. The views expressed are my personal and honest opinion.

This was my first book by this author and although I felt I was missing some references to previous works/worlds I loved jumping into this amazing fantasy. The worldbuilding is amazing, although you do jump straight in, and the characters are incredibly fun and written in a way that makes you want to go on this adventure with them. I loved learning little bits about the world of faery and seeing how they interact with the human world. Overall I found this to be a surprisingly heart-warming story full of interesting adventures; although I did find it slightly repetitive in parts I really enjoyed this and would recommend to any fantasy lovers.

This is my first book and delve into this world by this author so I felt like I had a lot of catching up to do!

It was a magnificently crafted fantasy world and one that was easy to get embroiled with. Most of the references and nods to previous events in other series may have gone straight over my head, but I still got enjoyment out of it and a dip of the toe into past books and onto a track of a brand new series in this world. I did feel like I had missed out though with this being my first so I’m eager to see what I’ve missed out on - note to self: read some of the other books by this author!

I adored the writing style in this and the portrayal of the characters made for great reading. It had the entertainment factor and the build up of a great fantasy world, filled with fae, magic and mischief. All the seeds of a fab fantasy novel set of books!

Thank you to Harper Collins for providing the audiobook in exchange for a review!

A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away…
Wait, hold up. Wrong story.

This book tells the story of the infamous prankster Puck (Robin Goodfellow), a powerful summer fey from the Seelie Court. We trapeze around Faery as he teams up with allies new and old, enemies, and frenemies to save Faery and the world.

I haven’t read the Iron King series so I went into this knowing absolutely nothing. I hadn’t even read the blurb. Thankfully, this acts as a follow-up, or can act as a more comprehensive history of Puck’s life before meeting Meg, the human girl who was the daughter of the Fey King who he fell in love with, but she, caught in a love triangle, didn’t return the sentiment.

In that moment, I felt Puck truly die, as Robin Goodfellow of the woods rose up and took his place.
I smiled broadly as I turned to face the owner of the voice. Ash. Ice-boy. Son of Mab. Former prince of the Unseelie Court. Lots of names, but they all belonged to my greatest friend, and greatest rival, in all of Faery.

I thought this would be an urban fantasy, yet that must have been reserved for the Iron King, for most of the story takes place travelling through the Faery realms, meeting old friends, enemies, monsters, and lovers.

This is everything I wanted The Cruel Prince to be (bar the enemies-to-lovers). Robin is the sassiest, most annoying and infuriating fey ever… and I loved him for it. I need Holly Black and Julia Kagawa to collaborate.
This had the snark of Kagawa, the whimsy of Alice in Wonderland, and magic reminiscent of childhood fairytales moored for young adult enjoyment.

Not to mention, the narrator did such a good job at bringing Puck alive in the audio.

The first half was so much fun, but then my attention seemed to dwindle as more battles and more wanderings happened so that it felt repetitive. I have found the same with many of Kagawa’s books sadly.

Moreover, the romance didn’t click for me, and the chemistry between Puck and Nyx felt forced for the sake of Puck getting his happy ending, or a way for him to move on from Meg and forgive Ash.

If you want a cheesy, YA fey book filled with fun, shenanigans, and a cat like Cheshire from Alice in Wonderland, read this!

Evenfall is coming, the end is near.
But first, let's meet this marvelous prankster, Robin Goodfellow aka Puck. Made immortal by one William Shakespeare, once upon a time (thus helping in Puck not having to fade away), and now ready to tell his own story.
And his story it truly is. Starting as a somewhat redeemed character, then threatened to plunge back into his very annoying self, before he can find his true colors with the help of some friends and many dangers thrown his way.
As I understand, the story has already been told (at least from part 2 onward) in the preceding books from Meghan's POV. I am glad however I've started with his one, as I adore the character of Puck, and Julie Kagawa manages to capture his mischief and humor perfectly. The pace and structure of the book are incredible, and the end is very satisfying and promises more adventures.
Josh Hurley's narration of the audiobook is a perfect fit, and he gives all the characters voices that bring everything to life. Especially characters like Grimalkin made me giggle so much when coming from Josh's mouth.

4,5/5 stars

Thank you so much @netgalley and @harpercollinsuk for the eARC!

A heartwarming end to an enchanting series! Grimalkin as ever remains the best character of this series, with Puck coming in at a very close second. I loved that JK went back to Meghan's POV for this final instalment, bringing the series full circle back to the beginning when she first entered the Nevernever

3.5 stars

An interesting concept taking the character of Puck from English folklore and creating a fantasy with him as the main character. As the story progresses we hear snippets of his past and how he got to where he is at that point, but I actually found these far more compelling than the events the story centres on. The pacing seemed to be a bit inconsistent and the book was a lot longer than it needed to be which meant it was hard to maintain interest throughout. I did like the narrator of the audiobook for most of the story, he worked well as the voice of Puck/Robin Goodfellow but there were a few instances where when one of the other characters was being quoted the voice he used then grated on me a little.
When I started reading this book, I didn’t realise it was a later book in a series and I think I’d have enjoyed it a lot more if I’d read the other books first. It has made me intrigued to read more about these characters and I now want to read the start of the Iron Fey series so I understand the characters