Ironside and The Lament of Lutie-loo by Holly Black

 

Last night, I finished reading the final book of the Modern Faerie Tales series, Ironside by Holly Black. This fantasy novel concludes the trilogy about the adventures of Kaye, Val, and their friends. At the coronation of her boyfriend, Roiben, Kaye makes the mistake of declaring herself to him after being pressured by two other faeries while drunk on faerie wine, even though he told her not to do so. Roiben gives her the impossible quest of finding a faerie who can lie and she's not supposed to talk, or even see, him until she completes the task. Then, when Kaye decides to tell her mom the truth that she's a faerie, Ellen's reaction of horror leads Kaye to go the Seelie Court with Corny to find Ellen's real daughter and bring her home. Upon learning that the Seelie Court's queen, Silarial, wants Roiben's throne and plans to use her to get it, Kaye has to find a way to both prevent the possible war and save him because she still loves him.

This was another excellent fantasy novel by Holly Black and it was a thrilling adventure from beginning to end. I knew there had to be a trick regarding the quest Roiben gave Kaye, but I was never able to figure it out until she did. Even though Kaye and Roiben betrayed each other in different ways, I was hoping that they would reconcile by the end of the story. While things between them got worse before they got better, I was pleased by the book's conclusion. I also loved that Luis continued to play a big role in the story after meeting him in Valiant. I enjoyed the relationship between him and Corny because it turned out they had a lot in common, especially regarding how their lives had been affected by their interactions with faeries. Additionally, I liked how Lutie-loo was a supportive friend to Kaye, watching over her mom, while Kaye went on her journey. Because the Seelie Court and Silarial posed such a huge threat to Kaye, Corny, Luis, and their loved ones, the story was not without tragedy. With that said, if you've read Tithe and Valiant, you should certainly read Ironside.

I also read a short story, The Lament of Lutie-loo, taking place years after the events of the trilogy. Roiben's sister, Ethine, is still gone, so Lutie-loo goes on a mission for Kaye to find Ethine's whereabouts. Lutie-loo ends up being captured and held as a hostage in the High Court where Prince Balekin wants to use her to gain the loyalty of Roiben and the Court of Termites. This short story was fun to read and I enjoyed that it featured characters from both the Modern Faerie Tales and Folk of the Air series. It serves as a bridge between the two series, so I would recommend it to fans of those books who aren't ready to leave the world Holly Black created.

Valiant by Holly Black

 

Last night, I finished reading Valiant by Holly Black, which is the second book in the Modern Faerie Tales series. In this fantasy novel, a seventeen-year-old girl, Valerie Russell, is about to go on date to a hockey game in New York City with her boyfriend, Tom. When Tom is late in picking her up, Val heads to the train station on her own, but then she changes her mind and goes back home to wait for Tom. There, she catches Tom and her mother together. Angry with both her mom and Tom, she ends up going to the hockey game alone. Not wanting face her mom, Val decides to stay in the city after the game and meets Lolli, Dave, and Luis, a group of teens who are homeless and live in the subway. After making a delivery to Mabry, a goat-legged woman, with Dave, Val is unsettled by seeing a faerie for the first time. She mentions what she saw to Lolli, who talks her into going into the troll tunnel for proof that faeries are real. When the troll, Ravus, catches them in his lair, Val agrees to make deliveries for him for a month if he lets Lolli go. Making the last of her first set of deliveries, Val comes across a dead mermaid. She immediately goes back to Ravus to inform him of what she saw. As she grows closer to Ravus, they try to solve the mystery of the faerie murders in the city even as she and her new friends become addicted to the substance they have her stealing from Ravus, which acts as a drug in humans.

This sequel is definitely the darkest and grittiest of all the books I've read by Holly Black so far, but I enjoyed the mystery and suspense of it because the plot kept me on my toes, trying to guess who was murdering faeries in New York City. I thought Lolli and Dave were a terrible influence on Val, but it was clear that Val was in a very dark place at the start of the story and I do respect that she grew to care about her new friends even if they were quite problematic. I definitely loved her relationship with Ravus, who agreed to teach her how to sword fight when she decided to keep making deliveries for him even though it was dangerous and other faeries suspected him of being the poisoner. I absolutely hated that she was betraying him by stealing Nevermore from his supply for her friends' needs and I was anxious about what would happen when he found out. Thankfully, this book has a happy ending and the climax was fantastic, showing how Val grew as a character. Anyone who likes the series starter, Tithe, or any of Holly Black's other books should read Valiant.