Reviewed by Sadonna
TITLE: The Iron Crown
SERIES: The Darkest Court
AUTHOR: M.A. Church
PUBLISHER: Carina Press
LENGTH: 103,000 words
RELEASE DATE: April 6, 2020
BLURB:
After the last Faerie Civil War, the leaders of the magickal pantheons stripped the shining Seelie Court of its power and tasked the dark Unseelie Court with maintaining the natural balance of the world.
Ages later, a twisted intrigue throws the balance of all Faerie into ruin and ignites a new civil war.
Discounted by his family and haunted in the Unseelie sidhe, Queen Mab’s youngest son, Lugh, leads the Wild Hunt on quests across the dangerous Wylds. At his side is his best friend, Keiran, a Viking rescued from death centuries earlier. Between Lugh’s uncanny gift for being in the right place at the right time and Keiran’s power of persuasion, they’re revered across the Wylds—as long as Lugh keeps his true identity hidden from the people of the Sluagh.
Keiran and Lugh have loved each other for centuries—as friends and brothers in arms. Lugh has long since put aside his romantic love for Keiran to protect their friendship. But with the looming war in Faerie and the ghosts of the dead dogging Lugh’s every move, Keiran realizes there may be room for romance between them after all, if only they can survive.
Rallying the Sluagh to fight in the looming war between the Seelie and Unseelie seems an impossible task. To achieve it, these childhood best friends will have to free Lugh from the restless souls haunting him and turn the tides threatening not only their growing love, but the balance of life and death itself.
REVIEW:
Note: this is book 3 in the series and as such, contains spoilers for books 1 and 2.
Lugh and Keiran have been friends – best friends, allies and soulmates. They have survived for centuries as a team. After surviving the first civil war, Lugh and the Hunt have made their own way in the world. They are happy at home in the Wylds and Lugh has come to feel that the Sluagh are his people. He’s spent his life protecting them, slaying their monsters, keeping them safe from the Courts after they absorbed so much damage from that civil war.
When things go awry in the Unseelie Court, Lugh is called home, which he’s extremely unhappy about. He’s the third and frankly discounted son. His two brothers have their roles established, but when one defects, the balance of power is skewed and all of the sudden, Lugh becomes important. His relationships with his family are upended. Also he’s been holding a secret from Kieran about his powers and why he does what he does and how he “knows” where things are and what wrongs he needs to avenge.
For his part, Kieran has held Lugh away from his as a friend only because he feels his not worthy of a prince and his position is not secure as he’s not part of the royal family. As they embark on this quest, however, they have to rely on each other more than ever. This adventure will either lead to glory or complete ruin – for many. I don’t want to spoil the plot which is ingeniously shared in this story though the clever use of flashback/dreams/visions of the past shedding light onto the current events.
I have to admit to struggling with the first third of this book. I was trying to wrap my head around the names, the relationships and the world. Once I got past that, I absolutely loved the story. I also admit that Fantasy is not my favorite genre, but I really liked the world here once I got into it. I used to read a lot of Urban Fantasy in the past – particularly YA – which is much different from this. Lugh and Kieran are truly soulmates with a very stirring friends to lovers trope. This is really a marriage of two souls in the full sense of the word – as such, those who are looking for a lot of sexy times might be a bit disappointed, but I have to say, I thought the relationship was managed beautifully handled on page. The support and love of Lugh and Kieran is what drives this story. There a lot of surprises and some devastating losses, but they are all necessary to the story. It’s a roller coaster ride that provides a thoroughly satisfying end. Highly recommended, particularly for lovers of fantasy.
RATING: 
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