Iron Bound

The Thief's Talisman #2

by Emma L. Adams

Raine Warren, unwilling heir to the Whitefall family of the Winter Court, might have lived long enough to claim the magic she inherited, but there are others who'd like to make sure she can never use it again.With the Summer Court dangerously close to discovering her deadly secret, her only option to avoid a trial for murder is to ally with the same family who nearly killed her. Her find out how her all-powerful faerie mother met her mysterious death, or forfeit her life. Even with the help of her best friend, Viola, and a certain unreliable thief, her quest seems insurmountable.As the borderlands are threatened by a dark force, Raine finds herself caught up in a conspiracy that puts her and the people she loves in the centre of a confrontation between Faerie and their deadliest enemy. If she lives long enough to learn the truth, exile and death are the least of her worries.

Genres: Fantasy, Urban Fantasy, Fae, Paranormal

248 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 2, 2017

About the author

I'm Emma, a fantasy author, book collector, gamer, and wanderer. I write urban and epic fantasy novels, including the international bestselling Changeling Chronicles, the Relics of Power trilogy, and the Death's Disciple quartet.

*Note: I use Goodreads only to keep a record of what I'm reading. Please don't send me unsolicited review requests.*

Reviews

[keikii Eats Books · Rating 3 out of 5]

54 points/100 (2 ¾ stars/5)

Warning: Cliffhanger (status: Look! It's Ivy!)

Raine has been blackmailed into looking into why her mother died - and stayed dead. As anyone could guess, it is more complicated than it at first appears.

It has been a few weeks since we've met Rine. She is more comfortable with herself and her place in the world. No one is trying to kill her. She has found a way to go back and forth between the two realms - even if it means a bunch of favours. And she is going to spend Christmas with her father. Too bad everything comes along to fuck it up again.

This book was all action. We go from event to event, crisis to crisis the entire time. We never really stop to question why we are doing anything or what we are doing. Everything ends up where it needs to be in the end, though.

We do get to see more of the romance, though. It is playing out exactly like I thought it would. "Oh poor pitiful Cedar, he has never really had his life to his own". And she trusts him and sort of likes him anyway, despite what he has done. The romances in Adam's work just do not make sense to me.

Onwards to the last in the trilogy.

To read more reviews in this series and others, check out keikii eats books!

[Damian Southam · Rating 5 out of 5]

DETAILS:

Iron Bound is the second book in Emma L. Adams's, The Thief's Talisman. It follows on from the Mortal Heir and precedes Exiled Queen (book three - due for release later in 2017). Classified as an urban fantasy series, the first book has a current star rating of 3.77 on Goodreads; and 4.9 on Amazon. In order to provide further details about Emma's published retail library, I've included Amazon's Emma L. Adams page. This of course isn't the only source; but it is the only link I'm able to provide, given this review is being posted to Amazon, who limit links in reviews to only those which point to their own facilities. In relation to other books that I've reviewed from her library, I've included links to my own reviews, including: Mortal Heir (The Thief's Talisman); Alight (Legacy of Flames Book 1); Arise (Legacy of Flames Book 2); Aflame (Legacy of Flames Book 3); Faerie Blood (The Changeling Chronicles Book 1); and Faerie Magic (The Changeling Chronicles Book 2).

Emma L. Adams Page - https://www.amazon.com/Emma-L.-Adams/...
Review - https://www.amazon.com.au/review/R34N...
Review - https://www.amazon.com.au/review/R1YY...
Review - https://www.amazon.com.au/review/R2N0...
Review - https://www.amazon.com.au/review/RH50...
Review - https://www.amazon.com/review/REW2774...
Review - https://www.amazon.com/review/R236AYM...
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INTRODUCTION - THE STORY:

As the unwilling Mortal Heir to her Fae legacy, the Whitehall seat of power in the Borderlands, Raine reluctantly embraces some aspects of the family's coveted dark magic, not that being an Unseelie Lady was ever among her aspirations. Her changeling status keeps certain others from accepting her, and given her myriad reluctance of acceptance, it's fair to say there are few things being accepted. With the Royal Summer Court threatening to be nipping at the seams, the risks to her safety have increased yet again. Obtaining allies who can verify facts preventing the execution, or exile to the place that makes an execution redundant, must become the priority she loathes.

Conveniently, one option offered her is to ally with the very family in whom the reasons arose. Self-defence from an elaborate design by a maniacal power munger seeking to own enough of Faerie's talismans to facilitate her singular dominance, doesn't amount to justifiable reasons because of her loathed changeling status. Her only chance brings the mammoth task of unravelling the mystery behind her mother's death with it. As rumor would have it, incomprehensibly despite being in the presence of witnesses there's not a single who's able to give any valued testimony. Not unsurprisingly, she soon finds herself heavily embroiled in power plots and in protecting the last place she'd have ever predicted being a saviour for, Faerie! Faerie's deadliest enemy will likely usurp all of its greatest powers if she fails, but still there's unobtainable limits placed upon the likelihood of her success.

It's a well known contrast that in the hardwiring of each and every Fae there's the dual edged sword of being both incapable of giving false testimony, whilst being capable of the craftiest and most devlish abilities to make statements that are ultimately false. Perhaps just being a long-lived race born to the belief of being incapable of lying, stimulates the need to learn trickery at every opportunity along the way into their long lives, such that they can make amends for being incapable of giving falsehood(s). Irrespective of the how's or why's that practice makes perfect, the sheer case of it being so, makes the Fae regularly deceitful monsters playing cruel games with other lives.

In Faerie it is also the case that even the landscapes and the atmosphere itself have learned to lie. In just one short trip of moving from A to B, when the purpose ceases to be and the return from B to A becomes necessary, that the same path and conditions should be in reverse isn't guaranteed. For the Sidhe and other Fae, let alone those with genetics not primarily established to handle to Faerie, Faerie has evolved to kill any who seek out residence. It was a heavy lesson for her and yet as Lady Whitehall she at least was afforded some control over her family's lands. Raine's new problems compound this danger tenfold as her investigations lead her to the Grey Vale. It's a nightmarish place that arouses in the Fae the same sorts of fears that foreigners in Faerie feel. It is therefore inconceivable for outsiders to know what the Grey Vale will cause in them before they actually get there.

With heightened dangers and frequent conflict, Raine Warren thought she knew what traversing the rifts in space fully meant, right up to the stage where a new domain arose in her experience. Her estranged mother's death was purely a thing that happened, just a variable that resulted in complicating her life to the maximum she thought possible. Between conflicting testimony where there's any at all and the deliberate diversions of those who do speak of it, it promptly becomes evident that the deadlines imposed on her won't be achievable. The threat of the Royal Summer Court therefore grows as her own Royal Winter Court professes its refusal to become involved. Thus the threat to first Faerie and then the Mortal Realm grows unabated as does her own. Whether she can prove capable of surviving these events will come down to hiw quickly she can open windows into her past, and how proficiently she can utilise them for her future. Her own naivety in believing she knew of all possible threats will be among the lessons of her new days.


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OPINION:

Raine's own narrative proves yet again that it's well suited to the task of being the one to drive and sustain the story's narrative. The mysteries of her past and the conditions of the present and future are idyllic in the ways they're symbolically reflective of the plot mysteries. The relationship between the two is multidirectional, shedding light on each other in ways that make it near on impossible to determine which is the chicken and which is the egg. Such observations are the pinnacle of the ways we interpret the technicalities of the stories we enjoy the most. In my own experiences of Emma's writing this has proven to be a trademark quality that keeps me coming back again and again. Such inferences make it possible to see how the notion of destiny and fate can drive a story seamlessly, making captions of that like more believable in even the more cynnical amongst us.

The dual pronged mysteries of solving both is too big for both Raine and us as readers to resist, despite the ever present dangers they bring to the former, and the specifics of which to the latter. On face value you have to initially question if the two are intricately linked in more substance than coincidence, or not? It's these mysteries which prompt a myriad of questions in your mind, though. Such as they are is probably redundant. It's what they achieve that matter the most. To expand on this it is first important to highlight that questions are the underpinnings of wanting to solve something, and one of the tenements of human nature: the curious cat. Regardless of how they pan out they have the important function of driving us to want to cross them off as we slowly whittle them down to a final choice between a few at most - the aspect of solving something, which permeates our lives. Anticipation and captivation are made more efficient, and become part of the driving forces to keep reading.

Mysteries involved are doubled and tripled as The Thief's Talisman gets ramped up, as Iron Bound brings the heat of the story to its current boiling point. This includes the largely ignored aspects relating to Raine's estranged mother in The Mortsl Heir, where the subtlest of innuendos from book one now creates a full-scale consideration of unanswered components in Iron Bound. With this expansion there's a symbiotic effect that expands Raine's memories that were largely ignored until niw. Upon this outcome there's a rather large transference of fantastical affairs into the very real and tangible likeness they have for estranged parental relations in the real world. Pleasingly, if you were to break these components down to their barest essentials, then you'd have a dramatisation of the effects and events that underpin the embroiled nature of children being estranged from one or more biological parent.

You often hear/read about author interviews, or blogs, or any other form of questioning, that inevitably lead to the most bassist of enquiries of how an idea or conscious wish to explore an idea leads to the stories they construct to do so. Every so often you then come accross a story where reasons, perhaps regardless of the match between actual and inferred, present themselves in the barest elements that are made sufficient to form the building blocks of story creation. For avid to purely episodic readers this can present a diorama of enlightenment into how this can be achieved. The enormously complex, and short or lengthy ways the fiction builds upon basic elements can be watched as expert authors ply their art. They weave their creation in a way that can be compared to the difference between watching a doctoral professor ply their art, or a primary school student doing so. Emma is certainly the former if you ask me, and in my experiences it isn't often that you see how poetically and enormously complex stories can eventuate from such small ideas. This isn't to suggest that by themselves the ideas are simple, just that a few ideas as a group are numerically simple.

Iron Bound resoundingly develops the greater arc of The Thief's Talisman. It is captivating from the very outset and spans up to the inferences made possible by its ending. In essential aspects it has developed the saga much more deeply and clearly. If you enjoyed The Mortsl Heir then you can be sure that your excitement will be developed to the next levels. Raine's past and what it means for not only her own but also Faerie's present and future, is revealed with style and at a brisk pace. There's likely many other reasons I've failed to touch on, this is likely limited because the revelations made possible for me wrapped me up in thoughts about them, to the likely exclusion of others. At their core is the scenario where I've been interested of late in how ideas can be built upon to create lengthy, interesting, and complex stories. Such an achievement is central to my reading and I thus can only give a maximum rating: 5 ☆☆☆☆☆ for me!

[Tonja Drecker · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fantastic world to get lost in with a heroine worthy to cheer for until the very last page.

Raine is finally getting accustom to her new position as Sidhe over her own realm/kingdom in faerie and is doing the best she can to balance it with her life in the mortal world. But nothing in faerie is easy or quiet for long. With the death of another Sidhe hanging over her head, Raine is forced to discover the reason behind her mother's death. The secrets she uncovers are more dangerous than anyone in Faerie could have suspected.

This is the second book in the series and cannot be read alone. Although not extremely necessary, it is helpful to have read The Changeling Chronicles by Emma Adams first, since more and more of this new series finds its base in this first series (which btw, is an action packed series I thoroughly enjoyed and can highly recommend).

Raine is more comfortable in her own skin in this book and has a mature attitude which makes her set for the challenge. She can be a bit arrogant, but every character has their flaws. She heads into danger with a some planning but adapts to situations quickly. In this book, there's a wonderful yet very subtle battle between the coldness that the life as a Sidhe requires her to be and the warmth of kindness found in her human half. Her friendships are tested and even a possible romance teeters on the edge.

But this isn't a book about emotion as much as it is about action, intrigue and battling evil faeries. Raine is a fighter through and through, and what she misses in strength in ability, she compensates with attitude, luck and a bit of cleverness. Although this book moved a bit slower at times than the first one, it by no means leaves even a smidgen of time for boredom. Faerie is packed full of dangers and deception, and this fast-paced plot keeps Raine on her toes.

The ending is a cliff-hanger, promising more great adventure to come. However, this time, it makes a clear swing toward the main character of another of the author's series. While this is exciting (because I personally loved this other character), it does make it harder for anyone unfamiliar with the Changeling Chronicles to follow the flow. But I'm very curious to see where the tale goes from here and can't wait for the next book to come out. . .which shouldn't take too long, from what I understand.

I received a complimentary copy and found this book so fun to read that I wanted to leave my honest thoughts.

[Kreela · Rating 5 out of 5]

Emma L. Adams review:

Iron Bound follows Mortal Heir. The third book will be called Exiled Queen.

This is urban fantasy at its finest. You have evil elves on earth and banished elves in another plain, with humans and halflings stuck in the middle of their war.

Enter book 2 of the second series...Do you need to read the others first? Of course, it would be helpful, but I am so forgetful that I start over with every book. If you don't mind some fumbling at first, you won't be disappointed.
Raine is a half-elf, and as such, considered a lower-class citizen to the full elves. She was not supposed to inherit a feif, yet the scepter (quest #1 from the first book) accepted her, and she managed to kill an evil elf b*ch called Mrs. H from the summer kingdom. Mr. H was considered a wallflower, but in the second book we find out that he was not pussy-whipped by his wife; he is part of the status quo: i.e. Evil! Mr. H demands that Raine find out what happened to her mother, aka. Quest #2.
This is much like a roll-playing game, which I love. Her love interest, the spy-assassin is also Mr. H's second son, and therefore she never knows when to trust his help.

As part of the quest, she gets to visit the death fairy and Mr. H's first son, A. Think: if you have an evil mother and father, what do you do? A) Grow up just like them? B) Rebel.... he chooses both!

We get a taste of Game of Thrones intrigue and grittiness, a little of Terry Spears' young adult fairy adventures. Although the book starts to answer some questions, it opens up some more. I was left at the end satisfied with the climax but still anxious to read the next novel. You don't need to beware of a cliff-hanger.

- [ ] --I received this ARC for an honest review. So you know I liked the previous novels. Note, though, I hate long, endless series and prefer more outright heat in the romance than Emma provides. The action and intrigue have to be strong to overcome my ennui. And it was

[Lene Blackthorn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Faerie magic is powerful, varies in abilities and influence, and might kill you on the spot if you aren't cautious enough.
Raine is determined to unravel the mystery surrounding her mother's death. Even more so that now Lord Hornbeam tries to motivate her investigation using threats and blackmail. Accompanied by Cedar or Viola, her next steps lead to hidden dungeons, the Death Kingdom of the Morrigan, and even to the dreaded wasteland of exiles called the Grey Vale. When Raine ends up kidnapped in the abandoned faerie realm, she uncovers the truth about her magical abilities and lears the identity of the traitor - but only coming back to her investigation opens her eyes to the horrible truth and puts her to fight her past and present to have a chance for some future.
I loved this series from the very first page and this love never faded. On the contrary, it grows with every sentence read, and slowly it becomes an addiction. I absolutely adore the Faerie, the enchanted world of magic and powers beyond comprehension.The twisted logic of the Fey, their trickery and misleading create great plot twists and together with Raine's crazy family legacy and order in the Borderlands, you may rest assured you will never get bored reading this book. Raine is a fierce heroine, determined to achieve her goals at nearly all costs, and yet human to her core, which makes her closer to the reader than the detached, perfect but cold Fae. Viola is a loyal friend, bright and useful in many situations, skilled in the treacherous ways of faerie life. And Cedar, with his healing magic and extraordinary skill range coming from his thief-and-spy occupation makes for a very interesting male lead character. With lots of adventure, suspense, fighting scenes, and emotional shocks, this book is a great contribution to the series and I cannot wait to read the next installment.
I received an ARC from the author and voluntarily provide my honest opinion.

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading Order
Quick Info
Standalone/Cliffhanger?: Standalone
Part of a Series?: Yes
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Meeting the Characters
Raine Warren
Viola
Cedar
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What happens?
Raines journey of being the new lady Whitehall hasn't even begun when she is pretty much forced to find her mother's killer. Unable to find answers to that and instead finding more and more questions she is captured by the half blood Seelie Aspen and made to dance repeatedly.
Cedar her Seelie friend and brother to Aspen is there to help save her and get her back to her home to recover only to suffer at the hands of his step father for helping her and being a traitor.
Final thoughts
I really loved reading this and I love love love the ending. Excited to see where this goes!
Would I read again?: Yes
Would I read this author again?:Yes
Would I continue on with the series?: Yes

[Amanda Jane · Rating 3 out of 5]

Murder investigation

Lord Hornbeam demands that Raine discover the truth about her mother's death under the threat of reporting her to the Seelie Court for killing his wife.

But the investigation is plagued by the deceit of some of the Little People and Raine is struggling to find out how they are able to lie.

Memories are returned to her after a trip to the clouds and she recalls the incident which led to her and her father being banished from the palace but can she link it together and piece by piece complete the puzzle?

Will Lord Hornbeam be satisfied or will she have to fight for her own freedom as the Hornbeam household breaks apart?

[Tracy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is even better than the first!

I absolutely loved this book. Action, intrigue, and lots of magic. Zero spoilers from me, but I will say the ending was awesome! Raine is up to her eyeballs trying to stay alive and has more enemies than she is aware of and still more surprises turn up. Excellent story and I can't wait to see how everything plays out between Raine and Cedar. Book 3 is going to be awesome!!

[Mike Lewis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Series

A great urban fantasy series with a great cast of characters and an entertaining storyline. In a world where the fairy world has invaded earth a few decades back and now there are two fairies the one on earth. Follow our characters along as I try to save the human world against the evil of some of the dark fairies nefarious ways. One of the miniseries in an entertaining world by the same author
Check it out you will not be disappointed

[Michelle VanDaley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Iron Bound is book 2 in this series and I highly recommend reading book 1 first to get the full story. I love the world building and characters in this series. Raine is a great female lead, strong, stubborn and flawed. It is great to watch her grow through this series and I am anxious to see what the next book will bring. I look forward to reading more from this Author

[Michelle VanDaley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Iron Bound is book 2 in this series and I highly recommend reading book 1 first to get the full story. I love the world building and characters in this series. Raine is a great female lead, strong, stubborn and flawed. It is great to watch her grow through this series and I am anxious to see what the next book will bring. I look forward to reading more from this Author

[Priscilla · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome 2nd book in the series!

I loved it! I was so very sad when changeling chronicles ended but have absolutely fell in love with Raine Cedar and Viola! They make a great team and Raine ends up in some messy crazy situations. This book is definitely a page turner! I couldn't put it down! Highly recommend this new series can't wait for book 3

[Shannon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book!

I read the first book in this series and loved it. This one was just as good. It was so suspenseful and full of action and I couldn't put it down. The plot is so creative and the characters have developed more since the first book. I can't wait to read the next book in this series.

[Jana Gundy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another amazing story to continue the series

This was a fantastic continuation of this series and I couldn't put it down. There is so much action you g on from the beginning till the end. Raine and her gang are caught like always between a rock and a hard place. The ending was great and I always love seeing Ivy!

[Megan Clevenger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome

Great continuation from the first book. Very exciting and lots of adventure around every corner. Can't wait for the next book since this one was left with such a great cliffhanger.

[tanya Garcia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love Raine!!!

I adore strong female characters. Raine is fierce, loyal and passionate. Theses traits make a great heroine. I am looking forward to the next book. If you like a quick easy read fantasy, you will find this hard to put down.

[Bob · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good



Looking forward to the next one
The possibility of a crossover is interesting.Looking forward to the next book hopefully soon

[Fathiyyah Ismail · Rating 5 out of 5]

Its too short!!! I want more