Winter's Passage

I love to read little snippets in between books. It always gives me so much more information on the characters and makes things a little more interesting for the next book. Winter's Passage is no different.

Blurb from Goodreads:
Meghan Chase used to be an ordinary girl...until she discovered that she is really a faery princess. After escaping from the clutches of the deadly Iron fey, Meghan must follow through on her promise to return to the equally dangerous Winter Court with her forbidden love, Prince Ash. But first, Meghan has one request: that they visit Puck--Meghan's best friend and servant of her father, King Oberon--who was gravely injured defending Meghan from the Iron Fey.
Yet Meghan and Ash's detour does not go unnoticed. They show more have caught the attention of an ancient, powerful hunter--a foe that even Ash may not be able to defeat....

I have to say in this novella I saw a growth in Kagawa's writing, a better hold on how to bring the reader into the story. Considering I was a bit bored during the first half of Iron King, it was nice to be able to read through this quickly. Kagawa kept my interest and made me want to get to the end of the story.

This story takes it's reader on the journey from Meghan's home to her new place at the Winter Court.

I liked the introduction of the wolf into this story. He's a formidable beast for sure. And Kagawa certainly keeps you guessing as to when Ash and Meghan will finally be caught by this foe.

This was a quick, light read, giving a bit more depth to the story that is the Iron Fey. I enjoyed it very much and read through it fairly quickly. The story gives you more depth to the land of the Winter Fae. And continues to show you the growing forbidden relationship between Meghan and Ash. it definitely made me want to move on to the next book in the series to see what happens.

4 out of 5 stars from me! show less

WINTER'S PASSAGE, by Julie Kagawa, answered some essential questions that I pondered after reading The Iron King and The Iron Daughter. I really enjoy when authors complete the "fillers" in between books, and this novella was no different!

In this story, we take the journey to Tir Na Nog with Meghan and Ash. The imminent separation between these two lovebirds looms over them as they first check the status of Puck's health and then continue on to meet Queen Mab. Grimalkin meets up with them again and the trio senses an expected follower. The Hunter has a special task to fulfill and Meghan is the main target. I liked the added character of the Hunter, it added the element of danger and suspense that Kagawa is known for in this series. It show more was easy for me to jump back into this book. Kagawa has a truly unique writing style and I quickly fell into step for this short and sweet continuation of The Iron King.

How awesome is the cover? I like how it keeps a little of The Iron King and The Iron Daughter "feel" but it stands out on its own. show less

What I LOVED: This was fantastic "in-between" short that does a good job of getting you ready for the continuing of the adventure that Meghan Chase has found herself a part of.

What I LIKED: Is that both Ash and Meghan stayed true to their characters. I still don't like their pairing but I do like their dialogue/friendship/caring of one another.

Why I gave it a 4: This was a great way to tie the first and second books together. Sure it could have been part of the second book but I think it works better as a stand alone. I would recommend this to anyone who is a fan of the series.

There isn’t really a plot to summarise of this story – this is Meghan’s travel from her home to Tir Na Nog to fulfil the contract she made with Ash.

This novella is a nice bridge book.

It doesn’t exist to advancer the plot per se. Nor really to develop the characters. Puck, Meghan and Ash are the same people in this book as they were in the last book. You don’t need to read this book.

But it does elegantly take you from the end of The Iron King to the beginning of The Iron Daughter without having to slow down the beginning of the next book with unnecessary travel or having a huge jarring leap from one scene to the next. It’s a bridge book

Along the way it helps fill in a few of the gaps – checking on Puck where he rested in show more his tree, a little revisit with Grimalkin just to add to his omnipresent mystery. And it added a little depth and texture to Ash and Meghan’s relationship. Since that relationship was pretty fastforwarded in the last book, I appreciate some attempt to flesh it out into something more meaningful, even if it is awfully fast.

It also reiterates a theme that will be important in the next book – how emotion is a weakness in the Unseelie court, how Mab and Ash’s brothers are Not Nice People and how Ash doesn’t look forward to coming home and they need to carefully hide their relationship or, better yet, call the whole thing off and recognise it as doomed to failure.

This message is important for the next book when Meghan IGNORES IT ENTIRELY!

We also get heavily reminded that Ash is the supreme Prince of emo moping, Lord of pouting, Grand Duke of the Sulk and Knight of the Order of Passive Aggressive Silent Treatment. It’s not endearing. Which also adds layers of insecurity and “waaaah he doesn’t really love me” to Meghan. It’s important to get these fixes now so you are not completely smacked with it in the next book

Romance does not bring out the best of either of these characters.

A far better element is more examination of the Nevernever, a truly great examination of Tir Na Nog, the Unseelie realm and some of the uber creepy denizens of the land. Throw in Wolf, which is just truly epic and an awesome concept and this book is redeemed from the romantic trainwreck rumbling away between the main characters. Just the extra flare and sparkle it adds to Tir Na Nog makes it a worthy read.


It’s quick easy read, with some decent excitement and a fun development of the world – a shame that there’s a headache worthy romance ruining it. It’s a good novella and serves a decent purpose and doesn’t feel stuffed in – it works, but if you missed it you wouldn’t be missing too much.

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Whoa! This eBook novella was hot! First, let me just confess how much I love Ash, he is probably one of my biggest book crushes, and this novella had so much Ash it was going to explode with awesomness.

Okay…now that I got the Ash is hot out of my system, I must say I am so glad Julie Kagawa released this novella to bridge the gap between the Iron King and the Iron Daughter. If I didn’t read this, I would feel like I missed out on some major action between books one and two of the Iron Fey series.

This novella takes place immediately after the end of the Iron King and continues the story perfectly. Winter’s Passage adds more to the lovely world already create by Julie Kagawa in the Iron King. This book had everything I was show more expecting after reading Iron King, it had an intriguing plot, action, Ash, romance and just a great story.

While reading Winter’s Passage is not essential to the story of the Iron Fey, it is a great book connecting books one and two and will definitely add to the experience of reading the series. Any fan of the Iron King should definitely check out this novella, especially if you want to read lots about Ash! show less

I heart these books and this author so much. This book starts where the last book ends and you easily jump right back into the story of Meghan and Ash. I was intrigued to see exactly where Ms. Kagawa was going with this book and the ending (and the foe) definitely did not disappoint me. You start to feel Ash coming to a decision and putting into motion his decision in this novella, and I was sorry to see it.

This is a light, quick, read, that can easily give you a taste of the series if you are perhaps unsure if you want to read them (you are nuts) or if you want a small taste before you jump in. I will tell you this: Ms. Kagawa takes faerie to another realm completely (and literally) and you won't be sorry for the journey you take.

This e-book-only short story fits in between books one and two of the Iron Fey trilogy, telling the story of Meghan's journey into Winter with Ash.

I'm not sure why, perhaps because I didn't really think it worked well as a short story, or maybe because the important part was repeated word for word in book 2 anyways, but I did not enjoy this nearly as much as the first book in the series. I was in that sort of midpoint, where I didn't hate it enough to put it down but never really sunk into the story and bought it or cared about what was happening. I found myself a little bit annoyed with Meghan, instead. I hope this doesn't carry into book 2, which I'm reading now mainly because the e-book from the library will expire soon.