Book Review: Summer's Crossing

Summer's Crossing

By:  Julie Kagawa

Publisher:  Harlequin Teen

Publish Date:  June 2011

Format:  Ebook

Genre:  YA Fantasy, Fantasy

Series:  3.5 in The Iron Fey series; Book 1 ~ Iron King, Book 1.5 ~ Winter's Passage, Book 2 ~ Iron Daughter, Book 3 ~ Iron Queen

Recommendation:  If you've enjoyed Puck in the previous books, this is a wonderful fun read to get a story from Pucks point of view.

Book Synopsis:
A Midsummer's Nightmare?  Robin Goodfellow.  Puck.  Summer Court prankster, King Oberon's right hand, bane of many a faery queen's existence - and secret friend to Prince Ash of the Winter Court.  Until one girl's death come between them, and another girl stole both their hearts.

Now Ash has granted one favor too many and some one's come to collect, forcing the prince to a place he cannot go without Puck's help - into the heart of the Summer Court.  And Puck faces the ultimate choice - betray Ash and possibly win the girl they both love, or help his former friend tuned bitter enemy pull off a deception that no true faery prankster could possibly resist.

First Sentence:
Names.
What's in a name, really?

My Thoughts and Summary:
Puck has tagged along, un-invited, with Ash to find Grimalkin.  Ash had made a bargain, a rather large one, for his love and now the holder has come calling on it.  So frazzled Ash goes out of character and against what he knows and lives in the fey world, and asks if the favor can wait, which he would never have tried to hold out on a favor before.  But knowing Ash plans a search that could take a long time the holder calls the favor in now, and might be able to help him in the end.

We get to see some of our fun characters again; Puck, Ash, Leanansidhe, and some not so nice but in a fun way...Queen Titania.  I did enjoy the side we got to see of the Summer Queen here.  We see Ash through his old friends, and rival, eyes ~ Puck. This way we see how lost and frustrated Ash is since the end of Iron Queen.

We learn little pieces of things and ways of the fey through this short story.  Like names.  And another part of the Wyldwood that is a dangerous path full of Hedgewolves.  The boys are in trouble here!  And a little secret about Queen Titania.

The friendship/enemy line really gets drawn here between Puck and Ash.  They were once friends, then enemies after the first girl.  Now with the second girl, Meghan, what will they be?  Puck choose to go with Ash, but Ash needs Puck's help in this story.  But Puck could turn on Ash and maybe end up with the girl he too loves.  We do get to see the banter and fun between the two characters again.  They do make a good team.

We get Pucks' view of his kiss with Meghan and more of his feelings towards her and Ash.  Puck is struggling with his feelings.  Ooo, oh.  King Oberon shows up and of all people to suggest what to Puck what he does!  Astounding!  Puck does always have jest in what he does.  There is always a joke there to make you smile or chuckle, even when he and Ash have to go in disguise. I enjoyed that.

But as always... things in the fey world are NOT always as they seem.


I read this short story for my own enjoyment.


This story qualifies for the YA Reading Challenge, and Speculative Fiction Reading Challenge hosted by Floor to Ceiling Books.