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, … 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.
The Darkest Court
Book 1: Prince of Air and Darkness
Book 2: The Marked Prince
Book 3: The Iron Crown
Also by M.A. Grant:
Whitethorn Agency
Book 1: Rare Vigilance
Book 2: Crooked Shadows
more
Oh, my, this last book in the Darkest Court series is something else. Very different from the first two books, but oh, so amazingly good. This author knows how to write characters who draw you in and drag you through the story so you don’t want to put it down for even a second. This book about Lugh, the youngest of Queen Mab’s sons, has twists and turns I couldn’t even imagine and definitely didn’t see coming. I love that the story is all about the plot and the relationship and not simply sex. If you’re looking for that, you won’t find much here. But the emotion and feelings we see between Lugh and Keiran are outstanding and so deeply felt. I hate that this was the last book. I want so much more of this fabulous world! Highly recommend!
So this is the third and final book in The Darkest Court trilogy, with each book based on one of the sons of Queen Mab, and the part they play in an epic battle between good and evil, Seelie and Unseelie, the Slaugh, some longggg living humans, ghosts (aka ‘shades’), magic and everything in between.
The Iron Crown focuses on Lugh, the youngest of the three brothers, and his developing relationship with his (initially non-intimate) partner, best friend, loyal side kick (so many feels) Kieren, who is human but with a little (grudging) help from Queen Mab has been around for centuries.
As with the previous books, all of the back stories and loose ends are tied up nicely and this installment finally brings all of the brothers back together again. So good to have lots more Roark action (my definite fave). As the youngest brother, Lugh has always seemed somehow ‘less’ in previous books, but we finally get to find out the weight he has been carrying for centuries and he really comes into his own. As does Kieren. Can’t say more for fear of spoilers!
The main action takes place on the road and the battlefield, so not too much angsty romance, but the feels are still there.
Make sure you read the books in order!
Highly recommended 5
Originally posted on Tales to Tide You Over: https://margaretmcgaffeyfisk.com/category/reviews/
This is the third in a tightly woven series where the events overlap to create a beautiful tapestry founded in Celtic myth yet with elements all its own. Each novel is a gay romance where troubles in the fae world impinge on the relationships. This connection makes everything more complicated in some ways, but in others, moves fate and circumstance to bring the lovers together.
Part of what fascinates me, and why I’m speaking first on the series as a whole, is how each novel is unique. It’s not just the characters, but the circumstances and the challenges they face while moving the overall plot forward. This is never truer than with Lugh and Keiran, the youngest son of Queen Mab and a Viking child rescued from his destroyed village in the wake of the last great fae war.
Unlike the other novels, theirs is not a new connection. Instead, they’ve grown up together, fought, raced, and celebrated together for most of Keiran’s extended human life. The connection between them vibrates off the page from the first mention, though they each believe their relationship is platonic. It shows in casual touches, how Lugh leans into Keir’s strength, and their silent communication no one else shares.
The two of them are a puzzle. Lugh has no faith in his magic and believes everyone would reject him if they knew the truth of it. This belief weighs on him, eating through his confidence and setting him apart when all he wants is to be close. He sees his abilities as a sign of weakness when they show his enduring strength.
Keir knows he’s there only because of Queen Mab’s reluctant consent, a tool to protect Lugh when she cannot understand what drives her youngest son away. This poisons his self-confidence and makes him discount all the ways the fae of the Wylds honor him as The Horned God’s Poet. He has earned his place in the Wylds and the Wild Hunt by his own measure.
Don’t let those descriptions make you think either spend their time bemoaning, though. They take on the world to protect their chosen family and home. While Roark’s and Slaine’s stories could possibly be read in either order, it’s Keir and Lugh who culminate the greater tale, and in a way that makes sense while being unpredictable. Just as they grow in their relationship, their connection with the world and their people grows in this novel. They change from adventurers with a purpose to an integral part of the Sluagh and balance from a direction none expected.
It’s a powerful story on a personal and larger scale. There were moments when my breath caught and tears threatened, not always grieving ones either. What binds Lugh and Keir together is also what holds them apart. There are both closed- and open-door intimacies as the romance fulfills its happy promise, but not everything resolves so cheerfully.
I found the way each story had a lesson to teach about perception fascinating as well. We learn of Slaine first from Roark, with his limited understanding of events creating a tainted impression, but Lugh is different. The facts of his actions are correct. It’s the why neither brothers nor mother can see that changes everything about those actions. I was not looking forward to Lugh’s tale, though I should have known better after reading Slaine’s. Now, I consider it my favorite in many ways. The unseelie princes are so very different and their relationships equally varied.
As must be clear by now, I enjoyed the series and this book very much. Stop reading me talking about it and try the series yourself. It’s creative fantasy, believable romance, and has a powerful moment or ten that I suspect will linger.
P.S. I received this Advanced Reader Copy from the publisher through NetGalley in return for an honest review.