The Iron Witch

Karen Mahoney (author)

Random House, UK, Australia: 2011; 292pp

ISBN: 9781864718270

Genres: adventure, fantasy

Issues: identity, self-esteem, relationships

Donna Underwood is not your average teenager. Well, how can she be when she was attacked by a Skriker when she was just seven years old – the same monster that killed her father and somehow drove her mother into insanity? Living with her paternal aunt, homeschooled by the Brotherhood of Alchemists and restricted by their secretive habits and many rules, it's hardly surprising that Donna resents her magical heritage: all it has ever brought her is pain and grief.

When the secrets of Alchemy, the world of Faerie and the hidden darkness of the Wood Elves threaten the life of her closest friend, Donna is forced to act. Can she rescue Navin in time? And why is the handsome half-fey, Xan, so willing to help her?

Although an experienced short-story writer, this is Karen Mahoney's first novel. Iron Witch is a remarkably intricate, character-driven narrative. While there is plenty of action and adventure to keep the pages turning, it is the evolving personalities of Donna, Navin and Xan – and the relationships between them – that dictate that action. Mahoney avoids simplistic good/evil stereotyping and instead explores the complex motivations of those who are so driven to achieve a particular goal that they have perhaps lost sight of what – and who – they consume in the process. With one foot in the modern, urban world, one in the ancient, mystical, magical one, Donna, with all her inner conflicts, self-doubt and desire for freedom, becomes a catalyst for change; a catalyst that affects everything and everyone she touches.

An interesting and refreshing read, Iron Witch is the first book in a trilogy. Wood Queen will be released in 2012.