Title: Heart of Iron
Author: Ashley Poston
Type: Fiction
Genre: YA, Science Fiction
Publisher: Balzer + Bray (HarperCollins)
Date published: February 27, 2018

A physical copy of this book was kindly provided by the publisher, in exchange for an honest review.

Seventeen-year-old Ana is a scoundrel by nurture and an outlaw by nature. Found as a child drifting through space with a sentient android called D09, Ana was saved by a fearsome space captain and the grizzled crew she now calls family. But D09—one of the last remaining illegal Metals—has been glitching, and Ana will stop at nothing to find a way to fix him.

Ana’s desperate effort to save D09 leads her on a quest to steal the coordinates to a lost ship that could offer all the answers. But at the last moment, a spoiled Ironblood boy beats Ana to her prize. He has his own reasons for taking the coordinates, and he doesn’t care what he’ll sacrifice to keep them.

When everything goes wrong, she and the Ironblood end up as fugitives on the run. Now their entire kingdom is after them—and the coordinates—and not everyone wants them captured alive.

What they find in a lost corner of the universe will change all their lives—and unearth dangerous secrets. But when a darkness from Ana’s past returns, she must face an impossible choice: does she protect a kingdom that wants her dead or save the Metal boy she loves?

– My Review –

Last year, I read Geekerella by Ashley Poston, and while it had a bit of a slow start for me, I’m glad that I continued reading because that book ended up being in my top 10 for last year (and might have been my #1 contemporary)! I loved many aspects about Geekerella, one of them being the made-up sci-fi TV series that the main character was in love with. I remember wishing that I could read an entire book about that sci-fi world, so it should come as no surprise that when it was announced that Ashely Poston would be writing a science fiction YA novel, I added it to my TBR without hesitation.

Heart of Iron was one of my most anticipated releases of 2018 (if not my most anticipated release). And I have to say that it did not disappoint! The plot was fantastic, the pacing was just right (for my tastes), the world-building was great, and the characters were awesome and memorable. I also really enjoy Poston’s writing, and the general atmosphere and tone of her books (or the two that I’ve read so far). I really enjoyed this book, and I’m very happy about the announcement that there will be a sequel, because I want more of the story, characters, and world! I am going to 100% be reading the sequel!

The plot kept me interested, and held my attention from start to finish. I can’t think of one thing that I would change about it. Some parts made me smile, and other parts made my heart ache. It was a good kind of ache though, the kind that made me want to keep reading so that I could find relief when things would resolve themselves (or at least get better). I also really liked that the story was a sort-of retelling of the Anastasia Romanov story. I’m saying “kind of,” because I’m not entirely sure how true to the story it is because I haven’t researched Anastasia story as much as I wish I had, and I only really have the animated movie to base things on. I can say, however, that it’s super neat that this retelling takes place in space! I really enjoy the sci-fi retellings, haha, which is funny because I used to really dislike everything sci-fi. Taking into consideration how many science fiction world there are out there, I know that it must be difficult to come out with a world that stands out. But the world of Heart of Iron will definitely be staying with me. (And ugh, I need that sequel like yesterday!)

Lastly, I just wanted to say how much I adored the characters! They grew to be very special to me, and I also appreciated the diversity not only in sexual orientation, but also in the skin colours of various characters. I became very invested in the lives on Heart of Iron‘s characters, and just really rooted for them. They also surprised me (as did the plot in general), and ugh, this book just made me so happy! I am very happy that my most anticipated release of 2018 didn’t let me down, but rather even exceeded my expectations! I will be recommending this book to anyone who hasn’t read it yet, and anyone who will listen!

– About the Author –

Ashley Poston’s is a part-time author and full-time fangirl. She was born in rural South Carolina, where you can see the stars impossibly well… Tweet her at @ashpostonand read her inner-most rambles at www.ashposton.com.

– Purchase Links –

THANK YOU FOR READING MY BOOK REVIEW! HAVE YOU READ THIS BOOK? WHAT DID YOU THINK? AND IF YOU HAVEN’T READ IT YET, DO YOU WANT TO, OR NOT? HOW COME? LET ME KNOW IN THE COMMENTS BELOW!