Iron Heart: 2 (Crier's War, 2)

I absolutely adored this book. I loved it as much as the first book, if not more. It was fast-paced, filled with so many emotions, and it just... wow. It's incredible.

I liked the last book a lot, but sometimes it felt a bit clumsy. I think this one rises above that in most ways, and I look forward to reading this again in the future. As with Crier's War, the relationship between Ayla and Crier is the lifeblood of the book, the heartbeat. Valera is a master of writing romance, and I felt myself unable to put the book down quite often. My only gripe here is that the ending perhaps felt a little rushed, a little anticlimactic. Still, it is but one blemish on a book I have come to adore. Very much recommended.

I got through this in a day. Like the first book, I couldn't put it down. I will say I was disappointed with the ending, but up to page 350, it was a roller coaster ride of energy. The reason I was disappointed with the ending was because it seemed rather deus ex machina and everything that came after that moment felt somewhat contrived and a bit of a cop out. If the event between 350 and 360 had not occurred and things had been different I'd have given it a full 5 stars. I also expected a bit more of a confrontation at the end, or at least a bit more of a struggle considering everything that had come before it. However, I did enjoy the read. The worldbuilding and the characters are excellent and I'll try to not let my disappointment with the last 45 pages cloud my memory of the whole.

This sequel to Crier's War did not dissappoint. It was as enjoyable as the first book and the only thing I can complain about is that I want more. Like a whole another book that's just Crier and Ayla being cute as hell. I love that in a book about so many difficult and horrible things there's also so much beauty and softness and love.

I liked how the characters grew in the second book, they evolved smoothly on the circumstances. I also found some music playlists made for these books that made the reading even more intense

If you read Crier's War this book will give you everything you want and need in a sequel and conclusion.

So Criers War made me realise how much I adore the one-sided-enemies-to-lovers-forced-proximity trope due to the very different types of yearning you get from each pov. Obviously after the events of book 1 and information learned the dynamic has changed slightly and while I did continue to love the evolving relationship that made the first book an absolute fave - we'd already passed the majority of the slowburn which is my favourite phrase romances in media. I also really loved how the plot line with Yoras heart continued in this book and while I felt a certain detail at the end seemed almost too convenient it was overall a plot I loved that involved a lot of new and interesting characters to get invested in

i loved it so much

Iron Heart is the sequel to Crier's War and a great ending to the serie. The human revolution againts the Automae is on the rise. Ayla is on the run as a fugitive. Instead of killing Crier like she was supposed to, she fell in love with her. But Crier is also on the run, having learn what her father and also what Kinok truly planned to do she must run. Wanting nothing to do with this. Crossing path with Ayla once more both of them will have a lot to do to stop this and when Crier find out the truth behind the heartstone produce by the Iron Heart, she will want to find an alternate source for the Automae power source.

It isn’t common for sequels to outshine an original but this one did. A great read, cool story, good character writing.

ordered in the second week of july, received today. pretty impressed with the quality since it was stuck in transit for a while. both books i’d already read online before purchasing and just HAD to have paper copies instead. honestly one of my favourite sapphic fantasy novels!

Iron Heart has a very different tone and pacing from Crier's War, and thank god it does. Crier's War was all about introducing us to this complex world and even more complex characters, while Iron Heart is more adventure-focused and deals head on with the events set in motion by the first book. My favorite part of Iron Heart, however, is how Crier and Ayla have a chance to grow separetely before being reuinted. They were clearly already in love by the end of the first book, but there was so much they didn't understand about each other and about themselves, and this book gave them exactly that. I will admit that some plot points were a little too convenient (their random meeting near Lake Thea, mainly), but this is a fantasy novel after all and if fate brought them together that one time who am I to complain? The world building and the plot are fantastic, but Crier's War & Iron Heart's strongest selling points are the main characters. I'm sad that this story is over and I won't get to see more of Crier and Ayla, but I'm satisfied with the way their story ended and I'm looking forward to whatever Varela writes next.

bellissimo!