Review: ICED by Karen Marie Moning

ICED

Book 6 in the Fever World series

Author:  Karen Marie Moning

Publisher: Delacorte Press

Release date:  10/30/12

Author's website:   Link

The year is 1 AWC—After the Wall Crash. The Fae are free and hunting us. It’s a war zone out there, and no two days are alike. I’m Dani O’Malley, the chaos-filled streets of Dublin are my home, and there’s no place I’d rather be.

Dani “Mega” O’Malley plays by her own set of rules—and in a world overrun by Dark Fae, her biggest rule is: Do what it takes to survive. Possessing rare talents and the all-powerful Sword of Light, Dani is more than equipped for the task. In fact, she’s one of the rare humans who can defend themselves against the Unseelie. But now, amid the pandemonium, her greatest gifts have turned into serious liabilities.

Dani’s ex–best friend, MacKayla Lane, wants her dead, the terrifying Unseelie princes have put a price on her head, and Inspector Jayne, the head of the police force, is after her sword and will stop at nothing to get it. What’s more, people are being mysteriously frozen to death all over the city, encased on the spot in sub-zero, icy tableaux.

When Dublin’s most seductive nightclub gets blanketed in hoarfrost, Dani finds herself at the mercy of Ryodan, the club’s ruthless, immortal owner. He needs her quick wit and exceptional skill to figure out what’s freezing Fae and humans dead in their tracks—and Ryodan will do anything to ensure her compliance.

Dodging bullets, fangs, and fists, Dani must strike treacherous bargains and make desperate alliances to save her beloved Dublin—before everything and everyone in it gets iced.

When 1st learning that the next 3 books in this series was going to have Dani as the main character, I was worried.  While I liked her in the previous books I just didn't think she would be that entertaining.  I'm happy to say that the author did a great job with her character and I found Dani to absolutely entertaining and adorable.  She's got a lot to deal with in ICED and she manages to handle everything like the superhero that she knows that she is.  For the most part of the book, she partners with Ryodan to figure out what is icing parts of the city.  It's a pretty scary thing since no one can seem to figure out what's causing it as well as predict when it will happen.  There's no warning at all so Ryodan enlists Dani's help and there are lots of scenes featuring some great banter between the two of them.  There are also some great emotional moments as well as the characters try their best to live in this new world since the walls came down between the human and Faery worlds. 

Dani's character is very complex as she is only 14 years old but I feel that she's very mature for her age. She has witnessed and dealt with so many things that the average teen wouldn't until they are much older.  Death and destruction is all around her and her role in this new world is an important one.  She is so unique and special and no one can do what she does.  That puts a lot of responsibility on her shoulders and Dani does a great job at handling it.  She wants to be important and feel wanted.  She knows she can kick ass and loves it.  Her ego is hilarious and refreshing and is needed to deal with all that is going on. But she's still a teen and shows her vulnerable side from time to time. I found this to be very realistic as Dani can't be so hard core all the time.  We also learn more about her childhood and how it has shaped her character.  There's so much more to learn about her will hopefully be revealed in the future books.  Ryodan on the other hand knows that there's more to Dani than meets the eye.  This is a great time for me to segue into discussing Ryodan's character since he and Dani make great partners in the book.   Ryodan is mysterious and oh so sexy!  We've gotten to know him as Barrons right hand man and finally get to see him as the boss.  He's also fiercely protective of Dani and sees so much potential in her.  There are lots of moments where these 2 want to strangle one another which was to be expected and like I mentioned above, the banter between them is awesome!  I'm looking forward to see what these 2 will have to face next and the progression of their working and personal relationship.  Another character that ends up being partnered with Dani is Christian MacKeltar.  If you've read the previous book in the series, Shadowfever, they you know that something happens to Christian in it.  In ICED he's constantly changing throughout the book and he's not the man that he once was.  He keeps an eye on Dani and wants to protect her which soon has him bumping heads with Ryodan. This threesome dynamic is interesting and while they all don't get along all the time, they all have a common goal of saving Dublin and must work together to do so. 

I'm giving ICED a rating of:

If you're as much of a fan of the series as I am you're going to enjoy this book.  Karen Marie Moning does a great job of balancing the funny with the serious in ICED.  There are also some scenes that had a horror feel to it that had me cringing while reading, but I loved it.  This world has turned into a very scary one and I think it's important for her to keep that feel to it.  You just don't know what's going to happen next and I'm sure there are many things that exist that we haven't seen yet.  I would have to say the thing I liked most about ICED was the getting to know more about the characters.  The ones that I already know and the new ones that are introduced.  They are all very entertaining and is what makes this series my absolute favorite.  I'm liking the direction that the series is taking and am so glad that this wonderful world will carry on.  I for one cannot wait to see what's going to happen next!