Synopsis from the back of the book: “When she was seven, a horrific fey attack killed Donna Underwood’s father and drove her mother mad.  Her own nearly fatal injuries were fixed by alchemy–the iron tattoos branding her hands and arms.  Now seventeen, Donna feels like a freak, doomed by the magical heritage that destroyed her parents and any chance she had for a normal like.  Only her relationship with her best friend, Navin, is keeping her sane.  But when vicious wood elves abduct Navin, Donna is forced to accept her role in the centuries-old war between human alchemists and these darkest outcasts of Faerie.  Assisted by Xan, a gorgeous guy with faery blood running through his veins and secrets of his own, Donna races to save Navin–even if it means betraying everything her parents fought to the death to protect.”

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Before I picked up this novel, I noticed that a lot of readers were only rating it with one or two stars, which was surprising to me, because the synopsis made the book sound really good!  I hemmed and hawed for a while, wondering if I should give the novel a go, because I’ve found that the masses tend to be right when it comes to ratings.  So many people saying “not good” usually means it’s true.  But alas, the cover won me over.  It’s so beautiful!  The tattoo art on Donna’s hands are just lovely!   A lot of love and care went into selecting the cover art, so I figured that might be true with the written portion of the novel too. 

I think Mahoney did a pretty good job with her debut YA novel.  The Iron Witch was interesting, and I lost track of time while reading it!  The pages flew by, though I will admit that at times there seemed to be a little disconnect, but nothing too serious that it ruined the story.  The character development could have been stronger, but perhaps it will tighten up in the sequel. 

I liked that fact that Mahoney used journal entries from Donna’s diary to fill gaps in the story, though I wish more gaps had been filled.  Donna mentioned a few events in passing, but she rarely clarified these statements.  Mahoney then used the journal entries to explain those events to the reader, and I enjoy that type of writing style.  However, not all the questions I had were answered.  Big questions—why is there a war between the faeries and alchemists, and what was Donna really doing in the woods the night her father was attacked and killed—remain unanswered.  I’m going to make an educated guess and say that if we want to know the answers to those questions, we’ll have to read the sequel destined to come out next year, but will we still care by then?  I think it was a mistake not to draw the reader in further by answering those key questions, and I think that fact is what leaves the ending so anticlimactic.  Donna and Xan do fight to save Navin, but everything unfolds too quickly, in my opinion, and loose ends are not brought to a close.  If you’re like me, that will annoy you a bit.  Does it ruin the story?  No, not at all.  I still enjoyed The Iron Witch, despite my criticisms.  I still recommend it, but be forewarned: loose endings and minimal character development may disappoint you.  Three stars.