The trilogy comes to its climax: Jewel and Thorn pit themselves against the powerful, evil Magian Querne Rasp. The action takes them first to Lowmoor settlement and the discovery of a far-reaching conspiracy; then to a ruined giant steelworks where a tribe of humans wages perpetual war on wild rats; and last to a Dark Time church inhabited by a sinister religious cult. Along the way, the nature of the mysterious crystals is laid bare, and the why of their strange world is finally revealed.
Reviews of The Iron Angel
"Coming at this from the angle of not having read the other tales is perhaps one of the biggest faux pas that a reviewer can do. However that said I did after starting the book and seeing how well it was progressing, nip out and pick up the other two and thus had a marathon reading session to enjoy the trilogy (or perhaps more) of the series.
Released yearly the previous installments have kept the readers guessing as to what is going to happen next with each installment tying up a lot of loose ends to make for a most satisfactory read although with this final part I was left wondering if we will be treated to a fourth installment. The writing is refreshing, with characters that you just can't fail to hook into. Making this a wonderful read for a child of any age (and it really took me back to mine wishing I had this then). Great stuff with a great angle and a wonderful world to explore tied up with a killer plot. How does Richard manage it? (Expletive!)"
Falcata Times
Reviewing The Iron Angel alongside Incarceron by Catherine Fisher, Sally Roberts Jones wrote in Planet 185:
"There are some fine villains - Higgins Makepeace, fanatical leader of a death-cult, Querne Rasp, witch and would-be global tyrant - while the Ranter Manningham Sparks stands firmly for decency and tolerance.
"Perhaps the most sustained flight of imagination here, though, is Jewel and Thorn's final journey to confront Querne Rasp in her underground maze, a terrifying labyrinth of ice spiders and man-eating plants...
"Both Poole and Fisher use elements of fairy tale - the lost prince, the witch in her lair - side by side with gritty reality and curious science. They are compelling story-tellers, but their stories are many-layered, and they give us fully visualised worlds to explore and characters of whom one wants to know more - and of whom there is more to be known, not always the same thing. In both books there are masks to be seen through.
"So many of the fantasy trilogies that fill out the bookshop shelves are merely commercial responses to the success of The Lord of the Rings, so thinly imagined as to be almost parodies, but here, for once... the three volume format is justified."
Gateway writes:
"Excellent finale to a great series. Richard Poole knows his audience!"
For the whole review click on this link: Gateway
Buy The Iron Angel in hardback from Amazon
Buy The Iron Angel in paperback from Amazon
Signed copies are available from Goldsboro Books
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