The Iron Trial
Author: Holly Black & Cassandra Clare
Series: Magisterium #1
Genre: Middle Grade, Fantasy
Release Date: September 9, 2014
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Summary:
Danger and magic.
Death and life.
Most kids would do anything to pass the Iron Trial.
Not Callum Hunt. He wants to fail.
All his life, Call has been warned by his father to stay away from magic. If he succeeds at the Iron Trial and is admitted into the Magisterium, he is sure it can only mean bad things for him.
So he tries his best to do his worst – and fails at failing.
Now the Magisterium awaits him. It’s a place that’s both sensational and sinister, with dark ties to his past and a twisty path to his future.
The Iron Trial is just the beginning, for the biggest test is still to come…
From the remarkable imaginations of bestselling authors Holly Black and Cassandra Clare comes a heart-stopping, mind-blowing, pulse-pounding plunge into the magical unknown.
First Sentence: From a distance, the man struggling up the white face of the glacier might have looked like an ant crawling slowly up he side of a dinner plate.
I received a copy of the book from the publisher in exchange for a honest review. All opinions are my own and I was not compensated for this review.
My Review:
I was probably one of the very few people who wasn’t interested in reading The Iron Trial. The single Holly Black book I’ve read, The Coldest Girl in Coldtown, didn’t impress me much and I’m also not a fan of any of Cassandra Clare’s works. The only reason why I picked up The Iron Trial the first place was because my friend Jon from Scott Reads It was beyond excited for the book and managed to spread his excitement for the book to me (thanks Jon). Although I didn’t expect much from the book, I read The Iron Trial anyways.
The boy looked up at him with wide gray eyes and opened his mouth to scream again. As the blanket fell aside, Alastair could see why. The baby’s left leg hung at a terrible angle, like a snapped tree branch. (ARC 4)
The beginning of The Iron Trial was easy and fun to read. It grabbed my attention immediately and kept me interested in the characters. I wanted to learn more about Callum’s life and see how he planned on failing the Iron trial. However, after Callum got accepted into the Magisterium, the pacing of the book started slowing down drastically and became somewhat boring. Things did eventually pick up a bit, but it didn’t have that strong pull that the beginning of the book had.
One problem I had with The Iron Trial was that it was extremely predictable. Right from the very beginning, I predicted every single big twist in the book, even that big twist at the end. There was only one minor plot twist I didn’t see coming in The Iron Trial. However, I would have predicted that minor twist too if I had studied the cover more closely and thought what the authors hinted about in their letter on the cover of the ARC (that’s a hint to you guys).
“I’ll go,” he told his father, turning toward him. “Don’t worry. I don’t know what I’m doing. I’ll get kicked out. They won’t want me for long and then I’ll come home and everything will be the same-” (ARC 44)
There are many diverse characters in The Iron Trial as you can see from the cover (the girl on the cover has caramel skin according to the book). Besides the people on the cover of The Iron Trial, there is also one more diverse character in The Iron Trial from what I can remember. There’s a guy who kind of plays an important role in the book; he is described as being half Asian, half white ethnicity.
Even though I haven’t read Harry Potter (stop with your judgmental stares please – I promise I will read Harry Potter someday!), I did recognize the parallels The Iron Trial had with Harry Potter from the things I’ve heard about Harry Potter. Like Harry Potter, The Iron Trial has magic, there are three twelve year old kids who form a group and are the main characters (at least they don’t share the same personalities as the three main characters in Harry Potter, I think, since again, I haven’t read Harry Potter yet), the narrator was injured by the enemy when he was a baby, instead of belonging to different houses the kids are trained under different masters, and there’s a guy that obviously plays the Draco role. I’m quite sure that there are a lot more Harry Potter parallels that I didn’t recognize since I haven’t read Harry Potter yet and from the things I’ve heard from other people who had read The Iron Trial.
If Lucretia is an earth mage who has crossed three of the gates, how many people can she poison with the deadly nightshade before she is caught and beheaded? (ARC 23)
Overall, I’m really conflicted with how to rate The Iron Trial. In a way, I did enjoy reading The Iron Trial, but I also had my own problems with it. I don’t think I’ll be reading the sequel because I’m not interested in seeing what will end up happening next.
I’m sorry you didn’t like it. Personally, I really really enjoyed it!
I have read only the first book of Harry Potter but I didn’t find all those similarities. Sure, there is magic and kids involved but besides that I thought it was pretty different in the way the school was structured and the subjects and I actually can’t wait to see what will happen next! Maybe I’m not used to read middle grade books, this may be the first one I read in years, but I didn’t find it all that predictable :)
Frannie Pan @ In Clouds of Pages recently posted…Review: “The iron trial” by Cassandra Clare & Holly Black
Thanks for the review. I’ve been liking Clare’s books progressively less, although I enjoyed The Coldest Girl in Coldtown. The predictability of this story is worrying to me, and frankly from your review and description, I don’t think I’m interested. In stories like this, I want to guess and be swept up in the journey, and unless the rest of the blogging world goes crazy over this one, I’ll probably pass.
P.E. @ The Sirenic Codex recently posted…Life Happens
Thanks for review! I’ve never read any of Holly Black’s books and I’ve only read City of Bones by Clare, but this book caught my attention when I first saw it. The plot seemed interesting and I love MG books because they’re so fun. But when you mentioned that this was similar to Harry Potter, I got less excited about reading this. Harry Potter is my absolute favorite series and I’m not sure if I can handle reading another series that is that similar to it. But, I think I will probably try and give it a go..just in case. Thanks for the great review!
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That’s a shame that it’s predictable…that makes a story less fun to read!
Thanks for your honest review :)
Lea @ YA Book Queen recently posted…Highlights / Lowlights: RITES OF PASSAGE, THE BODY IN THE WOODS, AFTER THE END
It really sucks that it was so predictable. I wasn’t planning on reading it, though. I wasn’t a big fan of the Coldest Girl in Cold Town, either, and it sounded way too much like Harry Potter to me.
I don’t think I’ll like this based on your review. I loved all of Cassandra Clare’s shadow hunter series, but I’ve never tried any of Holly Black’s books (my best friend read the Coldest Girl in Cold Town and didn’t like it at all). I also wasn’t really interested in reading this series since it’s for middle graders.
Awww, I really enjoyed this one! I’ve read all the Harry Potter books (multiple times) and could totally see the similarities but oddly enough it didn’t bother me so much. I thought it would…I went into reading it KNOWING I’d be frustrated by them. But, I ended up thinking it was such a fun read! I knew exactly where the big twist was going too but it was still a fun little book. I’ll pick up the next one I’m sure. Luckily you didn’t have high expectations going in. Always worse to be really disappointed by a book.
Kristen@My Friends Are Fiction recently posted…Review of Lailah by Nikki Kelly
Yep yep yep! I read this one last night and I agree with the majority of the things you mentioned here. Interesting beginning to the story, but the rest of it was pretty boring. And yes, predictable! Also, I felt that the dialogue was very stiff/immature. Idk. And you’re right, so many Harry Potter parallels!! I don’t think I’ll be reading the rest of this series, either. I’m glad I’m not the only one who thought this one was just okay!
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The cover looks awesome! But sadly from your review and all your valid points I think I will just get this at the library and see how it goes! Great review! I still love that cover!
Johannah recently posted…Review: If You Find Me
Great review. I am kinda disappointed that it wasn’t amazing. I wonder if it was because it was written by two authors with different ideas and styles. That could either work out really well or become a mess. I was really looking forward to the book and I LOVE the cover. I will probably buy it on Nook instead of in physical form. Thanks for the honest review.
I’m surprised I haven’t heard about The Iron Trial before today. Or maybe I did, but quickly forgot? And I haven’t finished reading Harry Potter and I’m not sure when I will. Even my older sister has all the books and I haven’t asked to borrow them. I just read book one in seventh grade and never continued. Not because I didn’t like it but I think I felt like I was outgrowing a lot of stuff at the time. Anywho, I’m not sure I want to read this one…if I do get it I’ll probably give it to my younger sister to read it.
I’ve read a lot of rave reviews about this book but it’s middle grade and that puts me off a bit. But I have been hearing that Holly Black and Cassandra Clare came together and have a powerhouse of a book. Maybe I will check it out after all… Thanks for the review!
I love both Holly Black and Cassandra Clare but I think I’ll pass on this one.
Thanks for your review. I am going to not read this one. It is not my cup of tea. :)
While I am a fan of Holly Black (although The Coldest Girl didn’t do it for me), I wasn’t too sure about this one. Now that reviews are coming out, I am even more certain that this one is not for me. It stinks, but there are so many books that I want to read, I don’t want to waste any time trying to read one I am sure I won’t love. Thank you for your review!
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Too bad the book was predictable; not too interested in reading those
I didn’t realise this was so similar to Harry Potter! Pair that with predictability, and I’m thinking I probably won’t buy myself a copy…library, here I come haha
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I’m so excited to read this! I’ve been a fan of Cassandra Clare’s books and though I haven’t read Holly Black’s books yet, if I like The Iron Trial, I may just be reading her books next! :) Great review, thank you!
I love Cassandra Clare’s work, so I’m considering reading this book. Although I still don’t know because if it was too predictable, I might just have to pass on, on this one.
Hi, I’ve read it too, I really enjoyed it! And even if I liked it o much I have the same thoughts as you, it was so predictable but I don’t know why (it’s such a weird feel that I have) that I enjoy knowing the final of the books (if I predict it obviously, NO SPOILERRRRS) I feel like Sherlock Holmes.
I really love Cassandra Clare’s work, and the idea that she tried to write another thing that wasn’t about SHADOWHUNTERS was so good and refreshable even if I love TMI and TID. :D
Sorry you weren’t a fan. I love Cassandra Clare’s work and was planning to read it but if it seems so much like Harry Potter I don’t know. I am a huge Harry Potter fan and don’t want to be comparing it. I will have to think on it. Thanks for a great review.
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I love Cassandra Clare’s works but have yet to read any of Holly Black’s. I enjoyed Harry Potter so I think this may be a book I’ll have to read soon because of the similarities, though I read them when I was a lot younger so we’ll see how this book goes.
Even though I’m still planning on reading this because of Cassandra Clare and the fantasy world, I’m not too thrilled that it seems to be pretty predictable. I like to be guessing all the way through a book, but there have been times when I didn’t really catch a twist until that moment, so fingers crossed I won’t be to good a guesser! Thanks again for the great review.
I finished reading this recently and I have to say, I wholeheartedly agree with your review. As for the parallels with Harry Potter, the number of them is actually ridiculous. I’m not the sort to look for (or even find) such parallels most of the time, but here it was impossible not to see them. Some scenes are complete rewrites of bits in Potter. Even the plot twist is. I can see what they wanted to do, but surely there were other ways to do it, no? It’s just so disappointing.
Teresa Santos recently posted…The Iron Trial, by Cassandra Clare & Holly Black
I haven’t read this book yet but I really want to! I love Cassandra’s book but I never read anything by Holly so I don’t know what o expect but I really want to like it.
Cassandra Clare and Holly Black are coming to my country in November and I’m so excited!!!! :D :D :D
Personally I want to read this book still even if my expectations aren’t that high. I’m sorry that you couldn’t enjoy the book but I’m glad you are completely honest on how the book is and not basing your opinion on the author’s themselves. A lot of people say that Cassandra Clare steals her ideas from other books and I hate saying it but it seems true to what you are saying. I am still interested in reading this book though because of just the fact that Harry Potter was a part of my childhood. I feel bad for feeling that way a bit but honestly i feel like when i read the book I will be reading a Harry Potter fan fiction or something.
Great review. I have not heard very many negative reviews of the book and it’s kinda refreshing to see the book on a new light.
I can’t say I’m looking forward to reading the book but I would give it a shot.
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I’ve been hearing a lot of talk about this book…I may still try it out, but thank you for you’re review! I hate when I expect a lot from a book and it lets me down :p
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I heard so much about this book and was really looking forward to it. But I was so disappointed. It was like reading Harry Potter all over again, just not as well as Rowlings language and plot. Everything was just screaming Harry Potter to me, and besides I really didn’t like a lot of the characters. The plot was predictable and I was just “bah” most of the time reading it. :/
What?!? Are you serious? I was so excited to read it :(
I absolutely loved this book! It’s one of my favorites of the year! I really like the Mortal Instruments though, so it might just be our different tastes. All I knew going in was magic school, so I had less potential for spoilers. I didn’t see most of the twists coming, which I thought I had it figured out. I think fans of Harry Potter will like this book, but I don’t think it’s a copy of Harry Potter. You should probably read Harry Potter if only to find out what everyone’s talking about. (Although it is one of the greatest books ever!) I can’t wait for the next one!
Molly Mortensen recently posted…Afterworlds By Scott Westerfeld
Hey! I still haven’t read Harry Potter either! Haha. Well technically I have read half of them, but one day I will finish them!
I honestly really enjoyed this book.
I know everyone has probably already told you this a million times but, if you just read on from City Of Bones you may enjoy the rest of the series and enjoy Cassandra Clare’s writing! I hated City of Bones. Worst book in the series.
Anyway, just a suggestion! :)
I was keen on this book until I realised that it was more of a MG book, and that it seemed a bit of a rip off of Harry Potter.
I saw it in the bookstore the other day and I did pick it up, but after I read the first sentence, I knew it wasn’t for me. It just had that uber younger-readers vibe, and third person is never really my thing (only in some special cases like Throne of Glass, where it works fantastically for me).
It’s a shame that the pacing was not so great, because I think pacing is a pretty important part of any novel – especially fantasy novels like this one.
All in all, I’m almost certain that I won’t read this book, which sounds harsh but hey – so many books and so little time, right? ;D
Chiara @ Books for a Delicate Eternity recently posted…Review: Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
I love Cassandra Clare’s writings. I don’t care if this book is a MG book haha… It’s annoying there is another Harry Potter rip off but I like this kind of story. Maybe I’ll read this.
Yay! 2,5?! :D
I was happy when I heard about this book, but after your post…*sigh* I was so excited to read it :S
I like this book’s cover, the design looks like to Rick Riordan’s PJ series… I really don’t know, maybe I’ll try too :) Thanks for the review.
Great review! I love the authors of this book! I need to read it. <3
I remember reading The Coldest Girl in Coldtown and not liking it THAT much because it didn’t reel me in and make me want for more. However, I am a HUGE fan of The Infernal Devices (not The Mortal Instruments, sorry) because they’re brilliant in my opinion. So.. I might read this if I have time. Great review, Kelly! Sorry you didn’t like it. :(
I gasped at the part where you said you still haven’t read the phenomenal Harry Potter books. Haha. But don’t worry, I’m not judging you. Although you better start with it soon before it’s too late! I’m just curious though, have you watched any of the films?
I’m not that much of a fan of Cassie Clare either but I liked The Mortal Instruments, I kind of got disappointed with the fourth book and onwards though. But I deeply loved The Infernal Devices!!! Definitely one of my favorites. Still, I’m looking forward to reading her other Shadowhunter Chronicles. As for Holly Black, I haven’t read any of her books but she’s an author I’ve been wanting to read the most.
I might never read this book though, I’ve been staying away from it since I first saw the cover and I knew immediately that it was another Harry Potter rip-off. *cringes*
I’m curious to read The Iron Trial. I like The Mortal Instruments and Infernal Devices series and, even though I haven’t read any of Holly Black’s books, there are several on my wishlist. The main reason I want to read the Iron Trial is more because of the comparison people have been making with Harry Potter, more then for the story itself.
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Helllo! Thanks for the review! (I was looking for it!!!) Well, I loved Clare’s TID and TMI but I think I won’t like this rip-off. Anyway, it’s fun to see J.K.’s continuing influence. I think it’s still fun to read—the more, the merrier! I recommend that you should that reading HP now, too. :)
I’m reading this right now but I can’t seem to get into it.. I’ve got to write a review soon, though. Sorry you didn’t like it that much, I hope I get more invested as I keep reading :)
Predictable novels bore me too. There is nothing I like more than shocking plot twists! I still might give this one a try though, because the concept does sound fun.
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This review was VERY helpful, thank you so much for putting the time into writing these because they do truly help and I look forward to more of your reviews :)
I was like WHOA WHOA WHOA you haven’t read Harry Potter? Ya gotta read them,
I’m sure you get that all the time though. ;)
I’m lookin forward to reading this even though the review wasn’t so glowing. I enjoy Cassandra Clare.. Haven’t read anything by Holly Black though.
I’m about halfway through this book now, and it’s just not grabbing me. I think I just put it down at the wrong time, but I honestly don’t LOVE middle grade novels because it is hard for their language to be simple enough for the kids they are meant for and dynamic enough to catch my attention. I am a Harry Potter lover who also loves Holly Black and has a soft spot for Cassandra Clare, so I figured I would LOVE this. But, so far at least, I’m just NOT. And that’s really sad for me.