Review: The Iron Trial by Holly Black and Cassandra Clare

The Iron Trial by Holly Black
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Call has grown up learning to hate magic from his father. But because both of his parents were taught to use magic, Call has to go through a series of tests to see if he is going to be trained for the next 5 years. So, naturally, Call is going to fail his test. It shouldn't be too hard, since he is always failing something in life and if there is anything physical ed related, his injured leg with his limp will help him out in that case.

Except Call is failing so terribly, that he actually gets picked by a Master! Call doesn't want to go, but it seems that he doesn't have a choice in the matter and leaves that very day without his father.

Now Call has to try to fail his lessons, so then he might get to go home that way. After being told that won't work - that instead his magic would be bound, locked, and he will always feel like a part of himself is lost - does Call then start to really become serious in learning how to use the elements and be one of the best in his class.

Then dark, hidden secrets start to get unraveled - things that Call would have never dreamed of. With these new revelations, Call has to determine what to do, because a war is abrewing, and it seems that Call might be in the middle of it...

I actually enjoyed this novel a lot! I loved the inner struggle that Call had the entire time. I felt so bad for him being bullied in normal school, and then when his new friends stood up for him in magic school? It seriously made me feel warm and fuzzy to know that he finally belongs somewhere.

I know a lot of readers have said this is a Harry Potter alike novel, and I admit that I can see that, but I don't think that this book is a Harry Potter book. There are so many differences, but if everyone is only going to focus on the similarities, then of course that is all you are going to see. The main difference though? Call doesn't want to be there, and Harry did. That alone tells you that these are two different people and two different stories. For people to base this book and give it a low rating because of a few similarities of a popular series is ridiculous and immature.

I loved the first month of training for Call, Tamara and Aaron. I can just picture the three of them getting so annoyed by having to separate sand into different piles, but I can also see how that is strengthening their magical skills.

The only reason I'm not instantly picking up the next books in the series is because the 5th and final book is not published yet. I'm not going to get so involved and committed to this series, only to have to wait 10 months to read the ending. So I'll probably either re-read the book, or hopefully remember the important parts of this first book, and then dive into the next 4 books of the series to see how it ends. I have a good idea, but I still need to know!

I definitely enjoyed this book and it will be a great series to recommend to readers who have enjoyed Harry Potter and Percy Jackson :)

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