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Ironskin (Ironskin #1)

by Tina Connolly (Goodreads Author)

3.32 of 5 stars 3.32 · rating details · 1,174 ratings · 357 reviews

Jane Eliot wears an iron mask.

It’s the only way to contain the fey curse that scars her cheek. The Great War is five years gone, but its scattered victims remain—the ironskin.

When a carefully worded listing appears for a governess to assist with a "delicate situation"—a child born during the Great War—Jane is certain the child is fey-cursed, and that she can help.

Teachi...more

Hardcover, 304 pages

Published October 2nd 2012 by Tor Books

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Mar 13, 2013 Ceridwen rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: alternate-history, books-about-books, capital-r-romantic, ecopunk, fanfic, fantasy, gothic, necrophilia, rule-britannia, steampunk, faeries, nebula-2012

Cross-posted on Readerling

Retellings of Gothic and/or Romantic classics in this here age of the happy ending are fraught with dangers. Plucky girls are given pluck and beauty, in defiance of people who are oh so jealous of them, and not much else; growling, terrible, inhuman assholes like Rochester and Heathcliff are neutered down to lapdogs like Edward Cullen; and the very worst of all: everything works out in the end. There should be fire and death and blood on the moors. Which is not to say t...more

35 likes · like · see review

Sep 14, 2012 Jill rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy-pnr-sci-fi-romance, 2012-debuts

3.5 stars

Jane Eliot has lost her teaching position and applied for the position of governess in the country at Silver Birch Hall. She wears an iron mask, covering the injury on one side of her face where she was hit by fey shrapnel during the war. The ironskin serves to keep the curse that comes with the injury, contained within her body and stops it from leaking out and affecting others.

Edward Rochart's daughter, Dorie was born during the war and although she bears no scar or injury she is fey...more

18 likes · like · see review

Oct 30, 2012 Regina rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012, steampunk, romance, paranormal, re-telling

err im not sure what was going on. this was such an odd book. i know it was based off the original Jane Eyre and there was a lot of parallels with that novel but this retelling just fell short of good. For one the romance was extremely forced. They fell in love despite having the most minimal interactions with each other? what? i feel like Tina Connolly forced them together for the sake of the plot and i found myself rolling my eyes at every "romantic" scene they had together. I found Jane's int...more

13 likes · like · see review

Sep 03, 2012 Keertana rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: arc-galley-and-first-reads, why-the-hype

Rating: 2.5 Stars

I’ll be the first to admit that I had expectations for this book - high expectations. Yet, the reason they weren’t met doesn’t lie with the fault of this book entirely. I feel as if many other readers will truly love Ironskin, and they should. It has a lot to love, but somehow, it wasn’t the right book for me. For one, Ironskin is a based quite loosely off of the story of Jane Eyre, a classic by Charlotte Bronte that happens to be one of my favorite novels ever. Thus,...more

14 likes · like · see review

Jul 24, 2012 Wendy Darling rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012-publication, tor, pn-faeries, october, ebook-egalley, retellings, steampunk, costume-fiction, read-2012, adult

Jane Eyre in an iron mask?! *faints* SO looking forward to this one.

17 likes · like · see review

Oct 02, 2012 Shortlatte rated it 3 of 5 stars

I’ve said it before, and I’ll reiterate: I do not take authors messing with my Jane Eyre lightly. If you are going to attempt to paint a new gloss over something that has already been perfected to my eyes, you’re going to have to bring something completely new to the table. In this regard, I applaud Connolly’s efforts to entwine a fey glamour over the well known Bronte tale, but I can’t say that she pulled off all she hoped to achieve.

Ironskin suffers from a dissonance between Connolly’s desire...more I’ve said it before, and I’ll reiterate: I do not take authors messing with my Jane Eyre lightly. If you are going to attempt to paint a new gloss over something that has already been perfected to my eyes, you’re going to have to bring something completely new to the table. In this regard, I applaud Connolly’s efforts to entwine a fey glamour over the well known Bronte tale, but I can’t say that she pulled off all she hoped to achieve.

Ironskin suffers from a dissonance between Connolly’s desire to adapt Jane Eyre and her desire to write an original fantasy work. The result feels like Connolly’s take on how she would have written Jane Eyre had she gotten first crack at it rather than a reimagining or tribute. Nevertheless, Connolly introduces some interesting ideas and I can’t help but feel that she ultimately did herself a disservice by trying to shoehorn her story into such a well-known mould; she would have done better to eschew comparisons and simply tell her own tale.

Jane Eliot is fundamentally different than Jane Eyre. Perhaps, considering our own reactions were we placed in Jane Eyre’s shoes, many of us feel that Jane Eyre should have felt rage at her situation, yet the very fact that she didn’t defines her character. It’s what sets her apart from and above her peers, what gives her the beauty that shines through an ordinary exterior. Where Jane Eliot allows the rage to take root, Jane Eyre lived above it. Where Jane Eliot yearns for normality badly enough to take drastic, disturbing measures to achieve it, Jane Eyre accepted herself with pride and grace if not always with pleasure. This was one of my biggest points of contention with the book, for in the original it is Rochester who needs reminding that Jane is as she is and won’t be changed. In Ironskin, it is Jane herself who succumbs to shallow desires and embraces superficiality. Making the decision a supposedly crucial plot point does nothing to lessen my disappointment in Jane’s decision and underscores the fact that this is not the same Jane I’ve come to love.

Rochert had potential as a reincarnation of Rochester yet, like so many who have tried before, Connolly fails to grasp Rochester’s essential nature. His depiction quite confused me, really. We are told of his internal suffering, but it doesn’t truly play out on the page. Before we learn of his deep, dark secret, I had actually gained the impression that he was in fact a warm man, loving of his daughter and wife both, not doggedly attempting to hold back the defeating force of his past as Rochester was. We are given so little page time with Rochert that he is never fleshed out (never mind the utter lack of chemistry between him and Jane). I rather liked the dimension Connolly added with his somewhat addled composure concerning the fey, but this too is inadequately addressed.

The greatest interpretations of character for me were Dorie and Poule, as Jane must work at her relationship with both much moreso than in the original. Though I never warmed to Dorie (in truth, she freaks me out more than a little), her storyline was one of the few that suggested the story would have been better off told as an original work. Poule also intrigued me, particularly as she and Jane formed something of a team here, so unlike Jane’s wary regard of Poole in the original. I wish we could have learned a bit more about Poule’s heritage, as it was one of several threads of fantasy worldbuilding that offered a promising story yet was not fully explained.

Overall, I couldn’t tell if Connolly truly wanted to retell our beloved story. Aside from the character names and a rough outline of the plot, so few critical elements of the original story remain. The pacing barely reflects that of the original, throwing Jane into her new employ on the first page, rearranging key scenes and completely eliminating the character of St. John. Whether this is meant to be a permanent feature of the series or whether Connolly introduces St. John in the next book remains to be seen. Jane’s background is completely altered, which likely goes far in explaining her drastic personality change. Whereas the unforgiving environments of her aunt’s home and Lowood shaped Jane Eyre into a strong woman determined to resist the scorn thrust upon her lowly station, Jane Eliot’s abrupt reversal of fortune at a later age made her resentful and proud.

Ultimately, Connolly seemed to want to write a fantasy, and Jane and Rochert’s relationship suffered for it. While her take on the bedroom scene is a novel change, it failed to make up for the numerous other iconic interactions that defined both characters in the original, yet that were missing from this novel. Though I was initially intrigued by the mask plotline, this too wound but being merely a grotesque externalization of conflict that distorted the subtle genius of the original.

I was also confused by Connolly’s repeated references to other classic works. Surely Bronte was influenced by those who came before her, yet she allowed those guiding voices to shape her story without stealing heavy-handed elements. Connolly not only mentions tales such as Beauty and the Beast and Tam Lin, but she goes so far as to incorporate threads of these tales into the story, which merely adds to the disjointed feel. It’s a shame, since, divorced from recollections of her predecessor, I rather liked Jane. The fey world Connolly has created seems rather fascinating, but we are given the barest glimpses of it. I’m also not quite sure that this work is best described as steampunk, but that characterization will suffice. Overall, Ironskin had promise, but ambivalence regarding the extent to which this was meant to be a retelling ultimately resulted in a failed execution of interesting ideas.

http://abookandashortlatte.wordpress....(less)

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Mar 18, 2013 Anne rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, read-in-2012, steampunk, fairytale, retelling

On the book jacket it describes Ironskin as being a retelling of both Jane Eyre and Beauty and the Beast. Personally, I thought it seemed a little more Eyreish than B & B.
Doesn't matter.
It's also touted as steampunk.
Ok, so I'm a little confused as to what elements a book needs to be classified as steampunk. As far as I can tell, if one person shows up wearing goggles, and another turns on a gas lamp...ta-da! It's steampunk!
Soooo. By that definition, yes. This was a steampunk retelling of Jan...more

7 likes · like · see review

Oct 09, 2012 ☆Jessie☆ (Ageless Pages Reviews) rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: supernatural-fiction, tales-of-fae-and-faery-tales, steampunk, arc, arc-book-tour, received-for-review, owned-copy, 2012-reads, 2012-reviews, reviewed, i-cant-fight-this-feeeeling-anymore, ssh-ssh-family-secrets, tlc, inventive-and-original

Read This Review & More Like It On My Blog!

It's easily apparent from the very start of this deceptively good novel that Ironskin is a story loosely based on Charlotte Brontë's beloved classic Jane Eyre. Fortunately for me, I have never read the original, and that's one of the reasons I think I was free to enjoy this supernaturalized version as much as I did. I had no predispositions or favorites or even opinions going in - Connolly was free to do whatever she wanted with any of the character...more

9 likes · like · see review

Apr 03, 2012 Dija marked it as first-in-series-tbr

Shelves: must-read-asap, oct-2012, first-in-series

This comes out on my birthday, yay! I don't think that's ever happened before. 8D

3 likes · like · see review

Jan 03, 2013 Renu rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: netgalley

Bronte's Jane Eyre is a book that I will forever treasure. I haven't read all that many classics, but out of the ones I have read it's my favourite. This is the third re-telling of Jane Eyre I've read and unfortunately unlike the other two I was hugely let down.

Ironskin is a solid re-telling which I think will be appreciated by those who have not read the classic, but as an avid fan of the classic I couldn't help but make comparisons, and to me, this didn't quite have the spark Jane Eyre did.

How...more

4 likes · like · see review

Oct 27, 2012 Charlene rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: jane-eyre, ebook, autographed, own

What a beautifully layered story! For what seemed like a Jane Eyre retelling with supernatural elements, I was expecting something more straightforward and recognizably similar to the plot structure of Jane Eyre, but this novel was full of the unexpected! It does not directly follow the arc of Jane Eyre, but infuses the spirit and romance of the original novel into a new story. I found the relationship between Jane and her pupil, Dorie, unexpectedly complex, as Jane struggles to get through to h...more What a beautifully layered story! For what seemed like a Jane Eyre retelling with supernatural elements, I was expecting something more straightforward and recognizably similar to the plot structure of Jane Eyre, but this novel was full of the unexpected! It does not directly follow the arc of Jane Eyre, but infuses the spirit and romance of the original novel into a new story. I found the relationship between Jane and her pupil, Dorie, unexpectedly complex, as Jane struggles to get through to her and in the end through Dorie, Jane comes to realize something very important about herself. The author also sets up a strong history in the narrative, with the Great War, and the influence of the ultimately treacherous fey adding to an intricate fictional/ alternate reality where humans are still struggling to recover from the effects of war and the loss of the fey-technology. The details of this history and Jane Eliot’s involvement is slowly meted out however, so there is a feeling of tension as you try to catch up on what everything means.

What I liked best about this story is how the author weaved in many elements - fantasy romance with touches of steampunk, and nods to Beauty and the Beast as well as elements of Jane Eyre - to create a heavily atmospheric, dark tale of love and beauty and secrets. The nature of the secrets are very unpredictable, just like Edward Rochart, the mysterious widower artist, who sees Jane Eliot not as fey cursed, but as a brave, strong woman. And yet Jane struggles to cope with her past, and her curse, and to find the self-respect she needs to accept love, making this novel a gloriously touching romance between two damaged people. Although I could have used a little more development between Jane and Edward’s relationship, and there are still some unanswered questions as to the nature of the fey (but this is the first book in a series), I loved this intricate, intelligent, Gothic tale and I highly recommend it to fantasy and Jane Eyre fans!(less)

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Oct 01, 2012 Dianne Socci-Tetro rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: galleys-arcs

Ironskin by Tina Connolly

This book is a melding of Jane Eyre, Steampunk, Regency romance and Speculative fiction, and I think that trying to mix all of these together has made for a fairly murky read. While this is a unique and interesting world, the bleakness of the story and characters left me feeling depressed instead of entertained.

Jane Eliot had been damaged with a Fey curse during the Fey War. Now she has to spend 16 out of 24 hours a day wearing and Iron mask to contain her curse. Edwar...more

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Sep 21, 2012 Fran rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: ya, pnr, src-fall-2012

I enjoyed this book. The world building was very interesting and well-done; post-war between the fey and humans. I thought the author captured the feelings of those directly and indirectly affected by the war very well. I felt Jane's despair and self-loathing (probably partly her true self and partly her 'curse' coming through), as well as her sister's mixed emotions about their relationship and society in general.

The relationship between Jane and Dorie, Rochart's daughter, was very well done, a...more

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Feb 28, 2013 Merrie Haskell rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: jane-eyre-retellings

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Another addition to my Jane Eyre retellings shelf. I'm hugely biased because of the source material, and full disclaimer, I also know the author and enjoy her greatly as a person.

That said... great book. Full on Jane Eyre retelling awesomeness, dark and compelling, with a dish of Tam Lin on the side.

Jane has survived a fairy war; the images of fighting the fairy war are extremely powerful and evocative. World-building in high concept scenarios so often lets me down, but this was both subtle an...more Another addition to my Jane Eyre retellings shelf. I'm hugely biased because of the source material, and full disclaimer, I also know the author and enjoy her greatly as a person.

That said... great book. Full on Jane Eyre retelling awesomeness, dark and compelling, with a dish of Tam Lin on the side.

Jane has survived a fairy war; the images of fighting the fairy war are extremely powerful and evocative. World-building in high concept scenarios so often lets me down, but this was both subtle and strong. The fey are odd and amazing, and fascinatingly engender a kind of technological revolution far ahead of the natural order of things.

But I address these JE retellings on their JEness, not their own merits (ridiculously, but we all have our bears to cross).

This version of the story gives Jane a fully realized family past. She has a living sister, and memories of her mother and brother. This is an orphan Jane but not on the same level as our original heroine. She's a governess/teacher, as is proper for a Jane Eyre retelling, but Gateshead is a battlefield where Jane fought and her brother died; and Lowood is a forge where people afflicted with fairy curses are "rehabilitated" by fitting them with cold iron prosthetics--hence the name, Ironskin.

Edward Rochart is far more Tam Lin than he is Rochester, in my mind; I did not see a whole lot of Rochester's over the top adoration for his Jane, but more of Tam Lin's purposeful and vaguely cynical use of Janet. Am I reading too much into that? Maybe. Rochart was not my favorite version of Rochester, nor my favorite character in this book, but Jane more than made up for it through one simple authorial choice: rage.

Jane's fairy curse is rage. She's been scarred, and the scar gives her rage and radiates rage toward everyone else. When she's actually angry, the rage intensifies the anger. Iron stops it, but it's poisoning her internally.

One of the things that movie adaptations so often fail with regard to Jane Eyre is adequately conveying the roiling inner turmoil of Jane, which includes the, well, rage that lives within her and causes everything from her behavior as a child in the Red Room on up through her declaration as Rochester's equal through her denial of St. John's offer of loveless marriage. It is often mistaken for passion, that rage, and that's not wrong; but it's passion in the traditional sense of the word, it's the suffering Jane endures, born of the mountain of injustices she's been buried under. That raging Jane is the Jane I understood, subtextually, when I first read Jane Eyre when I was 13; and it's the raging Jane who is so often glossed over in reinterpretations, adaptations, analysis, and commentary.

It was really nice to see her here, in Connolly's version.(less)

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Dec 10, 2012 Amber (Books of Amber) rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012-debut

Meh. Jane was all right, Dorie was the most annoying child ever, and Edward was a twat.

Full review here: http://www.booksofamber.com/2012/12/i...

This was disappointing. I had heard good things about Ironskin before it was released, but once it came out the rating on Goodreads started to slowly decline. I ignored that - mostly - and was quite excited when I finally got to it this month, given the enticing premise. Alas, it fell flat.

Jane was a great character in the beginning of the novel. She wa...more

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Oct 01, 2012 Nikki rated it 3 of 5 stars Recommends it for: bronte fans

Shelves: faeries-and-flitty-lil-thangs, blame-it-on-coverlust

ARC from NetGalley. Thanks!

Well I'm done with this book, what now? I read every single word and I understood them all, but somehow this book got muddled. I'm stuck with this feeling that I read a bunch of flowery crap that amounted to almost nothing. Man, that sounds so harsh, but its true. The cover is so unbelievably gorgeous, I think I let it hype me up a bit too much. I should've also remembered I'm not exactly a Bronte type girl.

The world that Jane lives in is a post-war mess. This wasn't j...more ARC from NetGalley. Thanks!

Well I'm done with this book, what now? I read every single word and I understood them all, but somehow this book got muddled. I'm stuck with this feeling that I read a bunch of flowery crap that amounted to almost nothing. Man, that sounds so harsh, but its true. The cover is so unbelievably gorgeous, I think I let it hype me up a bit too much. I should've also remembered I'm not exactly a Bronte type girl.

The world that Jane lives in is a post-war mess. This wasn't just any 'ole war though, it was humans versus fey. Which, as you can imagine, was not so good for us humans. The fey in this story are not corporeal; they don't have bodies. They must take over a dead human body in order to physically fight in the war. So they are fombies, basically (yeah I went there). The fey have mysterious powers and magic that they use to create fey bombs during the war. Unfortunately, Jane took a bunch of fey shrapnel to the face and is confined to a half iron mask. The iron supposedly holds in the fey curse within. In her case, it was rage; but for others hunger etc.

"I am Jane, and you would be frightened to look upon me"

Fast forward five years and Jane gets a job at a creepy old fey manor. Her employer is a mysterious, but hot guy named Edward. No, he doesn't quite sparkle. She becomes his daughter's governess and quickly realizes that the kid just ain't right. Dorie, is five and has fey powers. Unlike Jane, she didn't obtain them from wounds like every other ironskin. Dorie was born this way, baby. Working with Dorie is really frustrating and tests Jane's rage control big time. Dorie honestly drove me bonkers, I would've smacked that kid. Of course, she did eventually warm up to Jane and I started to like her a bit more as well. There are a few other characters I quite liked though; the stalwart Poule and the snarky cook were among my favorites. There are tons of insipid and silly women in the book, most clients of Edwards (He's an artiste...dont cha know daaarling) Jane's own sister is trying to make her way in society and I found her to be freaking insufferable.

As the plot unravels, several crazy things happen. Some of it I expected and some not at all; its always nice to not see the twist coming. I'm not going to give away any more of the plot, but it felt like to me that by the time things actually began happening I was kind of over it. I had invested over 200 pages of reading a bunch of predictable stuff about society and parties and bullshit.

I need to level with anyone reading this, I am NOT a Bronte fan. I wanted to be when I was younger, but I just can't stand reading that type of stuff. So in fairness, I probably wasn't patient or tolerant enough with this story. So hey, if you like Bronte, you should read this book. You would definitely like it a lot more than I did.

I feel like I've beat up on this book enough, there were bits that I liked, too! The prose is lovely in spots and its a mostly well written story. I found the slight twist on fae lore to be refreshing as well. Jane is a genuinely strong and kind person. She is a walking reminder of a terrible war most people would rather forget; seen by society as untouchable and undesirable outcast. I did really feel bad for her and hated to see her suffer. I was rooting for her!

The end of the book finally reveals the answers to the tricky little questions you've been asking yourself during the entire book. I was so happy to finally see Jane completely blossom and own her beauty and her power. Now THAT I do love! Before I read the last 30 or so pages, I would've given this book two stars, but the ending redeemed it a bit, so I give it three. Despite my somewhat sour review, I will read the sequel, I have hopes that the story will expand and get much better.

Three Stars(less)

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Nov 12, 2012 Galla rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, paranormal

I was intrigued by the concept behind this take on Jane Eyre, and I'm open to new spins on old tales. Unfortunately, writers have a tough task ahead of them when they take on projects like these, because comparisons to the original are inevitable. Readers don't expect the same story, but we expect many of the elements that we loved so much in the source--and unfortunately, Ironskin's charms fall short of Jane Eyre's in every respect.

The world in this novel doesn't feel fully realized; we're giv...more I was intrigued by the concept behind this take on Jane Eyre, and I'm open to new spins on old tales. Unfortunately, writers have a tough task ahead of them when they take on projects like these, because comparisons to the original are inevitable. Readers don't expect the same story, but we expect many of the elements that we loved so much in the source--and unfortunately, Ironskin's charms fall short of Jane Eyre's in every respect.

The world in this novel doesn't feel fully realized; we're given just enough information about the Great War between the humans and fey to understand the plot, but not enough for a feeling of immersion. The relationship between Jane and Edward rings hollow, because not enough care is taken to develop the tension between them in that slow, careful dance Charlotte Brontë choreographed so masterfully. Here, they seem to realize they're in love with each other because the author decided it was time for them to do so. (And truthfully, a number of teams who've adapted Jane Eyre for movies or television have made the same mistake.)

As individuals, the characters hold up no better than their relationship. This Jane isn't unlikable; she does share the bravery, stubbornness, and determination of her predecessor. However, she also comes up short. (view spoiler) And while this Rochart says some of the right things, adopts some of the quirky mannerisms, ultimately, I'm not sure why anyone, let alone Jane, would fall in love with him. The appeal just isn't there.

I'm not sure I can go with more than two stars because I couldn't truly recommend this novel to anybody. Brontë fans will likely be disappointed, and readers who've never read Brontë would be better off with another choice from the paranormal romance or historical romance aisle.

(less)

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Sep 16, 2012 Ashleigh Paige rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: a-whole-new-level-of-boring, arc, creepy-and-i-love-it, e-arc-via-netgalley, the-shameful-shelf-of-get-rid-of-it

See more of my reviews on The YA Kitten!

Retellings can be tricky to pull off. In my experience, they work best when they capture the original's magic by relying on its plot and characters in certain places and diverging from the original in others in order to give it the feel that it's a book of its own, not a complete repeat of the original. It can be a difficult balance to create and unfortunately, I don't think Ironskin manages it, as a retelling of Jane Eyre with steampunk influences and fai...more See more of my reviews on The YA Kitten!

Retellings can be tricky to pull off. In my experience, they work best when they capture the original's magic by relying on its plot and characters in certain places and diverging from the original in others in order to give it the feel that it's a book of its own, not a complete repeat of the original. It can be a difficult balance to create and unfortunately, I don't think Ironskin manages it, as a retelling of Jane Eyre with steampunk influences and fairies.

One of the high points of Ironskin was the development of the relationship between Jane and her charge Dorie, who can do strange things like move objects without touching them and yet is not fey. Strange children are among my favorite sorts of characters and Dorie fits the bill perfectly! The beginning of the novel was the best kind of grabbing and I loved how Connolly developed her ideas throughout the novel. It appears there will be a sequel and I might be interested in reading it to see where it will take readers next.

While there are things I genuinely like, the novel became a slog for me to read after the 25% mark (roughly 70 pages). There are long stretches in the beginning where little to nothing happens and neither the plot nor the characters drive the story. What Mr. Rochart is doing with the women isn't given any attention until well over halfway through the novel and within the last 100 pages, the book veers off unexpectedly into territory most often traveled by run-of-the-mill urban fantasy novels.

Most of all, Ironskin fails to capture the magic of Jane Eyre, transfer any of the source material's strengths to itself, or create a resemblance between the characters of one and the other. Jane and Mr. Rochart's romance lacks the compelling element of Jane and Mr. Rochester's (and I say that as someone who didn't care for Mr. Rochester). The two novels focus on entirely different themes and events and in the end, they're only loosely related to one another. Ironskin would have been better off to drop all the elements it has as a retelling of Charlotte Bronte's classic and simply be an original novel. No retellings or anything.

Readers coming to this book because it's a Jane Eyre retelling with steampunk and fairies may find themselves unsatisfied with the novel, but anyone who wants it because it sounds like a great idea regardless of its status as a retelling (or better yet, are unfamiliar with Jane Eyre) may enjoy it more than I did.(less)

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Sep 29, 2012 Leonor (Ner) rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, romance, sci-fi, steampunk, young-adult, paranormal, ebook, retellings, historical, 2012-reading-challenge, net-galley

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Also published in "A Cup of Coffee and a Book"

I absolutely loved this book. Jane Eyre is my favourite book so, when I saw Ironskin and found out it was some sort of fantasy retelling of Brontë's masterpiece, I just had to have it. I've requested it to review on Netgalley and when they've accepted it I was extremely happy and eager to start reading it.

Despite the several and obvious connections with Jane Eyre, Connolly's novel feels original. The twist she gave it managed to diverse us from its b...more Also published in "A Cup of Coffee and a Book"

I absolutely loved this book. Jane Eyre is my favourite book so, when I saw Ironskin and found out it was some sort of fantasy retelling of Brontë's masterpiece, I just had to have it. I've requested it to review on Netgalley and when they've accepted it I was extremely happy and eager to start reading it.

Despite the several and obvious connections with Jane Eyre, Connolly's novel feels original. The twist she gave it managed to diverse us from its bone structure and enter a fairy-tale world... a brand new world. The whole plot against the fey and the masks really brings the main essence of a good fantasy book.

In Jane Eyre, Mr. Rochester wears a mask which is his features, quite complicated to evaluate during the entire book, His dark secret and his constant swings of humours transforms him into a mysterious man. And Mr. Rochart is quite the same. He is mysterious, difficult to look through and understand. And I really liked the fact that Connolly had him working with masks.

Jane was simply an amazing female character to read. She didn't had that complexity Jane Eyre has in connection to her status and her beauty. Elliot is "damaged", being wounded in the war against the fey. She lost her brother and since then has a curse in which she wears a mask - another connection to Mr. Rochart - to conceal it. She's not an orphan (having a younger sister called Helen - perhaps from Eyre's childhood friend Helen Burns) and she doesn't have an aunt or cousins to bring her down. Her relationship with Dorie was very well explored, both young woman and child learning how to use and control their powers. Jane also learns quite a lot about herself while staying at Silver Birch.

Despite not having a full Mrs. Fairfax, we are introduced to Poule, a dwarven. She was mt Mr. Fairfax in this book in a more bold manner. Being a female half dwarf permitted her to be a bit more opened and to teach Jane.

There was one particular thing I found very kind and adorable: the reference to Beauty and the Beast tale in chapter 4. For me, Jane Eyre has always been a kind of re-telling of that tale and when I read Mr. Rochart using it has a way to tell Jane he needs her, that he would "die" if she left him, I immediately fell in love with it.

Tina Connolly was very smart when she decided to use Jane Eyre as a basis for this novel and I can clearly say this is Jane Eyre of the 21st Century and of my generation. This book was lyrically beautiful hooking us since the moment we start reading it and hypnotizing us with its mystery and masks and dark secrets. A beautiful romance which will be the delight of all fairy-tale lovers and Jane Eyre readers.(less)

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Sep 24, 2012 Carla *Jen7waters* rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: steampunk, ebook, netgalley, steampunk-reading-challenge, jane-eyre-retold, wounded-heroine, read-in-2012

Ironskin is a retelling of the classic Jane Eyre mixed with a couple of fantastic elements—mainly fairies and fairy magic—and being a hardcore Jane Eyre and fantasy in general fan I was *extremely* excited to read it; needless to say I did the happy dance when my request on NetGalley for an advance copy of Ironskin was approved. (Many thanks to Macmillan-Tor/Forge!)

The book follows the basic steps of the classic, starting off with the heroine, Jane Eliot, arriving at Mr. Rochart’s house seeking...more Ironskin is a retelling of the classic Jane Eyre mixed with a couple of fantastic elements—mainly fairies and fairy magic—and being a hardcore Jane Eyre and fantasy in general fan I was *extremely* excited to read it; needless to say I did the happy dance when my request on NetGalley for an advance copy of Ironskin was approved. (Many thanks to Macmillan-Tor/Forge!)

The book follows the basic steps of the classic, starting off with the heroine, Jane Eliot, arriving at Mr. Rochart’s house seeking for employment as a governess for his young daughter Dorie. I remained optimistic during the first 100 pages or so, mostly because I was enjoying the worldbuilding, which I think is the strong point of Ironskin, but also because even though I know the original tale by heart, I still managed to get caught up in the mysterious, obscure and sometimes creepy essence of the storyline.

Unfortunately the optimism didn’t last and by page 200 I was bored to death. Why? Well, the heroine’s main concern since the beginning is her charge, Dorie—the girl is different from everyone around her, she’s exceedingly disobedient, she sees things that aren’t there, she has magical powers, she gives the creeps to people around her, and her father can’t keep a governess for too long.
Being Jane different from other people herself, with a scarred face and an iron mask to cover it up, she’s determined to be the governess Dorie needs. This would have been fine, had it not taken hold of almost the entire story, like, the first half of this book is all about Jane trying to get Dorie to use her hands to eat and to pick up things, because she does everything using her powers.

The other half of the book is still about Dorie, plus there are a couple of episodes in which Jane tries to find out what Mr. Rochart does for a living. I kept waiting to fall in love with these characters and to care about their personal tragedies but as the pages flew slowly by I just got more and more bored.
Other thing that bothered me was the lack of solid interaction between Jane and Rochart throughout the story, and yet they still fall in love with each other.

The final twists and events were mildly surprising, but overall I was not happy with the way the story comes together in the end.
There’s also something quite wrong with the beauty concept in this story, as if all beautiful people are possessed by evil beings and in grave need of salvation…

I honestly wanted to love this book but it wasn’t possible.

* * *
Steampunk Challenge 2012 ~ Book 7 of 12

*PT* Cuidado com o Dálmata (less)

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May 18, 2013 C.L. Bevill rated it 3 of 5 stars

I was reading other reviewers, which is probably a big mistake, because while I knew there were rabid Jane Eyre fans, I didn't know they would jump on a retelling in such an explosive manner. I think my point is that if you worship Charlotte Bronte and you have a t-shirt with her image on it, you probably shouldn't buy this book.

On the other hand, I liked the basis of the plot, although swiped from JE. Moody moors governess meets steampunk meets mysterious fey critters.

Okay, pros: good writing,...more

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Mar 22, 2013 Paula HG rated it 4 of 5 stars

“If the witch drowns, she wasn’t a witch,”

The book was great, simply a great example of human greed. It was astonishing how much fantasy and reality the author wove together until you didn't know what could really happen in real life and what was pure fantasy, impossible.
The only complain I have regarding this book is the fact that it described situations and surroundings with painstaking detail and I skipped through most of it.
I loved how our MC was flawed, she was vain sometimes, she was self...more

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Mar 20, 2013 Sharon Tyler rated it 3 of 5 stars

Ironskin by Tina Connolly is a young adult book that could be labeled as gothic, mash-up (for those that detest the touching of classic works), steampunk, historical, or fantasy. Jane Eliot wears a iron mask to hide the damage done to her face in the great war with the Fae, and to contain the curse left behind with the injury. Edward Rochart is a widowed father, and in need of a special person to care for his five year old daughter Dorie, who was born through unique circumstances. Teaching Dorie...more Ironskin by Tina Connolly is a young adult book that could be labeled as gothic, mash-up (for those that detest the touching of classic works), steampunk, historical, or fantasy. Jane Eliot wears a iron mask to hide the damage done to her face in the great war with the Fae, and to contain the curse left behind with the injury. Edward Rochart is a widowed father, and in need of a special person to care for his five year old daughter Dorie, who was born through unique circumstances. Teaching Dorie is hard, but not as hard for resisting her feelings for Edward and his distant, brooding ways. slowly Jane unravels the mysteries of Edward, Dorie, and the curse and destruction from the Fae.

Ironskin is nominally based on Jane Eyre, so there is a significant gothic feel and moodiness to be had, but there are also fairies and steampunk elements. Edward, as you might expect, is not all that he appears and neither is his daughter. If you loved Jane Eyre, you will most likely not enjoy this book, in the way that purists that loved Pride and Prejudice did not like Pride, Prejudice, and Zombies. however, if you like seeing new takes on classic tales, or are like me and (shhh) cannot remember much about their high school reading of Jane Eyre other that the gothic atmosphere, moors, and thing Jane a little silly for falling for a moody man when she was supposed to be the practical sort, then read on.

Now, past all of the Jane Eyre parallels, on to the Fae war and the details of the world Connolly built in Ironskin. the particulars as to what Edward did behind closed doors, and the truths found in the descriptions of high society revealed well. I liked the details put into the Fae war, and how the technological aspects effected civilization. I liked the comparisons of fae powered devices, human made items, and everything else. I really fell into that part of the story. The details about the iron mask, the foundry, and dwarfs workmanship, and all that goes into world building was extremely well done. It was so well done that I expected a follow up, and discovered that Copperhead, the sequel, is currently scheduled for release on October 15 2013. I have a feeling that I will enjoy the sequel more than the original, as we explore the escalation of hostility between human and fae, and all that goes with it. One thing I did not like, is the cover image. It just did not work for me. the image of Jane on the cover did not fit the persona and attitude that she carried through out the book. It might have fit a couple moments, but not the book as a whole.

I recommend Ironskin to readers that enjoy the idea of a blend of a fae mystery blended with their gothic classics. those that cling to the classics and enjoy decrying anything that changes them, should either skip this book, or read it and be more prepared to expound on why their beloved favorites should be left alone. i broke about even with the story. It was well done and i greatly enjoyed many aspects of the book, I did not care for many of the characters as much as I would have liked.(less)

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Mar 12, 2013 Emily rated it 3 of 5 stars

really like it, im glad there's a second, though i could live without it. never read jane eyre so i don't know how much was original and how much was derivative, but i think the front page blurb is a little deceptive, "a steampunk beauty and the beast tale, beautifully and cleverly reversed" no ms aguirre, not really...

ho-hum

Jane Eliot came back from the war scarred, and nothing would ever be the same. before the war with the fey, humans used fey technology for everything never realizing that th...more

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Mar 01, 2013 Joshua Burns rated it 4 of 5 stars

As Seen on Rabidreads.ca:

Ironskin sports two spiffy but slightly misleading “like this, like that” quotes which I will save you the trouble right now of being lead astray by.

Certainly Beauty and the Beast and Jane Eyre (although I haven’t read the latter) receive their sacrificial knick-knacks: a protagonist with a B&Besque curse (not hairy but Eyry?) and, on the Bronte side, recognizable names, personalities, and locations, BUT!!!

In its final act the hints that this world was much more are...more

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Feb 13, 2013 Kendra rated it 1 of 5 stars

I didn't really care about what was at stake for the main character in this book. Apparently she needs to save the world, but why she would want to isn't clear. She doesnt really seem to be a part of her world. And what is this world that she need to save? There is a country and a city, and this world has magic as well as industrial innovation, but I couldn't get a sense of specifics (such as names of locations, culture, and diversity). There was a war, but the reason it started and ended isn't...more

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Feb 02, 2013 Kate rated it 2 of 5 stars

This book aims to be both a Beauty and the Beast story, and a re-telling of Jane Eyre. Lofty aims, both, and I don't think it succeeds at either.

Ironskin does some things right. I am always skeptical of books that claim to be steampunk, because rather a lot of them aren't (they are merely psuedo-Victorian, which isn't the same thing at all). This book both claims to be steampunk and is, so that makes me happy. It is not strongly steampunk, but it is a world where the major (human) invention is s...more This book aims to be both a Beauty and the Beast story, and a re-telling of Jane Eyre. Lofty aims, both, and I don't think it succeeds at either.

Ironskin does some things right. I am always skeptical of books that claim to be steampunk, because rather a lot of them aren't (they are merely psuedo-Victorian, which isn't the same thing at all). This book both claims to be steampunk and is, so that makes me happy. It is not strongly steampunk, but it is a world where the major (human) invention is steam, where things are black because of coal dust, and it is also post-apocalyptic, in a sense (as the humans have more or less won a war with the fey, but at the cost of fey technology).

I think, though, it is better not to think of the story as "a steampunk Beauty and the Beast tale, beautifully and cleverly reversed." I don't think it really is a Beauty and the Beast tale. There don't really seem to be enough of the elements that would make it Beauty and the Beast. While it is true that Jane (view spoiler) I kept looking for the elements that define Beauty and the Beast, but I think it really isn't that story.

If I'd known that this is also a re-working of Jane Eyre, I'm not sure if I would have picked it up. Jane Eyre is a book I love deeply, but also think is rather hard to re-tell well. I think the book would have benefited from not trying so hard to emphasize the parallels between itself and Jane Eyre, as it is not half so brilliant. But the main characters are named Jane and Rochart, and the book begins "The moor was grey, battlefield grey." Jane is hired to look after Rochart's young daughter, who is quite similar to Rochester's ward. I think Ironskin loses with the comparisons it deliberately draws because that Jane is not half such a strong character as Jane Eyre. In Ironskin, Jane (view spoiler) Further, I think the writing of Ironskin is often clunky, as though the author occasionally forgot to emulate Victorian writing and slipped into modernisms.

I think I would have enjoyed this book much more if I hadn't been expecting parallels to Beauty and the Beast and if the parallels to Jane Eyre hadn't been so obvious. (less)

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Feb 01, 2013 April rated it 3 of 5 stars

In some ways, this YA was a fairly well-known romance plot--independent woman meets dark & mysterious man. The fact that she is Jane and he is Mr. Rochart seems a homage to Jane Eyre, but set in a world damaged after a fairy war with humans in which the humans have won a Phyrric victory. The book is charming, nonetheless. It was interesting to read about Jane as damaged in the fairy war to carry a curse of rage. The only way she can keep infecting those around her is by wearing an iron mask,...more

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Jan 16, 2013 Kellie rated it 4 of 5 stars

http://www.simplystacie.net/2012/11/i...

It has been five years since the end of The Great War. A war which left Jane scarred both emotionally and physically. She lost her brave little brother in that cruel battle between the evil fey and humans. She also lost pieces of her humanity. She was fey cursed in the war, left with a harshly scarred left side of her face. The scar can never heal and it leaks of rage, a rage which affects the humans whom she comes in contact with. The only way to mask thi...more http://www.simplystacie.net/2012/11/i...

It has been five years since the end of The Great War. A war which left Jane scarred both emotionally and physically. She lost her brave little brother in that cruel battle between the evil fey and humans. She also lost pieces of her humanity. She was fey cursed in the war, left with a harshly scarred left side of her face. The scar can never heal and it leaks of rage, a rage which affects the humans whom she comes in contact with. The only way to mask this curse is by wearing ironskin on the left side of her face. Each day, she serves as a reminder of The Great War which took so many lives. Jane, however, is resilient and she is determined to be a self-made woman. Therefore, when Jane responds to a job offer in the paper, to work as the governess for a 5 year old fey-cursed child, she believes that this is the opportunity she has been waiting for. An opportunity which she never imagined would lead to her falling in love with the girl’s mysterious father, Edward Rochart.
Ironskin moves at a tender pace while toying with the emotions of the reader. Jane’s struggle with her Ironskin, yet her resilience in the same breath is riveting. Despite the magical world in which she exists, the novel touches upon issues which many women deal with in real life. They are issues of insecurities concerning their looks, the fear of being not quite good enough, but persevering nonetheless. It is a being which many women recognize and have lived. Aside from the reality of the novel, I enjoyed the complexities of the other characters as well, in particular, Mr. Rochart. I appreciated the way that he let his blinders down for Jane, despite his hesitance and dark secrets. Through him, and his daughter Dorie, Jane found growth and was able to find acceptance.
Ironskin is not a sunny novel. It is encased with darkness, due to magic and greed. The story’s back story and present world all represent a world corrupted by greed. The desire of humans to always crave what is of the Fey, however, what is of the fey, is always kissed with a curse. The layers of greed and self-discovery added to this unique gothic steampunk tale. Tina Connolly’s first novel is a gift to readers of the Steampunk genre. However, I am quite certain that even non fans of Steampunk will find Ironskin both riveting and inspiring.
(less)

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Jan 09, 2013 Karen rated it 5 of 5 stars

This book was incredible, and I'm delighted beyond words that it's first of a series. It stayed with me long after reading, making me think a great deal about the images we hold of ourselves, and how often what we long to be (or what we thought we SHOULD have been) gets in the way of what we could be. How it keeps us from seeing our own strengths and talents. How labeling oneself "victim" traps a person in that role, keeping one mired in a painful past without hope for growth into a NEW role.

I t...more

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About Tina Connolly

Tina Connolly lives in Portland, Oregon, in a house that came with a dragon in the basement and blackberry vines in the attic. Her stories have appeared in Strange Horizons, Lightspeed, and Beneath Ceaseless Skies, and the anthology UNPLUGGED: Web's Best SF 2008. Her novel IRONSKIN is out from Tor in Fall 2012, with a sequel in 2013. She is a frequent reader for Podcastle, and narrates the Parsec-...more

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Quotes from Ironskin

“Perhaps I have too much anger of my own to tell. If a
man is steeped in bitter anger every day of his life, how then
would he notice a small additional fi re? Particularly when the
fi re comes in the presence of . . .” — 2 people liked it

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