The Iron Butterfly

I cannot wait for the second book! I too would like some answers, haha! Well, let me begin by saying that I got this book for free on amazon because the cover was appealing, as was the price. I started reading this book because I got bored with a different book I was reading, so I just chose a random book from my kindle and started reading. I'm glad I chose this book, and I'm glad I didn't stop reading because this book is wonderfully told. There are a few editing/ spelling mistakes, as self publishing will sometimes have, but the plot pulled me along so well that I just ignored them. "I think I knew all along, that safe was a foreign word and never included me." (148) I like the characters, although a greater characterization build up wouldn't have gone amidst. Thalia has had her memory erased, has been imprisoned and tortured and has been rescued. This doesn't mean she's safe from harm, but she must relearn this new world, and relearn her own self. "I wanted to be a strong independent woman. Not a sick child that need saving from her shadow." (42) Her not-so-instalove savior, Joss, has become a major force in her life as Thalia goes through the throws of attending a specialized school and dealing with normal teenage drama. Thalia wants to know who and what precisely she is, and goes through a metamorphosis of learning her own unique abilities and using them to protect herself, and unintentionally catch the attention of the local society. If she's not Denai, then what is she? "'You are an enigma, a puzzle, an unknown, and to the human population that is a terrifying factor.'" (113) This fantasy appealed towards my interests and guided my imagination through a wonderful world with a great history. Filled with Humans, Denais, Swordbrothers, Adepts and much more, this is the journey of Thalia and how she goes from torture to self enlightenment. First Line: "When I first awoke in the darkness that was my prison cell, I was brave, fearless and I still had enough fight in me to question the rules." (1) Last Line: "My heart felt heavy and as we passed through the gates, turned onto a side road and headed towards the Shadow Mountains, towards home, towards answers." (265) --------------- Quotes "The coldness made me gasp for breath and water filled my mouth making me choke. I was able to glimpse the starry night turning bright with orange fire before my world turned pitch black." (16) "I took in the wind-blown, sandy blonde hair and dimpled smile. His deep green eyes were pools of emotions. Worry, kindness, hope were so evident in them that I soon lost all thought of being afraid. He was beautiful, too beautiful to be human." (17) "I was there because you dragged me there." (107)

A TON OF SPOILERS. DON'T READ UNLESS YOU'VE READ IT. I want to start out by saying that I thought that this book is really great! I didn't stop reading the book until I finished it, which completely distorted my sleep schedule. Thank you for that... HAHA CONs: 1. I understand in the beginning why Thalia is so fragile. She was tortured for days, starved, sick, etc. She suffered vast amounts of emotional and physical trauma. I understand why she'd fear physical touch from Joss, rocked herself to cope with pain, and cry. But by the end of the book, she's still the damsel in distress. She cries whenever challenged by Kael, she cries when she couldn't do something, constantly expressing her emotions (with "tears flowing down her face"). I wouldn't complain about this as much if I didn't read Hahn's "Unfortunate Fairy Tale Series" where the main character is constantly throwing pity tantrums and CRYING. I think that both characters would have been more relatable if they weren't so emotional/sensitive... 2. In both "Unfortunate Fairy Tale Series" and "Iron Butterfly", there's a beautiful, yet incredibly rude female character who enjoys pestering the main character. I'm genuinely curious as to why the author makes this hasty generalization of beautiful teenage girls who happen to be on top of the social ladder. (i'm not offended, haha I was never one or whatever.) According to these books, alpha female teens are superficial, boy crazy, bullies, rich, and flirty. The story would have been fine without Syrani in it. Thalia already had enough to worry about: her boy drama, people trying to kill her, controlling her new powers, clumsiness, fitting in to her new environment. Syrani may have dug under her skin and ripped out Thalia's raw insecurities, but Kael's character already served that purpose. Syrani allowed Thalia to unleash her powers through anger, but again, there were other circumstances Thalia may collect anger from to unleash her full power: Kael's condescending words, the Raven and his men, inability to measure up to her classmates, etc. Syrani's addition to the story gave it a typical disney channel movie vibe. 3. Joss' character is unbelievable. He knows nothing about Thalia in the beginning of the story except that she's running away from a treacherous group of people. Yet he was immediately drawn to Thalia. Maybe he enjoys being the hero, saving the damsel in distress. Although Joss heals, rescues, and brings her to his hometown to get help, Thalia hides from him, snaps at him, and attempts pushing him away. If Thalia treated any normal person the same way, they'd make sure she's safe, check up on her, then go back to their old life. From their introduction to entering the city, all he knew about her is that she's stubborn, fragile, afraid, and pretty (the author never describes Thalia's appearance as well as the other characters; but judging from many male reactions, she is). Are those reasons enough to falling in love with someone? Haha I'll never know. I'd think Joss would have rationalize reasons as to why he likes Thalia in the beginning. In absolutely no way am I jealous of a fictional character's love prospects, I just think that a good-looking, smart guy like Joss would reason with himself more. The romance between Joss and Thalia is more fairytale-like than actual reality. 4. Grammar and spelling errors. However it didn't distract from the story itself, so I was okay with rereading a few sentences. PROS 1. In actuality, all cons except #4 are PROs. You see, I'm a realist. I look into all or most situations and assess what is real and what is not. Of course this is a story. The author created a fictional world that plays by her own rules. But in any fictional world, the main character has to be real. Why? The insecurities, emotions, lack of confidence relates to our own inner turmoil. The thought process of the main character draws us in because we relate with it. We have moments when we feel incompetent, that the world is out to get us, etc. When reading books like these, the reader becomes the main character. I guess the reason why I didn't like how emotional Thalia was is because I don't cry much, but every person is different. Especially in high school where everything may seem like an emotional spiral, Thalia's emotional rollercoaster is more relatable. Syrani's character is still unnecessary to me, but I understand that teenage girls look up to "Syrani" 's and hope to either be their friend or be like them, despite the fact that "Syrani" 's don't care about them or mistreat them. Syrani adds to Thalia's insecurity, making her more relatable to young adult readers. And honestly, a lot of young adult books have a Joss in it. He's the typical beautiful, desired Edward Cullen character. This annoys me because most good looking boys in high school are not as emotional/clingy as these (in fact a lot of them are players). Yet it gives the readers something to desire. Girls want the hot, popular boys but in reality, maybe those guys have no idea that these girls exist. Yet in this 9 hour journey (that's how long it took me to read it), the reader gets the guy. In fact through Thalia, the reader wins. This books allows the reader to escape from reality into a world where it seems that her odds are against her, but in the end she wins. So CONs 1-3 are only CONS if treated as reality instead of a story. The reader engulfs herself into a reprieve from reality and wins for once. 2. Again this is a story, but the over-arching theme of the story is 100% true. Before Thalia was kidnapped, she was an ordinary girl with no superpowers. She is tortured under this machine, the iron butterfly, where people inject her with chemicals in attempt to physically alter her DNA. And it worked. Yet after she escaped, there was no change; she was still a scared little girl. Even after there were signs of results, she still was a scared little girl. The power did not reach its full effect until someone told her to be the hunter, not the hunted. All of a sudden she becomes this fighting machine and wins the tournament. I thought of the symbolization of the "iron butterfly". Butterflies are eye-catching, beautiful, and free. Yet there's always a caterpillar before it turns into a butterfly...which are super lame...like, caterpillars eat their own poop when they run out of food. Even though Thalia is transformed under the iron butterfly machine into a "butterfly", why is it that she acts like a whimpy caterpillar? It isn't until she believes in herself and becomes the hunter, that her powers show full extent. Everyone is in awe of her powers and fears her. You can physically change into a beautiful butterfly, but still act like a whimpy caterpillar. No one will know you're a butterfly until you believe that you are. So spread your wings, be free and flyyyy. That's a great message to young adults. Thank you for that!

***spoiler free*** When I first found this book I was intrigued by the premise of it and since it was 99 cents I thought what the heck. I am oh so glad I bought this book. The world that Chanda Hahn created was so great. I loved the storyline of The Iron Butterfly as well as the cast of characters, Thalia was a strong protagonist who didnt let the horrors of her past overcome her. I loved her strength and her determination as well as her relationship with Faraway. The writing was captivating and really drew me in. Sure there are some spelling and grammatical errors but hey who are we to judge? This is a self-published book, if the author accidently made some mistakes who cares?? Anyway, I think its a shame that this book isn't more popular. It has everything that I could want in a book; a page-turning plot, lovable characters, a cool ass-kicking training game, a strong heroine and a talking horse all for the low price of 99 cents. So if you're on this page contemplating whether or not to purchase this book, DO IT! This book is fantastic and I doubt you'll regret it. :) Eagerly awaiting the next book in the series.

I bought this book by accident, and I have to say... it was the best accident that has ever happened! It was only $1.99 at the time, and for as amazing as this book was, it was WAY too cheap. I was expecting $8 at the least. Anyway, back to the summary. This (amazingly fantastic) book is about a girl named Thalia who finds herself being tortured and experimented on (much like the Maximum Ride books by James Patterson. Look it up). She meets another prisoner named Kael helps her and another prisoner, Tym, escape. Kael is a very skilled warrior... and, oh yeah, HE'S A SWORDBROTHER (you will find out what this means later in the book)!!!!!! Thalia meets two men, Joss and Darren, who provide food, water, and safety for her. They travel to a place called Haven, the capital of the Calandry. (I will not give anything away so don't get your hopes up). Okay, the bad about the book: THERE ARE ONLY THREE BOOKS!!!! Read the books, believe me, after you do, you won't want to stop. Then you'll feel really upset about how there are only three books. If you notice any mistakes throughout the book, WHO CARES?!?! Even though this is a self-published book ( or so I hear...), I have to say this is the best book I have ever read. Oh, you know how usually books get kinda dumb at the end of the series? Well, I can easily say that every book throughout the series written by Ms. Hahn tops the last. Now with that said, I have a message to Ms. Hahn; I have read all three books, and I have to say that you have an amazing, God- given talent. Rarely do people appreciate an amazing book written by an amazing author. To them, it's just a book. Please, do not let anyone discourage you, not even yourself. You have made an amazing book, and I hope you keep writing. I am a twelve year old, but I know and amazing author and book when I see one. You are officially my favorite author. I would love to pursue writing myself, but I always have too much to do. You are an amazing author, and I hope you keep writing. It would be a true shame to let your pure talent to go to waste. You have inspired me to keep writing my novels. I will continue. I must thank you for inspiration. Do not give up on you writing. Remember that. Thank you for reading my review, a future author.

I really enjoyed this book. I always tend to have a hard time getting into books set in a whole new fantasy world because I find that oftentimes the author is clumsy in getting us enough knowledge about the world and different types of beings in it that I feel more like I'm reading an essay than a story, but I got sucked in to this one! Very action packed and it kept my attention. I read this book in two days and would have done one if I hadn't been out on vacation and spending all my time in the ocean. The heroine is very likeable - she's unsure about herself and the image she holds of herself, but she isn't a quivering mess of goo, either. She sucks it up when she's got no other chance and gives off a confident aura. Others get to her but she gets by. I did think the beginning was kind of sudden and wasn't sure I'd be able to get into the rest of the book, but decided to keep reading. After the first few chapters, I was hooked. There are a few typos here and there, but nothing big enough that it slowed down my reading. This may be one series where I actually have to buy the rest of the series.

The Iron Butterfly is the story of Thalia, a young girl who has no idea who she is. She awakens in a dungeon to torturous experiments by an evil cult and narrowly escapes with the aid of a warrior. When she finds herself alone, she's soon taken in by a couple of men on their way to the Citadel, where the younger of the two, a denai (or magic user), is going to be a student. The leaders of the Citadel allow Thalia to stay as a servant while they investigate the cule and try to find her family. This is when Thalia learns that the Septori are not interested in letting her be, and their experiments were more successful than they had imagined. This is a pure fantasy featuring magic, evil cults, warring clans, a benevolent council, and a magic school. I enjoyed the character arc of Thalia, as she goes from terrified, weak prisoner, to confident warrior. She is the epitome of a strong female character as she meets (or attempts to meet) each challenge thrown at her, but she's still flawed. Despite her strength, the forces against her are immense. She tries and fails, over an over, but she never gives up. This is why I consider her strong. The fact that she is not all-powerful or all-knowing, as some fantasy heros are, is what makes her relatable. In addition to the good vs. evil plot, there is a budding romance (or two) as well. I'm not sure whether it will become a love triangle in later books, but it seems to be going in that direction. Still, Thalia seems steadily attracted to the main love interest and acts accordingly, even though that love interest just happens to have competition. She doesn't flip flop between them, which I found refreshing. The only thing I didn't especialy like was the catty denai girl who tries to rile up all the students against Thalia, but I think that was intentional. She's jealous, snobby, and mean-spirited, an archtype I've seen in many stories set in schools. I was reminded a little of the rivalry in The Masterharper of Pern and in the Harry Potter books. Outcast, young prodigy put upon by heartless, overindulged enemies, it's not exactly a unique feature of stories like these. Overall, the story left me satisfied, but eager to read more. This is the second Chanda Hahn book I've read, and both have been like this. I must say she's a great storyteller. I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it to fans of YA fantasy. I found this book for free on Amazon.

This is a well written fantasy story that would work great for a YA audience. Romances, intrigue, and magic mix together to make a compelling story. However, the book wouldn't stand up to an adult audience. I always liked the idea of a formel slave or captive getting free and going on to do great things. Thalia is just that, a girl who survived horrible torture and experiments that many others couldn't survive and eventually won her freedom. Thalia joins up with a couple of travelers who takes her to the Citadel, a magic training school for the magic infused Denai race. From there she jockeys with other students, her emerging powers the terrible experiments created, and simply surviving. The story was well written and definitely entertaining. It made you want to know exactly who Kael is and his secrets, who the Raven is and why he is doing these experiments, exactly what the experiments are supposed to do, what a Guardian is, or Thalia's past. One of the flaws is the fact that the book isn't complete. Very few of those questions are answered. Actually almost no questions are answered. At the very end of the book (the very last chapter) you find out a piece of Thalia's past but that's about it. You see a glimpse into Thalia's new powers, but again, you aren't given much information about it. The book seems like a huge set-up for the rest of the series which I found annoying. As for the characters, I honestly couldn't stand Thalia. I liked her in the beginning of the book but as it progressed she started turning into a huge brat that would lash out in a very childish way. I know she went through a tough situation but it actually makes me like her less as a character because it made her petulant and childish rather then stronger. You don't know her age until later in the book--she is 17 and if it mentioned it earlier in the book I didn't notice it--but I thought she was probably about 14 because of her bratty attitude. A certain part of the book made me really not like her. That part is when a character gets assigned as her protector. She always tried everything she could to either get away from him or say cruel things to keep him away. But when she is kidnapped and has to do something horrible to survive she lashes out at that person for not being there for her. It really annoyed me and showed Thalia's immature attitude. She doesn't want anything to do with her protector until she needs protection and she gets upset at him for not being there, to the point of being cruel to him for it. Oh, this is also after she snuck out the window to avoid him. Through-out the book she shoves the blame onto everyone else and plays the victim which makes me think very little of her. As for the other characters they were all flat and without much depth. The only character I found really interesting was Kael. He is the thing that ultimately saved the book. Without him the book would have been 2 stars instead of 3 stars. This was an entertaining read which could have been so much better without the shallow and unrealistically written main character, but that really hurt the book since this is such a character driven novel. I would definitely suggest this book to a YA audience as they may be able to relate more to Thalia then me and enjoy it much more but I wouldn't ever suggest it to an older audience.

The Iron Butterfly introduces the character Thalia. Thalia is a tormented young woman who was captured by a secret cult to be experimented on. She and another prisoner finally break free of their prison and are thrown into the world with little knowledge of the hidden powers that were put into them. This is Thalia's story of surviving a horrific time in her life and dealing with the consequences of the evil that she was forced to endure. I'll admit I found this book in the top 100 free section of kindle. It intrigued me enough to get it and I am so glad I did. Not only are the characters well developed, but they have sustenance. The plot was fast paced and incredibly well written. I found myself totally immersed in the difficulties Thalia had to endure, and I loved how her character developed into a beautiful strong woman. She didn't allow her past to crumple her, but instead she became strong. This is a great book for young women and older women :) to read. So dear readers if you're interested in a good young adult fantasy I highly recommend this book.