Ironskin by Tina Connolly

Title: Ironskin
Author: Tina Connolly
Type: Novel
Genre: Steampunk fantasy
Series: Yes, Ironskin #1
Pages: 304
Copyright: 2012
Publisher: Tor Books
Rating: 3.5 out of 5

Summary: from Good Reads

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. 

Teaching the unruly Dorie to suppress her curse is hard enough; she certainly didn’t expect to fall for the girl’s father, the enigmatic artist Edward Rochart. But her blossoming crush is stifled by her own scars, and by his parade of women. Ugly women, who enter his closed studio...and come out as beautiful as the fey. 

Jane knows Rochart cannot love her, just as she knows that she must wear iron for the rest of her life. But what if neither of these things is true? Step by step Jane unlocks the secrets of her new life—and discovers just how far she will go to become whole again.

Feelings: 
This was in some small ways like Jane Erye, the setting, and the young woman and the older man, however I didn't really feel it was as much like Jane Erye as some people seemed to think. This was original enough for me that I didn't find to be only a retelling.

Five years ago their was a war between the humans, that depended on the fey for technology, and the fey, body-less beings of light. During the war Jane Eliot is injured by a fey bomb and she must life with the curse of having something fey in her body. She covers the injury, a curse as she thinks of it with iron to keep it from effecting others. I thought that the war could have been explained a little bit better. For years the fey traded willing with the humans but what changed? There is a hint as to what happened at the end of the book but I didn't really think that was enough.

The More was grey, battlefield grey. It had been five years since the last fey was seen, but out here Jane could almost imagine the Great War still raged on. Grey mist drifted through the blackened trees, recalling the smoke from the crematory Kilns. That was a constant smell in the last months of the war. (p. 9)

I like the development of the relationship between Dorie and Jane. I didn't really buy into the Jane, thinks she might be in love with Rochart, because she had maybe had four conversations with him at that point. That is my biggest issue with the book I felt like the relationship between Rochart and Jane wasn't given enough time to develop and be believable. It just felt a little fast to me. Also, I saw Rochart more as appreciating her working with his daughter when no one else would but I didn't see how, or why that would go anywhere else.

I did enjoy the novel and found that it was enjoyable to read. I thought that for a young adult novel it was well crafted and there weren't any loop-holes I felt like I made an exception for.

I would recommend this to readers that like a darker young adult novel.