Review #267: The Iron-Jawed Boy- Nikolas Lee

Title: The Iron-Jawed Boy
Author: Nikolas Lee
Format: Ebook
Pages: 264
Rating: 4/5 Stars
Summary: Two hundred years have passed since the lands of the Outerworld humans were destroyed, save but a handful of rebellious cities. In their ruin, the last gods of Earth, the Illyrians, rose victorious. And ever since, it's with a cruel iron fist they've ruled over their subjects--desperate to keep their thrones.

Fast approaching his teens, Ionikus Reaves knows the gods' malevolence all too well, orphaned by them after their call for a military draft on Eldanar, his home island. But when a power once dormant in Ion boils to the surface, he's whisked off to a hidden world of the island, where he comes face-to-face with the mighty Illyrians.

For Ion is a Guardian--a reincarnated god bound to serve and protect the pantheon he's so quickly learned to hate. Now torn between his obligations as a Guardian and his hatred of the gods he's to guard, Ion finds himself in the middle of a war within himself. A war that could uncover a dark secret of the gods'...and split the pantheon in two.
Review: I received this book free from the author in exchange for an honest review. 
I really enjoyed this book once I got into it. I had a hard time at first because the reader is just kind of thrown into this world not really knowing how it works and I found myself slightly confused at times and having to go back and re-read parts. Otherwise this was an exciting read for middle grade and higher readers who love mythological stories. I loved that this story stemmed from the gods, but was completely original with characters. 
The author did a great job in creating characters with such personalities. I liked each and every one of them, even the bad guys and I look forward to learning more about them in the books to come. I liked the cliffhanger ending, but I did have a feeling that it was going to happen but now I need to know more about it.
This was a great read for all ages with good underlying messages. The Iron-Jawed Boy was a fun and entertaining read that I need more of. I would recommend this to mythological lovers.

About this author

Nikolas Lee was born in Evansville, Indiana, moved with his family to Las Vegas, Nevada, when he was eleven, moved back to Indiana when he was fourteen, then moved back to Las Vegas when he was sixteen. No, neither he, nor his family are under the witness protection program. Though that would be much cooler than the real reason.

He published his first book, The Iron-Jawed Boy, at twenty-two, won an Honorary Mention from the London Book Festival for it, and now, one year and one book later, he’s currently hard at work on the third installment in the Sky Guardian Chronicles: The Iron-Jawed Boy and the Siege of Sol.

His email, you ask? Niklee9009@gmail.com