Heart of Iron

by Ashley Poston
Adenrele Ojo

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*A 2019 Rainbow Book List Selection*

An action-packed tale full of romance, royalty, and adventure, inspired by the story of Anastasia. Perfect for fans of Six of Crows, Cinder, and the cult classic television show Firefly.

Seventeen-year-old Ana is a scoundrel by nurture and an outlaw by nature. Found as a child drifting through space with a sentient android called D09, Ana was saved by a fearsome space captain and the grizzled crew she now calls family. But D09—one of the last remaining illegal Metals—has been glitching, and Ana will stop at nothing to find a way to fix him.

Ana's desperate effort to save D09 leads her on a quest to steal the coordinates to a lost ship that could offer all the answers. But at the last moment, a spoiled Ironblood boy beats Ana to her prize. He has his own reasons for taking the coordinates, and he doesn't care what he'll sacrifice to keep them.

When everything goes wrong, she and the Ironblood end up as fugitives on the run. Now their entire kingdom is after them—and the coordinates—and not everyone wants them captured alive.

What they find in a lost corner of the universe will change all their lives—and unearth dangerous secrets. But when a darkness from Ana's past returns, she must face an impossible choice: does she protect a kingdom that wants her dead or save the Metal boy she loves?

Creators
- Ashley Poston
  
  Author
- Adenrele Ojo
  
  Narrator
Publisher

HarperCollins

Edition: Unabridged
Release date

June 19, 2018
Formats
- OverDrive Listen audiobook
  - ISBN: 9780062884398
  - File size: 357840 KB
  - Duration: 12:25:29
Languages
- English
Levels
- ATOS Level: 5.4
- Lexile® Measure: 740
- Interest Level: 9-12(UG)
- Text Difficulty: 3-4
Reviews
- AudioFile Magazine
  
  Narrator Adenrele Ojo juggles romance, angst, and danger in a science fiction novel inspired by the story of Anastasia Romanov. As a child, Ana was found floating in space wreckage, all alone except for a robot companion, known as a Metal, called D09. She now lives with the crew that saved her. When D09 starts to malfunction, she endangers the entire crew in a bid to recover the coordinates of a ship she believes hold the answers to fixing "him." Ojo effectively projects emotions, particularly the captain's anger at Ana's headstrong actions and the longing of the various romantically inclined teenagers. Ojo's deft narration helps listeners keep pace with this complicated plot and leaves them wanting more. E.J.F. © AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine
- School Library Journal
  
  December 1, 2017
  Gr 7 Up-In an unusual blend of sci-fi and fantasy, this series opener (inspired by the story of Anastasia) rotates narration among an unusually large cast of characters. The central character, Ana, is accompanied by her "metal" sidekick D09, who is rapidly failing due to malware. Meanwhile, the heir to the Iron Crown must be located-one who can touch the crown without it rusting is a true heir to the emperor. There is a presumed heir, Erik, unlikable in that entitled-gentry-kid sort of way, but nobody has ever seen him touch the crown. Readers will stake their money on the younger brother, Robb, and will initially ship Robb with Ana-until it is revealed that Robb really only has eyes for Jaxx, the maverick "star kisser," who has the inherited ability to see the future. As the plot twists on, a past plague is revealed along with a sinister plan to conscript an army. With the inclusion of androids, the definition of humanity is a resounding theme. The book runs long, but the short chapters will draw readers in and the rich backstory gives them plenty to chew on. VERDICT A great choice for fans of Victoria Aveyard's "Red Queen" trilogy and for young readers looking for a hint of Game of Thrones that won't burn their eyeballs with overt sexuality.-Leah Krippner, Harlem High School, Machesney Park, IL
  
  Copyright 2017 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
- Kirkus
  
  November 1, 2017
  The story of Anastasia, lost princess of Imperial Russia, retold as space opera.In 1918, the 17-year-old daughter of Russia's last czar was murdered with her family, but rumors persisted for decades that she might have survived in secret. In this version, the family of the Emperor of the Iron Kingdom, including his daughter Ananke Armorov, is known to have been murdered seven years ago in the android rebellion. Meanwhile, a ragtag crew of space pirates is community to brown-skinned and burn-scarred Ana. Ana's best friend--about whom she has secret, more-than-friend feelings--is Di, a Metal: an android. Metals aren't popular since the rebellion; most have been infected with the mind-controlling HIVE program that removes their free will. Complicating matters are Robb, a blue-eyed, olive-skinned noble on his own quest, and Jax, a violet-eyed, silver-haired Solani boy who pilots the pirate ship. Jax and Robb keep making eyes at each other, which is troublesome, since Robb's mother wants Ana's whole crew dead. Melodramatic back stories abound: there's a prophesied savior, a prince in hiding with a secret power, and a noble young man with no memory. Malapropisms abound in the florid, awkward narrative ("Her voice warbled with the weight of those words"). There's the kernel of a dramatic space yarn here, but it never comes to fruition.A surplus of angst-ridden back stories told in deeply regrettable prose. (Science fiction. 12-15)
  COPYRIGHT(2017) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
- Booklist
  
  December 1, 2017
  Grades 9-12 Deep in the stars, Ana was found by the starship Dossier as a child, alone except for sentient android D09, and she was raised by the ship's captain and her crew of space pirates. As a teenager, Ana searches for a way to save D09, who has begun to break downa challenge, as Di is one of the only remaining Metals who isn't part of the HIVE, the system that strips androids of their free will. Ana refuses to lose the android boy she can't help but love, despite his own inability to feel emotions. On a quest to save Di, Ana encounters Robb, an elite Ironborn whose despotic brother is about to ascend the throne, which has stood empty since the princess who should have inherited it disappeared after a Metal rebellion. The legends surrounding Anastasia Romanov get an sf makeover in this occasionally overcrowded but always exciting Firefly-style space opera. A wide cast of supporting characters and several same-sex romances add depth, and a violent, volatile ending leaves room for more.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)
- The Horn Book
  
  January 1, 2019
  Poston uses the historical myth of Anastasia Romanov's secret survival to frame this action-packed space opera about Ana--a royal heiress rescued by space pirates, parented by an android, and destined for political power. Four first-person narrators (Ana, the android, and two potential love interests) create a complex plot with conspiracies nested like Russian dolls.
  (Copyright 2019 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)