Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr (2009-04-02)

This book was almost everything I'd hoped it would be: engrossing, imaginative, thought-out...until the end. I felt like the author developed writer's block and just threw something together at the last minute to get it done. Also, it certainly didn't end the way I wanted it to. I don't want to post a spoiler, so I'll just say I was Team The-Other-Guy. The book definitely left with me with the feeling of needing major closure.

Great book!!! I read this over spare time and took longer than I do with most books. I kept coming back and not wanting it to finish so I would force myself to only read snip it's so that I could come back for more!

i think the melissa marr could've gone deeper with this story. i don't
know how old the auther is, but as i read, i got the feeling that she
is very young. i was hoping to get a bit more insight into the fairy world, but the plot to this was more revolved around finding out if or how aislinn (the lead female character) gets to keep the love of her human world even though she faced with a no-option destiny of joining the fey world and accepting a partnership with another. there were other plots as well...your classic good vs evil and i found that to be more
interesting to me than the love dilemma. i wish that was developed more b/c i really read this book b/c i'm a big fan of fairies and fantasy. i would have loved for it to focus on that more. the concept of the winter queen and the summer king was really great. i would've liked more of a history on that...this could've beena much thicker, much more in depth, more more satisfying read if the author would've taken that route. the ending came off to me as way too convenient. i was really hoping she would make a choice, rather than a compromise. but all in all, it was a decent read. the concept was good, but could use more work.

I was browsing for something new to read and come upon "Wicked Lovely". I read it within two days and it turned out fairly decent. It was definitely something that kept the imagination going. If your looking for soemthing to pass the time and have something to read, then this is your book.

From the first paragraph, I was drawn into this story. The author did a great job of capturing my attention and holding it until the very end. I also liked that even though you know there is a sequel, the first book did not leave me hanging on an impossible cliff and the ending wasn't predictable. It is easy to imagine the characters through the authors descriptions and to visualize the scenes as they are played out.

Overall this was a great fun read and I look forward to starting the next installment!

Why is everyone comparing this to Twilight? In my opinion, it's not much like it. Sure it's fantasy/paranormal. Yes, it's YA. And there is some romance, but really... it's very different. It's much better, actually. I read most of the reviews and will be commenting on some as I go along... particularly to A. Changeling's post.

Melissa stays very true to Irish folklore, pulling in only fey creatures from that realm. The faeries are interesting and dangerous. Keenan meets Aislinn and decides she is the one to be the summer queen. It's Donia's job to talk her out of it. And Beira is definitely one to look out for. Her grandmother also has the sight, and Aislinn has been raised to fear them. Aislinn has a skewed perspective which makes this all the more interesting. It leads you to believe her, and then we find out that everything she has heard and believes is not true.

If you are interested in faeries and/or folklore, you'll love this book. As I said earlier, Melissa stays very true to Irish folklore, which makes for a very enjoyable read.

Aislinn is your typical teenage girl with the exception of being able to see faeries. She has to keep it a secret as faeries do not wish to be seen. However, being followed by two faeries and then one attempting to talk to her and get her to leave with them would make you want to confide in someone too. So, she turns to her friend, Seth. Seth is a good hearted guy who is trying to get past the friend barrier with Aislinn. She likes the flirting, but if he knew her secret would he think her crazy? Probably, but she tempts fate and decides to bring him in the loop. Together they work through many things while Aislinn struggles to not lose herself or the life she wants to have. In a quick time Aislinn must decide to willingly help Keenan (the Summer faery king who's waited centuries to find her his queen) or have him force her into a decision. Either way, many lives are at stake and Aislinn must face facts and chose.

This book is well written and develops nicely enough that you are definitely left wanting more. It's a good read without being overthrown with action. Still there is suspense and trauma that has to be dealt with.

Aislinn is your typical teenage girl with the exception of being able to see faeries. She has to keep it a secret as faeries do not wish to be seen. However, being followed by two faeries and then one attempting to talk to her and get her to leave with them would make you want to confide in someone too. So, she turns to her friend, Seth. Seth is a good hearted guy who is trying to get past the friend barrier with Aislinn. She likes the flirting, but if he knew her secret would he think her crazy? Probably, but she tempts fate and decides to bring him in the loop. Together they work through many things while Aislinn struggles to not lose herself or the life she wants to have. In a quick time Aislinn must decide to willingly help Keenan (the Summer faery king who's waited centuries to find her his queen) or have him force her into a decision. Either way, many lives are at stake and Aislinn must face facts and chose.

This book is well written and develops nicely enough that you are definitely left wanting more. It's a good read without being overthrown with action. Still there is suspense and trauma that has to be dealt with.

This book was pretty good, although I did expect it to be a little better than it was. It took me a bit longer to read it than I thought it would. It was a good book with a good story line, but in my personal opinion not a spectacular book. Although I did purchase the sequel and intend to read it.

This book is a quick, easy, enjoyable read. In the "Twilightesque" fashion, it is about a high school girl, with an uncommon ability (in this case to see the invisible world of faeries) and someone of the supernatural realm finds her desirable. I am a voracious reader, which means I read alot of books that I don't always care for and across all genres. This book kept me interested from beginning to end. Could the author have developed the characters more, better transitions? Sure, but it was still a good, light, entertaining read...AND, here is the important part, it was free for my kindle--the hook worked, I would (will) purchase the other books in this series and would actually search out more by the author--which means that it was a success. As for the bonus materials--it didn't make a difference to me, but I am one of those people who doesn't watch the deleted scenes on DVDs, so it wasn't really a BONUS for me. If you like the fantasy genre, and need something to keep you interested for a long trip or weekend at the beach--this is a good choice!

The cover of the book originally caught my eye, and I put this book down on my "books to read" list for awhile. I eventually bought it for my Kindle when it was on sale for 99 cents, and I am happy I paid that. This book had potential, but I couldn't keep myself interested in it. I found the protagonist a bit on the needy side, and I was far more interested in the other character, Donia, and her story. I kept hoping the story would take off, but it never came, it was a slow going read for me.

Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr was an intriguing read that kept me hooked to the last page. This novel about an average girl caught in between such non-average situations is intriguing; add in a dose of high-tension and full-passion love, Wicked Lovely leaves a tasteful, lasting impression. I loved the tenacity of Aislinn as she tries to escape her destiny, and in the end, makes her destiny fit to her. Also, the romantic aspect of the story made it wonderful, because every girl experiences having to choose between what she wants and what fate throws at her.

The premise is good - fairies, many of them terrifying and evil, are everywhere. Most humans can't see them. The girl, Aislinn, who can see them becomes part of a fairy's plot - if she doesn't play her part, the innocent will suffer. But the personal price she'll pay for saving others is her own happiness.
So far, so good. But there are problems. Keenan, the Fairy King, comes off as wishy washy and whiney. Why doesn't her grandmother (who supposedly cares so intensely about her)seem to care that she may be sleeping with a total stranger? Aislinn's character often seems forced and unrealistic, but is far more believable than Seth, the love interest.
Author Marr tries for an ending to "please everyone" - and of course, it pleases no one and leaves details hanging. Maybe she is going for a sequel. This book is readable, but not a keeper.

I have to agree with the reviewer (Heather) and her assessment of Wicked Lovely. I also preordered the book from the store, based on the product description. I was looking for a book that I would love as much as I loved Twilight. Having been disappointed by other books where reviewers claimed that "if you loved Twilight you will love book X," I wasn't sure what to expect. But when I saw the starred review in Publisher's Weekly and read how psyched the author's editor was about the book, well, I got excited. I was not disappointed as I read the book. I totally loved it! Marr is a careful wordsmith, someone who tries to avoid cliches and crafts memorable characters. Her world is vividly drawn and is one you will want to enter over and over. I could not put this extremely compelling book down. From now on, instead of just looking for a book like Twilight, I'll look for books like Twilight AND Wicked Lovely. You will too if you buy this book. And I strongly recommend that you do so! Melissa Marr is an author to watch! I'm thankful that she has more books planned!

I liked the book. The story line was engaging, and I didn't want it to end. I've lent my copy out to friends to read, and she said she gets to hit me if she doesn't like it. No complaints yet! I look forward to seeing more from Melissa Marr.

This book kept me interested from beginning to end. It was a quick and easy read, and I think it would be perfect for young/pre-teen readers. It's a love story, but there is no graphic sex or details that would make a mom squirm. It's got fae, mortals, the evil winter queen, the dashing summer king in search of his (mortal) bride. I'm going to let my 12 year old read it. She'll love it.

I was totally shocked to see this book listed under "Children". I had to double check where I got it from. I thought the sexual content and f-bombs were inappropriate in a "childrens" book. I agree the sex wasn't graphic, but suggestive. I would not want my pre-teen reading this. I would assume most mother's want their children, or girls, to abstain from sex before marriage, and felt the morals of the characters were lacking.

We might as well start out this wondrous review with me being completely honest…I totally picked up this series because of the covers. I mean come on, look at them…they’re GORGEOUS!

I know my mother taught me to never judge a book by its cover, but I think we can all agree that I could be doing worse things than buying a few books just because they look pretty. I’m a sucker for a cover I can get lost in, especially if the genre it falls into is Fantasy. *Sigh*…if only I lived in book world.

Aislinn has had a tough life growing up, mostly because she can see faerie creatures that nobody else can see. Well everyone besides her grandmother and her deceased mother. But the faeries that Aislinn sees on a daily basis aren’t the faeries that we all grew up visualizing, these faeries are terrible and mischievous creatures that love nothing more than to be cruel to each other and to humans. As Aislinn is forced to watch the faeries torment the unsuspecting humans around her, she also has the burden of pretending like she can’t see them at all. The risk of the faeries finding out that Aislinn has “the sight” is too great, and it can only lead to her death. But soon Aislinns’ efforts to stay hidden from the mythical world she sees starts to crumble when Keenan, the faerie Summer King, takes notice in her. For centuries the faeries have been trapped in cold by the Winter Queen, and Keenan has sought out his Summer Queen high and low in order to keep their world from becoming covered in ice. As Keenan makes himself visible to the humans in order to get to Aislinn, the perfectly careful world that Aislinn had created for herself starts to wither. She finds out that Keenan believes that she is the Summer Queen, but Aislinn wants nothing to do with the faeries. Not only is Aislinn afraid to live amongst the creatures she fought so hard to hide from all her life; but Keenan and Donia (the current Winter girl) explain that if the test does not work on Aislinn and she is not the Summer Queen, then she will be engulfed in frost and become the new Winter girl until the next girl comes along. Now Aislinn must decide if she can fight off the pull towards Keenan and resist the faeries, or if this is the path she is supposed to take.

This first installment in the Wicked Lovely Series really drew me in and got me hooked QUICK! I fall in love quickly with YA/Fantasy stories, but sometimes it can be hard to keep me enthralled since I have read so many of them. The author, Melissa Marr, did just that. Her style of writing for Wicked Lovely was amazing and incredibly descriptive. She completely touched my senses and it felt like she was literally drawing the world in my head with her words, it was fantastic! For some reason there aren’t a lot of Fantasy style books that really hit the nail on the descriptive factor for me, which is surprisingly considering what genre it is. I really felt as if I was walking with Aislinn down the street while these faeries were following her and doing terrible things to people around her. I could sympathize with her and understand her fears for these creatures that she tried so hard to ignore.

I think a great thing about this series is that the author decided to make the faeries mischievous and on the border of plain evil, rather than those happy little creatures we see when we think of them. It gave the idea of faeries a completely different outlook and really stretched the mythical plain for me. The dynamics of the characters are also really interesting and a tad out of the box. Aislinn proves to be a strong character right away because she shows the reader how much she has to go through on a daily basis just to look sane to everyone around her. Keenan, the Summer King, seems like a ruthless character with an egotistical problem. I was pleased to see our female lead push him away so many times and fight him off. What makes this story a bit more interesting is the character of Seth. Seth lives in an iron train car on his own, which proves to be very beneficial to Aislinn as an escape because faeries don’t like iron. Seth is a protective character for Aislinn, and a male in her life that she is attracted to but hasn’t made it known. Obviously the whole “love triangle” think starts to come into play, but the author makes a twist of it once the book is over. Trust me, it’s not a regular love triangle, so don’t let it turn you away from this series if that isn’t your sort of thing.

Donia, the Winter girl, is probably my favorite character in this series so far. Each girl that Keenan finds must take the ultimate test to see if she is truly the Summer Queen, if they are not, then the girl is turned into the Winter girl which entails her feeling the pain of the cold and frost unlike the Winter Queen who can control it. Donia is obviously in love with Keenan but cannot be with him because of the cold that runs through her, and because she is not the Summer Queen. Her character portrays a strong female character that can stand equally next to Keenan, and I like her because she doesn’t back down from him even though her love for him hurts her.

Simply put, I am really loving this series so far. I will say that I started book 2 in the series, Ink Exchange, right after I finished Wicked lovely. I am a couple chapters in, but have kind of put it aside while I read other books. Why? Well because Aislinn isn’t narrating the story now, it’s following another character. Call me negative, but I kind of like to keep my series going with the same character telling it. Hopefully I can throw myself back into the story and enjoy it, but we shall see.

It's official: I've always avoided fairy (or "fae" as they are always called now) books...there was a series I watched on the Sci-Fi channel called "Lost Girl" that I watched until the boy she loved stopped being able to love her back, and she fell in love with her female doctor...but I caved and checked out Wicked Lovely because Marr's books kept coming up on my Suggested Reads shelf on the store. The covers were stunning and enticing. I passed them all the time at the library while waiting for Winter to come in...I checked it out and read the rest of it this evening.
I was pleasantly surprised. It wasn't over-the-top with mystical worlds and crazy characters. I was able to follow the plot really well.
Ainslynn (does any character have a common name in books anymore? They are getting harder and harder to spell and remember: I'm not even sure if I'm spelling her name correctly now) is able to see faires. Fey. Whatever you want to call them. She has avoided telling others and tried to avoid looking at them all her life. She lives with her overly-strict and also Sighted grandmother, and she is falling for a very sexy, snake-owning boy named Seth (now that name I can handle). Suddenly, though, a pair of fairies, a boy and girl, start following her around. Told from dual POVs (and another every once in awhile), the novel switches from our heroine to the fairy King, Keenan, and we learn the insidious reasons behind the fairies' sudden interest. And Ainslynn doesn't know what to do. When Keenan dons a human glamour and starts to stalk her at school, she really freaks out. Why do they want her? What's with this pursuit of Keenan's? And will he tire of her before she gives in to the draw of Keenan's fairy-like power?
Sounds kind of silly, right? Like a typical fantasy book where the girl is special. And the love triangle to boot. But it's not like that. I have to say, Marr surprised me by making it more about human fears and love than about fairies and monsters and things that go bump in the night. And I liked that. I'm not a Tolkien-type person: make the world too out there and I lose interest. Or if you're gonna make an out-there world, you better have a damn good story to back up the craziness. Well, Marr does what many don't: she has a subtle fairy influence, a strong heroine, an interesting male antagonist, and a female fairy underdog. And she starts each chapter with a quote from old fairy lore novels (I'm talking late 19th to early 20th century)...for some reason it adds authenticity to what Marr is selling.
I liked this book. I'm going to continue with this series: I say that a lot and often jump around, but I always come back eventually. Well, with Wicked Lovely, it could be a stand-alone, but I checked out the next couple of books that seem to focus on other characters in the same story world, and that peaked my interest. So I'm going to invest more time in Marr and see how it goes.
But I can honestly say that I give this novel ★★★★★.
Fairy-obsessed or not, I think it will appeal to all sorts of readers.