Review: Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr

Info:

Title: Wicked Lovely
Author: Melissa Marr
Series: Wicked Lovely #1
Publisher: HarperTeen
Publication Date: June 12, 2007
Source: Purchased

Blurb:

Rule #3: Don't stare at invisible faeries.
Aislinn has always seen faeries. Powerful and dangerous, they walk hidden in the mortal world. Aislinn fears their cruelty - especially if they learn of her Sight - and wishes she were as blind to their presence as other teens.

Rule #2: Don't speak to invisible faeries.
Now faeries are stalking her. One of them, Keenan, who is equal parts terrifying and alluring, is trying to talk to her, asking questions Aislinn is afraid to answer.

Rule #1: Don't ever attract their attention.
But it's too late. Keenan is the Summer King, who has sought his queen for nine centuries. Without her, summer itself will perish. He is determined that Aislinn will become the Summer Queen at any cost — regardless of her plans or desires.

Suddenly none of the rules that have kept Aislinn safe are working anymore, and everything is on the line: her freedom; her best friend, Seth; her life; everything.

Faery intrigue, mortal love, and the clash of ancient rules and modern expectations swirl together in Melissa Marr's stunning twenty-first-century faery tale

Review:

I think it's only fair for me to start off this review by saying Wicked Lovely reminded me a lot of Holly Black's Modern Faerie Tales series. Urban YA fantasy with similar Fey lore and 'alternative' type characters. A absolutely loved Tithe when I read it back when I was actually a young adult (shhh...), so I feel like I viewed this book through a different lens than many readers and couldn't help but constantly compare them.

Overall, I enjoyed Wicked Lovely, but it wasn't my favourite Fey book. One of my favourite things about reading fey books is they way they are depicted as darkly beautiful and tantalizingly mysterious. However, viewing things through Aislinn's eyes, I didn't really experience this, as she was so wary and fearful of them. We get a hint of this in Beria, but she's a bit too outright evil for it to read work.

My favourite character was definitely Donia. She had been through so many terrible things, but remained so strong. I really can't imagine watching the man you love flirt with other girls for years and years. It would just be so horrible. Plus she had a sweet wolf sidekick.

Seth was almost the perfect love interest. But there was my problem. He was too perfect! I have trouble feeling a strong connection to characters who strike me as unrealistically perfect. I wanted to love Seth, I really did. But there's nothing fun about flawless.

Overall, Wicked Lovely was a bit marred for me (oh, accidental pun right there!) by my previous experience with Holly Black's similar works, but it was still an enjoyable read and I'm looking forward to continuing the series with Ink Exchange.

On the Cover:

The think I like the cover. It's pretty, but I don't really understand what it has to do with the book. Someone want to explain it to me?

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