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3.48 AVERAGE
3.48 AVERAGE
I really enjoyed this book, hopefully the series gets even better!
My Aislinn inspired polyvore set:
www.amyvitale.com
My Aislinn inspired polyvore set:
www.amyvitale.com
Fast read about a teen who catches the eye of the summer king but whose been hiding her ability to see the Fae all her life. Entertaining and fast paced. The ending was different and not as expected, I think I liked that most about the book.
This is a young adult read that speaks to the teen girl in me: love, sexual tension, feeling misunderstood by most, not fitting in, and finally accepting how wonderful you actually are. A fun and easy read, perfect for a few hours of escaping the adult world.
Young Adult, definitely not for elementary. Urban Fantasy - the Fey Winter King is seeking his queen among the mortals. It had a Twilight feel, but Aislinn is a much stronger heroine than Bella. Good story, but not amazing.
Once you know this is fantasy of the fairy type, you might guess from the title that it is fantasy of the sexy fairy type, and you would be right. Aislinn has always been able to see fairies, and has always known she must not let fairies know that she can see through their glamour. She seeks out places rife with iron to avoid them, but a particular fairy takes an interest in her who is powerful enough that iron doesn't bother him. Meanwhile her favorite home to be in is the converted train car of her good friend, who she obviously loves but avoids kissing because he's always been a player. Soon she is attracted to both. What will she do? How can she avoid dealing with ancient fairy politics?
I knew what I wanted to have happen, and the author does a good job of keeping that sexual tension going.
I knew what I wanted to have happen, and the author does a good job of keeping that sexual tension going.
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Okay what can I say here. I have so many mixed feelings on this book, I really do. I loved the story line it was really cool and the imagery (especially of the ice, the fey, and the feelings the fey evoke) was rather wonderful. It wasn't a page turner, but I wasn't bored to death either. So what was my problem with Wicked Lovely then? Well, my problem just so happens to have a name, and that name is Aislinn.
The fact that I don't like the main character isn't really surprising to me, as I usually don't the mains. But...usually mains don't ruin the story for me entirely. Even if the book is form their point of view (take Harry Potter for example; I don't care for Harry but the books are amazing). Aislinn did, she's the reason I gave this book a 2 instead of a 3. Honestly she was just so so annoying. Right down to her name. Frankly for a while I didn't know how to pronounce it so I took the Beira route and just started calling her Alison lol. What I'm trying to say is the name (rather the spelling of it) was my first red flag that Aislinn is a Sue. Granted she isn't on Bella Swan or Zoe's (from House of Night) level. But she's a Sue no less; she's got the 'sexy' Seth fawning over her and the 'also sexy' Keenan. And apparently (according to Seth) she's sexy herself and also really smart! Her friends think she's so cool. That said, she's got like everything and all of this support yet she's complaining the whole time and is completely unappreciative of Grams. Her friends are trying to get her to go out and have a good time and she's just moping around, muttering about how unfair life is. And how she can't go to the party because she has the sight and Grams wouldn't like it. Which is funny because she goes out and does whatever the hell she wants to anyways. This includes lying to Grams about just how serious her situation is, despite how much Grams has done for her. And of course she gets herself mixed up in shit and goes crying to Grams, as if she has a right to bitch. Frankly if I was Grams I would have shot her a big I told you so and waved her off.
But above all what killed me the most was her denial and her indecision. Like seriously she constantly sought out this third option that simply didn't exist. Like shit, just make the decision already and get it over with.
It's no wonder the 'big battle' was such a let down. She dragged out making this decision so long that by the time she made it there were like 20 pages left in the book. And legit Marr only used like 5 of them for said battle. Up until that I was actually appreciative of the plot-line. But that battle was just so rushed and anti-climatic...so disappointing. The worst part is, it had so much potential to be a really neat battle, but it just wasn't. It was pretty much Keenan, Aislinn, Donia, and Beira trying to kiss each other or something...I don't even know.
Speaking of not knowing things; that's another thing I didn't care for. While I do like a fast paced book that gets right into it, for a good while I didn't even know what was going on. The game? The rules? What's the difference between the Winter Girl and the Winter Queen? This would be alright if it was clearly meant to be ambiguous in the beginning--clearly being the key word. But I really couldn't tell if Marr was trying to explain the rules and just not doing a good job or if she was trying to be ambiguous, if that makes sense. Apparently it was supposed to be a 'learn as Aislinn learns' thing, but when it was explained for real there was no back story? I still didn't get why Beira's husband and she made those rules or what happened between them. Really Marr had all of these neat plot-lines like who Donia was prior to taking on being the Winter Girl or Keenan's relationship with his dad (or Beria's relationship with her husband) or Keenan's relationship to his mom prior to the game, etc. And yet we only scratch the surface on all of those, instead we get a pointless school scene or two and a cheese romantic sub-plot with Seth.
Which is another thing; that 'sex' scene was just so awkward and weirdly written. Like whenever Marr bought up sex I got a bout of second-hand embarrassment and I was the only one in the room. I just didn't like Seth/Aislinn in general it was too...perfect.
I also didn't care for Seth. I mean I didn't hate him nor even dislike him. He was just meh...
I think Marr tried way too hard to try to make him edgy/punk with his piercings (piercings are cool on a character but only modestly, she mentioned them on like every Seth-related page) and his snake and what I've come to call his 'hipster van'with its hipster music. But other than that he just wasn't memorable. Like Aislinn, he's just like every cookie cutter YA boyfriend.
So what about Keenan? I didn't like him either. I guess he and Aislinn are the perfect king-queen pair. Because he's pretty whiney too. Like poor Donia, she has to deal with that. Lordy, lordy, no wonder Beira is so evil, I'd be in constant state of butthurt too if I had to deal with Keenan. He's the Stu to Aislinn's Sue; Godly sexy, powerful, a king, a fairy...
Gag me. He's like the fairy version of Edward Cullen...implying that Ed isn't a fairy...
I don't hate him as much as 'Ash' but I still hate him. He followed Aislinn like a puppy but he also loved Don? He says he dreams of Ash but then he gets with Don??? Man this story is all over the place.
Anyhoo, point is, he's pretty pathetic.
So just wtf is saving this book for me; Grams, Donia, and Beira are. It's a shame Grams wasn't present more because I feel like she could have been a really badass grandma. But nah, poor Grams had to deal with Ash. Donia was also pretty neat, if she was the main character I probably would have enjoyed this book more; she seemed to have her mind made (unlike Ash) and she's got stronger character traits in general. Not to mention she's more complex and not as flat.
And finally Beira...she gets her own paragraph because she's what kept me reading the book. She alone is what has me giving it a 2 instead of a 1...what almost had me giving the book a 3. I liked her, I thought she was a really interesting character with her fake motherly attitude and her pseudo kindness. But then she's got her icy underlying true-self. Not to mention she was pretty funny with her inability to remember/pronounce the ridiculous names like Aislinn and Donia (finally a character I can relate to). Can we just get rid of Ash and write spin-off about her taking place prior to Ash? I was actually ready to pick up book 2 to see how Beira would fair in the next book
To sum up, I very well could have liked this book (the writing and the vocab was great so was the story line) but the assortment of hateable/meh characters just over-powered the 3 good characters and killed any/all potential. So 2 stars (one is owed completely to Beira).
The fact that I don't like the main character isn't really surprising to me, as I usually don't the mains. But...usually mains don't ruin the story for me entirely. Even if the book is form their point of view (take Harry Potter for example; I don't care for Harry but the books are amazing). Aislinn did, she's the reason I gave this book a 2 instead of a 3. Honestly she was just so so annoying. Right down to her name. Frankly for a while I didn't know how to pronounce it so I took the Beira route and just started calling her Alison lol.
Spoiler
Honestly, she's a mortal. (Rather she started that way). I wouldn't have minded her name so much if she was a fairy from the beginning.Spoiler
She's the all powerful Summer Queen, not only that but everything worked out for her too! Like of course she can be Summer Queen/fey and still be with Seth and have her fey-loathing grandmother's approval. I hate that kind of ending, it's unrealistic. Like where's the suspicion. Kay so Grams is her grandma, they're family...but come on why couldn't Seth had added a little drama and question her now that she's fey? Nah he just pulled the perfect man (that all Sues have) thing and accepted the change without question. And I don't understand how she could magically discard her the king to her queen so she could be with a mortal...and so easily at that.But above all what killed me the most was her denial and her indecision. Like seriously she constantly sought out this third option that simply didn't exist.
Spoiler
At first it was either run, try to figure out how to get rid of the sight, or take Keenan's hand. So she had an excuse there. However, she turns fey. Her options then became either help the good guys or run away and let everyone/thing die. You'd think by then she'd just choose to help the good side since the decision was practically made for her; but no, she kept seeking out this non-existent 'un-fey me' option. The choice was so obvious yet she denied and still couldn't decide. And in doing this Aislinn pretty much chose 'Imma let everyone die' until Keenan pretty much forced her to take responsibility...It's no wonder the 'big battle' was such a let down. She dragged out making this decision so long that by the time she made it there were like 20 pages left in the book. And legit Marr only used like 5 of them for said battle. Up until that I was actually appreciative of the plot-line. But that battle was just so rushed and anti-climatic...so disappointing. The worst part is, it had so much potential to be a really neat battle, but it just wasn't. It was pretty much Keenan, Aislinn, Donia, and Beira trying to kiss each other or something...I don't even know.
Speaking of not knowing things; that's another thing I didn't care for. While I do like a fast paced book that gets right into it, for a good while I didn't even know what was going on. The game? The rules? What's the difference between the Winter Girl and the Winter Queen? This would be alright if it was clearly meant to be ambiguous in the beginning--clearly being the key word. But I really couldn't tell if Marr was trying to explain the rules and just not doing a good job or if she was trying to be ambiguous, if that makes sense. Apparently it was supposed to be a 'learn as Aislinn learns' thing, but when it was explained for real there was no back story? I still didn't get why Beira's husband and she made those rules or what happened between them. Really Marr had all of these neat plot-lines like who Donia was prior to taking on being the Winter Girl or Keenan's relationship with his dad (or Beria's relationship with her husband) or Keenan's relationship to his mom prior to the game, etc. And yet we only scratch the surface on all of those, instead we get a pointless school scene or two and a cheese romantic sub-plot with Seth.
Which is another thing; that 'sex' scene was just so awkward and weirdly written. Like whenever Marr bought up sex I got a bout of second-hand embarrassment and I was the only one in the room. I just didn't like Seth/Aislinn in general it was too...perfect.
I also didn't care for Seth. I mean I didn't hate him nor even dislike him. He was just meh...
I think Marr tried way too hard to try to make him edgy/punk with his piercings (piercings are cool on a character but only modestly, she mentioned them on like every Seth-related page) and his snake and what I've come to call his 'hipster van'with its hipster music. But other than that he just wasn't memorable. Like Aislinn, he's just like every cookie cutter YA boyfriend.
So what about Keenan? I didn't like him either. I guess he and Aislinn are the perfect king-queen pair. Because he's pretty whiney too. Like poor Donia, she has to deal with that. Lordy, lordy, no wonder Beira is so evil, I'd be in constant state of butthurt too if I had to deal with Keenan. He's the Stu to Aislinn's Sue; Godly sexy, powerful, a king, a fairy...
Gag me. He's like the fairy version of Edward Cullen...implying that Ed isn't a fairy...
I don't hate him as much as 'Ash' but I still hate him. He followed Aislinn like a puppy but he also loved Don? He says he dreams of Ash but then he gets with Don??? Man this story is all over the place.
Anyhoo, point is, he's pretty pathetic.
So just wtf is saving this book for me; Grams, Donia, and Beira are. It's a shame Grams wasn't present more because I feel like she could have been a really badass grandma. But nah, poor Grams had to deal with Ash. Donia was also pretty neat, if she was the main character I probably would have enjoyed this book more; she seemed to have her mind made (unlike Ash) and she's got stronger character traits in general. Not to mention she's more complex and not as flat.
And finally Beira...she gets her own paragraph because she's what kept me reading the book. She alone is what has me giving it a 2 instead of a 1...what almost had me giving the book a 3. I liked her, I thought she was a really interesting character with her fake motherly attitude and her pseudo kindness. But then she's got her icy underlying true-self. Not to mention she was pretty funny with her inability to remember/pronounce the ridiculous names like Aislinn and Donia (finally a character I can relate to). Can we just get rid of Ash and write spin-off about her taking place prior to Ash? I was actually ready to pick up book 2 to see how Beira would fair in the next book
Spoiler
it's a shame she freaking died! One cool character and they kill her off.To sum up, I very well could have liked this book (the writing and the vocab was great so was the story line) but the assortment of hateable/meh characters just over-powered the 3 good characters and killed any/all potential. So 2 stars (one is owed completely to Beira).
I love books about faeries... or, at least I used to? This is one of those YA books I think I might have enjoyed more when I was younger. I prefer Holly Black's tales of faery to Melissa Marr's, and I've read Holly Black recently so I know her YA transcends age.
I found the main character, Aislynn, to be annoying. I feel like the majority of the book is just waiting while she thinks about what to do. She's got this guy clearly into her, but she's got it in her mind that they're just friends even though she's into him. I feel like she completely gives in to Keenan... like, the way to make him go away is clearly not going on a date with him, Aislynn. Like, actually this whole thing could've been avoided if you just clearly said no. She starts out that wait, but okay, he's a creep and wouldn't go away. What really seemed to push her over the edge was when her friends pressured her into it. Just tell your friends you're not interested and that you like Seth and that's that. End of story.
Of course, then she wouldn't have fulfilled her destiny as Summer Queen, but getting there was annoying. Having Donia become the Winter Queen was kind of a cool twist.
There were parts I liked, but I feel like the story was mostly filler. 2.5 stars.
I found the main character, Aislynn, to be annoying. I feel like the majority of the book is just waiting while she thinks about what to do. She's got this guy clearly into her, but she's got it in her mind that they're just friends even though she's into him. I feel like she completely gives in to Keenan... like, the way to make him go away is clearly not going on a date with him, Aislynn. Like, actually this whole thing could've been avoided if you just clearly said no. She starts out that wait, but okay, he's a creep and wouldn't go away. What really seemed to push her over the edge was when her friends pressured her into it. Just tell your friends you're not interested and that you like Seth and that's that. End of story.
Of course, then she wouldn't have fulfilled her destiny as Summer Queen, but getting there was annoying. Having Donia become the Winter Queen was kind of a cool twist.
There were parts I liked, but I feel like the story was mostly filler. 2.5 stars.
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No