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Journal Entry 1 by xallroyx from Huntington Beach, California USA on Tuesday, February 03, 2009
 Melissa Marr adds elegantly to the sub-genre of Urban Faery with this enticing, well-researched fantasy for teens. Wicked Lovely takes place in modern-day Huntsdale, a small city south of Pittsburgh whose name evokes the Wild Hunt of mythology. High school junior Aislinn and her grandmother have followed strict rules all their lives to hide their ability to see faeries because faeries don't like it when mortals can see them, and faeries can be very cruel. Only the strongest faeries can withstand iron, however, so Aislinn prefers the city with its steel girders and bridges. She takes refuge with Seth, her would-be lover, who lives in a set of old train carriages.
But now Aislinn is being stalked by two of the faeries who are able to take on human form and are not deterred by steel. What do they want from her?
One is Keenan, the Summer King, who has been looking for his Queen for nine centuries, bound by the rules and rituals that govern his quest. The other is Donia, a victim of those rules, consigned to the role of Winter Girl when she failed Keenan's test, yet still in love with him. Certain that Aislinn is the woman he must marry, Keenan shows up as a charismatic new student at her high school, unaware that she sees his true form. He's determined to court her and is puzzled by her rebuffs. Suddenly, none of the rules that have kept Aislinn safe is working anymore, but things aren't going as Keenan expects either. Both will have to change, make startling compromises and enlist surprising allies if they want to break free from the wicked game that has ensnared them.
Their greatest challenge will be to avoid the fatal traps laid by Keenan's mother, the Winter Queen. She will lose her power if Keenan finds his mate, and she will do anything to stop this. Unfortunately, she's a little too over the top to be totally threatening, a campy version of Hans Christian Andersen's Snow Queen -- part Disney witch, part Endora in "Bewitched." But this didn't stop me from devouring the book.
Marr creates a fully realized world that conveys the details and the politics of faery life. The suspense remains taut, as the point of view shifts between Aislinn, Keenan and Donia, allowing the reader to develop sympathy for all of them. Marr's lyrical language and sensual imagery capture both the confused emotions and the physicality of adolescence.
The romantic scenes are delicious. The fantasy of being pursued by two young men is alluring in itself, but when one is a pierced and tattooed sexy outsider and the other is a blindingly beautiful King of Faery, how much better can it get? Halfway through the book, I knew which characters I wanted to end up together, and that made me read greedily on.
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Journal Entry 2 by xallroyx at Mailed to another BookCrosser, A Book Swap! -- Controlled Releases on Saturday, October 10, 2009
Released 2 yrs ago (10/10/2009 UTC) at Mailed to another BookCrosser, A Book Swap! -- Controlled Releases CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:
CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:
Sending for swap!
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Journal Entry 4 by Supertalya at APO AP, -- US Military (all branches) -- USA on Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Released 2 yrs ago (11/11/2009 UTC) at APO AP, -- US Military (all branches) -- USA CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:
CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:
Picked out of the Teen VBB by yourotherleft
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Journal Entry 5 by yourotherleft from Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania USA on Saturday, November 21, 2009
Part of my review, cross-posted from my blog:
Wicked Lovely is the first in a series of books author Melissa Marr has penned about faeries the fourth of which, Radiant Shadows, was released in April. Though certainly a part of the burgeoning crop of paranormal young adult fiction on the market lately, Wicked Lovely stands out from the crowd. Wicked Lovely isn't just a fast moving plot. It's got good writing with intriguing characters, both good and bad, that are fleshed out and become sympathetic. While Seth is almost too good to be true when it comes to boyfriend material, Aislinn doesn't fall into the crowd of paranormal heroines who are irritatingly whiny or whose most defining characteristic is clumsiness or something similarly shallow. She is a strong and thoughtful main character in a story filled with captivating characters, both mortal and otherwise.
The story is well-paced, and each chapter begins with an interesting and relevant quote from books about faeries. Marr's attention to detail regarding faerie lore makes the world of faerie seem terribly real, and her ability to weave it all into a compelling story makes for an excellent read for young adults and older adults well. This is a series that I'm eager to follow.
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Journal Entry 6 by yourotherleft at Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania USA on Sunday, August 22, 2010
Released 1 yr ago (8/21/2010 UTC) at Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania USA CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:
Sent to Appa who took it out of the Teen VBB on Bookobsessed.com. Enjoy!
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Journal Entry 7 by appaloosatb at Byron, Minnesota USA on Friday, September 03, 2010
I read this a few years back, and look forward to reading it again. I'll wait until I have the other two books from the trilogy in hand first, so I can read them all together. Thanks for sharing!
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Journal Entry 8 by appaloosatb at Rochester, Minnesota USA on Monday, December 27, 2010
This lost nothing in the re-reading. The world was still as interesting as ever, and I am really digging into the rest of the series.
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Wicked Lovely
