Product Description

Rule #3: Don't stare at invisible faeries.

Aislinn has always seen faeries. Powerful and dangerous, they walk hidden in 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.

Faerie intrigue, mortal love, and the clash of ancient rules and modern expectations swirl together in Melissa Marr's stunning 21^st century faery tale.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #28910 in Books
• Published on: 2007-06-01
• Released on: 2007-06-12
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 336 pages

From The Washington Post
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. Readers will beg for a sequel.

Copyright 2007, The Washington Post. All Rights Reserved.

Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"A fully imagined faery world which even non-fantasy (or faerie) lovers will want to delve into."

Kirkus Reviews
"Enjoyably sultry."

Customer Reviews

Dark and Romantic, but Young and Sweet
The beginning of the book was slow. It took me a while to get into it, but once I did, I couldn't put it down. Marr's characters are sexy and dark, charateristics most young adult novels lack. I've gotten sick of the typical girl (who everyone supposedly can relate to) stealing the main character roles in young adult novels. Marr gives you characters with an inner freak they aren't afraid to unleash!
And its easy to fall in love with the characters, although the Summer King and Winter Girl do fall a bit flat. But the plot thickens and keeps the reader flipping pages.
I loved it. I mean, who doesn't like a boy covered in piercings and tattoos?

Liv's Book Reviews
This must be one of the greatest modern fantasy books ever. I'm a fan of the Tithe series, but that series pales in comparison to Wicked Lovely. It's got suspense, romance, hot guys, magic, and an amazing style. I really couldn't put it down until I was done and I haven't had that happen for a long time. I loved how addicted I got. The faster I read, the faster I felt I needed to go in order to see what would happen next. I also liked how the whole magical aspect of the book didn't feel cheesy or overdone but it was almost as if you could imagine a faery world like the one in the book actually existing. The twists thrown in at the end were the best part by far. The author kept you clueless about some key parts of the story until the very end, when everything got wrapped up cleanly. Another one of my favorite parts was Seth and Aislinn's relationship. Seth was a completely honest and genuine guy who is now going on my list of ideal fantasy boyfriends. He did so much for Aislinn and believed her when no one else would. Which was a little weird to me because I don't think I'd automatically believe someone if they came and told me that faeries were stalking them. I've gotta give Seth props for that. Towards the end, I also grew to have some amount of respect for Keenan too, unexpectedly. Melissa Marr did a great job of making the characters and situations real and personal. I am completely looking forward to the next book Ink Exchange. If you haven't read Wicked Lovely yet, I don't know what you've been doing. I waited way too long to pick up this book.

Beautiful YA urban fantasy
Aislinn sees faeries. She has always been able to see them - and she's always kept this fact a secret, especially from the faeries. But now two of them are stalking her - and one is the Summer King! Suddenly Aislinn's rules for keeping safe from the faeries are failing her, and she wants out. Keenan, the Summer King, is not about to let that happen.

I loved this book! It had me reading until I was too tired to keep my eyes open, then as soon as I woke up again I was back reading the book. It is phenomenal. Goodness. I'm trying to write an actual review here, and not just gush, but it is very hard to do.

Part of what kept me reading was the conflict not only over Aislinn's life - mortal? Summer girl? Winter girl? Summer Queen? - but over her love life as well. I loved Seth, as we as readers are supposed to (after all, we see him through Aislinn's eyes) and wanted to see Aislinn end up with him, but I felt for Keenan as well. The boy (can you really call him a boy if he is hundreds of years old? Yes.) deserved someone to love him and be with him, too. And poor Donia!

I will agree with many of the reviews which peg the Winter Queen as a little too campy. She was over the top, yes. BUT. Faeries are not exactly creatures of half-measures. So, yes, the Winter Queen was your typical "evil" villain, but for a reason. She had a desire - to stay Winter Queen - and her own nature would not let her slide even the slightest bit in pursuit of that goal, even though it meant (figuratively) sacrificing her child, her lover, etc.

One of the things I definitely appreciate is the ending ringing true - no "happily ever after" extreme, but no "things went to hell after that and nothing could bring it back" extreme, either.

Wicked Lovely is a beautiful book, perfect for lovers of YA fantasy, of urban fantasy, or even simply YA lit.