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Aislinn’s life is run by three laws: don’t stare at faeries, don’t speak to faeries, and definitely don’t do anything to attract their attention. Ever since she was a little girl, Aislinn has been able to see faeries that no one else can see. Some are beautiful and some are hideous, but all have the power to bring her life to a sudden and terrible halt.

One day, the worst happens – a faerie, a handsome young man with great power, one who can be seen by all, takes an interest in Aislinn. Now her rules don’t work, as faerie from all over begin to follow her, notice her, and Aislinn is caught up in a dark faerie tale – one that could crush her.

In the boom of the teen book market, fantasy has bloomed with a spectacular re-awakening. The wake of Harry Potter is a wide one, and in it a small explosion has taken place. Titles like The Twilight Series and Eragon, and authors such as Holly Black and Tamora Pierce have led the way, the newest heirs to a throne created by greats such as C.S. Lewis and Madeline L’Engle. The question then becomes, why buy this book? Why read this author?

Wicked Lovely is the first novel by author Melissa Marr, and the beginning of the book is a little slow, a little indicative of a first time author. It was, however, compelling; though many have chosen to go for the anti-princess hero in their modern fairy tales (Holly Black is an excellent example of this), Aislinn is something of an outcast, drawn to the world of pool halls and piercings, and an enigmatic boy named Seth who has no parents and lives in a train car. On the verge of a sexual awakening, she is an ideal heroine for your average Jane teen girl who isn’t one of Gossip Girl’s teen queens. She’s bumbling, awkward, shy, and is special in a way Scott Westerfield can’t touch. Quickly, the audience is drawn in by her.

But that isn’t the only appeal. The dark world of the faerie painted by Melissa Marr is exquisite, yet sharp and edgy both in originality and the textural sense given by Marr’s prose. Without being overly wordy, Marr illustrates the angry world and vicious embodiment of the faerie, all without losing the graceful touch of beauty. Her words are a delight to imagine. As the adventure moves on, the reader is increasingly drawn in. Though the end was somewhat predictable, it still came with the happy release of build up tension and plot.

Wicked Lovely is a first book that shows great promise. It moves on a fine line of adult content, touching it without reveling in it, solidly landing the book solidly in teen territory, which in this market, is a beautiful, highly crossed over place to be in.

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