chipperHarperTeen, hardcover
336 pages, urban fantasy/dark fairy tale/young adult romance
Currently in print
***
After finishing Wicked Lovely -- and if you haven't read it, you need to walk away from this entry RIGHT NOW, because there's no possible way for me to avoid spoiling you, and it's a book that deserves to be read without spoilers if at all possible. Go on. The post can wait. But anyway, after finishing Wicked Lovely, I was anxious to start on Ink Exchange as quickly as possible. I had to wait a few days, because Autumn had it first, but once I got it, I devoured it in no time at all.
Ink Exchange is not about Aislinn and Keenan, the main characters of Wicked Lovely and the regents of the Summer Court. They're present in the book, even pivotal at some points, but this book isn't theirs. That's actually one of the truly lovely things about it; we just spent a lot of time with these people, and now we're having the chance to see them through someone else's eyes. Those eyes aren't always kind. Are anyone's?
Instead, this is a book about Leslie, one of Aislinn's mortal friends; about Niall, Keenan's right-hand man and staunch supporter; and Irial, the King of the Dark Court. (As a footnote, there have been four Courts identified so far -- Summer, Winter, Dark, and High. There are also Solitary Fae, who claim no Court, and Death Fae, who seem to be hazardous to your health. This is nowhere near as confusing in practice as it sounds on paper.) Leslie has been hurt very badly by the actions of her drug-dealing brother, and by the sudden secretiveness of Aislinn, who used to be a close friend and is now wrapped up in a world Leslie isn't part of.
Leslie is looking for freedom. She's looking for stability. She's looking for answers. She decides to start with a tattoo...and that's where the trouble begins. It seems that the sudden peace between the Summer and Winter Courts is starving the Dark Court, whose fae need dark emotions to survive. Irial, the King of the Dark Court, has been trying to find ways to save them...including the ink exchange, a mystic tattoo that allows him to pull dark emotions from mortals, as well as from the fae world.
Leslie is in for a lot more than she ever bargained for.
Ink Exchange is a darker, scarier book than Wicked Lovely, which only makes sense, given that it deals with the Dark Court and its shadows, rather than the sunlight of the Summer Court. Leslie's conflict is believable, and while the ending is probably not what people would have expected it to be, it's a completely reasonable ending for the story it accompanies. Melissa Marr is clearly enthralled with tattoos and the process of tattooing, which shows through clearly in the book's tattooing sequences. If it weren't for the whole 'tied to the Dark Court' side-effect, I think a lot of teen girls would be pestering their parents for tattoos.
I found Ink Exchange somewhat less engrossing than Wicked Lovely, if only because it focused strongly on things that aren't relevant to my interests -- but they may be relevant to yours. It's well-written, strong, and gripping, and I'm planning to read it again. Definitely recommended, and it's something anyone who enjoyed Wicked Lovely is likely to enjoy.
August 16 2008, 23:48:02 UTC 8 years ago
August 17 2008, 18:36:49 UTC 8 years ago