Published: May 1, 2008
Pages: 325
Source: Library
Rating: 4 Stars - I Loved It!
Description: Unbeknownst to mortals, a power struggle is unfolding in a world of shadows and danger. After centuries of stability, the balance between the Faerie Courts has altered, and Irial, ruler of the Dark Court, is battling to hold his rebellious and newly-vulnerable fey together. If he fails, bloodshed and brutality will follow.
17-year-old Leslie knows nothing of faeries or their intrigues. When she is attracted to an eerily beautiful tattoo of eyes and wings, all she knows is that she has to have it, convinced it is a tangible symbol of changes she desperately craves for her own life.
The tattoo does bring changes—not the kind that Leslie had dreamed of, but sinister, compelling changes that are more than symbolic. Those changes will bind Leslie and Irial together, drawing Leslie deeper and deeper into the faerie world, unable to resist its allures, and helpless to withstand its perils.
In short: Ink Exchange by Melissa Marr is darker and edgier than Wicked Lovely but just as engaging. I still hate Keenan.
After reading Wicked Lovely, I was really looking forward to reading more about Aislinn and Seth's story so I was a bit bummed that they were only secondary characters in Ink Exchange. Instead, Ink Exchange focuses on three different characters who were minor in Wicked Lovely. The story rifts off of a two second scene in Wicked Lovely where Aislinn runs into her friend Leslie and a dark faery in a tattoo parlour.
Leslie comes from a broken home. Her mother abandoned her. Her father is an alcoholic. Her brother is a drug addict who abuses her. And one time, her brother let his drug dealer rape her. Definitely much darker than Wicked Lovely. Like an episode of Degrassi on crack.
Still, I found I could admire Leslie's strength to overcome what has happened to her in the past. There was something very powerful about her decision to get a tattoo, reclaiming her body as her own after the rape, making herself whole again. It's this quality that in her that makes her an ideal candidate for an ink exchange with the Dark King which would bind them together and allow the Dark King to feed on mortal emotions through her.
Thankfully, Keenan, the Summer King, was in this one a lot less than in Wicked Lovely. Unfortunately, he's still a dick. He purposely puts Leslie in danger and he manipulates his friend and Leslie's love interest, Niall, to get what he wants. I'm wondering if I'll ever come to like him.
We get to learn more about faery mythology in Ink Exchange, specifically the Dark Court. Still, I wish we got a little more background information during some of the scenes. Some scenes were a bit confusing and I had to read them twice to figure out what was going on.
Overall, Ink Exchange wasn't as fun as Wicked Lovely with its serious subject matter, but I still found myself taken into the story of Leslie as she struggles to reclaim herself. This book was largely about the importance of making your choices your own and the ending of Leslie's story was very satisfying in this respect.
Previously, My Review for Wicked Lovely
Other Reviews:
i swim for oceans
Musings of a Reader Happy
Novels On The Run
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*Read as part of the YA Series Challenge
*Qualifies for the Into the Old World Reading Challenge
*The Letter I in the A-Z Reading Challenge
