Review – Ink Exchange by Melissa Marr (3/5 stars)

This is the second book by Melissa Marr. It is in the same world as “Wicked Lovely” and many of the same characters are present. It happens after the events in “Wicked Lovely” but follows the story of Leslie one of Ash’s friends.

Leslie is having a rough time; with a dad who constantly drinks and a brother who is always high, she has a tough time keeping it together. Things change when she decides to get a tattoo and gets drawn into a world of darkness she never even knew existed.

I liked Leslie’s character better than Ash’s character. Leslie had more depth and struggled against a darkness in her nature that was interesting. As for the rest of the story it was okay. The book is a quick read and I was never bored. Still there is something two-dimensional about Marr’s writing style. The characters still feel a bit flat and the story is predictable. I don’t really think the world is all that creative either. The deal with the tattoo was interesting and probably the most creative part of the book. The writing style is very straight-forward; nothing lush or even all that descriptive.

I feel like this is the beginning of a series involving Leslie. This book (although wrapping up the main story line) left many things hanging and left the reader wondering. I didn’t feel like the story was as complete as “Wicked Lovely” was.

Overall, I am finding that Marr writes books that are quick, brainless, summer reads. They are okay and kind of engaging but nothing all that special. I am again going to recommend Holly Black’s Fairy Tale series as a great replacement to this series. Also Charles DeLint’s Moonheart duology is another great fairy book. In fact I like Pike’s “Wings” better than this book too. So if you are looking for a good modern fairy tale I would check out those books.

Will I read the next book, “Fragile Eternity”? Maybe. I will probably get it from the library. As I said these are super quick reads, 3-4 hours tops, so it’s not a huge investment for a little fun.