Ink Exchange audiobook

Wicked Lovely, Melissa Marr's first novel, was on my Best of 2007 list and I've been very excited about the sequel, Ink Exchange. The storyline follows Aislinn's friend Leslie. Leslie is surrounded by a fog of secrets and unable to break through the fog because of something that happened to her while Aislinn was caught up in her own set of the tumultuous events in Wicked Lovely. The gulf between the two girls only grows wider as they find themselves unable to talk about how they have each been irrevocably altered. While Aislinn negotiates a tricky truce between Keenan and Seth, Leslie is left to fend for herself, waitressing tables to pay the bills, and avoiding going home for any length of time. She is also storing away a little cash to get a tattoo as a symbol of taking her life back and escaping the terror that's dominated it for too long.Turns out she's not completely alone, though. Aislinn has commissioned Niall, Keenan's friend and right hand man, to watch over Leslie, haunting her steps in order to protect her from the Dark Court faeries who seem to have developed a sudden, unhealthy interest in her. Chief among Aislinn's worries is Irial, the Dark King himself. But, unbeknownst to any of them, Leslie has chosen Irial's tattoo to ink on her back, a process which will link the girl and the Dark King, allowing him to feed off human emotion through her, and thereby keep his people from starving. Add to that the complication that Niall is falling in love with Leslie. Irial is falling in....something....with Leslie. And Niall and Irial have A History. A long, dark, twisted, and surprisingly moving one.The thing about Ink Exchange is, just when you think it can't get any worse, it does. With a vengeance. A sort of hazy, starbursty kind of worse. Until you want to run screaming onto the page, snatch Leslie (and Niall, and, yes, Irial, too) in your arms and stash them away somewhere warm and safe and dry until they're able to heal. Short of being able to do that, you keep reading. I liked Leslie. I liked her a lot. And I hated that she had so few choices available and that, for the majority of the book, she was being manipulated left and right. By those who loved her, wanted her, and hated her alike. It made me mad. At all the characters, even as I loved them. Even my beloved Seth who seemed to see clearer than anyone, except perhaps Irial. And it made the ending a very satisfying one. But it wasn't an easy read. And it wasn't a pleasant one. And I still, epilogue be damned, have the aforementioned urge to run in and save them all. But I will wait. Somewhat impatiently. For book three.

4.5 ✨ Where do I start?This was dark on every level and every note. I put in a list of the TW at the end of this review because it was a lot to read about in a YA urban fantasy about fae. Was it different from the first book? Yes. Better? In terms of matter, content, a more interesting FMC, and heavier themes, definitely. But my god, to what purpose? Leslie was used, abused, taken advantage of from nearly every single character in this book whether voluntarily or involuntarily, with the exception of Seth of course (my darling could never). From the beginning to the end, her autonomy was snatched away from her, she was assaulted, her choices were made for her by every male character, including her ‘friend’ Aislinn. And DON’T EVEN GET ME STARTED ON THEM KNOWING SHE WAS SA’D AND THEN PROCEEDED TO DO NOTHING ABOUT IT. I’m livid, fuming, raging for my poor girl. She was done so unjustly. And here’s what I like about the book, the fact that there is no clear delineation between good and evil, there are fae who do what they need to do ensure their courts survival. Being a fae in the summer court doesn’t make you inherently ‘good’ and being a fae in the dark court doesn’t make you ‘evil’. Niall and Irial are a direct example of that. I think fans of dark romance would enjoy this book since so much of the themes align with subject matter of that genre. The male characters were written in that way, dark, abusive, alpha-holes who want to claim a kid in high school (🤮). THIS IS NOT A DIG AT DARK ROMANCE LOVERS ITS SOMETHING THAT IS IN THE BOOK THAT I AM CRITICIZING!!!! There isn’t any mature content but the implication is there. Am I happy with the way the book ended? Not really but if meant that Leslie got where she needed to be then I’m okay with that. Not sure what to expect from book 3 since it’s Seth’s and I’m keeping my fingers and toes crossed that I stay enamoured by him. This book can be read as a stand-alone. Tw: substance use, SA and rape, attempted suicide, use of a slur against lesbians (so I guess lesbophobia), misogyny, smoking, emotional abuse, death, crude/derogatory language against women.

Welcome back to the world first created by Melissa Marr for Wicked Lovely. A world where faeries exist and roam among humans without their knowledge. In this companion novel to Wicked Lovely, we get to know Leslie, one of Ash’s best friends. Since Ash and Keenan defeated the Winter Queen and gained power, peace has reigned between the Summer and Winter Courts. Ash doesn’t go anywhere without guards and her closest friends are guarded too. Leslie has had a rough home life ever since her mother left. Her dad is usually drunk and rarely comes home. Her brother is high all the time on a variety of drugs and brings dangerous people around the house. Leslie learned that the hard way and has the scars to prove it. Leslie enjoyed the time she isn’t at home whether that means she is at work or at school. Niall is Keenan’s, the Summer King’s, right hand. He often guards Leslie and feels his desire for her growing each time he sees her. He doesn’t realize she feels the same way about him. If he knew, it would only make it harder on him to not be able to have contact with her. Niall can’t physically touch humans. His touch is as addictive as a drug. It leaves humans begging for his constant embrace until they eventually go mad. Keeping his distance from Leslie becomes impossible when Irial sets his sites on her. Irial is the King of the Dark Court and feeds himself and those connected to him by taking the emotions of fear, lust, anger, greed, and jealousy from other fey as well as humans. Since the peace between the Summer and Winter Courts there hasn’t been enough of the dark emotions to sustain the entire Dark Court. Irial has developed a way to feed through a human. His blood and the tears from the Dark Court Faeries are mixed with ink used to tattoo the person he’ll use to feed. Leslie has decided getting a tattoo is a way she can reclaim some control over her life and decides on the symbol that will link her to Irial and eventually lead to her death. Niall must break his rule about human contact in order to keep Leslie safe and ends up falling in love with her.The battle between the Dark Court and the Summer Court revolves around Leslie. Unfortunately, she doesn’t know what is going on since Ash doesn’t want her to know about the Faery world. Ash thinks if Leslie doesn’t know, she’ll be safe. Instead, Leslie gets the tattoo and feels the immediate draw to Irial where she is used to feed the Dark Court. Niall is willing to do everything he can to ensure Leslie’s safety once she is under Irial’s control even if means breaking his ties to the Summer Court. Can Niall get Leslie’s life back? Can he win her love? Will she be any better with him than with Irial? Read INK EXCHANGE to find out. You won’t be disappointed. INK EXCHANGE is just as captivating as Wicked Lovely. I can’t wait for the third book.

2014 rating: 5 stars2020 rating: 4 starsugh it feels so good to be back in the world that introduced me to YA fantasy. I have a lot of nostalgia towards this series and after rereading wicked lovely last year I was scared nostalgia would be the only thing left to enjoy with this series but melissa marr really glowed up with her second book. the fae in this series are the most genuine fae I have read in that the author is not afraid to make them brutal, cruel, manipulative, & selfish beings. not a single faerie in this book is “good” nor “evil”. they all do horrible things in the name of loyalty & survival; the summer court aren’t the good guys and the dark court aren’t the bad guys. the world is my favorite part of this series & how political it is by showing the complexity of morality & immortality through the different groups of fae. I love that the author wasn’t afraid to tackle themes like sexual assault, substance abuse, codependency, etc in a YA series and do it WELL. don’t get me wrong, there are many unhealthy interactions between characters but nothing is ever romanticized and all characters go through self discovery & growth as the series progresses. I’m just so, so excited to continue my reread of this and if you haven’t read this series yet DO IT. I promise trudging through the first book will be worth it.

In her essay "The Collapsible Woman", Vanessa Veselka talks about how society expects all victims of rape to break and collapse. She argues that we don't know how to deal with survivors rather than victims. But clearly Marr knows how. Like the previous book in this series, the human characters are so real, full of all the strengths and weakness that make up real teenage women. This book is particularly compelling because it deals with darker issues like rape and addiction in a real way. Marr makes it clear that things are rarely black and white and that recovery from addiction and abuse is a process. The ending might not be as satisfying for a reader looking for a happily ever after with things tied up nice and neat, but I appreciated the realism (even though it's all about faeries) of this book's ending.

Ink Exchange is the companion novel to Wicked Lovely, which basically means that it is not the sequel to Wicked Lovely, but is still set in the same world and has many of the same characters as Wicked Lovely. Personally, I like Ink Exchange better than I did Wicked Lovely. To be fair, WL was one of the first fae novels that I’d read, along with the Holly Black series, so I was just getting to know about the glamours and the sight and all that fae lingo. Ink Exchange is definitely the darker novel of the too, this one is basically about addiction. It revolves around one of Ash’s friends Leslie, Irial, the king of the Dark Court, and Niall, Keenan's adviser. I love this world that Marr has created where faeries and mortals co-exist. She paints a beautiful world full of mayhem and chaos! And I love that she doesn’t give a happy fairy-tale ending, well the ending that I wanted to see anyway, and yet I find that it was very satisfying. The characters in this novel are fantastic. You have the Dark Court, which obviously is supposed to be bad, but are they really? Every character is flawed, they have these wonderful qualities and yet they also have these bad qualities. It’s refreshing to be unable to label who’s good and who’s evil. There was a lot more depth than I was expecting. My first impressions of Leslie from Wicked Lovely were extremely off. She is one of the most complex characters and it was totally unexpected. I really recommend this one for dark fantasy fans.

I felt for Leslie: she had gone through so much. I also liked Niall who had his own painful past. I thought I wouldn't like this but somehow the book got me loving this ugly world with desires & temptations. I loved chemistry between Leslie & Niall and I loved the writing that wasn't too dramatic.This was quite heavy book to read! Leslie was living in dirty world and there were several unbelievable disturbing things. But at the same time atmosphere was created well because I felt the darkness and even though I didn't like it this made me feel it.The first part of the book was really intriguing but the last 1/3 less so. I loved the ending, but I know it surely divides opinions.

I found this book to be much more adult than "Wicked Lovely". Melissa scores a homerun with this book and completely recommend teens and adults to read it.Melissa has a wonderful voice and a great sense of the faery world. I applaud her.

Dark as fooooook, but man, I love Marr's writing style, and her imagination is unbelievable--the creatures in her world are just so fascinating. Love it.

This book was so engaging to me. I was yelling, laughing, frustrated, and engrossed in this book. It seemed like I was telling my sister my thoughts every 5 pages, and we discussed what the characters were doing, their motivations, and our desires and frustration as the story moved forward. The story left me wanting more in the best way.Pros:-Tie to book 1. I love that this book starts with a scene from book 1, told from Irial and Leslie's POV. It really helps to make this story feel connected to book 1, even though the main characters are different in each story.-"Love triangle" done in unique way. Like Wicked Lovely, Ink Exchange had a love triangle done in a compelling and unique way. (view spoiler)[ The shared history between Irial and Niall creates a compelling dynamic between the two of them. Even with a rough history, they still care for each other and don't want to betray the other. Despite both wanting to be with Leslie, she chooses her own happiness and removes herself from the triangle. (hide spoiler)] -Leslie puts herself first. From choosing to get the tattoo to reclaim her body, to choosing to (view spoiler)[ remove herself from the fey world and be with neither Irial or Niall (hide spoiler)] Leslie is all about self-empowerment and creating her own happiness. Even if she isn't sure of the best ways to engage in it. -Complex faeries. I think it is cool to see the parallels between the faeries we're told are bad (Irial, Gabriel) and who we're told are good (Keenan, Niall). They all have their own motivations that inform their actions and actively work towards their own self-interest. There really isn't good court vs bad court. They are all selfish and manipulative and deceitful, but have real moments showing compassion or care for others.Cons:-Ash being vague about the threat Leslie was facing. I understand she didn't want to take away Leslie's choice about knowing the fey world existed, but her inaction - when she knew Irial was showing interest in Leslie - was also making a choice for her. In trying to protect Leslie from the fey world, she couldn't protect her from the fey world. It was a complex situation and Ash handled it okay, but it could have been better.-Keenan continues to be manipulative, impulsive, and selfish while thinking he's superior to other's who do the exact same thing. I'm not upset that Keenan is volatile or rash or paranoid about becoming weakened again. Those are all characteristics that follow what we know about his character and Summer court fey in general. What is annoying is that it seems that he and others around him, see him as a better person than someone like Irial who shares those qualities. Don't get me wrong, both are bad people, but it seem that Keenan is given somewhat of a pass.-After Leslie's tattoo was completed, some parts of the story were hard to follow. I know that Leslie was in a haze, unsure of what was really going on, but It was a little too unclear in some points.Ink Exchange was a really fun reading experience for me that carried me through many emotional stages and kept me turning the page. The story's resolution is satisfying and leaves you wanting more of this world.

Credo che il succo del libro sia rinchiuso in una sua frase:A volte amare significa lasciare andare ciò che si vorrebbe stringere a se.Cavolo, io facevo il tifo per (view spoiler)[Niall (hide spoiler)]!!!Comunque... nonostante il deludente finale, mi è piaciuto molto.Irial all'inizio non l'avevo inquadrato bene, poi però mi ha stupito: "corrotto" dell'umanità di Leslie, il suo cuore oscuro comincia a provare sentimenti che non si accordano con il suo ruolo di re della Corte Oscura.Niall, invece, l'ho adorato sin dall'inizio: la seguiva e la proteggeva nell'ombra, resistendo all'attrazione che prova per lei finché un giorno non cede alla tentazione. Mi ha delusa un po', però, il suo atteggiamento mentre lei era nelle mani di Irial, pensavo che avrebbe cercato di liberarla in qualche modo ma invece non fa niente finché non la reincontra un giorno per strada.Leslie ha subito molte disgrazie nella sua breve vita e sono felice per lei alla fine, nonostante tutto.

Actual rating 4.5Critically Plot - 4.5 out of 5 starsSlow in pace. Incredibly dark, twice as dark as the first book. A lot of different POV's. Full of intrigue, magic, really tough subjects are discussed and an unusual ending. Writing Style - 4 out of 5 starsDeliberate, detailed, and dark. Really sultry and mysterious. It helps to keep you guessing as to the plot. The whole time it feels like there's something lurking right around the corner. Characters - 4 out of 5 starsOverall, the characters in this book are incredibly complex and complicated. They all have so many facets to their personalities and so many reasons for why they do the things they do. Leslie, our main character, is incredibly vulnerable and somewhat naive in the beginning. She gets easily manipulated by different people and gets herself in a tough situation but she grows and becomes stronger and more decisive. We have two other male point of views who are both very different and at the same time similar to each other. They both want Leslie for personal reasons and they go about ways to get to her. They also have a strange dynamic with each other and it's all so crazy and intense.Emotionally(view spoiler)[The first time I tried to read this story, I only got a few chapters in and I didn't like it. So happy and glad that I gave it another chance.The plot of this book really took me by surprise. I was expecting dark but not as dark as it actually, twice as much as the first book. We learn about something called Ink Exchange which is basically a process that allows a person to become a conduit of emotions to feed the members of the Dark Court. Leslie undergoes this process and the whole process is, for lack of a better word, dirty. What makes it even worse is the fact that Leslie has no idea what is really going on. She thinks she's getting a tattoo that she likes and them BAM! you don't feel anything anymore because all you feel gets sucked out of you and feeds creepy and scary court members. Intense. The aftermath of that process is even more devastating, for all the characters involved, and Marr has a talent of letting the reader feel everyone's reasons for their actions and reactions, no matter how awful they are.Leslie is a touchy character. In the first book, we saw some of her and learned a little about her, just on the surface stuff. I am really glad we got to go more in depth in this book even though she is dealing with a lot. There is some hints of her suffering from sexual abuse (pre first page) at the hands on one of her brother's drug dealers and she's still dealing with the aftermath during the book, one of the reasons she chooses to stay with the Ink Exchange for awhile. That trauma made her susceptible to a lot of the horrors that she faced with the Dark Court but her personal character development and growth is insane. Who she starts out with in the book and how she ends is completely different.Niall is one of my favorite characters in this book. He is so complex. He has so many facets to his character that you don't really know all of them even at the end of this book. He wars with himself a lot and on how she should act and his destiny is open ended at the end of this book and I can't wait to see what happens with him.Irial is such an intense character. He is the Dark King and obviously makes some questionable choices (starting the Ink Exchanges for one) but you sort of understand where he is coming from, he's trying to do his best for his court but he goes a little too far to do so. Although he's really rough and ruthless, he is still affected and begins to care for Leslie which causes him to give him spot to Niall as Dark King.Loved that the ending was not your usual cookie cutter happy ending. Not everyone was satisfied with it but a now strong and independent girl made a decision and stuck to it and I have to give props to Melissa Marr for doing something out of the box and unexpected. (hide spoiler)]

This is the second book in a series, but I think this book can perfectly be read as a standalone as well.I really liked the world building and the mood of this story. It's dark and mysterious, and hints at the magic that's hidden from mundane people.I really liked Leslie. She's been broken, but managed to put herself together again, although the cracks are still showing. It made her both vulnerable and strong. I rooted for her to find the freedom, the change, she is longing for.There are two men who are interested in Leslie, although I wouldn't call it a love triangle. Both Niall and Irial are complex and intriguing characters, and I had a hard time to decide which of them I was rooting for to succeed in his plans. (To be honest, the only characters I didn't care for turned out to be the lead characters of the first book in this series.)The story is compelling and I had to keep reading to see where things would lead to. I love how this story makes you think. It's not black and white, but made up out of many shades of grey.The ending was satisfying, although not what I expected. I'm not sure if I will read other books in this series, because I didn't like the characters who will have the lead roles in the other books in this series. I will investigate what other books Marr has written though.

Wicked Lovely wasn't a book I loved.Despite having it in my wishlist for months,and getting so excited when I read it finally,it disappointed me so much.I even gave up the book after a few pages.So when I stumbled upon it's sequel,I have no idea why I bought it.Well,maybe I knew.It's the cover which did the magic.I mean,who says no to that cover?It seduced me in first glance.So it's fair to say that I was pleasantly surprised to find this book enjoyable.Unlike Aislinn who bored me so much in Wicked Lovely,Leslie's character was great,which I think is the main reason I like this book.Another thing that was better in this one is the heroes.Unlike the first book,I can't actually find out who the main hero is.Irial or Niall.It was really confusing to me to say the truth.I preferred Irial to Niall.He managed me make me love him,even though his character was as dark as midnight.So overall the book was okay to me.But that doesn't mean I'll ever read the sequels.End of my chronicles with the faeries.

I liked this book better than the first in some ways because it dealt with surviving real and terrible things that happen to people, women, in the world. Although the fae world and setting is there, it is ultimately about Leslie's struggle to overcome after being a victim of abandonment, abuse, and rape. She goes through stages of denial, depression, trying to find another man to protect her, escaping in to "addiction", and ends up finding a way to move on. In that way, the story is very successful. All of this is done symbolically in this faerieland book, but, I think the overall message that the author is giving, along with the many hints in between ("it wasn't your fault" is said many times, along with "surviving is enough"), gives a powerful and needed message for anyone who has been similarly broken.