I love this book because it's dealing with magical creatures and a girl who have to make a tough deceition to be the summer queen or to be the winter queen ( )

This book was overall good and I could easily connect with the characters. I thought the story moved by a little too fast, though. Also, the characters didn't have... "human" reactions... When Aislinn tells Seth she can see The Fey, he doesn't seem creeped out at all by this and sort off blows it off. Then, out of the blue, he starts to help her with the fearies, acting as if the whole thing is normal. I also didn't really like how they kept changing perspectives, but it helped give me thoughts on what the other characters were thinking. But, overall, it had a great storyline and a beautiful love/hate realationship with Kennan. The ending was very unexpected, but great none the less. I would recomend this book to everyone! ( )

I'll start with the inevitable - The obvious comparison to Twilight. This was a much better book than Twilight. It has characters that make sense, a Heroine who is has an actual true reason for being the Loner girl, but still manages to have friends kept at a distance. She doesn't give up her life for her love interest and she is smart and actually has plans for the future.

Now, the book really isn't much like Twilight at all, with exception of the loner girl and the immortal who wants her. The girl is totally believable. She has a reason to keep her distance from everybody and has managed to do it without becoming a total loner. Her love interest is also believable, I've known men like him, friendly to everyone, but only close to a few.

The fairies are truly scary. Ash (short for Aislinn) has a very good reason to be scared of them. Melissa Marr manages to capture the darkness of the fairy world, but does it discreetly, so the reader has a choice of making this book a very dark fantasy, or reading it as something lighter. There are a number of violent scenes, most relating to the evil Winter Queen, who really is a scary character.

Pacing was a bit slow. The reader is told very early on why Keenan is going after Aislinn. The chapters in between seem mostly filler, with a bit of character development. I also wish that Keenan was written differently - he seems too human in this story. A Summer Elf King should be prone to more emotional fits.

I really enjoyed this story. I especially like the way the story resolved itself. Everybody was true to character and was an intelligent solution, very true to Titania and Oberon. This is the first book in a trilogy, but it ended completely with no unresolved plot lines. ( )

I picked up this book and checked out of reality for a time. I admit it was hard to come back, so I am thankful this is a series. I was completely sucked in to this very special realm created by the very enviable imagination of Melissa Marr. She wastes no time getting the reader fully invested in the story and there are so many strong supporting characters to enhance the book. I also admire the fact that she did not give the character's easy solutions to their dilemmas. ( )

Reviewed by Karin Perry for TeensReadToo.com

Aislinn has always followed the rules. Her Grandmother has drilled them into her since she was a young child. Don't stare at invisible faeries. Don't speak to invisible faeries. Don't ever attract the faeries' attention. Aislinn has developed the skill to ignore them. She walks past them without flinching, even when the faeries are pinching or touching others around her like they love to do.

Faeries come in many shapes and sizes and Aislinn has seen them all. She's seen them in the glamours they wear in order to pass as humans and can pick one out of a crowd even when they are trying to blend in. Aislinn has never been surprised by what she has seen them do - that is, until they start breaking the rules.

Faeries don't like steel. It causes them pain and weakens them. Because of that, Aislinn's "safe" place has always been Seth's house. Seth is a long-time friend who happens to live in a converted steel train car. Aislinn always knew that if she could make it there she'd have peace, because the faeries could never follow her into the train yard. But, something has changed. They are creeping closer and closer and paying more attention to her. They are even gathering outside Seth's place.

Aislinn really begins to worry when two faeries, Keenan and Donia, approach her and speak directly to her. She gets away from them as quickly as possible, now hyper-aware of the growing number of faeries surrounding and following her. She hears them say things like, "Do you think she's the one?" Aislinn realizes that in order to figure out what they want from her she is going to have to break the rules she's grown up with all of her life.

Keenan is the Summer King. His mother, the Winter Queen, has limited his powers and is slowly taking over the elements. Days are colder and eventually everything will be covered in ice, unless Keenan finds the girl who is meant to be his Summer Queen. Together they would have the power to overcome the Winter Queen's chill. Keenan thinks Aislinn is the one and she is in danger because of it. The Winter Queen will do everything she can to prevent her son from getting the power he needs to overthrow her. Another problem, of course, is that Aislinn doesn't want to be Summer Queen. She has avoided faeries all of her life and she sure doesn't want to become one now. Especially when her feelings for Seth have developed into more than friendship - and becoming the Summer Queen would mean spending an eternity with Keenan.

Melissa Marr has written a wonderfully inventive story that incorporates actual quotes from books written on the subject of faeries dating back to the 1800's. Her ability to keep a complicated story with several important characters clear to the reader is phenomenal. The relationship she creates between Aislinn and Seth is heartwarming, leading the reader to fall in love right along with them. If you aren't usually a fan of faerie stories, you might want to give this one a try. The blending of the realistic world and the world of the fey is masterfully done. You'll almost believe faeries are all around you. ( )