Reviewed by Jaglvr for TeensReadToo.com

Ian Thomas is in jail awaiting trial and the girls are able to relax and return to their lives. Or can they??? Just when the reader thought that the mystery of A has been solved at the end of UNBELIEVABLE, more bizarre events await the girls of Rosewood.

Hanna, Spencer, Emily, and Aria slowly try to settle back into their normal lives. Hanna is working through the trauma of learning that her best friend tried to kill her. She tries to live with her soon-to-be step-sister, Kate, and build up new friendships at school. Spencer is dealing with the cold shoulder she is receiving from her family. And through her grandmother's will, Spencer has just learned that she might be adopted. Aria has ventured to an art exhibit on her own, only to learn that the guy she was maybe flirting with was the artist himself. And finally Emily has met a boy. A boy that sends tingles through her.

The four girls still meet to discuss their grief and pull themselves together for the trial that is about to begin. But when Ian is released on bail to attend to his dying mother, the mysterious text messages start again.

Each girl receives messages that are more haunting than the ones before Ian was arrested. Now, the sender seems to be stalking them. The messages are sent at the most inopportune times, and some even come with photos attached; photos that were taken mere moments before the text arrived.

As the trial looms nearer, the girls are again thrust together trying to piece together the life that was Alison DiLaurentis. In WICKED, the reader gets a glimpse of the past and how the five girls initially became friends. The story hints at the Time Capsule and the flag pieces that bring the girls together.

In WICKED, Ms. Shepard brings the reader even deeper into the intrigue that is Rosewood. Told in alternating voices by each of the girls, the pieces of the puzzle slowly start to come together.

The wonderful thing about the PRETTY LITTLE LIARS series is that Ms. Shepard is able to lead the reader down one path, only to leave the ending wide open and wandering off in a different direction. With the shocking ending of WICKED, the reader will be waiting anxiously for the next installment, KILLER, due out in June 2009. ( )

I finished reading Unbelievable yesterday and immediately started Wicked. At the end of Unbelievable, we learned “A’s” identity and someone was arrested for Ali’s murder. At the beginning of Wicked, it’s a few months later and the trial for Ali’s murder is set to begin. Spencer, Hanna, Emily and Aria will testify against the defendant, hoping to finally bring this tragedy to an end. Unexpectedly, the accused murderer is released on bail due to a family emergency until the trial’s start date. Everyone is stunned after hearing this, especially the four former best friends. Moments later, each girl receives another text from “A”. Not sure whether or not to take it seriously (after all we already know who “A” is) or not, the girls shrugged it off thinking someone is just playing with their minds. Until they each start to receive more texts and soon realize that “A” is back. This time, it’s a “new A” and this “A” seems more deadlier than the first.

Wicked takes the reader back in time to show the events that led up to Ali choosing Emily, Aria, Hanna and Spencer as her new best friends. The four girls were thrilled to belong to Ali’s new clique, but each will learn that there was a price to pay. As each girl tries to accept “A’s” identity, Ali’s murder trial and letting go of their past friendship with Ali, each realizes that it’s not easy to bury the past. Especially when someone is trying very hard to not allow them to forget.

Like the four previous books, Wicked ends with a cliffhanger. I’ve been reading this series back-to-back for the last two weeks and I have to admit, I cannot wait for book 6: Killer. The only problem is, it’s not released until June! ( )

Now that A is gone and Ali's murderer has been found, the girls can finally get back to their normal lives. Once the murderer is sent to jail, all their worries will be gone. But a new A is sending them messages. Are they pranks, or is someone new around. The new A does not seem to know their past as well, but they're being threatened not to tell.

I was worried that now that we know who A was in the first four books, and the killer was caught, there wouldn't be much of a story. (There are going to be eight books in the series.) I'm very happy that we get to read more about them and the story was really good too!

I couldn't put this book down. I carried it around with me the whole time I was reading it. The story was exciting and I had to know what happened next. The characters are easy to relate to and you feel like you know them. It's like you're actually in Rosewood, Pa. (I did hear that it's going to be a movie which will be AWESOME! But I heard that from my friend and she's pretty unreliable.)

Isn't the new cover cute? I'm bought it in hardcover! (Gasp!) Now it doesn't match! ( )

I have to admit I was a little leery about “Wicked”. How long could Sara Shepard possibly drag out the story line? Those fears can now be put to rest. This is a fantastic sequel to the previous books. It contains all the mystery and twists and turns we have come to expect from this author. The only downside is that the next one will not be out until June. ( )