Line #6 Literature/WickedLovely


1	[[quoteright:220:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/WickedLovelyBook_1290.JPG]]
2
3	->'''''Rule #3''': Don't stare at invisible faeries.''
4	->'''''Rule #2''': Don't answer invisible faeries.''
5	->'''''Rule #1''': Don't ever attract faeries' attention.''
6
7	''Wicked Lovely'' is a [[YoungAdult YA]] urban fantasy series by Creator/MelissaMarr. It consists of a book of the same name (2007), ''Ink Exchange'' (2008), ''Fragile Eternity'' (2009), ''Radiant Shadows'' (2010), ''Darkest Mercy'' (2011) and later ''Faery Tales & Nightmares'' (2012), a compilation of short stories set in the Wicked Lovely universe among others and ''Desert Tales'' (2013), a companion novel about a former Winter Girl.
8
9	Aislinn is an ordinary human girl -- or she would be, if it weren't for the fact she can see faeries. All her life she's been terrified of them, trying to hide her gift to avoid attracting their attention. But that becomes very difficult when one very powerful faerie starts following her.
10
11	Keenan, the young king of the Summer Court, thinks she might be his prophesied Summer Queen. The one who'll save the fae world from the oppressive rule of the Winter Court. And it's not too long before Aislinn is pulled into a world of dark magic, political intrigue, and romance.
12
13	----
14	!! This series provides examples of:
15	%%* AboveGoodAndEvil: How Irial perceives the Dark Court. See also this page's entry for BlueAndOrangeMorality.
16	%%* ActionGirl: Ani, Chela. All female Hounds probably apply.
17	* AchillesHeel: Iron is poisonous to fey except for monarchs and a select few others like Bananach.
18	* AnAesop:
19	** The series overall swears by the phrase "There are always choices," which gets repeated in every book as the characters challenge the strict rules of the fey courts and forge their own paths.
20	** Ink Exchange, in particular, has the characters (especially Irial) learn that "sometimes love means letting go when you want to hold on tighter." Leslie practically has to spell this out as Irial's obsession with her leads to her losing her ability to feel negative emotions, forcing the two apart.
21	%%** One which doesn't actually get spoken, which is that no-one (Niall and Leslie, in context) is DefiledForever; you can survive, and that's what matters.
22	* AliensSpeakingEnglish: Why Sorcha, who has been around literally forever, speaks perfect -- if overly formal -- modern English despite having never even been to the human world is the worst example, but it applies to several faeries. Mind you, it would be hard to write all dialogue in Gaelic, especially considering most readers wouldn't understand it, so this was probably a common-sense move on Melissa's part. Although faeries HAVE been said to possess the gift of tongues.
23	%%* AllGirlsWantBadBoys: However, it's pretty clear that boys want bad girls as well.
24	%%* AnchoredShip: Aislinn and Keenan.
25	%%* AndIMustScream: Shades [ghosts of faeries], "trapped and silent for all eternity."
26	* AsskickingLeadsToLeadership: The solitary fey work on "rule of might and will", which basically amounts to this. Unusual for this trope, and likely due to FairFolk BlueAndOrangeMorality, this is a ''good'' thing, or at least works for the solitaries.
27	* AuthorCatchphrase: "There are always choices," which doubles as AnAesop, is spoken by a different character every book, sometimes more than once.)
28	* AuthorAppeal: Several characters have similar tastes in music and fashion to Melissa Marr, not to mention the whole tattoo thing in Ink Exchange...
29	%%* AttentionDeficitOohShiny: Ani, according to WordOfGod.
30	%%* AxCrazy: Bananach.
31	%%* AnIcePerson: The Winter Court.
32	%%* BadassNormal: Aislinn's grandmother; Seth [[spoiler: (most of the time).]]
33	* BalanceBetweenGoodAndEvil: In Radiant Shadows especially: "Without shadows, the [[TitleDrop radiance]] was insufficient."
34	%%* BattleCouple: Ani and Devlin; Gabriel and Chela.
35	%%* BeCarefulWhatYouSay
36	%%* BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor: Poor Leslie.
37	* BedmateReveal: In Radiant Shadows, involving Irial, Ani, and Niall. Niall walks into Irial's house while Ani is awakening from sleep, and he immediately comes to the wrong conclusion.
38	%%* BloodKnight: Bananach, the Hounds.
39	* BlueAndOrangeMorality: Pretty much everyone. For example, [[spoiler: Donia stabbing Aislinn might seem like a pretty harsh move, but due to her position as the Winter Queen, it was politically (and, arguably, metaphysically) necessary for Donia to take whatever measures necessary to limit Summer's ability to meddle in her Court.]]
40	%%* BodyguardCrush: Even though Niall kinda fails at the bodyguard part.
41	* BreakTheHaughty: Whilst not quite an example, Iri tries to warn Devlin of this in Radiant Shadows.
42	--> "Pride comes before a fall, my friend. But then, you've already fallen, haven't you?"
43	%%* BrokenBird: Leslie. Donia as well, who is arguably even more of a woobie, just the [[IronWoobie iron]] variety.
44	* BroughtDownToNormal: [[spoiler:Keenan at the end of Darkest Mercy, after giving up his immortality to save Donia's life. He gets better in the epilogue, though.]]
45	* ByTheEyesOfTheBlind: Only some humans, like Aislinn and her grandmother, can naturally See faeries.
46	%%* ByronicHero: Irial.
47	* CannotTellALie: Extensive use, in accordance with old fairy folklore. There are ways to work around it however which are used extensively, such as omission or evasion.
48	%%* CastingAShadow: The dark and [[spoiler: shadow]] courts, of course.
49	%%* ChickMagnet: Irial, Niall, Keenan, Seth
50	%%* CuteGhostGirl: Rae, the spectral girl who Devlin takes into his care.
51	%%* CityNoir: Huntsdale, just...Huntsdale.
52	%%* TheChosenOne: Aislinn, [[spoiler: Ani.]]
53	%%** TheUnChosenOne: Donia, Rika.
54	* DarkIsEvil: The denizens of the Dark Court. Subverted somewhat with Irial and [[spoiler: Niall]], who consciously hold their Court at least somewhat in check. Water fey as well, as glimpsed throughout the series and in Darkest Mercy previews. FAR more so than the Dark Court, they are borderline sociopaths to mortal standards, or at least completely, utterly alien. Even most 'normal' fey fear them.
55	* DarkIsNotEvil: Also applies to the Dark Court. Both Dark Is Evil and Dark Is Not Evil can apply to them because of the Blue and Orange Morality of faeries. Death fey like Far Dorcha [[spoiler: and the Shadow Court]] as well.
56	%%* DecadentCourt: Everyone, really, but most especially the Dark Court - again.
57	%%* DreamWeaver: Rae.
58	%%* DarkAndTroubledPast: Niall.
59	%%* DysfunctionJunction: Everyone has issues of some kind. EVERYONE. Misery loves company and faeries, evidently.
60	%%* EarnYourHappyEnding: Definitely. These characters go through a ''lot'', and things get pretty bad for faerie as a whole at points, but it's worth it in the end.
61	%%* EmotionEater: The Dark Court, Ani especially.
62	%%* EmotionsVsStoicism: Though it plays out a bit differently then most examples of the trope, with Dark (emotion) fey being portrayed more sympathetically than their High Court (stoicism) counterparts.
63	%%* EvenTheGuysWantHim: Oh, ''Irial''. Niall too. Remember the scene with Seth lusting on him in Fragile Eternity?
64	* EveryoneCallsHimBarkeep: The Gabriel is always referred to as such. Marr has stated that he had another name before, and that it's not secret but it's not relevant either.
65	%%* EvilIsDeathlyCold: Beira.
66	%%* FaceHeelTurn: Niall. Probably inevitable, but more interesting angsty.
67	%%* TheFairFolk: Pretty much the very engine of the series.
68	%%* FatalFlaw: Way to withhold vital info, Keenan.
69	%%* FemmeFatalons: Bananach. Of course, without faery glamour, they're ''literal'' talons.
70	* FetishizedAbuser: Irial comes off as an abusive boyfriend in regards to Leslie and Niall. However, he's a ChickMagnet and learns AnAesop later in the plot. Also, the consequences of his toxic behavior are mild at best.
71	%%* FreakinessShame: Think Niall's extensive scarring might be unattractive? Pfft.
72	* FriendVersusLover: Keenan and Seth do NOT get along. It's mostly because each is jealous of the other's relationship with Aislinn.
73	* TheFogOfAges: Sorcha has been around since faerie was first created, and by her own admission doesn't remember a lot of it.
74	* ForHappiness: The Summer Court's basic mentality. Keenan's Summer Girls in particular serve as a strong 'choose happiness' thing.
75	--> "Sometimes, it's not about being happy, but courting happiness."
76	%%* GreenThumb: Again, the Summer Court.
77	%%* HalfHumanHybrid: Ani, Tish, and Rabbit. To a much lesser extent, Aislinn.
78	%%* HalfTruth: What else did you expect from TheFairFolk?
79	%%* TheHighQueen: Sorcha, of course. She's even called the High Queen.
80	* HorrorHunger: Negative emotions (fear, hatred, pain, lust, greed, etc) are the Dark Court's source of nourishment.
81	%%* IdiotBall: Aislinn in Fragile Eternity, Sorcha in Radiant Shadows.
82	* ImportantHaircut: Niall had much longer hair in the backstory, but cut it very short when he left the dark court, both as a symbolic gesture of 'not looking back' and for more practical trauma-related reasons, according to WordOfGod.
83	%%* InterplayOfSexAndViolence: The Dark Court, and how.
84	* InterspeciesRomance: Aislinn and Seth, Keenan and Donia [[spoiler: (once Keenan is human and also when Keenan is courting Donia while searching for the Summer Queen)]], all of the courting with mortal girls Keenan does while trying to find the Summer Queen counts as well.
85	%%* JumpedAtTheCall: Ani in Radiant Shadows. Given that she didn't fit in the Dark Court or among Gabriel's Hounds, it's quite understandable.
86	%%* KilledOffForReal: [[spoiler: Tish in ''Radiant Shadows''. Evan and Gabriel as well in ''Darkest Mercy''.]]
87	%%* LandOfFaerie: Where the High and Shadow Courts reside.
88	%%* LightIsNotGood: The Summer Court is far from perfect and the High Court is implied to be the villain in Radiant Shadows.
89	%%* LoveHurts: Hoo, ''boy''.
90	%%* MagicalGirl: Um... all of them?
91	* MakingASplash: Water fey, like Aobheall and Innis, have been mentioned throughout the series and according to the snippets on the author's website pay a big role in the final book. [[spoiler: Namely, they're vital allies to the Courts in the final battle against Bananach.]]
92	%%* MamaBear: [[spoiler: Sorcha towards Seth.]]
93	%%* ManipulativeBastard: Irial, full stop.
94	* MayDecemberRomance: Due to the immortality of the fey, pretty much every couple except Aislinn/Seth and Niall/Irial.
95	* MayflyDecemberRomance: What Irial and Niall's relationship with Leslie is, as well as being a major source of angst for Seth in Fragile Eternity. [[spoiler: He gets better.]]
96	%%* NonHumanSidekick: The Hounds' Steeds, and Donia's wolf Sasha.
97	%%* NobodyThinksItWillWork: The general reaction of the Summer Court to Aislinn's relationship with Seth. [[spoiler: It works out in the end, though.]]
98	* NotHimself: [[spoiler: In Darkest Mercy, the shade of dead Irial persists in Niall's mind, and sometimes takes full possession of the body, causing the already-falling-apart-at-the-seams Niall to black out now and then, only to come to and realize that he's stabbed someone else without being aware of it and other such things. Keenan figures out what's going on after realizing that Niall is not himself and that Niall's behaviour is very similar to the last Dark King, Irial.]]
99	* NotSoDifferentRemark:
100	** After Bananach's visit, Donia begins to believe that she and Beira are the same, and is increasingly afraid that she'll end up killing Keenan like Beira did to Miach and starting a war.
101	** While Devlin appears to embody the traits of the High Court, Ani quickly realises that he has a dark core and belongs in the shadows, like her.
102	%%* OfficialCouple: Aislinn/Seth, Donia/Keenan, Ani/Devlin, Irial/Niall, Niall/Leslie.
103	%%* OmnicidalManiac: Bananach.
104	%%* OnlyKnownByTheirNickname: Rabbit, Gabriel.
105	%%* TheOphelia: If Sorcha wasn't one in Radiant Shadows, she was damn close.
106	%%* OrderVersusChaos: High Court and Dark Court. Sorcha and Bananach. Reason and War. [[spoiler: You can't kill one without killing the other.]]
107	* OurVampiresAreDifferent: Not technically vampires, but needing others' blood is a result of Devlin being the creation of Sorcha and Bananach, and thus the balance between Reason and War.
108	%%* OutWithABang: Pity the poor innocent bystanders in Ink Exchange. Well, poor innocent quasi-bystanders.
109	%%* PlantPerson: Hawthorn (Winter) and Rowan (Summer) fey.
110	* {{Polyamory}}: Niall, Irial, and Leslie are all totally cool with their emotional -- though not physical -- three-way. To a lesser extent, Ani and Rae don't appear to have any qualms about sharing Devlin either.
111	%%* PosthumousCharacter: Miach, the previous Summer King, and Moira, Aislinn's mother.
112	* ThePowerOfTheSun: The Summer Court, of course, especially their king, Keenan. And later Aislinn as the Summer Queen. This comes into play in ''Fragile Eternity'', when Aislinn is seriously wounded by Donia's ice and Keenan heals her by giving her some of his sunlight.
113	* PrettyBoy: Despite the scars, Niall is outright referred to as 'pretty' often.
114	* PutOnABus: [[spoiler: Being a pretty smart girl, Leslie puts herself on a bus at the end of Ink Exchange]]. [[spoiler: She [[TheBusCameBack comes back]] in Darkest Mercy]].
115	%%* RagsToRoyalty
116	%%* RapeAsBackstory: Leslie. Niall as well, even though in his case backstory means '1200 years ago'. Still counts.
117	* RealityWarper: Sorcha, Bananach, [[spoiler: Seth in the human world]], Devlin, Rae in dreams, and arguably [[spoiler: Ani once she becomes Gabrielle of the Shadow Court's Hunt.]]
118	%%* RedStringOfFate: Aislinn and Keenan, though she resists it [[spoiler: -- with success, for the most part.]]
119	%%* ReformedRakes: Seth.
120	%%* ReluctantMonster: Niall as a Gancanagh, [[spoiler: before becoming the Dark King]].
121	%%* ResignedToTheCall: Aislinn at the end of Wicked Lovely.
122	%%** Niall at the end of ''Ink Exchange'', after Irial forces him to become the new Dark King.
123	* SadisticChoice: Irial gives Niall one in their shared backstory, as revealed in Ink Exchange- "You entertain the court or they can, Gancanagh." Niall chose to [[RapeAsBackstory give them himself]].
124	%%* ScarsAreForever: Niall, oh so much so.
125	%%* SealedInsideAPersonShapedCan: Half of Keenan's power as the Summer King, sealed away by Beira and Irial.
126	%%* SeasonalBaggage: Well, two of them: Winter and Summer.
127	* ShownTheirWork: Marr generally gets the folklore right, though, of course, faery lore is already old enough and varied enough that Marr can have quite a bit of wiggle room to make any new innovations she sees fit.
128	%%* SiblingYinYang: Sorcha and Bananach.
129	%%* SmokingIsCool: Oh, Irial...
130	%%* TheSymbiote: How ink exchanges are supposed to work.
131	* ThereAreNoTherapists: Subverted somewhat with Leslie, who is revealed to be having therapy in Stopping Time. Justified with anyone else as no sane therapist would believe them.
132	* TitleDrop: Once a book.
133	** Wicked Lovely: "And he smiled at her, truly smiled- wicked and lovely..."
134	** Ink Exchange: Frequently, but it's to be expected due to ink exchanges being the central plot device as well as the title.
135	** Fragile Eternity: (Ask another troper to find one, but I'm sure it was in Seth's pov.)
136	** Radiant Shadows: "Without shadows, the radiance was insufficient." and "Instead of being wrought of shadows like those from her own court, this faery had a tangled feel. ''Shadow and radiance.''"
137	** Stopping Time: "It's okay to stop time every so often to be with someone you love."
138	%%* TookALevelInBadass: Niall in Fragile Eternity, Aislinn in Darkest Mercy.
139	%%* TroubledButCute: Niall.
140	* TryNotToDie: The last line of Radiant Shadows is Devlin telling Seth, "Try not to die, brother."
141	%%* UnderstandingBoyfriend: The degree to which Seth embodies this trope comes dangerously close to ridiculousness.
142	%%* UnwantedSpouse: Their shared leadership of the Summer Court puts Aislinn and Keenan in this kind of relationship.
143	%%* WhatIsEvil: Irial tends to do this a bit. See "above good and evil", above. Some people thought [[http://wickedlovely.com/forum1/index.php?topic=1321.0 a bit too much]] about it, as well.
144	%%* WillingChanneler: [[spoiler: What the ink exchange makes Leslie into.]]
145	%%* WinterRoyalLady: Beira and Donia.
146	* WhereTheHellIsSpringfield: Huntsdale was actually assumed to be in Pennsylvania, until Melissa said she deliberately left it ambiguous.
147	%%* TheWildHunt: The Gabriel hounds, and possibly the shadow court.
148	* WomanScorned: Implied to be the reason for Beira turning all psycho (because of Miach). Donia also has her moments (because of Keenan). It must be a Winter Court thing.
149	%%* WonderChild: [[spoiler: Seth, pretty much.]]
150	* YearInsideHourOutside: Every month spent in Faerie is six months in the human world, which somewhat explains why the High Court's mannerisms seem so old fashioned.
151	%%* YouSexyBeast

Context Literature / WickedLovely