Synopsis:
Twenty-two year old Ivy Morgan isn’t your average college student. She, and others like her, know humans aren’t the only thing trolling the French Quarter for fun… and for food. Her duty to the Order is her life. After all, four years ago, she lost everything at the hands of the creatures she’d sworn to hunt, tearing her world and her heart apart.
Ren Owens is the last person Ivy expected to enter her rigidly controlled life. He’s six feet and three inches of temptation and swoon-inducing charm. With forest-green eyes and a smile that’s surely left a stream of broken hearts in its wake, he has an uncanny, almost unnatural ability to make her yearn for everything he has to offer. But letting him in is as dangerous as hunting the cold-blooded killers stalking the streets. Losing the boy she loved once before had nearly destroyed her, but the sparking tension that grows between them becomes impossible for Ivy to deny. Deep down, she wants… she needs more than what her duty demands of her, what her past has shaped for her.
But as Ivy grows closer to Ren, she realizes she’s not the only one carrying secrets that could shatter the frail bond between them. There’s something he’s not telling her, and one thing is for certain. She’s no longer sure what is more dangerous to her—the ancient beings threatening to take over the town or the man demanding to lay claim to her heart and her soul.
Favorite Lines:
“Why couldn’t he say I reminded him of Ariel or something? Then again, Ariel was kind of stupid, giving up her voice for a dude.”
“I entered the kitchen, and my gaze immediately went to the open cabinet door where I kept my cereal boxes. All twelve of them. I liked my variety when it came to cereal.”
“I’m a lot of things, but today I’m your fucking saving grace.”
My Opinion:
Jennifer L. Armentrout (and her other pen names) is one of my favorite authors. I have been a huge fan of her books for quite some time now and am always amazed at how she can have such a wide variety of detailed story-lines where you fall in love with the characters every single time. Being such a fan, I was slightly disappointed in myself that I had not read this book series that started being published back in 2014. While I was searching for a new book series to dive into, I found this book already in my Nook library without any memory of purchasing it; must have been fate. I curled up in bed with every intention of pacing myself (that’s what I tell myself every time) but I couldn’t help myself and ended up finishing it at around 4am. Armentrout didn’t disappoint.
It’s always hard to tell readers what I liked and didn’t like about books without giving away spoilers, but I will try my hardest. Don’t hate me if I let something slip but also don’t make assumptions and predictions based on what I say either. Wicked is book 1 in a trilogy that follows Ivy, a badass female lead who can take care of herself but still shows signs of uncertainty and doubt, as anyone would. It was nice to know that even characters who kick butt still have insecurities like we do out here in the real world. Ivy is a part of a secret group called the Order who hunt down dangers from other worlds that harm humans. These dangers predominantly come in the form of Fae. I thought it was interesting that the Fae are evil when in most books they are the good guys (for the most part). Flash-forward, Ivy meets a guy named Ren and let me just tell you; I dig him. He is a protector who, despite the wicked things that come out of his mouth sometimes, has a lot of respect for women and wants to take care of Ivy. Not only does is he good at what he does job wise (killing the baddies) but he also has a sweet and sensitive side that makes readers, myself included, want to know where they can get a Ren. Being a romantic, it made me happy to see that Ren develops feelings for Ivy and was not a typical play-boy type character while doing it. A VERY important character throughout the story is Tink. I am not going to tell you who Tink is but I will tell you that the sass that comes from him will have you snickering, smirking and rolling your eyes. It was a nice dose of sarcastic humor that really allows for more of a connection with the story. Something that I have come to recognize and love about Armentrout’s writing style is that she writes with a lot of sarcasm and relatable humor and this book is no exception.
I don’t think there was much I didn’t like about this book. As I had said before, I am a huge fan of all of Armentrout’s work that I have read, and I guess you could say that makes me slightly bias (does it?). The only thing I can think to complain about is that I want more; more of Ren and Ivy, more Tink, just more more more. Good thing there are two more books in the series to get my fill!
Summary:
Wicked places us in a world where there is more than meets the eye and introduces us to the ship that is Ivy and Ren. I felt connections throughout the story in different ways, like how much Ivy likes variety in her cereal so much so that she has 12 boxes of cereal on hand at all times or like how despite having a job to support herself and a future seemingly laid out for her already, Ivy still strives to do more with her life; to be more. The book takes you on an emotional roller coaster through the sad and the happy, through friendship and betrayal, uncertainty, and romance. I know it sounds cheesy and stereotypical, but I promise this book is definitely worth the read. All I can say is that I can’t wait to read the other two books in this series and that I will make no promises to not stay up until 4am to finish them.
Likely Story 