Wicked (A Wicked Trilogy Book 1)

Jessica S.

Another Amazing JLA Read!!!

"Jennifer L. Armentrout continues to amaze me with every book she writes! This woman is sooooooo unbelievably talented, I am just left in awe of her! Wicked is the first in her new Paranormal New Adult trilogy and it was naturally, amazing! I love the characters Jennifer writes. She doesn't have the willowy heroines or ones who are overly fierce, we have heroines who are strong, intelligent, yet still having flaws. Ivy for instance has a tragic past to her, where she has lost her family and her first/only true love, so she's got some issues and damages to work through in order to move forward and that she does in this story. She's a character that grows as the story moves along and I loved it! Granted, there were times when I wanted to shake her a bit and ask her why she was doing what she was doing, but by the end, you totally love her. And then there's Ren of course! He kind of reminds me of an older Daemon! He's got some snark to him, but he's got a good heart! He's especially lovable too! Naturally, when Ivy and him first meet, it's not an insta-love situation at all. In fact, Ivy kind of dislikes the guy because he kind of invades her space a bit and makes presumptions. Never once did I hate this guy! He's quite funny too! Ivy is a member of the Order, a secret organization that protects society from the fae, for here, the fae are pretty much evil beings that drain the lifeforce from humans in order to keep themselves eternally youthful. Ivy is pretty hardcore in this sense. And when she stumbles upon an Ancient one night and is left severely wounded, she knows the Order has to up their game to prepare for the worst. There are two things wrong with that though; 1. She has no idea what the worst is just yet, and 2. No one believes she really encountered an Ancient. Ren is another Order member, but from a different sect, he transfers in for reasons unknown at the time and it's Ivy's job to show him around while she heals from her injury. Naturally, chaos ensues between them. Ivy is the total independent woman kind of gal and Ren is...well, Ren. Ren has the sense of humor that could be annoying if you're on the receiving end, but he's still, oh so lovable! And I absolutely LOVED that his first impression of Ivy is that she reminds him of Merida from Brave! Being a total Disney fan girl myself that made me all sorts of giddy! Took Ivy a bit to appreciate that nickname over Ariel or one of the other princesses instead! Ivy also has a Brownie living with her, here, the Brownies are small, fairy-like creatures and sometime ago, Ivy found one and couldn't bring herself to kill him like she been trained to do with all things fae. She calls him Tink, mostly because it annoys him. Tink is hysterical! He enjoys a LOT of movies like Harry Potter and has quite the collection of Troll dolls, though you don't want to know why! And he has an obsession with Amazon! I loved this little guy! He brought some much needed humor to the scene when things were tense and Ren wasn't around quite yet! Besides gushing over the characters, I also have to commend Jennifer on writing an awesome storyline! Ivy and Ren are basically trying to track down the clues to figure out what the Ancients is up to and what they uncover is a plan far more nefarious than they expected! As of any JLA novel, the romance is totally swoonworthy! No insta-love with Jennifer's books! Ivy and Ren are forced to work together, but a deeper relationship is formed and I swear, I practically melted at the kindness Ren continued to show to Ivy. She's got her issues that have left her a bit damaged and Ren was so gentle and kind, never forcing her into anything she wasn't ready for. I seriously have found my new book boyfriend and his name is Ren, short for Renald Owens! Getting ready for a cheesy cliche, but is still oh-so VERY TRUE...Wicked was a wickedly awesome read! Jennifer has pretty much set the bar for extraordinary reads and I have yet to read a book that I did not totally and explicitly loved from this woman! Her characters are amazing, the storyline is always engaging and there's plenty of action, laughs, and romance, what more could you want from a read?! If you haven't read any of her books yet, I highly urge you to! She writes pretty much everything and as always, I look forward to her next book! Overall Rating 5/5 stars ["

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December 22, 2014 Verified Purchase

Tiffany Holme

Never Disappointed by JLA

"I have never not enjoyed a JLA book that I have picked up. However, I also try not to pick them up when all of the hype flares up and I stick to her paranormal/supernatural books. Admittedly I picked this one up because the hype for Torn was in the air, and it was on sale. That doesn't mean that I didn't want to sooner, but more it just felt like the right time. This YA read was just what I needed when I picked it up. I guess it's more upper YA, with a little light NA flare. OH, yes this book has something a little different and I enjoyed the ride. Okay, so along with hiding from the hype and not reading the raving reviews, I actually had no idea that this book was about the Fae. Yup... Totally for whatever reason thought Vampires. Not that there is anything wrong with Vampires but it's more I read by what I feel fits at that time and Vamps just weren't it. So when I picked up Wicked and figured out it was about Fae, I was so believably in. I loved the characters, I loved the plot, the pacing... Well, I loved the pacing once it really took off. I had a slower start, despite the fact that the book picked up in action really quickly. I also loved the vibrant setting. It was depicted wonderfully, without going over board and drowning its beauty. By the last page I found that this was a marvellously balanced book. Ivy was not a damsel in distress by any means. She's lost everyone that she loved and spent her life fighting for those she lost. At times I found it a little monotonous, a little predictable. This isn't necessarily a bad thing but I did pick up on this a couple of times. What made me enjoy her was, her snark, her consistency and her strength. Ivy was not a naive little girl or an overly hormonal teenager. She had lived her life training to fight like many others, yet she did work for more. Ivy is focused on her 'job' but wants more in her life and I admired that greatly. She was an anomaly in some ways, and this is what made her original and fun to read. Confusing take I know but I honestly don't know how else to describe Ivy... I think the secondary characters were spectacularly done. Everyone. It's so easy to love Val and Ren. Val because she is quirky, has no filter and is the kind of person you have as you best friend without hesitation. She is not as big of a part of the book as I would have liked, but she definitely added her own something to the pages. Ren was your typical save the day, I'm top secret but will share with you kind of guy. However, I did enjoy what he brought to the table. He did kick up the steam factor and brought a little extra snark and flare into Ivy's life. He was also a lot different than I expected from start to finish. Wicked is not a book that will ride quietly into the night. No it has loudly demanded that I find a way to get a physical copy in my hands, and one of its newest partner Torn. For me Wicked lived up to the hype that was risen because of it (though I didn't read any reviews just saw it everywhere). I will look more into these books and continue to pick them up well after their release date because I think it gives me the chance to enjoy it for my own reasons, not the reason everyone else did or have it flop because of too much hype. ["

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September 28, 2016 Verified Purchase

Magen Corrie

Armentrout sticks again! A wonderful phenomenal read!

"Wow. Oh man. Another series for me to be addicted to. Armentrout is by far one of my favorite authors and this book proves she can tell a kick ass story! Wicked was way more than I expected and completely mind-blowing. There was a lot of awesome in this book. First things first, I must talk about the setting. Being a native to New Orleans, I loved that she mentioned some of my favorite places! Jackson Squire, Café De Monde (they really do have some amazing beignets), and a few other places. What I loved about that was I could actually imagine where the characters where. So I was able to get fully absorbed into the setting of the book. New Orleans really does have a paranormal feel as well, so the paranormal aspect of the book went well with the setting. Like nearly all of Armentrout’s female characters, Ivy was a tough character. Her world is one that demands instincts to survive, a dangerous world filled with some very dangerous creatures. But Ivy also felt real, in her emotions and thoughts. I loved that she is tough, ready to fight, but also that she uses her head – though she does have a tendency to just start kicking butt. Then there is Ren. Lordy Almighty! Armentrout creates some swoon worthy guys and Ren is no exception. He’s like a mix of Daemon and Roth combined, swoony and so delectable. But he is also a very kind and sweet guy. But he is more than he appears. He shows up in Ivy’s world with secrets that turn Ivy’s world upside-down. All in all, I just couldn’t get enough of Ren. I must also talk about Tink. Yes, a little creature that makes quite a few appearances in the book. I ADORED this little creature! I couldn’t get enough of his cocky attitude and every time he appeared I wanted more of him. He was probably my favorite character other than Ren. But the book is also filled with some very interesting characters. Some that end up surprising me. The paranormal aspect of the book was also something I’m not used to. I have, in fact, never read a book based on fae before. So going into that type of world was quite different. But in true Armentrout style, she blew me away and made me very interested in her world. She made it scary, dark, and very frightening, but also interesting, believable, and quite amazing. She blended the paranormal and normal world quite well. The writing style is something I have always enjoyed about Armentrout’s work, and she doesn’t disappoint in Wicked. The chemistry was intense between Ren and Ivy, I ate it up! Though I was able to figure one major plot twist out another one left my mouth on the floor. And then we have that ending! What a cliffhanger! But all in all, Armentrout has created another phenomenal world filled with wicked creatures and characters I just can’t help but love. ["

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January 29, 2015 Verified Purchase

E.C. McRoy

I'm hooked. Sexy, engaging, so well written!

"First, the two main reasons that people are going to have issues with this book: the f-bomb and sex. Second, the reason they didn’t relatively impact my rating: the writing was flipping awesome and the characters were consenting adults. Third, the moment I fell in love with this story: “Thick lashes lowered, shielding his eyes, and then his arm shot out. He hooked his fingers through the loop in my jeans and tugged me forward. Balancing the bike with just his legs, he reached up with his other arm and curled his fingers around the nape of my neck.” How many stars do I give this? 4.9721. Because it’s been a long time since I’ve just thoroughly enjoyed a book for no other reason than it was a good read. I always find it more difficult to be critical about a story I like. The flaws versus the strengths; the originality versus the cliché. So I’m going to break it down here and try to address what I personally got out of the book. Let me start out by saying that I haven’t read anything else by Armentrout. I know, blasphemous in this day and age. But I just haven’t had a chance to get around to her—and I feel utterly ridiculous now for putting her off for so long. Additionally, I read a couple of other reviews that suggested this novel was very similar to some other novels out there (The Guardian series and Never-something). I have not read either of these series, so I cannot comment on them. But I will address some of the “tropes” and clichés involved here, so hopefully that will cover that area. Finally, this is an NA (New Adult) novel and I’ll mention some of the things that go along with that. But let’s begin with The Moving And Raunchy Writing. What I enjoyed personally: The easy to read flow of the writing. I felt that the quality was very high and it shows through in how quick a read it was, but also in how easy it was to follow. I think there was one paragraph in the whole book that I had to read twice because it wasn’t very clear. One paragraph in a 300 page book. That’s pretty not bad. I never felt like Armentrout was simply repeating herself or using the same darn words over and over again. It was nice because it means she trusted the reader enough to follow along, rather than beat me over the head with an Info Stick. I also felt that Ivy as a POV was very consistent and I was never just left feeling as though she had a “weird moment” of not being very Ivy-like. That’s important for me. Writing should be—and was—consistent. What I felt was a little questionable: Occasionally, I grew tired of the descriptions. (But not really.) Sometimes I would just read a really intense section—and then there would be a description of the building that I SO did not care for. Not because it wasn’t good, but because it was so hot and intense like two seconds ago and now we’re talking about a house. This happened a couple of times, but not frequently enough that I got irritated with the book. It was just that the writing was so charged that once or twice it was jarring to move from heavy emotion to “this is where they’re standing, isn’t it pretty?” But that’s really my only qualm with the writing. Yes, there was cursing. Yes, there was explicitly sexual scenes (though I would call them “steamy” not “erotica” but some won’t make that distinction). But overall, I didn’t have any real issues with the quality of writing. Moving on to The Nothing’s New Under The Sun Story. What I liked: That Ivy was a fae hunting, independent, save herself, badass. Not that she never got any help, but she did the helping as much as being helped and that’s important. I’ve seen too many stories where the heroine starts off badass, then meets the guy and becomes this wishy-washing piece of used tissue. Um, no. But Ivy stayed strong throughout, even when she needed help at times. I also liked the use of setting. I really felt the heat and humidity, the textures, the sense of New Orleans. It was just a backdrop, so it didn’t overpower the story (which made it a little muted), but it was very effective for where they were, what was going on, and the feelings that were swirling in the air. I liked that there was a little guessing involved in who was good and who was bad. There were enough options for who was the bad guy, that you weren’t sure who it was—even if you had a good guess. And, I’m sorry, but I LOVED the romance. I thought it was hot and actually kind of legitimate. Insta-lust, yes, but not insta-love and I’m okay with that. Lust is normal; love takes time. I appreciated that it took a month before anything real actually set in between them. Also, I liked that the fae were the bad guys. I’m glad that they stayed the bad guys. And I liked that Ivy didn’t falter in her quest to destroy them. What I didn’t like: The ending. And let me clarify, I liked the ending. I liked how it was done, the questions it left, and the turmoil of emotions resulting. But I didn’t like that I guessed it very early on. And I didn’t like that it changed Ivy’s character a little there. I felt that it was too obvious and a little overused in novels these days (even though I often enjoy it in stories, tropey though it may be). I appreciated how Armentrout led the reader around, trying to disguise what was the what, but I kind of wished it hadn’t went down like that. (I’m being vague, I know, but I’m trying to keep this spoiler free.) Additionally, I got a tiny, teensy bit annoyed with her past boyfriend troubles. BUT ONLY A LITTLE. I say that, because I know that some readers were finding Ivy’s lack of boy experience unrealistic. I’m just saying, such is not the case. She didn’t say that she didn’t ever have sex, but rather that she didn’t have a lot of experience with it. Which was realistic, because she only had the one boyfriend. And she was young. Since she wouldn’t let herself get close after that, I didn’t have a problem with this trope used in the story. But it got a little annoying just because she was really hung up on Shaun and then he seemed to fade rather quickly. So I think that some people will have maybe a bigger issue with this than I did. Next, Le Characters. What was good: Ivy’s growth. It was slow, stubborn and sometimes made you beat your head against the wall, but it happened. Eventually. And you appreciated it more for that, because that’s how people are. It isn’t instantaneous, but rather a true struggle. I also appreciated that she was strong, but not impossibly or unmovingly so. She was just doing her best and sometimes she fell short in that endeavor. Tink’s sugar highs. Because he’s a funny little thing—and he had a decent amount of development, too! What was bad: Ren’s lack of development. It wasn’t that he was an undeveloped character so much as an unchanging one, in all fairness. With Ivy, we saw things shift and change. Maybe not a grand change, but it was there. With Ren, however, he was pretty much the same throughout. We learned more about him, but it didn’t affect him as a character in the sense that it brought out no real growth. David as a leader. Sometimes, I felt like he was the “Absentee Parent” trope in YA novels. “Well, we need a parent there, but if they interfere too much there’s no story!” It’s a fairly common thing and I understand why, but it annoyed me here because he was a boss not a parent and Ivy should have gotten into a lot more trouble than she did. I would have preferred he was basically “on a business trip” than present but seemed to have no bite or real control over those within his sect. Finally, a section for Tropes and Other Much Hated Things: Alright, there’s this Sexually Innocent main girl who Falls For Bad Boy and lets him trigger her Sexual Awakening. Yeah, that’s pretty par for the course as far as both NA and YA. Then we have the I’ve Been Hurt Before problem and the Why Do You Love Me? clause. Additionally, there’s the Because You’re So Incredibly Sexy moment coupled with the Am I? I’ve Never Thought Of Myself That Way! I’m So Plain! amendment. Finally, we reach the He Keeps Coming Back and Is So Patient motif, leading to an unrealistic He Worms His Way Into My Heart make-up. And that doesn’t even cover the ending. But you’ll just have to read and accept that one. Are these tropes a little clichéd and annoying? Yeah, they are. But do they work for the purposes of this story? Yes, they do. Are they addicting? Of course, why else would they keep showing up? Could this story have been told in a more engaging way without them? Maybe. But maybe not. I suppose what I’m saying is that this story is not without a certain formulaic response to the other writing that’s out there in these genres (or “age ranges” if you don’t like calling YA/NA genres). But that doesn’t mean that the story isn’t good or worth reading. I would say that if you’ve read a lot recently with this type of formula, then I encourage you to read something else for a little while before venturing forth on this one. That way, you can give it an honest chance and accept it for what it is: An excellent romp, a pretty engaging story, and a little clichéd. Would I recommend this? Yes—if you like YA, but don’t mind sex, because that’s how this reads. A YA novel with sex. But it’s okay, because they’re in their early twenties. ["

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October 13, 2016 Verified Purchase

Jenny

Just an ok book by a great author

"Originally posted at http://www.readingonthefarm.com It's kind of killing me to have to write this review. I love Jennifer L. Armentrout and I really haven't come across any of her books so far that I haven't absolutely loved. Her Lux series is my absolute favorite, mainly because she has a really great writing style that combines great characters with snappy dialogue that leaves me laughing. I've recently been reading more romance as well, so when I heard that she was writing a paranormal NA book, lets just say that I was more than a little excited. Lets be real, if you've read Stone Cold Touch or the follow up, White Hot Kiss by her, you'll know that you wish she would have taken things a little bit farther in her characters hot and heavy make out sessions. The synopsis for Wicked sounded intriguing. New Orleans is an area rich in culture and with a history of paranormal activity, so setting a book there seemed like a good choice. Unfortunately, nothing ever really grabbed my interest. The plot seemed a little played out to me to be honest. There's an Order of fighters who are supposed to keep humanity safe by killing the fae, who have been living among humans, turning them into food and semi-zombies. Elements of the book had a lot of potential, and there were details that made me think hmm. . .that was pretty cool. But overall, I just couldn't get sucked into the story like I normally can with her books. Usually i'm putting aside everything else to read her books and this time, I was setting it down for a few days at a time. Part of what made me keep setting it down was the pacing. I've read her contemporary NA books and loved them, she knows how to keep a balance between steamy scenes and keeping the plot moving, but in this case it seemed very disjointed. You get a lot of hot and heavy scenes alternated with action, but nothing flowed in a logical way. It seemed to take a long time to build up to the climax of the book and then of course, it all gets interesting near the end. On the other hand, when the plot does get moving, I ended up being interested in where this all was going, so mission accomplished with that. My main issue, and why I gave this 3 stars is the characters and dialogue. Jennifer L. Armentrout knows how to write great dialogue. I know she does, I've read it. I think that's why I was so disappointed with this story. The dialogue is just. . .not great. Instead of witty comments and snappy dialogue, it seems to turn toward more juvenile sentence fragments and silly insults. I was kind of annoyed by Ivy throughout a lot of the book and even though I did like Ren, I didn't love him. I thought there was a lot more potential to his character that I didn't get to see. I think this is coming off a little more negative than I was intending. I did give it a 3 and it was an entertaining read. Would I recommend it as your first book by her? Absolutely not. But I think the idea behind the series has potential, and I'd like to see the next book work out the issues with pacing and dialogue so that she can tap into that potential to write a really interesting book. It's a case for me of having really high expectations for her as an author. I went into this expecting it be wonderful, and it was just ok. And in some cases, that almost feels worse. ["

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January 14, 2015 Verified Purchase