First-time novelist Marr gives the oft-tried modern faerie story a fresh infusion of glamour, thanks to a likable pair of protagonists, a page-turning plot and an ample dose of sexual tension. Seventeen-year-old Aislinn has a secret; she sees fairies everywhere-working their mischief and doggedly following her for reasons she does not understand. "Even when she looked away, she heard them: laughing and squealing, gnashing teeth and beating wings.... They were out in droves now, freer somehow as evening fell, invading her space, ending any chance of the peace she'd sought." One of them, the handsome Keenan, takes a particular interest in her. He is the Summer King, on a centuries-long quest for his queen, the one person who will be able to help him unseat his vicious mother, Beira, the Winter Queen. Keenan has chosen incorrectly over the years; the latest to accept his offer is Donia, who now lives in Beira's icy thrall. Beira offers Donia a deal: prevent Keenan from finding his proper queen, and Beira will release her spell over her soul. Aislinn confides her secret to her friend Seth, whose steel-walled home (an abandoned train) protects her from the fey. As Keenan pursues Aislinn, convinced she is his true mate, secrets emerge about Aislinn's family history and she wrestles with the decision to become the Summer Queen. Aislinn and Seth are a smart and compelling couple who must make tough choices throughout. Marr offers readers a fully imagined faery world that runs alongside an everyday world, which even non-fantasy (or faerie) lovers will want to delve into. Ages 12-up. (June) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

This steamy faery story reads like a torrid girl's fantasy and will produce some swoons. Aislinn's spent her life terrified of the faeries ("fey") all around her, invisible to other humans. They smack and trip each other, leer and wound; to remain safe, she can't let them know she sees. Her only safe space is inside the funky train-car home of sexy friend Seth. Fey can't enter because steel hurts them--or does it? The old rules are changing. Two faeries stalk Aislinn, paying unprecedented and disturbing personal attention. Readers know early that Aislinn's destined to become a faerie monarch and rule as Summer Queen beside Keenan, the Summer King, whom readers may find obnoxious or dreamy. Marr's consistent labeling of the situation as a "game" doesn't match the dire possibilities: The earth will freeze if Aislinn isn't Summer Queen, but she wants to live a regular life, including college, cell phones and tattoos. Meanwhile, it's Keenan's job to woo Aislinn, but his old love (currently the lonely holder of winter's chill) may die if he's successful. Overlong wish-fulfillment, but enjoyably sultry. (Fantasy. YA) Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Gr 9 Up-Aislinn knows about faeries. She has seen them all her life and her grandmother has taught her the rules. Don't stare at faeries. Don't speak to faeries. Don't attract the attention of faeries. She has seen the malicious behavior of faeries and wants a normal high school life. The rules have kept her safe for years. Imagine her dismay when the faeries begin stalking her and whispering, "do you think she's the one?" When Keenan, a faerie king, pursues Aislinn, she confides in her best friend Seth who accepts the idea of the unseen with ease. Together they face the faeries and learn that Keenan is the Summer King and believes Aislinn to be his queen. What develops is an intriguing triangle as both Seth and Keenan begin to court Aislinn. Melissa Marr's debut novel (HarperTeen, 2007) shows strength in both character and setting. Aislinn is an admirable protagonist, insisting on following her own path. Teen girls will flip over strong, sexy Seth. Marr's faerie world Marr is a fascinating mixture of the ancient and the modern. The story translates beautifully to audio, and narrator Alyssa Bresnahan is pitch-perfect in her delivery. The sexual tension is subtle but makes the story more appropriate for older listeners. Recommend this intriguing fantasy romance to fans of Stephenie Meyer's "Twilight" series.-Tricia Melgaard, Centennial Middle School, Broken Arrow, OK (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Read by Alyssa Bresnahan. (High School)They live among us. They are tricky, sometimes malicious. They are playful, seductive, exotic. Marr's book makes the existence of faeries seem all too possible, as warring factions battle over Aislinn, a human girl. She is both enchanted and frightened by Keenan, a powerful faery king who is searching for the right mortal to be his bride, and must choose between the lure of immortality and a human life with new love Seth. The enticing story is enhanced by "factual" writings of encounters with the Otherworld. Major characters are distinguished from one another by tone and pace, and Bresnahan's alluring voice gives the story the right combination of reality and fantasy. Listeners will be drawn into this tale -- unique, yet firmly based in traditional folklore. From HORN BOOK, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.