Advance Review: Darkest Mercy by Melissa Marr

Book: DARKEST MERCY
Author: MELISSA MARR
Genre: YA FANTASY

Published: March 2011, HARPERCOLLINS

I received this advance copy for free, as part of Just Another Book Blog ARC tours, in exchange for an honest review


From Good Reads:
The Summer King is missing; the Dark Court is bleeding; and a stranger walks the streets of Huntsdale, his presence signifying the deaths of powerful fey.

Aislinn tends to the Summer Court, searching for her absent king and yearning for Seth. Torn between his new queen and his old love, Keenan works from afar to strengthen his court against the coming war. Donia longs for fiery passion even as she coolly readies the Winter Court for battle. And Seth, sworn brother of the Dark King and heir to the High Queen, is about to make a mistake that could cost his life.

Love, despair, and betrayal ignite the Faery Courts, and in the final conflict, some will win . . . and some will lose everything.


My Review:
DARKEST MERCY is a can't miss book for fans of Melissa Marr's WICKED LOVELY series, and for fans of faerie novels in general. All of the plotlines from the previous books came together in an amazingly detailed and entrancing finale that had me gasping in disbelief and pleasure. Truthfully, I don't know that I could review this book in depth, without giving away major spoilers, so this will probably be somewhat brief.

I will say that the talent that Marr brings to the table is fantastic. The world that she has created draws me in, with every successive novel that is added to the series. Every character has wants, needs, flaws, and hopes. Even the people that are clearly villians are so multi-dimensional. Once I started reading DARKEST MERCY, it was very hard to put the book down.

Marr doesn't coddle her readers. Even though most of her characters are quite young, they have all lived dangerous and seductive lives. No one is an innocent, and every one has to make decisions that affect many many people, faerie and human alike. It took all of my energy to absorb the action that was thrown at me, that when I did manage to pause in reading, I felt like I was sapped.

I can't say enough good things about Marr's writing, her world-building, and the complex characters that she brings to the page. Though DARKEST MERCY means saying goodbye to this amazing series, I felt that Marr gave them one of the best send-offs that I have read in a series ender.


4.5/5 for plot
4.5/5 for characters
5/5 for language

My Rating: 14/15 (5 stars)

Must Read, if you liked:
Shifters series by Rachel Vincent
The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare
The Iron Fey series by Julie Kagawa