Desert Tales
Some people say they grew up with Harry Potter, thus considering themselves part of the "Potter generation". As for me, I grew up with Melissa Marr and the world of Wicked Lovely and the faerie courts. I picked the first book, Wicked Lovely, up when I was, oh, 11? 12? It was my rite-of-passage, if you will, so I consider it as growing up with these characters and their world.
I read the manga, and loved it, (although I forgot to rate them on Goodreads - whoops!) and so I picked up this book, and I also loved it. After finishing this one I must say that I'd actually recommend the book over the manga, not only because the manga style isn't for everyone, I've found, but also because somehow, the book felt more complete. The relationships between the characters was the same, although such details as Beira's appearance was something I didn't agree with in the manga, as well as just the fact that seeing these characters be given a defined physical form felt...off.
The one thing I really will comment on is the ending. The Epilogue of the manga and the book are two VERY different things, and I found myself loving the book ending and hating the manga's, at the time when I read the manga. The book offers a much more logical ending when it comes to Rika and Jayce's relationship, as well as Shy and his feelings towards Rika. The manga was a much more soft-core, washed-down version, but if you read both the manga and the book you can pick your own ending, I guess, since Marr put both of them on the table. I still choose the book though, although the manga was still very good, and the art of it was original.
Well, I feel that this series has finally, truly come to a full close. I doubt there will be any more books written after this, whether they be about a continuation of the characters' adventures - and there's a large cast of them to choose from - or if it's a companion novel. In fact, I HOPE this is the last book in the series, because I feel like fans have gotten to experience everything the WL universe has to offer and it's time to let go, although many of us will be returning for visits, whether it's to relive the fiery love of Ash and Seth, or to experience Rika's admirable courage and strength, or to roll our eyes at "bad boy" Keenan. Anything after this would spoil the beautiful illusion that;s already been constructed, and so, finishing this book felt like a real, final goodbye to the world of faerie, although I know I'll be taking a peak back into the courts sometime soon.
