Wings by Aprilynne Pike (VO)

Wings, book 1

Synopsis: Laurel was mesmerized, staring at the pale things with wide eyes. They were terrifyingly beautiful—too beautiful for words.

Laurel turned to the mirror again, her eyes on the hovering petals that floated beside her head. They looked almost like wings.

In this extraordinary tale of magic and intrigue, romance and danger, everything you thought you knew about faeries will be changed forever.

Melliane’s review: I had this book for a long time but hadn’t read it yet. When I saw the beautiful french cover, I decided to try. Laurel is a young girl who faces the world for the first time. And it starts to change when a flower begins to grow in her back (It’s very curious and I couldn’t properly see it in my mind). Therefore, Laurel realizes she isn’t human but something she doesn’t know anything about. So, we can see her evolution, her denial and her acceptance during this first novel.

The story is nice and we can read it rapidly. I really liked the Avalon reference, but it makes me ask a lot of questions. I would have loved to know more about this fairy world and its residents.
Despite this first book was pleasant, it was desappointing that the events happen so quickly. Between two paragraphs we can have hours or even a day, without really being noticed. So, some moments are cut hastily without really understanding them.
For the characters, there is a big contrast between David and Laurel. She is a young, simple, empty and not very inteligent girl. I didn’t like very much her character, who doesn’t have a big interest for me. David is a young, appealing, very smart boy. A little too much maybe ? It was weird that a fifteen years boy knows so much about plants and biology. I think it increases Laurel defects.
So, I have a mixed opinion about this book. I think I will read the second but not right now.

Inessa’s review: Another book that I devoured in just a few hours as it was very exciting 
Laurel’s parents have always dreamed of owning a bookstore. In order to make their dream come true they leave the tiny town of Orick to settle in a little further town, Crescent City. After this move Laurel’s life will be changed forever. Now she has to go to school, what is new for her as far as she followed private lessons. Her first school day shows up to be a painful day, the only positive thing is her meeting with David, a boy who seems very interested in her. Fast enough, she even makes new friends. Everything seems to be going well until a barely detectable lump appears in her back … 
I enjoyed this first installment of Wings! I really liked all the characters, especially the two boys who were so touching on their own way. 
Laurel, the heroin, has always lived away from the others, almost isolated. We can also say that she’s a pretty special girl: she doesn’t catch cold, doesn’t need drugs because she never get sick and above all, she feels really good outdoors. Moreover, she’s vegetarian. Laurel is also a very beautiful teenager with a perfect skin so when she notices for the first time the lump on her back, she’s immediately intrigued. At first she thinks dealing with a simple pimple but soon she realizes she never had pimples and the bump is growing constantly. Whatever she does, nothing helps. Have a bump that grows in its back, it’s pretty scary! She even thinks she could suffer from a serious illness. But despite the seriousness of the situation, she decides not to tell to her parents. Certainly all of this isn’t very realistic but I think the purpose of this novel is above all to make us dream and in my case, it worked, I was totally amazed! 
Luckily for Laurel, in her misfortune she can rely on David who will do everything he can to help her. It’s a boy who is quite rational and hooked on biology. Though, curiously, it’s David who will support Laurel and convince her to accept what is happening. Besides at the beginning, their relationship is very touching: it’s clear that David is madly in love with Laurel but she’s not sure about her feelings towards him. In addition, she meets the beautiful and mysterious Tamani who won’t help her to see things more clearly, on the contrary! I loved this third character. He’s the opposite of David but equally endearing! Tamani is the ‘bad boy’ we used to see in young adult novels: he’s arrogant, fearless, and self-confident. He’s a warrior, a fighter. As Laurel puts it, Tamani is passionate while David is rather calm and quiet. The only thing the two young men have in common is their love for Laurel and they’re willing to do anything for her. She’s so lucky!!! As if all of this wasn’t enough, Laurel has to face the threat that hangs over her and her parents. I was also surprised by the way the author tackled the myth of fairies: it changes many things we learned in books about faeries. Moreover, Aprilynne Pike hasn’t hesitated to appropriate some well-known legends to create her own story. So join the Arthurian myth to the character of the famous play by Shakespeare A Midsummer Night’s Dream is both audacious and original. I loved this passage and now I want to know more. 
The style of writing is very fluid, the story is told in third person and descriptions are accurate and beautiful! In the end, I was pleasantly surprised by this first volume. It’s beautiful, cute and cuddly. The author has managed to carry me in her wonderful world. I look forward to read the sequel!

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