

A village of sisters is protected by few warriors, so men do not steal them away, and this story is an insightful microcosm of the world at large and how women learn to protect themselves and survive.


The Nameless was almost a Red Riding Hood reimagining where men are the wolves and protecting one’s sisters is the name of the game. I am amazed how much world building can be accomplished in such a short story. Of Roses and Kings was a really cool, queer retelling of Alice in Wonderland with a darker, murderess take and creative reimaginings of the Cheshire cat and Alice herself. Story by story, I'll go through a brief synopsis and highlights. I would consider this book essential reading for Wicked Lovely fans, and a great taste of Melissa Marr's fantastic world-building for a few of her fantasy novels for those who might not have read from her yet. I really enjoyed this fierce and feminist group of women highlighted as the main theme of this short story collection.

She currently lives with her family in Arizona. In addition to novels, Melissa has co-edited several anthologies, as well as published short fiction, manga, and prose non-fiction. She co-authored (with Kelley Armstrong) a MG trilogy as M.A. She also write romance for adults as Ronnie Douglas. Her books have been translated into twenty-eight languages and been bestsellers internationally as well as domestically (NY Times, Los Angeles Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal).Accolades include starred reviews on numerous books, YALSA Popular Paperbacks, IRA Notable Book Pick, Book Sense Pick (YA and adult), Good Morning America Summer Pick for Teens, Scottish Book Trust, Red Maple finalist (in both Ontario and Manitoba), and Goodreads Good Choice Award (Horror), RWA RITA award (YA). She is best known for the Wicked Lovely series for teens, the Graveminder for adults, and her debut picturebook Bunny Roo, I Love You. Melissa Marr is a former university literature instructor who writes fiction for adults, teens, and children.
