“Most of all, I hate you because I think of you. Often. It's disgusting, and I can't stop.”
― Holly Black, The Cruel Prince
☆☆☆☆
This book got a lot of hype this year through TikTok an
d it deserves it. It is the first book in The Folk of the Air trilogy written by Holly Black. It introduces us to the world of Faerie and our main character Jude Duarte. I gave this book 4 stars and I'll explain more throughout this review. It is the perfect read for YA fantasy lovers with a beautiful world, interesting characters, and clever twists.
One thing I was really worried about when I first started reading was how childish it seemed at first. The map was drawn to resemble something you would find in a children's story, and there were illustrations of flowers on the chapter title pages.
Within the prologue, that worry was gone. With the somewhat dark opening it is made clear that is not a story for children. This book is full of morally grey characters who are willing to kill to get what they want. The story is full of actions, drama, surprises and hints at romance in future books.
The Cruel Prince opens with Jude and her sisters witnessing the murder of their parents. This leaves Jude, her twin sister Taryn and Vivienne, in the hands of Madoc- a Red Cap General and Vivienne's biological father. A jump to ten years later, making Jude 17, the sisters are living in Faerie as Madoc's adoptive children. Each sister is finding where they fit in the cruel and dangerous world of the Folk. Jude gets pulled into a dangerous game when a coronation ceremony goes sour and civil war becomes a threat. She has to work with Cardan- the youn
gest and nastiest Prince of the Faerie- who has a strong hatred for her and she for him. Starting off our enemies-to-lovers troupe.
Honestly, in the first half of the book, I was skeptical. It seemed like a fairly simple story about a girl trying to find her place. But a the end of part one with the spying, trickery, revenge betrayal and double-crossing, it is almost impossible to know which way the novel is going. The story grows more complex as more twists are revealed.
The characters feel real with having complex personalities and are a little more than flawed. Many of the characters exist in a morally grey place. The title character 'The Cruel Prince' Cardan Greenbriar is a cruel, selfish, drunken ass-hole but there's a lot more to his character that Jude begins to discover. Even Jude who we want to believe to be the hero has flaws that can sometimes get the best of her, like her stubbornness and her desire for revenge. None of the characters are perfect which makes this book so good, their flaws are realistic and add so much depth to the characters. This series highlights the growth of the characters and how they are nonperfect people who do nonperfect things.
I really loved this book I felt like the world that Holly
Black created is very unique compared to other YA series. It is in my top reads for 2020 and I am looking forward to the continuation of the series.
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