
Book Title: The Cruel Prince (The Folk of the Air #01) Author: Holly Black Number of pages: 370
Synopsis:
Jude was seven years old when her parents were murdered and she and her two sisters were stolen away to live in the treacherous High Court of Faerie. Ten years later, Jude wants nothing more than to belong there, despite her mortality. But many of the fey despise humans. Especially Prince Cardan, the youngest and wickedest son of the High King.
To win a place at the Court, she must defy him–and face the consequences.
In doing so, she becomes embroiled in palace intrigues and deceptions, discovering her own capacity for bloodshed. But as civil war threatens to drown the Courts of Faerie in violence, Jude will need to risk her life in a dangerous alliance to save her sisters, and Faerie itself.
(re: Goodreads @ The Cruel Prince by Holly Black)
Should this book be picked up? the tl;dr review:
– A story about survival and finding a place of belonging with some underdeveloped subplots that may take away from how the conflict is actualized
– Setting: urban and high fantasy fae world with varying degrees of political intrigue; the imagery in the interior of court life is great but the outside environment could use more substance
– Romance (a la love triangle) can feel forced; one suitor lacks chemistry despite love being spoon-fed to readers
– I still don’t know who the cruel prince is? help.
Initial Thoughts
My rating has been oscillating up-and-down the 3’s for the past few weeks now. I have many thoughts.
Disclaimer: I received an ARC of The Cruel prince from Hachette at Book Expo.



