The Cruel Prince
The Folk of the Air #1
By Holly Black
TheStory
Seven year old Jude and her siblings are taken to the High Court of Faerie by Madoc, now their adoptive father, after he murders their parents. Over ten years have passed since that day and Jude has spent every single one of them being raised in this land that hates mortals. Now, in order to stay as adults, they must either marry a faerie or prove great skill in some form or another.
Throughout the land of Faerie, mortals are not accepted into the fold. Jude is constantly suffering through bullying by the fae, particularly the cruel Prince Cardan, the youngest son of the High King. In an attempt to show her skill and gain power, Jude plans to compete in the Summer Tournament, but Cardan tries to stop her from doing so.
As Jude suffers through Cardan’s bullying, she strikes a deal with another - in exchange for her spying, Dain will protect her from all enchantments except his own. While spying for Dain, Jude happens upon information that confuses her perceptions of those around her - specifically Cardan. When a fight breaks out and only two princes remain to take the throne (Cardan being one of them), Jude takes him to the Court of Shadows to hide. But upon their return, Jude finds out about another contender for the throne.
With all of scheming and court politics going on, Jude unleashes everything she knows onto Cardan, which in turn deepens their relationship. Upon realizing the way things are playing out, Cardan makes a decision that ultimately results in a deep betrayal.
TheReview
Ooooooh goodness. There was just something about this story. <3 It starts off a bit slow but it really picks up just before the halfway mark (and is so worth the wait). Jude’s treatment in the land of Faerie is absolutely disgusting. She is legitimately bullied by almost everyone.
So on that note - this is a bully romance. If that kind of romance is not your jam, move along from this book. Oftentimes, readers get confused about this type of romance. It’s not abuse or nonconsensual anything - it’s a bully bullying someone before the romance starts. Moving on…
Cardan is atrocious to Jude and treats her horribly. But eventually, they form a partnership out of necessity that morphs into an understanding of each other.
It's clear early on that Cardan is Jude’s enemy with questionable morals and doing monstrous things but he does have lines that he will not cross, which I appreciate. Morally grey? Absolutely. But not an absolute buttmunch.
My only qualm with this book really is that some of the storyline seems like it has a hard stop and then jumps right into the next scene. Some of the flow was just off. There weren’t any filler scenes between the major ones. However, that did make for a continual progression of action. I’m conflicted but it did pull me out of the stroy sometimes.
I was pleasantly shocked through multiple twists and turns throughout the book that were so exciting. I love being surprised.
This book was such a joy to read. I loved the characters. I loved the plot. I loved the ending. And I loved the surprises all throughout. For the hype this book was given, I wouldn’t say I agree with the complete obsession but it was really good. I’d call it slightly overhyped. However, I loved it and will most definitely be continuing on to the next one.
P.S. I didn’t know this was a YA book (I just never checked and so I assumed it wasn’t) but it is. No spicy scenes.
TheRating
Storyline: 4/5
Characters: 4/5
World Building: 3/5
Spice: 0/5
Writing: 3/5
Overall: 4/5
The Folk of the Air Series
The Cruel Prince
The Folk of the Air #1
The Wicked King
The Folk of the Air #2
The Queen of Nothing
The Folk of the Air #3