'The Cruel Prince' Book Review #21

My very first blog post and book review of 2020! You might have heard of the Folk of the Air series by Holly Black; the world of the Faeries. And if you have not, here is the synopsis to the first book out of the triology from Goodreads, The Cruel Prince:

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"Of course I want to be like them. They’re beautiful as blades forged in some divine fire. They will live forever.

And Cardan is even more beautiful than the rest. I hate him more than all the others. I hate him so much that sometimes when I look at him, I can hardly breathe.

Jude was seven 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.

As Jude becomes more deeply embroiled in palace intrigues and deceptions, she discovers her own capacity for trickery and bloodshed. But as betrayal 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."

So as some of you may know, I never really read fantasy. I mean, I read Harry Potter and watched the movies and absolutely loved it. But for some reason, I still thought reading fantasy was kind of nerdy. I know, right? Lame. Then I read 'The Night Circus' by Erin Morgenstern last year and fell in love with the magic. Finally, I've been seeing this series all over Bookstagram and eventually Bookstagram caused me to buy the hardcover boxset.

Picture by @tashaslibrary on Instagram

Jude is a mortal who is related to faeries so she is able to get into the faerie world. I love how Holly made it so where she grew up in the mortal world then finished in the faerie world. You can definitely see the character development with Jude.

Just because it is a fantasy world does not mean that people won't be bullies. And Holly wrote about it perfectly by having some of the royal faeries her age pick and bully her. It only made her stronger to stand up to anyone who doubts her. She is one badass character. Jude has a very determined personality- someone who never gives up and pushes herself past her limits just to grow stronger. I find that very admirable.

This story was very light and action packed with a whole lot of mystery which I love. Love triangles, drama and family secrets are all apart of this bundle. I honestly can't wait to read the other two books to find out what happens next!