Review: The Cruel Prince (H. Black)
This book was so, so good.
So good.
I read just over half of this in one sitting (before I was forced to stop reading it because humans apparently need food to live, who knew?) and then devoured the rest in a second. And now I'm kicking myself for not buying a physical copy when I was at Barnes & Noble because a) the black cover was GORGEOUS and b) I LOVED THIS SO MUCH. I've somewhat made myself feel better by adding it to my online shopping cart, but I'm still mad at myself because the cover isn't black.
Deep breath.
The book follows Jude after she is kidnapped as a child with her sisters Vivi and Taryn by their mother's ex-husband, the murderous Faerie general Madoc, after witnessing the brutal murders of their parents. The three sisters are raised as Madoc's own children (to an extent), but none are truly content in a world so different than their own. Treated horribly for years because of the fact that she is different, Jude must decide how to live the rest of her life: fighting for a place in the Faerie world, or escaping to the human world once again. But the decision won't be easy, with court politics bleeding into everyday life--and coming to a head.
I love stories about the Fae and their ways of life and their customs and just all that jazz. But it also makes me slightly nervous when I see books about the Fae because I love them so much that if the book screws it up I will never forgive it (because holding grudges against inanimate object is totally normal, no?). I needn't have worried with this book. Holly Black managed to create the most perfectest world ever, with amazing characters and amazing drama and just all of the good stuff. I love Faerie, I love the creatures in Faerie I just... I love.
I loved Jude so much. She was the perfect combination of strong and independent, while still being a bit of a mess. Which I appreciated, seeing as I can't even go throughout everyday life without dropping ten million things and she was kidnapped. She was the odd one out in her family group, since she actually kinda wanted to stay in Faerie and become a knight and basically prove to the Fae that humans are talented and powerful too. So she gets sucked into this insane spy plot (SPY PLOT!!!) and then it just gets crazy... and I loved it...
I feel like I'm just rambling endlessly into the void about how much I loved this book but... whatever. My point is, this was an amazing book, I loved the plot, I loved the premise, I loved all of the things. I had tiny little quibbles but they aren't even big enough to bring up because they don't matter.
Read this book.
Now excuse me while I locate all of the other Holly Black books and consume them immediately.
5/5 Stars