Title: The Cruel Prince (The Folk of the Air #1)
Author: Holly Black
Genre: Young adult fantasy 
Publisher: Hachette Audio
Publication Date: 2018
Format: Paperback
Length: 13 hours

Read if you like: contemporary fantasy, fey magic, underdogs, power struggles, political scheming, morally grey heroes and heroines, betrayal 

Rating: 

If you’ve been around the fantasy community for a while, the Folk of the Air series is one of the most heavily recommended in the young adult genre. The Cruel Prince came around after adolescence for me, so I didn’t read it when it first became popular, but when I saw it at my library I figured I’d pick it up to see what the fuss was about. Now that I have read it, I can say that I totally get it.

I loved this book, I felt like it was such a solid YA fantasy. The characters were angsty and relatable, even in wildly unrelatable circumstances, and the magic felt folksy and mysterious. I liked the more traditional bent on the concept of fey weaved through in a world directly connected to modern human cities and the idea that the girls each had one foot in the mortal realm and one in Faerie was an enjoyable premise to see unfold. 

I felt like this first book set up a great premise and holds a lot of promise for the series as a whole. I listened to this on audio and while that format was superb, I enjoyed the book so much that I want to continue with the physical books. I’ll be moving on to the next one as soon as I pick it up.

The Book: The Cruel Prince by Holly Black Synopsis

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.

The Review

What a fun ride. 

The Cruel Prince comes in with a real bang, with an immediate murder and the thrusting of the three young girls into a foreign land called Faerie. The dark start and bloodshed set up a world where it’s clear that the fey are a brutal people, ruled by power and an iron fist. It makes for a different world setup than other fey premises I’ve read and I was immediately hooked.

Black is a strong world-builder, and much of what I enjoyed about this book was the makeup of Faerie and the society within it. There are a range of different types of creatures and species, and power in different degrees seems to be most of their motivations. With humans at the absolute bottom of the food chain, Jude, the main character, is destined to struggle from the very beginning, and that continues quite pervasively throughout the plot.

Speaking of Jude, she’s an interesting character who I suspect will evolve a lot over the series. Initially, she seems a little angsty, but I recognize that this is a YA novel so that’s par for the course. That said, she makes some pretty significant decisions quickly that catapult her beyond the basics of angsty teenage rage and put her in a more adult world where political machinations rule and power is everything. She finds ways to seize some of it for herself, but it comes at a cost each time. The true degree of that cost only reveals itself in pieces and you can see Jude growing up quickly as she realizes what it takes to survive in this society,  determining what she wants for herself and for the ones she loves.

I liked that there were romantic undertones to the plot, but that it wasn’t the whole focus. There are subplots where it’s pervasive, but it feels more like a supplement to the plot than the main attribute, which leaves so much more time for world evolution and plot twists. Given that those were the aspects I enjoyed most about this book, this felt like a perfect balance for me. 

I felt like this book ended with a lot of open questions and very little resolution, which made me excited for the second instalment. I’m particularly looking forward to seeing Cardan continue to develop over time. He feels desperately sad and mysterious at this point, which is so contrary to those around him, and I can’t wait to see where Black takes him from here.

This was an all-around solid YA fantasy. The world was interesting and lush, the storytelling was superb, and the characters were developed just enough to hook you and make you wonder where they’ll go from here. A super strong start to a series in my opinion, and I can’t wait to continue.