The Cruel Prince by Holly Black

Reviewed by Arthi J.

Grade 11

If I cannot be better than them, I will become so much worse.

Jude was only seven years old when her life was forever changed. One minute she was watching cartoons on the television with her twin sister Taryn, and older sister Viviene and the next, a dangerous stranger was banging on the front door of their home. Madoc, a powerful military commander of the fey, had finally found Jude's mother, whom Madoc had a complicated past with, and due to this, killed both her parents in retribution. Now orphaned and with nowhere else to go, Jude and her two sisters were whisked away to live in the dangerous High Court of the Faerie, fostered by their parents’ murderer.

After ten years of living in a beautiful, but deadly world where she has come to love her parents’ killer as a father, Jude wants nothing more than to belong and will go to great lengths to do so. After all, where else can she go? Though she was born in the mortal world, it is not nor will it ever be her home. Against all odds she fights for her rightful spot amongst the fey. But, many of them look down upon the mortality she was born with, especially Prince Cardan, the youngest and cruelest son of the High King. To win her place in court she must defy him and suffer the consequences for it. In doing so, she becomes tangled in the palace intrigues, trickery and deceptions of the High Court, whilst realizing her own alarming capacity for bloodshed. Yet, as a civil war in the fey kingdom threatens to destroy the only, however cruel, world she’s ever felt at home in, circumstances cause Jude to find herself in a dangerous alliance, which could crumble to pieces at any given second, with the one she hates most: Cardan. Working with the cruel prince of fey, Jude must risk her life to save everything she’s ever known and loved, or possibly lose it all.  

I really loved reading The Cruel Prince. I have read other books that follow the concept of fae, or fey, like A Court of Thorns and Roses (another great read) and it truly astonishes me how distinct and amazing this novel really is. Even though only two characters actually have the ability to lie, it's ironic to find out the numerous deceptions, lies, and trickery that are revealed throughout the novel. Holly Black does a fantastic job in developing Cardan and Jude’s characters, building the hidden fey world they live in, and subtly working up to an ending that truly comes crashing down upon the reader.  

I would absolutely recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading fantasy novels with various plot twists and turns. I think Holly Black did a wonderful job with this series, and I’m also really excited to read her upcoming novella to this series which is going to be from Cardan’s point of view.