Name: The Cruel Prince
Rating: 4.086480521972749 (5211 reviews)
ISBN: 9781690388388

Perfection Learning Corporation

The Cruel Prince

Holly Black

An instant bestseller! By #1 New York Times bestselling author Holly Black, the first book in a stunning new series about a mortal girl who finds herself caught in a web of royal faerie intrigue. 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 years old 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. In doing so, she becomes embroiled in palace intrigues and deceptions, discovering her own capacity for bloodshed. But as civil war 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.

time and time again, elfhame always seems like a hauntingly beautiful place.. and honestly, like the first two times i've gone and lost myself in it, the folk of the air series has yet again enraptured me

yachii

Nel Cleys

By #1 New York Times bestselling author Holly Black, the first book in a stunning new series about a mortal girl who finds herself caught in a web of royal faerie intrigue.
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 years old 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. In doing so, she becomes embroiled in palace intrigues and deceptions, discovering her own capacity for bloodshed. But as civil war 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.
"I require book two immediately. Holly Black is the Faerie Queen." - Victoria Aveyard, bestselling author of the 'Red Queen' series
"Complex, nuanced characters, frank sensuality and thorn-sharp intricate storytelling all conspire to ensnare." - Guardian

Short reason: WHAT. A. BORING. FUCKING. BOOK.

I’d rather watch paint dry, and I trust me, I have once. That experience my friends, was actually very fun. Nobody in this book has a personality. It genuinely feels like I’m reading about middle school kids arguing:

Every single character felt two-dimensional and painfully uninteresting. I did not care about anyone, their drama, their motives, or whatever weird faerie hierarchy was going on. There was nothing grounding me in the story emotionally.

And Cardan… I’m sorry, but the constant obsession some readers have with his tail is insanely annoying. He’s a faerie. What did people expect? A surprise reveal that he’s secretly Katniss Everdeen? You're reading a high fantasy novel Brenda. GET OVER IT AND SHUT UP ABOUT IT.

Papa Madoc's alright. Hot fan arts so he can get it any time.

This didn’t feel immersive or magical. It felt exhausting. The pacing dragged, the interactions were repetitive, and I was just waiting for something... anything, to make me care. It never happened.

I genuinely do not understand how this became the face of fantasy. This was a painful reading experience, and I have no intention of continuing the series.

Tali ⋆.˚🦋༘⋆

The Boring Prince
Status: DNF @ 25% (Chapter 10)

Rating: 1.5/5 stars

Short reason: WHAT. A. BORING. FUCKING. BOOK.

So… What Was That?

I’d rather watch paint dry, and I trust me, I have once. That experience my friends, was actually very fun. Nobody in this book has a personality. It genuinely feels like I’m reading about middle school kids arguing:
“No, he started it!”
“No, she started it!”

STFU. All of you.

Character Analysis (derogatory)

Every single character felt two-dimensional and painfully uninteresting. I did not care about anyone, their drama, their motives, or whatever weird faerie hierarchy was going on. There was nothing grounding me in the story emotionally.

And Cardan… I’m sorry, but the constant obsession some readers have with his tail is insanely annoying. He’s a faerie. What did people expect? A surprise reveal that he’s secretly Katniss Everdeen? You're reading a high fantasy novel Brenda. GET OVER IT AND SHUT UP ABOUT IT.

Papa Madoc's alright. Hot fan arts so he can get it any time.

Reading Experience

This didn’t feel immersive or magical. It felt exhausting. The pacing dragged, the interactions were repetitive, and I was just waiting for something... anything, to make me care. It never happened.

Final Take

As Wendy Williams has said many times:


Clap if you care. [silence] Alright, let's move on. Perfect.

I genuinely do not understand how this became the face of fantasy. This was a painful reading experience, and I have no intention of continuing the series.


4.5 <br /><br />can't wait to order the wicked king 

kitkat

3’5⭐️ me ha gustado pero siento que esperaba mas de cardan aunque jude me ha encantado como protagonista 

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

The book was a bit boring and slow at first, but then the plot picked up and the plot twist happened and I got more familiar with the Fairy world, so I ended up finishing the book with a strong desire to read the whole series. 

I love how both Jude and Cardan are badass, and the "enemies-to-lovers" trope in this one is highly unusual, with them still being cruel to each other even after seemingly becoming lovers.

I also love how Jude is written. She is fierce and strong, but she has space for improvement. She is cunning and intelligent, but she still makes mistakes. And deep down, she cares, even if she doesn't always show it.

clementine ⤜♡→

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

The book was a bit boring and slow at first, but then the plot picked up and the plot twist happened and I got more familiar with the Fairy world, so I ended up finishing the book with a strong desire to read the whole series. 

I love how both Jude and Cardan are badass, and the "enemies-to-lovers" trope in this one is highly unusual, with them still being cruel to each other even after seemingly becoming lovers.

I also love how Jude is written. She is fierce and strong, but she has space for improvement. She is cunning and intelligent, but she still makes mistakes. And deep down, she cares, even if she doesn't always show it.

"Lush, dangerous, a dark jewel of a book . . . intoxicating" - Leigh Bardugo, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Six of Crows 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. One terrible morning, Jude and her sisters see their parents murdered in front of them. The terrifying assassin abducts all three girls to the world of Faerie, where Jude is installed in the royal court but mocked and tormented by the Faerie royalty for being mortal. As Jude grows older, she realises that she will need to take part in the dangerous deceptions of the fey to ever truly belong. But the stairway to power is fraught with shadows and betrayal. And looming over all is the infuriating, arrogant and charismatic Prince Cardan . . . Enter the dramatic and thrilling world of the Folk of the Air, brimful of magic and romance from New York Times bestselling author Holly Black.

The Folk of the Air #1

yknow what, yeah! endless thanks to my dearest friend, ishi, for guiding me to this book, hehe. what a absolute thrill of a read—i fully succumb to the judecardan hype now <333 come, let us be hopelessly immersed in the lush worldbuilding of elfhame. let us drown in the wicked cleverness of faeries bound to the truth, and the quiet heart of humans who crave a place among them, bearing the fragile power of a lie.

gianna

best enemies to lovers i swear omg, i love their dynamic and the plot is soooo good, im glad to say i never trusted that locke guy 

clara

not really sure what the hype is about. I couldn't finish it. Very "Not Like Other Girls" and "I'm 13 and this is deep" to me. 

Olivia Hughes

I was highly entertained as soon as this book left behind the high school setting, it is not a human/common school, but the whole build up of how and why Jude and Cardan were enemies bored me a bit. Although, I'll admit the banter between them was highly engaging. I think my main problem was the necessity of including the Locke plot because after reading I just felt like it was a way to justify why we cannot have a twin unstopping duo, like I saw the potential of a ying and yang heroines, even if one of them wasn't the main.

I found interesting the politics, and the fact that these faeries cannot lie but they had to find a way of charming their way through it.

I think right now I'm not in a good place to continue reading, so yeah.

A solid 4 stars.

I was highly entertained as soon as this book left behind the high school setting, it is not a human/common school, but the whole build up of how and why Jude and Cardan were enemies bored me a bit. Although, I'll admit the banter between them was highly engaging. I think my main problem was the necessity of including the Locke plot because after reading I just felt like it was a way to justify why we cannot have a twin unstopping duo, like I saw the potential of a ying and yang heroines, even if one of them wasn't the main.

I found interesting the politics, and the fact that these faeries cannot lie but they had to find a way of charming their way through it.

I think right now I'm not in a good place to continue reading, so yeah.

I was looking for a fantasy book that was heavy on the fantasy and light on romance. This met the memo somewhat and got me back into fantasy. The dialogue is very YA, I'm not sure if I will be able to make it through the entire 6 part series but definitely keen to check out book 2.

Saffia

୨ৎ : 'if i cannot be better than them, i will become so much worse.'

to be honest i didn’t walk into this expecting to like it as much as i did. i loved the way jude was portrayed and changed during the book and i can’t wait to read more about her. she’s definitely my favourite character, and i can tell she’ll be strong and not need anyone but herself to save her.

*** updated: just reread this and it made me realise how much i genuienly adore this book and the characters. while cardan still annoyed me, i cant help but love him. vivi, oak, roach, ghost and bomb were such intricate side characters and i adore how much they add to the story. and of course my sweet baby jude. she can do no wrong and i support everything she does and will do. ***

୨ৎ : 'if i cannot be better than them, i will become so much worse.'

— ☆ 5/5 (was 4/5)

to be honest i didn’t walk into this expecting to like it as much as i did. i loved the way jude was portrayed and changed during the book and i can’t wait to read more about her. she’s definitely my favourite character, and i can tell she’ll be strong and not need anyone but herself to save her.

*** updated: just reread this and it made me realise how much i genuienly adore this book and the characters. while cardan still annoyed me, i cant help but love him. vivi, oak, roach, ghost and bomb were such intricate side characters and i adore how much they add to the story. and of course my sweet baby jude. she can do no wrong and i support everything she does and will do. ***

this flowed impressively smooth. the story and the events jude was going through felt natural and not forced or rushed. the plot twists had me LOSING IT in the best way possible. the descriptions of the settings/clothing were rich and helped to set the feeling of the surroundings, even when they took a minute to piece together. i should have knew locke was being too shady for his own good… (adoption with locke ended, cardan is my new son) but THE END TOO hello??? i love this book so much, i’m glad i finally gave it a chance. excited to get into the next ones

graves

finished this within 24 hours because it was such an easy read. the atmosphere and vibes were really cool, reminded me a lot of one dark window but this was more politics heavy. i saw a lot of the plot twists coming which isn’t a bad thing but it didn’t have the shock factor that might have been intended. the relationships between jude and the male characters felt a little shallow and instalove at first, but seeing how cardan (?) reverted back to his “asshole” ways is an interesting direction and i’m looking forward to seeing where the series goes :)

The Cruel Prince

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