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A review by bookforthought
The Cruel Prince by Holly Black
5.0
So, I had heard a lot about Holly Black's books and became extremely curious. This was actually the first of her books that I got round to reading and... I loved it! Wow, I had no idea of what I was missing out on. Now, I'm not normally a big fan of faeries but as soon as I finished The Cruel Prince I wanted more! I cannot wait for the next book in the series to come out...
There were soooo many things I loved about this book. Starting small, the settings were AWESOME. The descriptions really made the location come alive, and even a faerie newbie like me managed to get a fairly accurate idea of what Faerie must have looked like. And oh, isn't it wonderful?? Sure, almost anything will end up killing you, but that's no reason not to go there, right?
The characters were so wonderfully complex, it was a true delight to read about them! I really liked Jude from early on in the book, and enjoyed seeing things from her point of view. She is a very complicated character, who's had a very complicated life: born human, she is forced to grow up in Faerie as a member of the household of her mother's first faerie husband, who is also the man who murdered her parents and a bloody general... y'know, the usual. The relationship between faeries and humans was also fascinating, and the discrimination and bullying were incredibly well-crafted and realistic.
I also loved Madoc as a character: he was clearly Bad, with a capital B (murderous kidnapping faerie, etcetera), but at the same time, I ended up really liking him, especially in his relationship with his "daughters". Cardan was also a very interesting character, and for most of the book I alternated between hating him with a passion and actually feeling for him. I can't wait to see how he will develop in the next book!
Finally, the plot was A M A Z I N G! I was continually surprised by the turn events took, and every time I thought I had figured out where we'd end up, I was deliciously proven wrong. This is a very clever and intricate book, and I am seriously looking forward to more political intrigue, plotting, spying, murders, revenge and clever ways to avoid lying in the next installment.
For this and more reviews, visit Book for Thought.
I received an e-arc of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. This did not affect my opinion of the book in any way.
There were soooo many things I loved about this book. Starting small, the settings were AWESOME. The descriptions really made the location come alive, and even a faerie newbie like me managed to get a fairly accurate idea of what Faerie must have looked like. And oh, isn't it wonderful?? Sure, almost anything will end up killing you, but that's no reason not to go there, right?
The characters were so wonderfully complex, it was a true delight to read about them! I really liked Jude from early on in the book, and enjoyed seeing things from her point of view. She is a very complicated character, who's had a very complicated life: born human, she is forced to grow up in Faerie as a member of the household of her mother's first faerie husband, who is also the man who murdered her parents and a bloody general... y'know, the usual. The relationship between faeries and humans was also fascinating, and the discrimination and bullying were incredibly well-crafted and realistic.
I also loved Madoc as a character: he was clearly Bad, with a capital B (murderous kidnapping faerie, etcetera), but at the same time, I ended up really liking him, especially in his relationship with his "daughters". Cardan was also a very interesting character, and for most of the book I alternated between hating him with a passion and actually feeling for him. I can't wait to see how he will develop in the next book!
Finally, the plot was A M A Z I N G! I was continually surprised by the turn events took, and every time I thought I had figured out where we'd end up, I was deliciously proven wrong. This is a very clever and intricate book, and I am seriously looking forward to more political intrigue, plotting, spying, murders, revenge and clever ways to avoid lying in the next installment.
For this and more reviews, visit Book for Thought.
I received an e-arc of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. This did not affect my opinion of the book in any way.