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seastheday's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I couldn’t put this book down. Okay, I only did because I have young children. But, otherwise I wouldn’t have put this book down! Listening to Jude slowly talk herself into paranoid madness was so fun to watch. I love and hate Carden’s incongruous ways. He was foolish but learned to play the game. He is akin to Sansa Stark in that way. I love the push and pull of power between Cardan and Jude. Most of the time I’m not even sure who I want to have the power. As a side note, I fucking hate Locke. STILL. And now Ghost AND Taryn’s are on my list with their names underlined! I don’t think any of them can really be redeemed. And I don’t think they’re meant to be. I want to pick up Queen of Nothing RIGHT NOW. But alas, I cannot as I have not bought it. I want to know what happens next and steam roll through it this weekend. But I must wait on the library.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Bullying, Violence, Kidnapping, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: War
Minor: Child abuse, Slavery, Torture, and Vomit
noellegrace8's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
As stated in my review of The Cruel Prince, I really struggled to get into that first book. But I guess I got used to all the oddities, because I couldn't put this one down. There was less fluff, more politics, and it finally felt like the characters were the correct age for the things that are happening. They are adults now, making adult decisions and playing a dangerous adult game of power, authority, and death. I would no longer categorize this as "teen" literature, but "young adult." What really impresses me is that Holly Black manages to make me root for characters that are truly not good people, which is not typical for me. I wanted Jude to win in the first book. I was smug when she turned her knife on Cardan. But now in this one, I wasn't sure who to vie for. It seems like every time a character does something worth celebrating, they also do something that makes you hate yourself for liking them. The betrayals are painful but enticing. Also the cliff hanger??! My library is backed up 10 weeks for the last book and I am REELING about it. I don't know how I'm going to wait that long. This is fantasy done right, and true enemies to lovers (hopefully? Jury is still out on whether "lovers" is true...).
I don't factor the audiobook performance into my rating of the material itself, but I give Caitlin Kelly 4.5/5⭐. Again, by the second book in a series, I tend to get used to whatever problems I had with the voicing in the first. But honestly, there didn't seem to be as many parts where I felt the narrator wasn't portraying the correct emotion or tone of voice. A good performance, overall.
I don't factor the audiobook performance into my rating of the material itself, but I give Caitlin Kelly 4.5/5⭐. Again, by the second book in a series, I tend to get used to whatever problems I had with the voicing in the first. But honestly, there didn't seem to be as many parts where I felt the narrator wasn't portraying the correct emotion or tone of voice. A good performance, overall.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Violence, Blood, Murder, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Bullying, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Self harm, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Kidnapping, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, War, and Classism
Minor: Ableism, Alcoholism, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual assault, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Xenophobia, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
bookishfads's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
The second book of the trilogy is better than the first.
Mike drop (not really, I'm sure this is a common opinion).
If you got disappointed by the first book, yet you enjoyed at least a third of it, check out the next one. Cardan gets way more development and gets more likeable, Jude remains the complex protagonist that I love so much, the characters tangle up more in their various plots and feelings. Backstories are expanded, court drama goes on, dragging Jude's family into it. Holly Black writes with so much passion and puts so much poetry and reflection into her work (and quite a bit of silliness and weirdness).
Why four stars? Some parts felt unfinished or undercooked; it's been five months since we've seen our love-hate duo and yet we get so little of their dynamic in their current position before plot kicks in. The romance is improved but I'm still waiting for it to become more than just bare-bones attraction. The book in general could have done so much more and that irks me because the writer hardly used that potential, especially when it comes to expanding this world.
Rating second books in trilogies is complicated, the first book does all the heavy lifting of worldbuilding and exposition, while their endings are rarely satisfying and rely on the third book for resolution. Ironically, this is why they can also be so loved by fans: they treat us with familiarity and create hype. The Wicked King has a very nicely rounded arc, yet the ending still creates more tension, so if you pick up this book, I strongly believe you'll go for the third.
Now for the spoiler part:
The first book didn't build the solid foundation the second book pretends to have with its romance, but I played along for the sake of the story. The ship moments between them were delicious and I'd be lying if I said I disliked them, but they fall flat since they aren't rooted in much.
They crush on each other? That's it?
Cardan made Jude's life miserable from day one. We got something like an apology, when she comes back from the Undersea, but that's so far into the story! Cardan's character offers so little that Jude could fall for. It's a book about fae so some toxicity in the romance is okay, but that doesn't mean Jude should just fall for the pretty fae prince because plot said so.
I've never seen enemies to lovers have such insta-love vibes.
I don't mind if she loves him for being cunning and manipulative - he's fae and she's... Jude. However, she just falls for him because he's pretty and gives her attention (even though her brief relationship with Locke showed how aware she is that attention and love aren't the same, that mature first book Jude evaporated for some reason). I see what the author is trying to do, having Cardan secretly look out for Jude, but Jude doesn't. She needed more to develop so much care for him and more to trust him so much she didn't even make him give safety promises in the end. Banishing her was the least he could do and don't tell me Jude wouldn't have been prepared for it.
Still, I absolutely love the ending, how Cardan used Jude's feelings against her, a parallel to the first book and a great mark of his development. The fact that we can't discern at what point did he decide to betray her: was it during their vows? Or after Balekin's death is discovered? Or maybe during the scene where she tells him to seduce Nicasia? Did Jude plant that idea in his mind by suggesting something he found so repulsive? Either way, perfect setup, I cackled like an evil witch. These traitors so deserve each other. I just wish their affection was more believable, in a book that makes loving your parents' murderer sound plausible.
Madoc was as brilliant as always. I was wondering at what point will the twin trope be used and it did not disappoint. Madoc is just looming in the background, a vague threat to Jude's power and we completely forget about Taryn and what she's capable of. Madoc, Taryn and Jude form this triangle of mixed feelings that keeps expanding.
Locke is an asshole, yet one I expected to be more relevant to the plot for someone so annoying. Waste of character, if you ask me.
Balekin was a creep, seeing Cardan confront him was so satisfying. Another great point to his development. Cardan can be seen as the hero of this arc, trying to escape Jude and manage the power he didn't want.
Solid twist with the Court of Shadows, but I wish we got a proper reason as to why the Ghost betrayed everyone (even before the discovery, my guess was that it was him because he wanted to go back to the human world or something similar).
Nicasia has a somewhat interesting arc, but it didn't go anywhere yet. Orlagh could have been so much more for the story, even though I enjoyed how unlucky she got with Jude's geas.
Overall, this book had so many ways it could have gone. It didn't realize its full potential, which is sad, but the ending is perfect for setting up the last one.
Mike drop (not really, I'm sure this is a common opinion).
If you got disappointed by the first book, yet you enjoyed at least a third of it, check out the next one. Cardan gets way more development and gets more likeable, Jude remains the complex protagonist that I love so much, the characters tangle up more in their various plots and feelings. Backstories are expanded, court drama goes on, dragging Jude's family into it. Holly Black writes with so much passion and puts so much poetry and reflection into her work (and quite a bit of silliness and weirdness).
Why four stars? Some parts felt unfinished or undercooked; it's been five months since we've seen our love-hate duo and yet we get so little of their dynamic in their current position before plot kicks in. The romance is improved but I'm still waiting for it to become more than just bare-bones attraction. The book in general could have done so much more and that irks me because the writer hardly used that potential, especially when it comes to expanding this world.
Rating second books in trilogies is complicated, the first book does all the heavy lifting of worldbuilding and exposition, while their endings are rarely satisfying and rely on the third book for resolution. Ironically, this is why they can also be so loved by fans: they treat us with familiarity and create hype. The Wicked King has a very nicely rounded arc, yet the ending still creates more tension, so if you pick up this book, I strongly believe you'll go for the third.
Now for the spoiler part:
The first book didn't build the solid foundation the second book pretends to have with its romance, but I played along for the sake of the story. The ship moments between them were delicious and I'd be lying if I said I disliked them, but they fall flat since they aren't rooted in much.
They crush on each other? That's it?
Cardan made Jude's life miserable from day one. We got something like an apology, when she comes back from the Undersea, but that's so far into the story! Cardan's character offers so little that Jude could fall for. It's a book about fae so some toxicity in the romance is okay, but that doesn't mean Jude should just fall for the pretty fae prince because plot said so.
I've never seen enemies to lovers have such insta-love vibes.
I don't mind if she loves him for being cunning and manipulative - he's fae and she's... Jude. However, she just falls for him because he's pretty and gives her attention (even though her brief relationship with Locke showed how aware she is that attention and love aren't the same, that mature first book Jude evaporated for some reason). I see what the author is trying to do, having Cardan secretly look out for Jude, but Jude doesn't. She needed more to develop so much care for him and more to trust him so much she didn't even make him give safety promises in the end. Banishing her was the least he could do and don't tell me Jude wouldn't have been prepared for it.
Still, I absolutely love the ending, how Cardan used Jude's feelings against her, a parallel to the first book and a great mark of his development. The fact that we can't discern at what point did he decide to betray her: was it during their vows? Or after Balekin's death is discovered? Or maybe during the scene where she tells him to seduce Nicasia? Did Jude plant that idea in his mind by suggesting something he found so repulsive? Either way, perfect setup, I cackled like an evil witch. These traitors so deserve each other. I just wish their affection was more believable, in a book that makes loving your parents' murderer sound plausible.
Madoc was as brilliant as always. I was wondering at what point will the twin trope be used and it did not disappoint. Madoc is just looming in the background, a vague threat to Jude's power and we completely forget about Taryn and what she's capable of. Madoc, Taryn and Jude form this triangle of mixed feelings that keeps expanding.
Locke is an asshole, yet one I expected to be more relevant to the plot for someone so annoying. Waste of character, if you ask me.
Balekin was a creep, seeing Cardan confront him was so satisfying. Another great point to his development. Cardan can be seen as the hero of this arc, trying to escape Jude and manage the power he didn't want.
Solid twist with the Court of Shadows, but I wish we got a proper reason as to why the Ghost betrayed everyone (even before the discovery, my guess was that it was him because he wanted to go back to the human world or something similar).
Nicasia has a somewhat interesting arc, but it didn't go anywhere yet. Orlagh could have been so much more for the story, even though I enjoyed how unlucky she got with Jude's geas.
Overall, this book had so many ways it could have gone. It didn't realize its full potential, which is sad, but the ending is perfect for setting up the last one.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault and Vomit
Moderate: Sexual content, Torture, Blood, and Murder
Minor: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
About the graphic warningsdaenerystargaryen's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, and Murder
Moderate: Animal death, Child abuse, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Suicidal thoughts and Vomit
gattolinos_nerdy_nook's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I really enjoyed this book a lot more than the first. I think this was due to the book focusing on the politics and the battles one has as a ruler rather then the drama of the first book.
It easily kept me entertained throughout the whole book and has me very interested in the third and final book and how everything is going to be wrapped up.
It easily kept me entertained throughout the whole book and has me very interested in the third and final book and how everything is going to be wrapped up.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Blood
Minor: Child abuse
ksilvio's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Torture, and Violence
Moderate: Child abuse
rafacolog's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Torture, Toxic relationship, Blood, and Murder
bookmark3brodi's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
laneys_library's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
This books is AMAZING! I couldn’t stop reading! I think it might just be my favorite book I’ve ever read. The ending shocked me and I can’t wait to start the Queen of nothing!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, Trafficking, Death of parent, Murder, and Alcohol
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Kidnapping, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Cursing, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Toxic friendship, and War
jonsnowsmanbun's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Violence, Death of parent, and Murder