Reviews with content warning for Physical abuse - Il principe crudele

Reviews tagging 'Physical abuse'

Il principe crudele by Holly Black

275 reviews

aksolotli's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious tense slow-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? No

3.25

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solarmatrixcobra's review against another edition

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mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

This is a romantic fantasy as opposed to fantasy romance. Those looking for a romance-focused story will be disappointed. It was written and structured well, but I did not like how angsty the protagonist was and how little romance there actually was on the page. I also did not appreciate how some characters do some pretty disturbing stuff to the protagonist, but throughout the story it's referred to as "bullying" as if they just pulled a couple of innocent pranks on her. Definitely not my thing, but I can see why others might like it, and I wasn't struggling too much to finish it unlike some other books because it had a well-structured plot.

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molliford's review against another edition

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adventurous dark medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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sizzlesteaks's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

4.5

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glddstwmn's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

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e_gallego's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional funny tense fast-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

5.0

Holly Black, I loved you when I was a kid because of your Tithe series, and now you have recommitted my undying love for your work with the Cruel Prince. This is my second go-round with this book; the first time I read it a couple years ago, I finished the entire trilogy in three days flat. Holly Black does fae perfectly: mean, petty, insidious, monstrous, greedy. Her entire world is so fun, her writing so good, you really do become entrenched within the story. And Jude? Where do I even start with Jude. Jude, my beloved. You can do no wrong in my eyes, Jude you feral creature. Jude may quite possibly be one of my favorite protagonists in all my reading. Honestly there’s so few characters here who I dislike. Perhaps the most interesting relationship however is between Madoc and Jude. The romance honestly takes a backseat to their complicated and nuanced relationship. It is ultimately the story of a girl who becomes all the things she hates in her father to achieve what she needs. And Madoc? I could ramble forever on how fucking cool of a character he is and how nuanced and complex of a villain. I LOVE Madoc like crazy, he’s such a great antagonist; endlessly fascinating. That isn’t to say that the romance is bad: on the contrary, Holly Black may be the only author I trust to write the bully trope as I normally fucking hate it. The romance here, enemies and lovers, is written in a way that understands the characters and every way that they tick. Their fears, their hatred, their yearning, their needs. Cardan’s seething obsession is so batshit that I just have to laugh; and Jude’s reciprocal obsessive rage makes me kick my feet. They want to destroy each other and it’s wonderful and dare I say romantic. In Holly Black we trust, amen.

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