A review by writeronherway
The Wicked King by Holly Black
5.0
The Wicked King is such a strong follow up to The Cruel Prince. There's that hanging weight and sense of a countdown to when Jude's power and security will run out which holds every event and slice of dialogue taunt with tension!
The very premise of humans in faerieland; powerless and vulnerable to the control and brutality of the fae who could literally do anything to them at any time is so terrifying!! Jude strives to become powerful so nobody can control her. Cardan has embraced the role laid out for him; the cruel prince. In this book, even more so than the first, I loved all of the clever ironies: the fairies can't lie; Jude is the only human who can escape their control but can't let them know so has to pretend she's under their control & Cardan is a faerie bound by a human! When Jude is captured and taken to the Undersea, she must pretend she is under Queen Orlagh's control. She must measure every word and every action to prove she is under their control. She cannot reveal that she is immune. The power dynamics and the need for appearance to hold over reality puts the characters in such interesting predicaments and means you're constantly dissecting their motivation!
I can't believe Holly Black left us on another insane cliffhanger! My jaw actually dropped when she was exiled. The one thing she has been against the whole time is going back to the 'mortal' world! Can't wait for what Queen of Nothing brings.
The very premise of humans in faerieland; powerless and vulnerable to the control and brutality of the fae who could literally do anything to them at any time is so terrifying!! Jude strives to become powerful so nobody can control her. Cardan has embraced the role laid out for him; the cruel prince. In this book, even more so than the first, I loved all of the clever ironies: the fairies can't lie; Jude is the only human who can escape their control but can't let them know so has to pretend she's under their control & Cardan is a faerie bound by a human! When Jude is captured and taken to the Undersea, she must pretend she is under Queen Orlagh's control. She must measure every word and every action to prove she is under their control. She cannot reveal that she is immune. The power dynamics and the need for appearance to hold over reality puts the characters in such interesting predicaments and means you're constantly dissecting their motivation!
I can't believe Holly Black left us on another insane cliffhanger! My jaw actually dropped when she was exiled. The one thing she has been against the whole time is going back to the 'mortal' world! Can't wait for what Queen of Nothing brings.