A review by lyss_kane
The Cruel Prince by Holly Black

adventurous dark funny tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

SPOILERS BELOW!!!
I have SO much to say and SO much to react to!

To start this review off, I want to state that I have technically read up to 80% of book 1, about 1.5-2 years ago. I had soft DNF'd it back then, mainly because I had just finished reading both ACOTAR & FBAA and thought The Cruel Prince was also on the same level of those. I wasn't into booktok or anything at the time, so I didn't realize it actually was YA fantasy, not adult. So, quite frankly, I was a little bit bored at the time of first reading it, back then. I knew that it was a beloved series so I decided to soft DNF it, and come back to it when I was ready to give it my full attention. This time around, I was able to take my time with it and overall had a pretty good time with the story and characters.

"Here's why I don't like these stories: They highlight that I am vulnerable. No matter how careful I am, eventually I'll make another misstep. I am weak. I am fragile. I am mortal. I hate that most of all. Even if, by some miracle, I could be better than them, I will never be one of them."

In my heart of hearts, I think this book wouldn't need a whole lot done to it to elevate it to the new adult/adult category. I kind of wish that it was, to be honest. I feel like there is so much potential to expand the story & characters, as well as all of the dark stuff and crucial scenes that happened within the book. Add 100-200 pages worth, add more tension between Jude & Cardan (and probably Locke at the beginning, even though that pains me to say), create more complex sentence structures and <i>bang!</i> - you have a new adult book. I can definitely see exactly why this series is so beloved by many. I wish I had read this is in high school, to be honest. I can still appreciate it as an adult, but I think it definitely would have hit harder in my teens/early 20's. 

Also, as a side note, it should be said that I also rate books differently, depending on the categories they fall under (i.e. I wouldn't rate an epic fantasy the same, mentally, as I would a rom-com. The same goes for this, I wouldn't rate a YA necessarily the same as I would an adult book). I think that's more fair, to be honest, and it's become second-nature for me to do.

"Children can laugh all day and still cry themselves to sleep at night."

The prologue of this book really took me off guard. The harder I imagine myself in the girls’ positions, the sadder I got. I couldn’t imagine some green dude showing up suddenly and slaughtering my loving parents right before my eyes. So brutally, at that. Wild. And then to be taken by him and raised in Faerie as his own. Even crazier.

"I can see why humans succumb to the beautiful nightmare of the Court, why they willingly drown in it."

Personally, I think the addition of all the really dark moments (i.e. the story of the guard biting off her finger and chewing it, threatening her. Or her nearly choking to death on the fruit by the hand of Valerion. Or some of the darker themed of suicide, etc.) added a lot to the overall atmosphere of the story. This world is ruthless and cutthroat, and the Folk aren't like mortals - they have different morals (or really none at all) and that is showcased in different ways throughout the plot. I think without those, this story could have been more “mid”, in my opinion. But with those additions, I think it made the story more interesting, and definitely lean more-so towards traditional fae. I'm no expert on faeries and folklore, but I know that this isn’t your ACOTAR bat boys, kind of fae. I also loved reading about all the different creatures and aesthetics of different Folk. It really expanded the world of me, and I could picture everything so vividly in my mind.


"Three is an odd configuration of sisters. There's always one on the outside."

I must rant now. GOSH DID I HATE TARYN. This time reading it, I could only remember slight things that happened when I had read some previously. For some reason, I convinced myself that Taryn didn’t know Jude’s infatuation/relationship blooming with Locke. Reading it for the second time…that sister KNEW. Jude says to her even that they had been kissing, etc. I actually can't comprehend Taryn's actions against her sister. Where is her loyalty? And to her TWIN sister, nonetheless... It's safe to say that Taryn is for sure my LEAST FAVOURITE character in the entire book, even more-so than Locke. I just can't fathom a sister, a twin at that, having such disloyalty. Plus, to add to everything, she almost screwed up the entire plan at the end! Ugh. I'll be interested to see where Taryn's story takes her going forward.

"I get why he chose her. I just wish she had chosen me."

Going into this book, I clearly knew that Cardan was the main love interest, so it was fun trying to see all the little moments the author wrote in where, if you’re not paying attention, you’ll miss them. (i.e. when Jude is drowning in the river, Cardan steps into the reeds, but it’s written in a way that “he wants to get a better look”, when really he probably thought about saving her from real harm). I loved trying to catch all of these moments.
 

"Welcome," says the Roach, "to the Court of Shadows."

I actually got a good kick out of the Court of Shadows, and the band of misfits. My favoruite so far has been Ghost. I have a theory that maybe he's actually part-human, because his appearance is so close to being human-like. I low-key fear for all three of their safety going forward. I'm not sure if this series will kill off supporting characters like that, but then again...there already was a lot of death in book 1, so it's possible...


The Valerian attacking scene was shocking, and I sort of thought it was kind of random. I saw somewhere recently that it’s canon that Valerian was attracted to Jude. Reading it with that knowledge is interesting, to say the least; it's definitely giving bully romance lol. I feel like he hated himself for being attracted to her, so he wanted to get rid of his pesky problem - aka, kill Jude. I just thought that it sort of came out of nowhere, and was resolved so fast. I think it would've been more fun if Ghost actually did help her bury his body and stuff. In my opinion, it wouldn't been a fun chance to better get to know him, whilst also having Jude bond with him. What's a better way to bond with someone than over burying a body? Lol.


"Father, I am what you made me. I've become your daughter after all."

The coup chapter is actually insane. I wasn’t really expecting so much bloodshed in a YA book, and in kinda graphic detail, too. Is it weird that it makes me like the book more? I definitely have so many questions. Mainly Maddoc and his friendship with Dain…like, WHY did he do it? Was it really all just one big power trip, so he could be in a point of power? I have a theory that Jude will have to kill Maddoc at some point. Balekin seems like a royal, abusive prick - I'll be interested to see where his story takes him, too. I feel like we haven't seen the end of him.


It’s truly crazy, reading again and paying more attention as you read along, just how much foreshadowing there is, and in all the little ways too.
I high-key wish this was made into a mini series, with the animation style of Arcane or Vox Machina. It’d be sick.

Overall, I did enjoy my time reading this book, so I would probably rate it a 4.5⭐
• Loved the characters and the relationships within (mainly Maddoc/Jude's messy relationship).
• Loved the setting, and the atmosphere Holly Black created, in the world of Elfhame. 
• Enjoyed a lot of the plot, and how it's now set up for the next book(s).
• I was left wanting a little bit in the writing, I wish some sentences were a little more complex. However, there were still some amazing quotes throughout that I really enjoyed.

Recommend? Yes, I would probably recommend this, depending on the person. 
I have a feeling that once I'm done with all three books, that I'll probably consider it a favoruite - but we will see. I just loved the whimsical setting so much.
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