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Elfhame #1-3.5
The Cruel Prince / The Wicked King / The Queen of Nothing / How the King of Elfhame Learned to Hate Stories
The Folk of the Air Series 4 Books Collection Set By Holly
The Cruel
One terrible morning, Jude and her sisters see their parents murdered in front of them. The terrifying assassin abducts all three girls to the world of Faerie, where Jude is installed in the royal court but mocked and tormented by the Faerie royalty for being mortal. As Jude grows older, she realises that she will need to take part in the dangerous deceptions of the fey to ever truly belong.
The Queen of
After being pronounced Queen of Faerie and then abruptly exiled by the Wicked King Cardan, Jude finds herself unmoored, the queen of nothing. She spends her time with Vivi and Oak, watching reality television, and doing odd jobs, including squaring up to a cannibalistic faerie.
The Wicked
Jude has tricked Cardan onto the throne, binding him to her for a year and a day. But the new High King does everything in his power to humiliate and undermine her, even as his fascination with her remains undimmed. Meanwhile, a traitor in the court is scheming against her. Jude must fight for her life and the lives of those she loves, all while battling her own complicated feelings for Cardan. Now a year and a day seems like no time at all . . .
How the King of Elfhame [Hardcover]:
Before Cardan was a cruel prince or a wicked king, he was a faerie child with a heart of stone. In this sumptuously illustrated tale, Holly Black reveals a deeper look into the dramatic life of Elfhame's enigmatic high king. This tale includes delicious details of life before The Cruel Prince, an adventure beyond The Queen of Nothing, and familiar but pivotal moments from The Folk of the Air trilogy, told wholly from Cardan's perspective.
The Cruel
One terrible morning, Jude and her sisters see their parents murdered in front of them. The terrifying assassin abducts all three girls to the world of Faerie, where Jude is installed in the royal court but mocked and tormented by the Faerie royalty for being mortal. As Jude grows older, she realises that she will need to take part in the dangerous deceptions of the fey to ever truly belong.
The Queen of
After being pronounced Queen of Faerie and then abruptly exiled by the Wicked King Cardan, Jude finds herself unmoored, the queen of nothing. She spends her time with Vivi and Oak, watching reality television, and doing odd jobs, including squaring up to a cannibalistic faerie.
The Wicked
Jude has tricked Cardan onto the throne, binding him to her for a year and a day. But the new High King does everything in his power to humiliate and undermine her, even as his fascination with her remains undimmed. Meanwhile, a traitor in the court is scheming against her. Jude must fight for her life and the lives of those she loves, all while battling her own complicated feelings for Cardan. Now a year and a day seems like no time at all . . .
How the King of Elfhame [Hardcover]:
Before Cardan was a cruel prince or a wicked king, he was a faerie child with a heart of stone. In this sumptuously illustrated tale, Holly Black reveals a deeper look into the dramatic life of Elfhame's enigmatic high king. This tale includes delicious details of life before The Cruel Prince, an adventure beyond The Queen of Nothing, and familiar but pivotal moments from The Folk of the Air trilogy, told wholly from Cardan's perspective.
Paperback
Published January 1, 2021
122 people are currently reading
6282 people want to read
About the author
Holly Black
181 books130k followersHolly Black is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of over thirty fantasy novels for kids and teens. She has been a finalist for an Eisner Award and the Lodestar Award, and the recipient of the Mythopoeic Award, a Nebula, and a Newbery Honor. Her books have been translated into 32 languages worldwide and adapted for film. She currently lives in New England with her husband and son in a house with a secret library.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 193 reviews
September 21, 2023
4,5 ⭐️
Ho deciso di scrivere le mie opinioni solamente al termine della lettura dell’intera storia, dunque quello che lèggerete qui sotto non è il mio pensiero limitato a “La regina del nulla”, ma a tutta la trilogia de “Il principe crudele” (NO SPOILER, ovviamente)
Una delle soddisfazioni più grandi, secondo me, per un lettore è quella di iniziare un libro con aspettative bassissime e rimanerne meravigliato. Questo è quello che è successo con “Il principe crudele”.
È una storia di guerra, fisica ed interiore, di crudeltà umana (e non) ma anche di normalità di emozioni, anche se spesso estremizzate tanto da diventare un problema.
Per mettere ordine ai miei pensieri faccio due liste: cosa mi è piaciuto e cosa no.
Cosa mi è piaciuto:
- il prologo, che sin da subito dà uno schiaffo al lettore e lo spinge verso la storia. I termini “schiaffo” e “spinta” rendono bene secondo me;
- i personaggi: Jude e Cardan, due anime dannate che piano piano riescondo a far diventare marmo il loro cuore di pietra;
- le ambientazioni: le fate sono cattive. E ci piace;
- i colpi di scena: quando sembra che la storia stia prendendo una piega, Holly Black sterza repentinamente e ti lascia senza parole;
- l’assenza di moralizzazione forzata: i personaggi cattivi restano tali.
Cosa non mi è piaciuto:
- la frettolosità in alcuni passaggi;
- la quantità infinita di personaggi estremamente secondari che vengono nominati, per poi scomparire;
STOP.
Il Principe Crudele e i suoi personaggi non si possono dimenticare facilmente. Lì si ama o li si odia.
E io li amo
Ho deciso di scrivere le mie opinioni solamente al termine della lettura dell’intera storia, dunque quello che lèggerete qui sotto non è il mio pensiero limitato a “La regina del nulla”, ma a tutta la trilogia de “Il principe crudele” (NO SPOILER, ovviamente)
Una delle soddisfazioni più grandi, secondo me, per un lettore è quella di iniziare un libro con aspettative bassissime e rimanerne meravigliato. Questo è quello che è successo con “Il principe crudele”.
È una storia di guerra, fisica ed interiore, di crudeltà umana (e non) ma anche di normalità di emozioni, anche se spesso estremizzate tanto da diventare un problema.
Per mettere ordine ai miei pensieri faccio due liste: cosa mi è piaciuto e cosa no.
Cosa mi è piaciuto:
- il prologo, che sin da subito dà uno schiaffo al lettore e lo spinge verso la storia. I termini “schiaffo” e “spinta” rendono bene secondo me;
- i personaggi: Jude e Cardan, due anime dannate che piano piano riescondo a far diventare marmo il loro cuore di pietra;
- le ambientazioni: le fate sono cattive. E ci piace;
- i colpi di scena: quando sembra che la storia stia prendendo una piega, Holly Black sterza repentinamente e ti lascia senza parole;
- l’assenza di moralizzazione forzata: i personaggi cattivi restano tali.
Cosa non mi è piaciuto:
- la frettolosità in alcuni passaggi;
- la quantità infinita di personaggi estremamente secondari che vengono nominati, per poi scomparire;
STOP.
Il Principe Crudele e i suoi personaggi non si possono dimenticare facilmente. Lì si ama o li si odia.
E io li amo
February 6, 2022
I really loved this series. It may not be everyone's cup of tea, but if you're looking for a high fantasy enemies to lovers, you'll probably like this. Note that if it's spice you're looking for, you definitely won't find it here, but what you will get is tonnes of drama and extremely detailed descriptions of the world of the Faerieland. It's refreshing to read a story where the romance is just a subplot, and the politics take centre stage.
January 4, 2022
1 of my favorite series the only bad thing is that their are no more.
March 28, 2026
probably the best I've ever read
January 20, 2025
This series really was brain chemistry altering. It has such a deep meaning to me and I find my self rereading the books annually and never getting bored. I really don't know if it is nostalgia or that has me having such an understanding and special place for these books, or something like it. But to me, it really is as though this book has magic. Beautiful characters, beautiful story, I can't wait to read it again.
July 27, 2024
**** 4.5 ✨ ****
May 7, 2023
Actual Rating: 4.5 stars.
One of the best Young Adult Fantasy series that I have read in a very long time. I devoured it.
Very interesting, very engaging, with complex and entertaining storyline and characters. Not a dull moment. With no predictability here, this series kept me immersed on the story since the very beginning of the first book all the way to the end.
I completely recommend it.
On a personal note, I would have preferred this book as a new adult fantasy series, some adult content here would have been welcome as well as more cohesive due to the maturity of the characters and seriousness of the matters. I would have also liked more time spend on the love story to have a more developed and satisfactory romance.
Those 2 are the only reasons I am not giving this series 5 stars.
One of the best Young Adult Fantasy series that I have read in a very long time. I devoured it.
Very interesting, very engaging, with complex and entertaining storyline and characters. Not a dull moment. With no predictability here, this series kept me immersed on the story since the very beginning of the first book all the way to the end.
I completely recommend it.
On a personal note, I would have preferred this book as a new adult fantasy series, some adult content here would have been welcome as well as more cohesive due to the maturity of the characters and seriousness of the matters. I would have also liked more time spend on the love story to have a more developed and satisfactory romance.
Those 2 are the only reasons I am not giving this series 5 stars.
July 17, 2022
Ich muss sagen, am Anfang habe ich mich schwer getan. Ich musste erst richtig reinkommen und da mir der Prolog nicht sonderlich gefiel, war das umso schwerer. Es gibt bessere Einstiege.
Aber dann, - ich weiß auch nicht, - war ich in so einem Bann gefangen und ich konnte einfach nicht aufhören zu lesen. Es ging einfach nicht, immer wenn ich Zeit gehabt hatte, habe ich gelesen und als ich den ersten Band durchgelesen hatte, habe ich mir den zweiten Bestellt und immer so weiter.
Bis die Reihe plötzlich zu Ende war, dann saß ich da und dachte mir; Scheiße, jetzt ist es zu Ende.
Was ich damit sagen will; LEST DIESE REIHE, DENN SIE IST VERDAMMT GUT!
Aber dann, - ich weiß auch nicht, - war ich in so einem Bann gefangen und ich konnte einfach nicht aufhören zu lesen. Es ging einfach nicht, immer wenn ich Zeit gehabt hatte, habe ich gelesen und als ich den ersten Band durchgelesen hatte, habe ich mir den zweiten Bestellt und immer so weiter.
Bis die Reihe plötzlich zu Ende war, dann saß ich da und dachte mir; Scheiße, jetzt ist es zu Ende.
Was ich damit sagen will; LEST DIESE REIHE, DENN SIE IST VERDAMMT GUT!
January 6, 2026
the best fantasy series in my opinion and don't even try to argue with me about it.
June 23, 2023
Oggi sono qui per parlarvi di un'altra opera arrivata nelle nostre librerie.
Questo volume unico che fa parte di uno dei nuovi Draghi Oscar comprende:
• Il Principe Crudele
• Il Re Malvagio
• La Regina del Nulla
• Come il Re di Elfhame imparò ad odiare le storie.
Graficamente possiamo dire qualcosa di questa saga? No. È tutto curato così tanto nei minimi dettagli che visivamente è meravigliosa: illustrazioni top, impaginazione pure, dettagli egregi che più egregi non si può... perché? Perché ovviamente dovevano compensare qualcosa, una mancanza che mi fa dire davvero che peccato.
Qui tocchiamo un argomento davvero davvero spinoso poiché io sono molto controcorrente per quanto riguarda questa saga che ha fatto un successo molto più che enorme. Volete sapere perché? Parliamone subito!
Il principio del mio fastidio: un prologo in terza persona e successivamente la storia in prima. V.a.b.b.è.
Il seguito del mio fastidio: Jude, la nostra protagonista, si ritrova da dieci anni a vivere nel mondo magico con le sue sorelle Taryn e Vivi. Vivi appartiene a quel mondo, mentre le due gemelle sono completamente umane.
Fin qua direte: ok e quindi? Andiamo indietro.
Una famigliola felice, un giorno un tizio arriva, incazzato nero, e si scopre essere il marito da cui tua madre è scappata. Questo bellimbusto prende, ammazza tuo padre, ammazza tua madre per onore e vendetta e vabbè, e si vuole riprendere la figlia. Però che fai, tua moglie ha avuto altre due figlie e seppur umane non le prendi con te? Suvvia, sono le sue figlie, tu sei un uomo d'onore. E se le porta via. (Quanto ho riso).
La tragedia: tu, persona normale, a un'età in cui capisci le cose e non sei neonato, cresci con un istinto omicida nei confronti del tipo che ti ha ucciso la famiglia? Si. Di regola si. Jude no. Lo considera, nonostante tutto, all'inizio del libro, un buon padre. Le leggeva le favole sulle ginocchia!
A questo punto del libro ammetto che stavo per lanciarlo per aria.
Andiamo avanti. Mi aspetto che le cose migliorino, non vedo l'ora che di conoscere Cardan e mi ritrovo uno scemo che si comporta come un bambino di tredici anni coi dispetti da scemo e voglio di nuovo lanciare il libro.
Andiamo avanti succedono tante altre cose che portano Jude a una scelta, nel primo volume. La sua enorme intelligenza la portano a pensare: "so che non dovrei farlo" ma a rispondere "ok accetto". Il premio del mongolino d'oro va a Jude! Applausi!
" Certo che vorrei essere come loro. Loro sono belli come spade forgiate da qualche fuoco divino. Loro vivranno in eterno. "
Praticamente avessi letto solo il primo volume, a quest'ora vi avrei detto che per me quest'opera vale una sola stella solo per l'aspetto estetico. Ma sono andata avanti, perché ormai dovevo sapere come andava a finire, e Dio ti ringrazio non vi faccio spoiler ma le cose si sistemano parecchio. Parecchio, non tanto, ma almeno Jude diventa un po' più intelligente, Cardan più apprezzabile, la storia in sé prende un hype niente male e arriva a una fine che mi è piaciuta. In tutto ho preferito l'extra finale dell'intera saga, sono sincera.
In conclusione: è una saga che consiglio? Non lo so. Se prendete questo volume si perché vi costringete ad andare avanti. Se leggete solo a pezzi comprandoli singoli, secondo me non vale la pena e forse letto solo il primo come me non andreste avanti se non aveste già il resto.
Non sarà una saga che ricorderò con amore, non sarà una saga che mi ha lasciato qualcosa, ma di certo mi ha dato da parlare e tutto sommato alla fine non mi è dispiaciuta come credevo invece sarebbe stata catastrofica dati gli inizi.
Ma vabbè, se ha fatto successo sarò io che ho troppe pretese nella vita.
Questo volume unico che fa parte di uno dei nuovi Draghi Oscar comprende:
• Il Principe Crudele
• Il Re Malvagio
• La Regina del Nulla
• Come il Re di Elfhame imparò ad odiare le storie.
Graficamente possiamo dire qualcosa di questa saga? No. È tutto curato così tanto nei minimi dettagli che visivamente è meravigliosa: illustrazioni top, impaginazione pure, dettagli egregi che più egregi non si può... perché? Perché ovviamente dovevano compensare qualcosa, una mancanza che mi fa dire davvero che peccato.
Qui tocchiamo un argomento davvero davvero spinoso poiché io sono molto controcorrente per quanto riguarda questa saga che ha fatto un successo molto più che enorme. Volete sapere perché? Parliamone subito!
Il principio del mio fastidio: un prologo in terza persona e successivamente la storia in prima. V.a.b.b.è.
Il seguito del mio fastidio: Jude, la nostra protagonista, si ritrova da dieci anni a vivere nel mondo magico con le sue sorelle Taryn e Vivi. Vivi appartiene a quel mondo, mentre le due gemelle sono completamente umane.
Fin qua direte: ok e quindi? Andiamo indietro.
Una famigliola felice, un giorno un tizio arriva, incazzato nero, e si scopre essere il marito da cui tua madre è scappata. Questo bellimbusto prende, ammazza tuo padre, ammazza tua madre per onore e vendetta e vabbè, e si vuole riprendere la figlia. Però che fai, tua moglie ha avuto altre due figlie e seppur umane non le prendi con te? Suvvia, sono le sue figlie, tu sei un uomo d'onore. E se le porta via. (Quanto ho riso).
La tragedia: tu, persona normale, a un'età in cui capisci le cose e non sei neonato, cresci con un istinto omicida nei confronti del tipo che ti ha ucciso la famiglia? Si. Di regola si. Jude no. Lo considera, nonostante tutto, all'inizio del libro, un buon padre. Le leggeva le favole sulle ginocchia!
A questo punto del libro ammetto che stavo per lanciarlo per aria.
Andiamo avanti. Mi aspetto che le cose migliorino, non vedo l'ora che di conoscere Cardan e mi ritrovo uno scemo che si comporta come un bambino di tredici anni coi dispetti da scemo e voglio di nuovo lanciare il libro.
Andiamo avanti succedono tante altre cose che portano Jude a una scelta, nel primo volume. La sua enorme intelligenza la portano a pensare: "so che non dovrei farlo" ma a rispondere "ok accetto". Il premio del mongolino d'oro va a Jude! Applausi!
" Certo che vorrei essere come loro. Loro sono belli come spade forgiate da qualche fuoco divino. Loro vivranno in eterno. "
Praticamente avessi letto solo il primo volume, a quest'ora vi avrei detto che per me quest'opera vale una sola stella solo per l'aspetto estetico. Ma sono andata avanti, perché ormai dovevo sapere come andava a finire, e Dio ti ringrazio non vi faccio spoiler ma le cose si sistemano parecchio. Parecchio, non tanto, ma almeno Jude diventa un po' più intelligente, Cardan più apprezzabile, la storia in sé prende un hype niente male e arriva a una fine che mi è piaciuta. In tutto ho preferito l'extra finale dell'intera saga, sono sincera.
In conclusione: è una saga che consiglio? Non lo so. Se prendete questo volume si perché vi costringete ad andare avanti. Se leggete solo a pezzi comprandoli singoli, secondo me non vale la pena e forse letto solo il primo come me non andreste avanti se non aveste già il resto.
Non sarà una saga che ricorderò con amore, non sarà una saga che mi ha lasciato qualcosa, ma di certo mi ha dato da parlare e tutto sommato alla fine non mi è dispiaciuta come credevo invece sarebbe stata catastrofica dati gli inizi.
Ma vabbè, se ha fatto successo sarò io che ho troppe pretese nella vita.
February 24, 2024
4⭐
Certo che vorrei essere come loro. Loro sono belli come spade forgiate da qualche fuoco divino. Loro vivranno in eterno.
Folk of the Air è stata una bellissima scoperta e Elfhame mi mancherà tantissimo.
Inizialmente non ci stavo capendo molto e ho trovato la storia un po' lenta, successivamente dopo i vari colpi di scena è diventata più interessante e avvincente.
In generale, però dal primo libro mi aspettavo di meglio.
Il mondo descritto dall'autrice è complesso e particolare ma non viene spiegato nello specifico. Rimane sempre sul generico, approfondendo alcune cose man mano che la storia procede. Questa cosa è sia un bene, in quanto lascia molto spazio all'immaginazione, d'altra parte all'inizio ha rallentato la mia lettura, non capendoci molto.
"Il re malvagio" è il libro che mi è piaciuto di più, dinamico, interessante, coinvolgente. Ci sono diversi colpi di scena e il finale è stato molto inaspettato. Ho fatto fatica a staccarmi dalle pagine e ho iniziato ad apprezzare (ed odiare) di più i personaggi.
Invece il finale della storia("la regina del nulla") l'ho trovato affrettato e un po' scontato. In generale il terzo libro è ricco di colpi di scena e ha una tensione altissima. A parer mio questo finale è un po' "riduttivo". In questo libro ho adorato Cardan, mentre Jude fa un po' di scelte avventate.
Gli ultimi capitoli, invece, li ho trovato un po' inutili, messi solo per "allungare il brodo"
•"Conquistare qualcosa quando nessuno ci guarda è facile. È più difficile difendere la nostra conquista, anche se siamo in netto vantaggio.
È molto più facile conquistare il potere che mantenerlo" •
Parlando della scrittura, invece, inizialmente non mi faceva impazzire, successivamente l'ho trovato adeguata alla storia, nonostante avrei preferito la terza persona. In particolare nel primo libro ho fatto fatica ad accettarla, in quando la trovavo molto stonata all'interno del libro.
I personaggi sono molto interessanti.
Jude dal primo libro fino all'ultimo ha una grandissima crescita e cambia veramente tanto.
Inizialmente mi stava un po' antipatica, successivamente l'ho apprezzata fino ad essere diventata un bellissimo personaggio. Una super girl power, intraprendente e un po' avventata, che non ha paura di mettersi in gioco e adora il rischio. Fa un po' (tante) di scelte idiote ma le si possono concedere.
Cardan è... Cardan. Il particolare e tormentato Cardan.
Anche lui ha una bellissima crescita. Nel primo libro l'ho odiato, com'è giusto che sia, nel secondo ho iniziato a trovarlo carino, nel terzo l'ho amato. Ho aspettato fino all'ultimo per dirlo, ma rientra tra le mie Bookcruh, con il suo modo di fare molto singolare e la sua ironia.
I personaggi secondari sono trattati benissimo e alcuni di loro sono i miei preferiti: La Bomba, Oak e Heater. Per quest'ultima non ho ben capito la scelta finale, ma per il resto ho adorato questi personaggi, che ricoprono ruoli fondamentali nella storia.
ATTENZIONE POSSIBILI SPOILER
Ci sono diverse battaglie, gestite molto bene, e la mia preferita è sicuramente quella tra Madoc e Jude nel terzo libro.
Quella che mi ha deluso di più invece è stata proprio la finale. Troppo troppo veloce.
FINE SPOILER
La novella l'ho trovata veramente bella, sia per le illustrazioni che per la storia in sè, che ci fa vedere diversi lati di Cardan. Questa si merita un + per la scrittura in terza persona.
Per concludere, consiglio questo Fantasy YA. Non è perfetto, ci sono dei difetti, ma è stata comunque una bella lettura.
Se siete dei lettori accaniti di Fantasy questo libro non vi sembrerà nulla di che, ma se vi piacciono gli YA e gli enemies to lovers è perfetto!
Grazie terra delle Fate per questo viaggio, perché: "Le storie raccontano una verità, se non proprio la verità"
🍃⚔🖤
Rispettivi voti: Il Principe Crudele 3.5⭐
Il re malvagio 4⭐
La regina del nulla 4-⭐
Come il re di Elfhame Imparò ad odiare le storie 4+⭐
Certo che vorrei essere come loro. Loro sono belli come spade forgiate da qualche fuoco divino. Loro vivranno in eterno.
Folk of the Air è stata una bellissima scoperta e Elfhame mi mancherà tantissimo.
Inizialmente non ci stavo capendo molto e ho trovato la storia un po' lenta, successivamente dopo i vari colpi di scena è diventata più interessante e avvincente.
In generale, però dal primo libro mi aspettavo di meglio.
Il mondo descritto dall'autrice è complesso e particolare ma non viene spiegato nello specifico. Rimane sempre sul generico, approfondendo alcune cose man mano che la storia procede. Questa cosa è sia un bene, in quanto lascia molto spazio all'immaginazione, d'altra parte all'inizio ha rallentato la mia lettura, non capendoci molto.
"Il re malvagio" è il libro che mi è piaciuto di più, dinamico, interessante, coinvolgente. Ci sono diversi colpi di scena e il finale è stato molto inaspettato. Ho fatto fatica a staccarmi dalle pagine e ho iniziato ad apprezzare (ed odiare) di più i personaggi.
Invece il finale della storia("la regina del nulla") l'ho trovato affrettato e un po' scontato. In generale il terzo libro è ricco di colpi di scena e ha una tensione altissima. A parer mio questo finale è un po' "riduttivo". In questo libro ho adorato Cardan, mentre Jude fa un po' di scelte avventate.
Gli ultimi capitoli, invece, li ho trovato un po' inutili, messi solo per "allungare il brodo"
•"Conquistare qualcosa quando nessuno ci guarda è facile. È più difficile difendere la nostra conquista, anche se siamo in netto vantaggio.
È molto più facile conquistare il potere che mantenerlo" •
Parlando della scrittura, invece, inizialmente non mi faceva impazzire, successivamente l'ho trovato adeguata alla storia, nonostante avrei preferito la terza persona. In particolare nel primo libro ho fatto fatica ad accettarla, in quando la trovavo molto stonata all'interno del libro.
I personaggi sono molto interessanti.
Jude dal primo libro fino all'ultimo ha una grandissima crescita e cambia veramente tanto.
Inizialmente mi stava un po' antipatica, successivamente l'ho apprezzata fino ad essere diventata un bellissimo personaggio. Una super girl power, intraprendente e un po' avventata, che non ha paura di mettersi in gioco e adora il rischio. Fa un po' (tante) di scelte idiote ma le si possono concedere.
Cardan è... Cardan. Il particolare e tormentato Cardan.
Anche lui ha una bellissima crescita. Nel primo libro l'ho odiato, com'è giusto che sia, nel secondo ho iniziato a trovarlo carino, nel terzo l'ho amato. Ho aspettato fino all'ultimo per dirlo, ma rientra tra le mie Bookcruh, con il suo modo di fare molto singolare e la sua ironia.
I personaggi secondari sono trattati benissimo e alcuni di loro sono i miei preferiti: La Bomba, Oak e Heater. Per quest'ultima non ho ben capito la scelta finale, ma per il resto ho adorato questi personaggi, che ricoprono ruoli fondamentali nella storia.
ATTENZIONE POSSIBILI SPOILER
Ci sono diverse battaglie, gestite molto bene, e la mia preferita è sicuramente quella tra Madoc e Jude nel terzo libro.
Quella che mi ha deluso di più invece è stata proprio la finale. Troppo troppo veloce.
FINE SPOILER
La novella l'ho trovata veramente bella, sia per le illustrazioni che per la storia in sè, che ci fa vedere diversi lati di Cardan. Questa si merita un + per la scrittura in terza persona.
Per concludere, consiglio questo Fantasy YA. Non è perfetto, ci sono dei difetti, ma è stata comunque una bella lettura.
Se siete dei lettori accaniti di Fantasy questo libro non vi sembrerà nulla di che, ma se vi piacciono gli YA e gli enemies to lovers è perfetto!
Grazie terra delle Fate per questo viaggio, perché: "Le storie raccontano una verità, se non proprio la verità"
🍃⚔🖤
Rispettivi voti: Il Principe Crudele 3.5⭐
Il re malvagio 4⭐
La regina del nulla 4-⭐
Come il re di Elfhame Imparò ad odiare le storie 4+⭐
November 13, 2025
Finalmente, dopo averla lasciata a fermentare in libreria per un po’, sono riuscita a recuperare l’edizione drago di Folk of the air.
Avevo un mix di aspettative: temevo che la preponderanza di trame politiche mi avrebbe annoiata e, al contempo, avevo paura che averne sentito parlare solo bene mi avesse fatto alzare troppo l’asticella.
Fortunatamente entrambe le cose si sono rivelate false! La trama è stata intrigante e scorrevole fin da subito, mai banale. Ho letto tutti e tre i libri (più i contenuti extra) nel giro di una settimana e ne avrei letti ancora.
Ho adorato lo stile di scrittura, fin dalla prima pagina ho avuto la sensazione di essere tornata al liceo mentre sfogliavo per la prima volta Shadowhunters - Città di ossa (non mi meraviglia proprio il fatto che Holly Black e Cassandra Clare scrivano libri insieme!!).
Ho amato la perfetta realizzazione del trope “enemies to lovers” (finalmente due protagonisti che si disprezzano e che si trattano male per davvero).
Ho apprezzato tremendamente la descrizione dei sentimenti con cui Jude e Cardan sono cresciuti e le realizzazioni che li hanno spinti a mutare nel tempo.
Alcune scene le ho trovate un po’ affrettate e sento che alcuni personaggi secondari avrebbero meritato più spazio di quello che gli è stato dato, ma in generale è stato un lavoro ben riuscito e sono felicissima di averlo recuperato.
Mi è stato detto che ci sono dei libri su Oak quindi corro subito a informarmi meglio, perché se c’è la possibilità di scorgere ancora un po’ di Jude e Cardan tra le pagine, chi sono io per farmela sfuggire eheh
Ultima cosa: se avete dubbi sul comprare il drago o meno, vi consiglio di prenderlo perché è un’edizione ben curata. Nonostante il mio occhio da proofreader sia riuscito a trovare degli errori, questo libro contiene non solo i tre principali ma anche una serie di novelle e di contenuti extra che scaldano il cuore e consentono un’immersione più profonda nella storia!
Avevo un mix di aspettative: temevo che la preponderanza di trame politiche mi avrebbe annoiata e, al contempo, avevo paura che averne sentito parlare solo bene mi avesse fatto alzare troppo l’asticella.
Fortunatamente entrambe le cose si sono rivelate false! La trama è stata intrigante e scorrevole fin da subito, mai banale. Ho letto tutti e tre i libri (più i contenuti extra) nel giro di una settimana e ne avrei letti ancora.
Ho adorato lo stile di scrittura, fin dalla prima pagina ho avuto la sensazione di essere tornata al liceo mentre sfogliavo per la prima volta Shadowhunters - Città di ossa (non mi meraviglia proprio il fatto che Holly Black e Cassandra Clare scrivano libri insieme!!).
Ho amato la perfetta realizzazione del trope “enemies to lovers” (finalmente due protagonisti che si disprezzano e che si trattano male per davvero).
Ho apprezzato tremendamente la descrizione dei sentimenti con cui Jude e Cardan sono cresciuti e le realizzazioni che li hanno spinti a mutare nel tempo.
Alcune scene le ho trovate un po’ affrettate e sento che alcuni personaggi secondari avrebbero meritato più spazio di quello che gli è stato dato, ma in generale è stato un lavoro ben riuscito e sono felicissima di averlo recuperato.
Mi è stato detto che ci sono dei libri su Oak quindi corro subito a informarmi meglio, perché se c’è la possibilità di scorgere ancora un po’ di Jude e Cardan tra le pagine, chi sono io per farmela sfuggire eheh
Ultima cosa: se avete dubbi sul comprare il drago o meno, vi consiglio di prenderlo perché è un’edizione ben curata. Nonostante il mio occhio da proofreader sia riuscito a trovare degli errori, questo libro contiene non solo i tre principali ma anche una serie di novelle e di contenuti extra che scaldano il cuore e consentono un’immersione più profonda nella storia!
November 2, 2023
rating
4.5/5
valutazione della serie: 4/5
aggiungo mezza stella per la bellissima edizione
valutazione della serie: 4/5
aggiungo mezza stella per la bellissima edizione
September 13, 2023
I've read the whole series one after the other because in my country there's a special edition with every book of the series in it.
And it was intense.
✨The Cruel Prince✨
It's really slow. Very few plot twists. It's pretty clear this first book's purpose was to introduce the main characters of the whole story, which are well described and characterized. I felt it was a really big prologue.
✨The Wicked King✨
It was faster, there were quite a few unexpected plot twists. Since the first book introduced very well the characters, now you know them and you know how they will possibly act and react in every situation.
✨The Queen of Nothing✨
Really fast paced, it kept me glued to its pages from the very beginning, I needed to know what happened next. The only downside was the conclusion, it was too quick, in my opinion.
✨How The King Of Elfhame Learned To Hate Stories✨
I loved the drawings on every single page! The story basically focuses on Cardan and his past. Quite sad, I'll admit.
And it was intense.
✨The Cruel Prince✨
It's really slow. Very few plot twists. It's pretty clear this first book's purpose was to introduce the main characters of the whole story, which are well described and characterized. I felt it was a really big prologue.
✨The Wicked King✨
It was faster, there were quite a few unexpected plot twists. Since the first book introduced very well the characters, now you know them and you know how they will possibly act and react in every situation.
✨The Queen of Nothing✨
Really fast paced, it kept me glued to its pages from the very beginning, I needed to know what happened next. The only downside was the conclusion, it was too quick, in my opinion.
✨How The King Of Elfhame Learned To Hate Stories✨
I loved the drawings on every single page! The story basically focuses on Cardan and his past. Quite sad, I'll admit.
January 4, 2026
I really enjoyed this series! The final section of the story was really good especially after the big betrayals of book 2. This is really a series that is fantasy with a subplot of romance and there is so much politics and scheming which is really interesting! I really liked Jude and Cardan as well I found them very enjoyable characters. I also enjoyed Jude and Taryn working out their relationship in this book too. Probably more like a four star book but I enjoyed it so giving it 5.
January 15, 2025
I loved this series, definitely gonna buy it and read it again.
February 15, 2024
Allora, devo dire che all’inizio ho avuto difficoltà nel leggere le prime pagine del principe crudele perché dovevo ancora entrare nell’ottica del racconto, pieno di ragionamenti e intrighi.
“Il principe crudele”, devo dire, dopo aver letto tutti e tre, è quello che mi ha preso di meno, però che finale! (Non l’avrei mai detto). Oltre tutto il primo libro è sempre quello più difficile, quando poi entri nella dinamica della storia è tutto in discesa.
“Il re malvagio”, per certi versi lo amato, per altri l’ho odiato. Cardan soprattutto. Devo dice che ha scelto dei titoli molto azzeccati Holly Black.
“La regina del nulla” l’ho amato, un capolavoro. E dico in tutto. Credo che sia uno tra i più bei finali che abbia mai letto e mi ha fatto amare sia Jude che Cardan. Come si può dire la verità è di ognuno e ci sono mille stratagemmi per non dirla, ma quando viene a galla può darti delle dolci sorprese.
“Come il re di Enfhame ha imparato ad odiare le storie” mi è sembrata una bella novella piacevole per concludere e approfondire la trilogia che di per sé è già magica.
Il libro contiene anche altri estratti e piccole novelle che ho apprezzato molto.
Editato da dio, mi mancano già
“Il principe crudele”, devo dire, dopo aver letto tutti e tre, è quello che mi ha preso di meno, però che finale! (Non l’avrei mai detto). Oltre tutto il primo libro è sempre quello più difficile, quando poi entri nella dinamica della storia è tutto in discesa.
“Il re malvagio”, per certi versi lo amato, per altri l’ho odiato. Cardan soprattutto. Devo dice che ha scelto dei titoli molto azzeccati Holly Black.
“La regina del nulla” l’ho amato, un capolavoro. E dico in tutto. Credo che sia uno tra i più bei finali che abbia mai letto e mi ha fatto amare sia Jude che Cardan. Come si può dire la verità è di ognuno e ci sono mille stratagemmi per non dirla, ma quando viene a galla può darti delle dolci sorprese.
“Come il re di Enfhame ha imparato ad odiare le storie” mi è sembrata una bella novella piacevole per concludere e approfondire la trilogia che di per sé è già magica.
Il libro contiene anche altri estratti e piccole novelle che ho apprezzato molto.
Editato da dio, mi mancano già
April 21, 2022
I read through all of these so fastttt but I loved them so much! And it’s made me enjoy all the edits and cosplays on tik tok so much more ahah 😂. The enemies to lovers is also only a side plot while the main plot point is politics which I normally find more boring but this series was so great at stringing me along and constantly capturing my attention.
I loveeeee Jude and Cardan ahhhhh! It was like the perfect balance of everything and the level of detail was good. It didn’t go in for too long and wasn’t too short either.
Overall I love this series!
I loveeeee Jude and Cardan ahhhhh! It was like the perfect balance of everything and the level of detail was good. It didn’t go in for too long and wasn’t too short either.
Overall I love this series!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 8, 2023
Saga che ho già letto e recensito all'incirca un anno fa e rileggerla senza avere errori ortografici o nomi che cambiano comune è stata una bella cosa, valorizzando a pieno la saga.
Ho amato i contenuti inediti che hanno dato il quadro completo dei personaggi e che mi hanno fatto odiare e somatizzare maggiormente con i personaggi di cui trattano.
L'edizione stupenda e curata nei minimi dettagli, una rilettura che per me è stata speciale, facendomi ritornare a casa.
Ho amato i contenuti inediti che hanno dato il quadro completo dei personaggi e che mi hanno fatto odiare e somatizzare maggiormente con i personaggi di cui trattano.
L'edizione stupenda e curata nei minimi dettagli, una rilettura che per me è stata speciale, facendomi ritornare a casa.
December 24, 2025
I wanted to review these four books together because I felt that the trilogy was very continuous in tone, and the stories all follow closely from one another. As such, I suppose what I’m really reviewing is the story of the trilogy as a whole; I’m including The King of Elfhame because it has important context about Cardan’s character and his relationship with Jude that’s relevant to what I bring up about the trilogy.
My favorite aspect of the trilogy was the way it handled Jude’s relationships with Madoc, Taryn, and Vivi. It actively embraced the nuance in these relationships: the complex mixture of love and fear between Jude and Madoc, Taryn and Jude’s betrayals of one another, and Vivi’s love for her siblings despite her aversion to Faerie made for rich character dynamics that were explored to their fullest and resolved in a satisfying manner. Jude banishing Madoc to the human world surprised me; while I appreciated that she was punishing his bloodthirsty nature and ensuring he could never hurt anyone again, I wasn’t sure that living in the mortal world would teach Madoc anything. Of all the central Faerie characters in the story, he was the only one who never discriminated against mortals or ensorcelled them in any way – he didn’t need to learn to like mortals, he needed to unlearn his violent instincts, and the mortal world wouldn’t help him with that. This is not to say that I can think of a better ending for Madoc, but I wasn’t convinced that this punishment targeted his flaws satisfactorily.
The moment when Cardan broke the Blood Crown and was chosen as king by the people of Elfhame felt like it came out of nowhere, and I think this is because the worldbuilding didn’t support it satisfactorily: the trilogy is centered around Jude’s experience of Faerie, and from her perspective, the Court was a hostile place. Everyone there was bloodthirsty and cruel and/or playing political games. For this reason, I never got a sense of the identity of the people of Elfhame – there were individual leaders, but I never really felt like Elfhame had a national identity or character. Jude herself noticed that many of the faerie lords had no reason to like Cardan, so all the Faerie lords agreeing to follow Cardan after he broke The Blood Crown completely surprised me, as there was never any in-story justification for why they chose to follow him.
I also questioned the prophecy’s prediction that Cardan would be a “great ruler”. Jude often thought he seemed like a king of faerie, but only because of his charisma and magic. When it came to the minutia of ruling, Jude showed far more aptitude for it than Cardan did. Even though he became a more caring person by the end of the trilogy, his character development was largely focused on overcoming the trauma of his past, not learning how to rule. The only indication that he would be an exceptional ruler was his breaking of the Blood Crown, but since the story is told from Jude’s perspective, I found it hard to understand why he made this move, because I didn’t know how he felt about his people. Overall, I found the prediction that he would be a “great ruler” quite heavy-handed – I could tell that the author wanted me to think that he was a great person, but the story didn’t give me enough reason to believe it.
I thought the romance was the shakiest aspect of the trilogy. I would like to preface this section by saying that this analysis relies, in part, on my own definition of love, so I’d like to add a warning that this section may be overly subjective.
Until the end of The Queen of Nothing, I found Jude and Cardan’s relationship highly dysfunctional, but The Queen of Nothing tried to paint it as though they truly loved each other as early on as The Wicked King. My impression of their relationship throughout The Wicked King was that though they were both attracted to each other, Jude feared Cardan and didn’t understand him, while Cardan enjoyed being around Jude, but still resented her enough to enjoy hurting and humiliating her. They slowly grew closer over the course of the book, but Jude was still afraid of Cardan by the end, and Cardan, as he admitted in The Queen of Nothing, still felt a need to hurt her:
“’I didn’t think I could hurt you. And I never thought you would be afraid of me.’ ‘Did you like it?’ I ask. He looks away from me then, and I have my answer. Maybe he doesn’t want to admit to that impulse, but he has it.”
In The Queen of Nothing, they began with distrust and friction, but ended up in a healthy place. However, there were a lot of statements about their past that seemed to contradict their explicitly stated issues in The Cruel Prince and The Wicked King (or The King of Elfhame, in the sections that took place during the time of The Cruel Prince). First, there was Jude’s thought:
“You’ve loved him since before you were a prisoner of the Undersea. You loved him when you agreed to marry him.”
In The Wicked King, Jude feared and distrusted Cardan. Before she was taken by the Undersea, Jude was still commanding him, indicating that she still didn’t respect his autonomy. I don’t deny that she was attracted to him or was growing to like him better, but she didn’t truly love him, because she was still fearful, mistrustful, and somewhat vindictive towards him. Another statement that rings hollow is:
“I hate that he loves you.’ ‘He hated it, too,’ I say with a laugh that sounds more brittle than I’d like. Nicasia fixes me with a long look. ‘No, he didn’t.’”
The King of Elfhame directly contradicts the idea that Cardan didn’t hate that he loved Jude:
“But every night, Jude haunted him. The coils of her hair. The calluses on her fingers. An absent bite of her lip…It disgusted him that he couldn’t stop.”
“Jude, Cardan thought, hating even the shape of her name. Jude.”
Even taking into account that Cardan may not have been honest with himself about how he really felt about Jude, the story makes it clear that he was disgusted and horrified by his attraction to her. Nicasia’s statement that he didn’t hate loving her directly contradicts his disgust in these lines. These inaccuracies are minor details, but the issue with them is that they attempt to retroactively smooth over the problems in Jude and Cardan’s early relationship. The Cruel Prince and The Wicked King acknowledged Jude’s fear and Cardan’s disgust about his liking for her, and that was important, because their relationship was dysfunctional and characterizing it otherwise would be problematic. Glossing over these issues takes away from the earlier stories’ awareness of them and dulls the impact of their resolution in The Queen of Nothing. Overall, I came away with the impression that Jude and Cardan’s relationship would never have worked out in real life – people like Cardan rarely change their stripes so completely, and the underlying fear and resentment between them would have a great negative impact on their relationship.
In general, I thought that the writing did a lot of telling, rather than showing. There were many moments when the story told me something that it could have shown in a more interesting way, or when I could pick up on a thematic connection, but the story insisted on stating it to make it more obvious. For example, in The Queen of Nothing:
“He was always a symbol of everything about Elfhame that I couldn’t have, everything that would never want me. And telling him this feels a little like throwing off a heavy weight, except that weight is supposed to be my armor, and without it, I am afraid I am going to be entirely exposed.”
Over the course of the trilogy, it had become clear that Cardan represented the unattainable parts of Elfhame to Jude, and that much of her hatred and antagonism towards him was a form of protection. But saying it explicitly took some of the impact of it away – it was already obvious, so there was no need to do so. In this way, I felt that the heavy-handedness of the writing made the story’s tone feel more juvenile than it could have felt if it were told more subtly. There were also moments where, in my opinion, this heavy-handedness took away from the quality of the story; for example, in the first chapters of The Cruel Prince, Jude recounted three times when she was tormented by faeries for being mortal:
“But maybe knowing a few relevant details about my past will make more sense of why I’m the way I am. How fear seeped into my marrow. How I learned to pretend it away. So here are three things I should have told you about myself before, but didn’t”
“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.”
All of Jude’s behavior throughout the trilogy points to her fear and her desire to be like the Folk. The moments she recounts in the chapter would have been more impactful if they had been revealed gradually throughout the story; for example, during the incident with the faerie fruit or when Valerian tried to kill her. This would have gotten the idea across in a more subtle way, allowing the reader to empathize deeply with Jude while elevating the tone. There were many other moments like this throughout the trilogy where Jude’s feelings were obvious, but the story insisted on overexplaining them. The general lack of subtlety in the narrative voice took away from the weight of the story for me, because such overexplanations show that the author doesn’t trust the reader to know what is happening, which make the story’s tone more juvenile.
I’ve focused a lot on the negative aspects of the trilogy and The King of Elfhame in this review, but that is mainly because there is not much I can say about their positive attributes. Despite my critiques, I think the trilogy was very cohesively-written and had an engaging plot and very interesting character dynamics.
Overall Rating: 3.75/5 stars
My favorite aspect of the trilogy was the way it handled Jude’s relationships with Madoc, Taryn, and Vivi. It actively embraced the nuance in these relationships: the complex mixture of love and fear between Jude and Madoc, Taryn and Jude’s betrayals of one another, and Vivi’s love for her siblings despite her aversion to Faerie made for rich character dynamics that were explored to their fullest and resolved in a satisfying manner. Jude banishing Madoc to the human world surprised me; while I appreciated that she was punishing his bloodthirsty nature and ensuring he could never hurt anyone again, I wasn’t sure that living in the mortal world would teach Madoc anything. Of all the central Faerie characters in the story, he was the only one who never discriminated against mortals or ensorcelled them in any way – he didn’t need to learn to like mortals, he needed to unlearn his violent instincts, and the mortal world wouldn’t help him with that. This is not to say that I can think of a better ending for Madoc, but I wasn’t convinced that this punishment targeted his flaws satisfactorily.
The moment when Cardan broke the Blood Crown and was chosen as king by the people of Elfhame felt like it came out of nowhere, and I think this is because the worldbuilding didn’t support it satisfactorily: the trilogy is centered around Jude’s experience of Faerie, and from her perspective, the Court was a hostile place. Everyone there was bloodthirsty and cruel and/or playing political games. For this reason, I never got a sense of the identity of the people of Elfhame – there were individual leaders, but I never really felt like Elfhame had a national identity or character. Jude herself noticed that many of the faerie lords had no reason to like Cardan, so all the Faerie lords agreeing to follow Cardan after he broke The Blood Crown completely surprised me, as there was never any in-story justification for why they chose to follow him.
I also questioned the prophecy’s prediction that Cardan would be a “great ruler”. Jude often thought he seemed like a king of faerie, but only because of his charisma and magic. When it came to the minutia of ruling, Jude showed far more aptitude for it than Cardan did. Even though he became a more caring person by the end of the trilogy, his character development was largely focused on overcoming the trauma of his past, not learning how to rule. The only indication that he would be an exceptional ruler was his breaking of the Blood Crown, but since the story is told from Jude’s perspective, I found it hard to understand why he made this move, because I didn’t know how he felt about his people. Overall, I found the prediction that he would be a “great ruler” quite heavy-handed – I could tell that the author wanted me to think that he was a great person, but the story didn’t give me enough reason to believe it.
I thought the romance was the shakiest aspect of the trilogy. I would like to preface this section by saying that this analysis relies, in part, on my own definition of love, so I’d like to add a warning that this section may be overly subjective.
Until the end of The Queen of Nothing, I found Jude and Cardan’s relationship highly dysfunctional, but The Queen of Nothing tried to paint it as though they truly loved each other as early on as The Wicked King. My impression of their relationship throughout The Wicked King was that though they were both attracted to each other, Jude feared Cardan and didn’t understand him, while Cardan enjoyed being around Jude, but still resented her enough to enjoy hurting and humiliating her. They slowly grew closer over the course of the book, but Jude was still afraid of Cardan by the end, and Cardan, as he admitted in The Queen of Nothing, still felt a need to hurt her:
“’I didn’t think I could hurt you. And I never thought you would be afraid of me.’ ‘Did you like it?’ I ask. He looks away from me then, and I have my answer. Maybe he doesn’t want to admit to that impulse, but he has it.”
In The Queen of Nothing, they began with distrust and friction, but ended up in a healthy place. However, there were a lot of statements about their past that seemed to contradict their explicitly stated issues in The Cruel Prince and The Wicked King (or The King of Elfhame, in the sections that took place during the time of The Cruel Prince). First, there was Jude’s thought:
“You’ve loved him since before you were a prisoner of the Undersea. You loved him when you agreed to marry him.”
In The Wicked King, Jude feared and distrusted Cardan. Before she was taken by the Undersea, Jude was still commanding him, indicating that she still didn’t respect his autonomy. I don’t deny that she was attracted to him or was growing to like him better, but she didn’t truly love him, because she was still fearful, mistrustful, and somewhat vindictive towards him. Another statement that rings hollow is:
“I hate that he loves you.’ ‘He hated it, too,’ I say with a laugh that sounds more brittle than I’d like. Nicasia fixes me with a long look. ‘No, he didn’t.’”
The King of Elfhame directly contradicts the idea that Cardan didn’t hate that he loved Jude:
“But every night, Jude haunted him. The coils of her hair. The calluses on her fingers. An absent bite of her lip…It disgusted him that he couldn’t stop.”
“Jude, Cardan thought, hating even the shape of her name. Jude.”
Even taking into account that Cardan may not have been honest with himself about how he really felt about Jude, the story makes it clear that he was disgusted and horrified by his attraction to her. Nicasia’s statement that he didn’t hate loving her directly contradicts his disgust in these lines. These inaccuracies are minor details, but the issue with them is that they attempt to retroactively smooth over the problems in Jude and Cardan’s early relationship. The Cruel Prince and The Wicked King acknowledged Jude’s fear and Cardan’s disgust about his liking for her, and that was important, because their relationship was dysfunctional and characterizing it otherwise would be problematic. Glossing over these issues takes away from the earlier stories’ awareness of them and dulls the impact of their resolution in The Queen of Nothing. Overall, I came away with the impression that Jude and Cardan’s relationship would never have worked out in real life – people like Cardan rarely change their stripes so completely, and the underlying fear and resentment between them would have a great negative impact on their relationship.
In general, I thought that the writing did a lot of telling, rather than showing. There were many moments when the story told me something that it could have shown in a more interesting way, or when I could pick up on a thematic connection, but the story insisted on stating it to make it more obvious. For example, in The Queen of Nothing:
“He was always a symbol of everything about Elfhame that I couldn’t have, everything that would never want me. And telling him this feels a little like throwing off a heavy weight, except that weight is supposed to be my armor, and without it, I am afraid I am going to be entirely exposed.”
Over the course of the trilogy, it had become clear that Cardan represented the unattainable parts of Elfhame to Jude, and that much of her hatred and antagonism towards him was a form of protection. But saying it explicitly took some of the impact of it away – it was already obvious, so there was no need to do so. In this way, I felt that the heavy-handedness of the writing made the story’s tone feel more juvenile than it could have felt if it were told more subtly. There were also moments where, in my opinion, this heavy-handedness took away from the quality of the story; for example, in the first chapters of The Cruel Prince, Jude recounted three times when she was tormented by faeries for being mortal:
“But maybe knowing a few relevant details about my past will make more sense of why I’m the way I am. How fear seeped into my marrow. How I learned to pretend it away. So here are three things I should have told you about myself before, but didn’t”
“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.”
All of Jude’s behavior throughout the trilogy points to her fear and her desire to be like the Folk. The moments she recounts in the chapter would have been more impactful if they had been revealed gradually throughout the story; for example, during the incident with the faerie fruit or when Valerian tried to kill her. This would have gotten the idea across in a more subtle way, allowing the reader to empathize deeply with Jude while elevating the tone. There were many other moments like this throughout the trilogy where Jude’s feelings were obvious, but the story insisted on overexplaining them. The general lack of subtlety in the narrative voice took away from the weight of the story for me, because such overexplanations show that the author doesn’t trust the reader to know what is happening, which make the story’s tone more juvenile.
I’ve focused a lot on the negative aspects of the trilogy and The King of Elfhame in this review, but that is mainly because there is not much I can say about their positive attributes. Despite my critiques, I think the trilogy was very cohesively-written and had an engaging plot and very interesting character dynamics.
Overall Rating: 3.75/5 stars
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 20, 2026
I have rated all the books individually and so of course I’m here AS WELL
So I have answered two VERY important and relevant questions for you :) (out of the insane kindness of my heart and my endless need to vent)
Q: Does Cardan have a tail?
A: yes he does have a tail and it is mentioned a few times….personally I just overlooked it, just like I overlooked that madoc is GREEN. He is…apparently really fucking green, anywayyy
Q: Why does Cardan have a tail?
A: Because he-…WE OVERLOOK IT HELLO 🤡🥲
So I have answered two VERY important and relevant questions for you :) (out of the insane kindness of my heart and my endless need to vent)
Q: Does Cardan have a tail?
A: yes he does have a tail and it is mentioned a few times….personally I just overlooked it, just like I overlooked that madoc is GREEN. He is…apparently really fucking green, anywayyy
Q: Why does Cardan have a tail?
A: Because he-…WE OVERLOOK IT HELLO 🤡🥲
February 22, 2026
Highly Recommend! Finished this entire series plus the two novels and its spin off duology “The Stolen Heir” within three weeks! This piercingly interesting fantasy series follows a morally ambiguous female protagonist, Jude who navigates her life as a powerless moral in amongst dangerous fey in the magical land of Elfhame after her mother and father were murdered by Madoc, who is her foster father and her half sister’s biological father lol yes and that’s how this series starts off really interesting.
The storyline mainly focuses on plot lines of Jude’s struggles for power and belonging in Elfhame (Book 1:The Cruel Prince), her precariousness of control (Book 2: The Wicked King) and her exile and sovereignty (Book3: The Queen of Nothing) but there is also a beautifully complex subplot of enemies-to-lovers romance shared between FMC (Jude) & one of MMC (Cardan) within the series.
I love the complexity of the storyline within the series it will have you as the reader trying to solve puzzles and riddles of betrayal between all the characters which definitely will have you doing some critical thinking because all the events unfolding are extremely unpredictable which make the read even more interesting!
The storyline mainly focuses on plot lines of Jude’s struggles for power and belonging in Elfhame (Book 1:The Cruel Prince), her precariousness of control (Book 2: The Wicked King) and her exile and sovereignty (Book3: The Queen of Nothing) but there is also a beautifully complex subplot of enemies-to-lovers romance shared between FMC (Jude) & one of MMC (Cardan) within the series.
I love the complexity of the storyline within the series it will have you as the reader trying to solve puzzles and riddles of betrayal between all the characters which definitely will have you doing some critical thinking because all the events unfolding are extremely unpredictable which make the read even more interesting!
September 3, 2023
Five stars! Have to say, after reading all three books in this series Jude’s most admirable quality in my opinion, is how she can be a total hypocrite and then just get away with it. In the first book she was mad at Locke for dating Taryn while also saying that Locke and her were just pretending with each other. She was also clearly using Locke to anger Cardan and Nicasia. In the third book she was furious with Cardan for tricking her while in the first book she manipulated him so she had control over him for a year then put him on the throne like an actual puppet. She had him repeatedly apologize for tricking her while meanwhile did she apologize even once (other than in her head)? She exiled Madoc in the third book because he was going to try to control the kingdom from behind the scenes with Oak (exactly what she did with Cardan). Jude hated balekin because he was a power-hungry psychopath which literally just describes her. I love this book and all it’s
characters and it’s honestly the best book ever.
characters and it’s honestly the best book ever.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 25, 2026
If I had to name the book that pulled me into YA fantasy, it’s The Cruel Prince by Holly Black.
The tension between Jude Duarte and Cardan Greenbriar??? insane
It’s not built on cute moments or easy tropes. It’s power, pride, and that constant fight for control… like neither of them ever really wins and that’s what makes it stay.
No unnecessary smut. Just slow burnin tension that builds so quietly you don’t even realize how deep you’re in
Their interactions feel like a game… always trying to outplay each other, even when feelings start slipping through but the letters 💌
the letters???
Cardan saying everything he couldn’t out loud… and she never got to read them 😭
The writing was effortless. It’s like you won’t stop turning the page! The world? Dangerous and magical at the same time. It leaves you satisfied… but also a little undone 🖤
The tension between Jude Duarte and Cardan Greenbriar??? insane
It’s not built on cute moments or easy tropes. It’s power, pride, and that constant fight for control… like neither of them ever really wins and that’s what makes it stay.
No unnecessary smut. Just slow burnin tension that builds so quietly you don’t even realize how deep you’re in
Their interactions feel like a game… always trying to outplay each other, even when feelings start slipping through but the letters 💌
the letters???
Cardan saying everything he couldn’t out loud… and she never got to read them 😭
The writing was effortless. It’s like you won’t stop turning the page! The world? Dangerous and magical at the same time. It leaves you satisfied… but also a little undone 🖤
August 21, 2022
Okay I've finally finished the entire series! It is the first series I fully finished and I am surprised I loved it this much. I normally do kot like series and there hadn't been one the interested me enough to keep me engaged for more than one book. But I loved this series. I loved loved loved Cardan, he became my favorite male lead so far from all the books I've read. I just loved his personality. Cardan will forever be in my heart. I love his character development and his growth. Jude was one of the few female characters from a ya book that did not make me cringe. I truly felt for her and I love seeing her story develop and her growth. I love them as a couple and I think the story was pretty great. 4.5 stars for the last book just because there were a few parts that annoyed me. However, the entire series was a 5⭐️ for me becaus i loved Cardan. I loved it.
May 15, 2024
Favourite series!! so many twists and turns that I didn't expect, so many amazing characters and imagery. The evolution of Jude and Cardan's relationship, and subsequently the relationships between the politics within this world are so amazing and had me craving more. I particularly liked reading Cardan's pov after the main 3 books and finding out about his feelings and thoughts towards Jude and Kingship. I love and would 100% recommend to people interested in fantasy, faerie politics and enemies to lovers romance.
September 28, 2025
Loved this series with all my heart. I rarely come across a female MC with such strength and ruthlessness. Jude was unapologetically herself. The idea of coexisting realms in itself is intriguing, especially the way that Holly Black arranged it. Normally when you have a side by side realm of human and fae the human at least to some extent know of fae's existence. In this series humans have no idea save for a small few who reside in the fae realm. Overall the writing was 10/10, I haven't come across such a solid plot since this series I think.
December 26, 2025
I LOVEDDDDD THIS SERIES!!!!! Like u get soooo many feelings, but I didn’t really cry, I feel like this book isn’t exactly one u would cry about but instead one u would be extremely shocked about. The plot twists r crazyyyy and it’s just soooo good!!!! Personally the wicked king was my favourite and the ending was soooo unpredictable!!!!!!! Like what???? And I loveee the characters!!!! Jude is such a badass and Cardan is such a cutie patootie!!!! Like go buy those books and read them rn girllll!!!!! U wont regret it!!!! Would 100% recommend!!!!!!!!!
July 14, 2022
It's truly amazing. It sucked me in, and I finished the series in 4 days. Read it if you haven't already, Holly is a great writer and this was such a fun read, and probably one of my favorite series now.
September 12, 2022
I LOVED THIS SERIES!!! There was a perfect amount of comedy, romance, action and plot twists in the book to keep me hooked. The characters were lovable and the Faerie world was so interesting and mysterious. If I could give this a trillion stars, I would.
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