story craft

Genre: YA Fantasy

Format: Paperback

My rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Reasons to love: 

-fey story with a delightful twist
-set mostly in faerie 
-complicated father-daughter relationships
-plenty of morally grey characters
-GOT vibes (ehem, did parts of this remind anyone else of the Red Wedding?)
-several twists
-enemies to lovers
-bold and brave heroine

Cautions: Contains mild cursing (There were only a handful of swear words, like a**, bull sh, da** and he**); Not that I’m recommending it, but if you’ve seen the Red Wedding (or read about it) in Game of Thrones, you have a pretty good idea of the level of violence and gore in parts of this book. But only parts. Most of the violence is relegated to stabbing and throat-slitting. Probably better for 18+; because it’s Faerie, and the fey can manipulate humans to do whatever they want under certain conditions, there’s also a good bit of humiliation and embarrassment thrown in. And, well, manipulation. The book includes multiple instances of betrayal and backstabbing and some super complex family relationships that contain hints of Stockholm Syndrome. And a healthy dose of bullying—one instance that really toes the line between bullying and something more sinister. So, if these things are triggering for you, you might want to sit this one out; there are a few intense kisses in this one, one scene where a character sleeps in the same bed as a guy she’s interested in, but nothing really happens there.

Main themes: Complicated family relationships, betrayal, loyalty, strategy 

Main characters: Jude, Cardan, Vivi (Vivienne), Taryn, Madoc, Oak, Oriana, Valerian, Locke, Nicasia, Dain, Balekin, The Bomb, The Roach, The Ghost

Favorite quote: “Having stepped off the edge, what I want to do is fall.”

Review:

When I first joined the bookstagram community, a few people warned readers off this book. I didn’t dig into why, and a few did say it was an unpopular opinion, but I’m sad I let that sway me for so long. Then, an author I admire recommended it, and finally, because I was in the mood for a good fey story with some morally grey characters, I picked it up. Because really, aren’t we all a little morally grey? 

Good grief. This book delivered. Even behind the villains lurked a good backstory that at the very least explained why certain characters came into their identity. And Holly created such realistic, yet deeply flawed, characters, it was sometimes tough to identify the true villain at all. Maybe the point was to see the villain in us all. Or maybe for our idea of who the villain was to change from page to page. Either way, it worked. 

Far from the perfect heroine, Jude is literally human, surrounded by beautiful, “perfect” fey. And they never let her forget it. Despite all their bullying and manipulating, Jude won’t stop until they decide she belongs. She will make them believe it. She’s stubborn, brash, and challenging. In her impulsivity, she sometimes puts others at risk. But Jude is real. And I’m here for it. Sometimes I wanted to smack some sense into her, but mostly I just wanted to give her a hug and a warm mug of coffee. (Which she probably would’ve hated.) 

And Cardan is most definitely not the perfect prince, waiting to rescue the damsel in distress. (Of course, it would help if there was a damsel in need of rescuing.) Although, he does show up in quiet ways until bam! But no spoilers.  His tragic hidden life, only revealed to Jude by accident, helps her (and the reader) feel more compassionate toward him—and maybe grow to love him. A little. Okay, a lot. His snark and wise cracks are some of my favorites. 

Both characters have super complicated relationships with their families and want to be seen for who they are. They both just want to belong, and for someone to notice they’re more than what they seem. Maybe they’ll be able to do that for each other. 

I also adore Jude’s entry into the Court of Shadows and the belonging she finds there. I haven’t yet read the other two books in the series, but I can’t wait to see how those relationships fold after where Jude ended up on the final pages of Cruel Prince. 

Holly’s writing pulled me right into Faerie, drenched me in fear when I though Jude might be in trouble, broke my heart when Jude struggled, and made me ask tough questions about my own humanity. In brilliant strokes, she painted vivid a picture of the land and people, for which I am incredibly grateful—because Faerie is not a place I ever long to visit. (Sorry, Jude.)

My take:

Sometimes the most frightening darkness is the kind we hide within ourselves. We never know what we might do until faced with the deepest questions of survival, love, and desire.