From the Bookshelf of Hype Or Not…

The Cruel Prince (The Folk of the Air, #1)

Holly Black

Start date: April 1, 2018

Finish date: May 31, 2018

Discussion: April-May The Cruel Prince

Why we're reading this: You voted and here it is! We can't wait to read The Cruel Prince with you guys! …more
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April-May The Cruel Prince

Chapters 28-prologue
By deleted member · 1 post · 20 views

last updated Jul 23, 2018 03:35AM

What Members Thought

May 11, 2018 James rated it it was amazing

Update 1/24
So I’ve raised up my rating from 4 to 5. I really want to reread this soon because after The Wicked King, I’m thinking about so many things in this book differently.

Original Thoughts
So... This book has me conflicted. The first half pissed me off, but the second half was great. That first part though... I nearly DNFd the book and I never do that.

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May 30, 2018 Patricija rated it liked it

more at: https://thebookhamster.wordpress.com/...

Overall, it wasn’t that bad. From the reviews I’ve heard I expected way worse. I chose the audiobook due to having exams and wanting to rest my eyes in the evening.

I did like the plot, even though I found it a bit dull at the start. The beginning of the book is clearly here to introduce us to the fae system and world building but that part was poorly executed. I did like the politics in this book, but wanted more of it.

Characters? Uff.... ...more

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Jul 11, 2018 Lissa {rabidreadings} rated it it was ok

Shelves: fantasy, 2018-releases, read-in-2018, library-reads

Reread 2024: Alright.. so I randomly decided to read the entire trilogy, when originally I read Cruel Prince and stopped there. Why? Cos it was bland, with weak plot.

Wish I could say my opinion changed, but it didn’t change at all. I still found the plot to be weak, and the characters bland.. however I’d further that by saying they (along with the plot) was poorly developed. We’re expected to feel sympathy for Jude and her sisters because of a tragic moment that happened when they were younger. Reread 2024: Alright.. so I randomly decided to read the entire trilogy, when originally I read Cruel Prince and stopped there. Why? Cos it was bland, with weak plot.

Wish I could say my opinion changed, but it didn’t change at all. I still found the plot to be weak, and the characters bland.. however I’d further that by saying they (along with the plot) was poorly developed. We’re expected to feel sympathy for Jude and her sisters because of a tragic moment that happened when they were younger. But that moment happens right at the beginning there’s no history to back the tragedy.

We get nothing of Cardan to explain Jude’s hatred of him.. supposedly he bullies her endlessly, but it’s all tell and no show with Holly Black in this book. She uses Jude to simply tell us everything rather than show us. Which is fair play if you’re trying to make an unreliable narrator, but another POV would help greatly in getting that point across.

Ultimately my opinion hasn’t changed, if anything it reinforced it, however I still intend on finishing out the series to see if it does in fact get better like the hype claimed all the years ago.

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I really wanted to like The Cruel Prince.. I really did. But honestly, I just don’t see the cause for all the hype surrounding it. To start with I found most characters to be bland, and one dimensional. Specifically Jude. There was absolutely no motivation behind any of her actions, and I couldn’t understand why she did anything she did.

Jude is essentially a girl who witnessed a traumatic experience at a young age, and did what she could to adjust to her life in faerieland. But the traumatic event that led to her new life in Faerie is swept under the rug, and becomes a useless plot point. One that was really just used to suck the reader into the story.. and is never used again except at the most convenient times when Jude needs to hate Madoc.

The plot itself is weak in my opinion, very little actually happens until the last 50-75 (possibly 100 pages) of the book.. everything before that is complete set up for events to come in later books. Normally I’m okay with this being the case for many first books in a series, but at least give me something to tide me over until the second book is released. Epic world building, fantastic characters or even a fiery hate to love romance would be great choices (which by the way that potential romance you may have heard about in spoilers? hard pass).

In summary:

Weak plot. Bland characters. Shit build up to possible romance in second book. Overall average book, I didn’t love it but I also didn’t hate it. Will I read The Wicked King? Possibly, but I’ll likely skip it. ...more

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Jan 31, 2018 Caught Between Pages rated it really liked it

Reread Mar 2019: 3.75/5
This book is still delightfully dark and twisty and fun, but the second time around, the first half with schoolyard bullying felt a little more out of place. I'd have liked to get at least a clue to Cardan and co's motivation earlier on. But I still loved the second half. This book is a wonderful act 1 to the series, and I'm really stoked to continue with it!
Jude could still slap me in the face and I'd say thank you, and I still love my Court of Shadows. Taryn... I still p ...more

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Mar 10, 2018 Christine Andersen rated it really liked it · review of another edition

DNF @ 55%. This is just boring me to no end. This year i'm trying to be better about dropping books i'm not enjoying.

Finished January 2019! Really glad I picked this up again. Not a favorite book of all time, but I definitely liked it enough to pick up the next book. ...more

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Jun 08, 2017 Ivy Valentiny rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favourites

Holly Queen of the Faerie has done it again. I was inthralled the whole time. I loved to see the familiar faces of Roiben and Kaye. Holy shit I need book two now. Jude is a bad ass master mind!

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Mar 07, 2019 Angie rated it liked it

Shelves: fantasy, young-adult, audio

My Review: I know I am much later to this party than most YA fantasy readers, but I wasn't sure if I would be interested, but of course I caved. I have to say that nearly all the characters in this book are unlikable, but oddly enough I am okay with it. The brutality of the Fae world is clear in this book and it keeps up throughout and I appreciate that element. I do find the attraction between characters to be awkward and I don't really see why it is necessary to the plot. The subtleties of the ...more

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Oct 12, 2018 Dominique rated it liked it

2.75 stars
Looking back I realise that I don’t really remember anything that happened in here, besides maybe the ending and a few snippets. Still going to read the next one, but not as excited.

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3.25*?

I was kind of nervous to read this book, because this is one of those books that people are either obsessed with or really don't like. I am happy to announce that I really enjoyed reading this. Am I obsessed? No. But I am definitely eager to read the next one. ...more

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Feb 05, 2018 Gwen Mitchell rated it liked it

Shelves: fantasy, fae, ya

The writing was engaging, but I didn't really connect to Jude or any of the other characters. The Fae world created here was a bit to "Disney" for my tastes--I expected something darker and more wicked. Also, Cardan was a total jerk and I do not forgive him. All that said, I'll definitely pick up the sequel in the hopes that the story gets deeper and darker and some kind of viable romance develops. ...more

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Feb 24, 2018 Nicole rated it really liked it

what a great introduction to the world of the fae. I loved the twists and I didn't predict them. The characters developed well and the environments were magical. I can't wait for the next book. ...more

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