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

Young Adult Novels

Genre: Fantasy

Publisher: Little Brown Books for Young Readers

Synopsis:

Of course I want to be like them. They’re beautiful as blades forged in some divine fire. They will live forever.

And Cardan is even more beautiful than the rest. I hate him more than all the others. I hate him so much that sometimes when I look at him, I can hardly breathe.

Jude was seven years old when her parents were murdered and she and her two sisters were stolen away to live in the treacherous High Court of Faerie. Ten years later, Jude wants nothing more than to belong there, despite her mortality. But many of the fey despise humans. Especially Prince Cardan, the youngest and wickedest son of the High King.

To win a place at the Court, she must defy him–and face the consequences.

In doing so, she becomes embroiled in palace intrigues and deceptions, discovering her own capacity for bloodshed. But as civil war threatens to drown the Courts of Faerie in violence, Jude will need to risk her life in a dangerous alliance to save her sisters, and Faerie itself.

Anyone who has attempted explaining a fantasy novel or series to another person knows that struggle, and it’s a common problem with high fantasy books. So many of them have such a mind-warping yet exciting plot that it can be hard to follow, and even if you can follow it quickly, it’s even more difficult to relay. The Cruel Prince is a fantastic book for a new fantasy reader or just anyone who hasn’t experienced the fun behind reading about an alternate reality. Holly Black’s stories are like folk tales, yet longer and contain fantastic character depth. The book is in first person, which is a commonly disliked point of view for readers, but the author portrays the main character, Jude, so well that it’s overlooked with this particular series. Everything about this entire trilogy keeps you on the edge of your seat (or wherever you choose to read), and you will not be disappointed with The Cruel Prince!

Also, there are rumors of a movie to be released based on the book, so hurry up and open it up before it ends up on the big screen!