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lopez's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Violence, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Drug use and Toxic relationship
mellysay's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Omg.
This was… incredible. I loved it. It’s a good sequel and I loved everything about it. I was hooked and read it in like 2 days. A friend of mine said: “the first 150 pages will be so boring but after that the story will take pace” she did not lie. and I was so determined to get past those first 150 pages. I don’t know, if you’ve watched game of thrones or other alike series / movies you will be familiar with the boring parts. Where it is only people talking strategy, how to keep the crown, how to make the people at peace. You know? Nothing happened really. No relationship building, no plot that thickened, just some pages of Jude running around the castle and playing high king. But after 150 pages the book was 5 ⭐️! Therefore I give it a simple 4,5 ⭐️.
Can we talk about how good Holly Black is at writing? Omg I enjoyed every bit of her well written text Language. I almost cried a little. Holly Black is truly the Fearie Queen. Somebody give her a price and some money for the amazing world she built for us!
Now can we talk about the story!?
I freaking loved Cardan. I grew very fond of him thanks to all the backstory about him. To how he was so kind to Jude at the end. I liked him because of everything. I truly believed that poor Jude Duarte found peace and some kind of love and comfort when she married Cardan. I really thought he was honest, because he liked Jude so much. I mean two whole books and finally they confessed how they felt about each other. But no! Cardan built a island and laughed at her while he banished her from Fearieland. Of course. Our Jude will never know happiness.
And lets talk about Jude. How can she just trust Taryn again after all she’s done? Taryn just came into her room and was like “yo, start talking to me because I want you on my wedding” and dumb Jude was like “yes of course so silly of me, I was in a silly goofy mood 😜 “ I wanted to scream at her. ALSO what the frick is wrong with Locke? I hate him so much smh 🤦 anyways. Poor Jude she has been through IT. How much will Black put here main character through before it is enough? I feel so much for Jude because she can never rest. If she isn’t I life threatening danger, then she is taking poison and is close to dying because of that. So dumb. Take a break woman. But I love Jude too much ❤️❤️ Strong independent woman💪💪💪 I hope she doesn’t grow found of the human world in the next book because she needs to find her way back to fearieland and kill the high king. I felt like sometimes things happened too fast. Like oh she just spent a month under water and oh? She just married the high king 👑
Overall a very good book. And as you can see I am very passionate about it. I see that as a good sign.
I love this book and will forever cherish it❤️
This was… incredible. I loved it. It’s a good sequel and I loved everything about it. I was hooked and read it in like 2 days. A friend of mine said: “the first 150 pages will be so boring but after that the story will take pace” she did not lie. and I was so determined to get past those first 150 pages. I don’t know, if you’ve watched game of thrones or other alike series / movies you will be familiar with the boring parts. Where it is only people talking strategy, how to keep the crown, how to make the people at peace. You know? Nothing happened really. No relationship building, no plot that thickened, just some pages of Jude running around the castle and playing high king. But after 150 pages the book was 5 ⭐️! Therefore I give it a simple 4,5 ⭐️.
Can we talk about how good Holly Black is at writing? Omg I enjoyed every bit of her well written text Language. I almost cried a little. Holly Black is truly the Fearie Queen. Somebody give her a price and some money for the amazing world she built for us!
Now can we talk about the story!?
I freaking loved Cardan. I grew very fond of him thanks to all the backstory about him. To how he was so kind to Jude at the end. I liked him because of everything. I truly believed that poor Jude Duarte found peace and some kind of love and comfort when she married Cardan. I really thought he was honest, because he liked Jude so much. I mean two whole books and finally they confessed how they felt about each other. But no! Cardan built a island and laughed at her while he banished her from Fearieland. Of course. Our Jude will never know happiness.
And lets talk about Jude. How can she just trust Taryn again after all she’s done? Taryn just came into her room and was like “yo, start talking to me because I want you on my wedding” and dumb Jude was like “yes of course so silly of me, I was in a silly goofy mood 😜 “ I wanted to scream at her. ALSO what the frick is wrong with Locke? I hate him so much smh 🤦 anyways. Poor Jude she has been through IT. How much will Black put here main character through before it is enough? I feel so much for Jude because she can never rest. If she isn’t I life threatening danger, then she is taking poison and is close to dying because of that. So dumb. Take a break woman. But I love Jude too much ❤️❤️ Strong independent woman💪💪💪 I hope she doesn’t grow found of the human world in the next book because she needs to find her way back to fearieland and kill the high king. I felt like sometimes things happened too fast. Like oh she just spent a month under water and oh? She just married the high king 👑
Overall a very good book. And as you can see I am very passionate about it. I see that as a good sign.
I love this book and will forever cherish it❤️
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Murder, Sexism, Sexual content, and Sexual harassment
lish_e's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
“If he thought I was bad, I would be worse. If he thought I was cruel, I would be horrifying.”
The pacing was a bit slower in this book, but I didn’t mind.
While I really disliked Cardan in the first book, he started to grow a little bit on me in this one. The banter between him and Jude helped.
The character development was good, as it was slow and therefore realistic.
It had a nice plot twist that wasn’t too predictable. I’m curious to see how the story continues in the next book.
While I really disliked Cardan in the first book, he started to grow a little bit on me in this one. The banter between him and Jude helped.
The character development was good, as it was slow and therefore realistic.
It had a nice plot twist that wasn’t too predictable. I’m curious to see how the story continues in the next book.
“Once upon a time, there was a human girl stolen away by faeries, and because of that, she swore to destroy them.”
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Blood, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Sexual content and Torture
Minor: Drug use and Vomit
katreadswaytoomuch's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Violence, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Self harm, Murder, Kidnapping, Gore, Drug use, Drug abuse, Death, and Blood
Minor: Animal death, Vomit, and Suicidal thoughts
safety_pin's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Blood, Death, Drug use, Kidnapping, Murder, Physical abuse, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Bullying and Colonisation
Minor: Vomit
lisavfelo's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Minor: Drug use
baexlee's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
The Wicked King did not entice me the same way the initial installment did, without the initial world building and character development I felt myself left wanting more. I would read ferociously for a few hours at a time and then put the book down for days on end, by the time I finally finished, I was happy with the ultimate ending, I think it pulled me through the twists and turns, betrayals and reveals well.
Jude has undergone a lot since we first encountered her in The Cruel Prince, and she is a far cry from that character now, but I did find that it was a bit easier to root for her choices and motivations this time around. Her morally gray motivations had been something that initially enthralled me with the series so I wasn't sure how I felt about them, but by the end of the book I was starting to see how Black was going to subvert my expectations once again. I have a complicated relationship with Cardan, I was frustrated with how little he appeared in the beginning, so if you are looking for heavy handed Cardan content you will have to wait, but once you get to Book Two things pick up quickly.
I think one of my favorite parts of this series is the complex relationships between Jude and her sisters. Vivi and Taryn can feel like side characters at times, but the relationship they have with Jude, they dynamics of how that relationship plays out, and the perception of their relationship to the outside world is incredibly rich and developed and honestly one of the most impressive aspects.
There are so many betrayals, back stabbings and double backs that I'm not sure who is on who's side, and I don't really know who to root for, but honestly I think that's one of the strengths of the series. It highlights the chaos of power and politics and the uncertainty of it all. Jude is young and hungry, but she isn't the only one, and we learn that alongside her as she is betrayed throughout the story. Black doesn't go into the intimate details or logistics of each betrayal which lends to their believability and plausibility, and it helps that we are learning about them as Jude would, her perspective is limited to what information she is trusted with. I do think that there was some disappointment in scenarios where it felt like Black worked over hundreds of pages to set something up just to have something ruin it right at the last second, an example would be the poison and Jude's relative immunity to poison. Right when her relative immunity would be helpful, she no longer has it because she had been captive. And then ultimately she just swaps the poison for water anyway and it doesn't matter. So why did you have Jude build the immunity for two entire books in the first place? It left me feeling a bit unfulfilled in some places. Overall I'm excited to see Queen Jude in the third installment.
Jude has undergone a lot since we first encountered her in The Cruel Prince, and she is a far cry from that character now, but I did find that it was a bit easier to root for her choices and motivations this time around. Her morally gray motivations had been something that initially enthralled me with the series so I wasn't sure how I felt about them, but by the end of the book I was starting to see how Black was going to subvert my expectations once again. I have a complicated relationship with Cardan, I was frustrated with how little he appeared in the beginning, so if you are looking for heavy handed Cardan content you will have to wait, but once you get to Book Two things pick up quickly.
I think one of my favorite parts of this series is the complex relationships between Jude and her sisters. Vivi and Taryn can feel like side characters at times, but the relationship they have with Jude, they dynamics of how that relationship plays out, and the perception of their relationship to the outside world is incredibly rich and developed and honestly one of the most impressive aspects.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, Drug use, and Murder
Moderate: Confinement, Kidnapping, Physical abuse, and Sexual content
Minor: Vomit, Violence, Toxic relationship, and Suicidal thoughts
sierra0107's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Haven’t read Queen of Nothing yet, but I think I can already say this is my favourite in the series. The first half was a little slow after all that happened at the ending of Cruel Prince, but it quickly ramped up. I enjoyed every second!
If you’re into the romance of the book, I would find another. The romance isn’t centre stage. What I adore about this series is the politics and character growth. I really liked how much we got to know Cardan, but him and Jude still kept up with their antics. Jude’s growth was amazing and I can’t wait for her to kick butt in the last book.
If you’re looking for spice, find it somewhere else. I was told this book was spicy, it is not even close, sadly. If you like enemy to lovers and knives to throats, then this is for you! Again, have to remember it is YA, so it never goes as far as I would like but still pretty gruesome for a YA novel.
Lastly, even though there are parts that could have been better, I give it 4.5 stars because I think this book has the best character growth I have ever read. As well, politics!! I love the deception and scheming that goes along with the politics of the Courts.
If you’re into the romance of the book, I would find another. The romance isn’t centre stage. What I adore about this series is the politics and character growth. I really liked how much we got to know Cardan, but him and Jude still kept up with their antics. Jude’s growth was amazing and I can’t wait for her to kick butt in the last book.
If you’re looking for spice, find it somewhere else. I was told this book was spicy, it is not even close, sadly. If you like enemy to lovers and knives to throats, then this is for you! Again, have to remember it is YA, so it never goes as far as I would like but still pretty gruesome for a YA novel.
Lastly, even though there are parts that could have been better, I give it 4.5 stars because I think this book has the best character growth I have ever read. As well, politics!! I love the deception and scheming that goes along with the politics of the Courts.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Death, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Murder, and Grief
Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal death, Bullying, Confinement, Eating disorder, Infidelity, Mental illness, Medical trauma, Misogyny, Slavery, and Sexism
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Drug use, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, and Torture
The adult/minor relationship isn’t too weird, but the Fey are immortal and have relationships with humans who are much much younger.
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