Reviews tagging 'Drug use'

The Cruel Prince by Holly Black

87 reviews

miss_berry315's review against another edition

dark 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

4.5

This book had kind of a slow start to it, but about 30% in, I was hooked. 
The characters are complex and feel (mostly) realistic, the courtly politics kept me guessing. I wanted to slap Jude the whole damn book, but her decisions make sense for who she is, and that's what makes it so good! 
So glad the next books are out so I can keep reading! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Alcohol, Blood, Death, Torture, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Suicide, Death of parent, Gore, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, and Slavery

cloudysky123's review

adventurous dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

The book is a must read for fantasy lovers my fav fantasy read so far this year this is epic shit really!!! Pls I'm begging everyone to read this atleast once guys

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Abortion, Pregnancy, Suicide, Torture, Blood, Cursing, War, Gore, Miscarriage, Murder, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Grief, Infertility, Infidelity, Slavery, Stalking, Suicide attempt, and Violence

daenerystargaryen's review

adventurous dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Death, Death of parent, Murder, and Violence

Moderate: Alcohol and Grief

Minor: Drug use

yuidf's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious tense medium-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? It's complicated

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Bullying, Death of parent, Death, Murder, Physical abuse, and Violence

Moderate: Drug use, Injury/Injury detail, Toxic relationship, and Gaslighting

the_booookaholic's review against another edition

adventurous dark medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Drug use, Sexual harassment, Bullying, and Murder

dilara2912w's review

adventurous emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Police brutality, Racism, Physical abuse, Mental illness, War, Death, Murder, Genocide, Classism, Violence, Toxic relationship, Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, Mass/school shootings, Body shaming, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Gaslighting, Drug use, and Bullying

zoiejanelle's review

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

jude "i will become so much worse" duarte is the queen of my heart! 

i'm not a fairy/fae girlie, but this book was recommended to me multiple times by multiple people. it became available on libby (audiobook) and i was in a reading slump, so i gave it a try. i am SO GLAD that i did. this series was a blast. i devoured all three books within a weekend and will absolutely buy the physical books to add to my library!

this book moved quickly and was immediately very immersive. there were infrequent explanations/world-building/lore, and sparse detail which i appreciated. Holly Black's style is very digestible and allows the reader to really build the world in their head. i liked how diverse the fairy world was. it wasn't only sexy, white, humanoid, winged creatures. the creativity that went into building out the land was really evident in the inclusion of different kingdoms, types of folk, and the elaborate history. plus, the epigraphs gave great insight into the research she did that contributed to this series. 

i loved this book because jude was absolutely the villain. her motivation of accruing power after spending her life feeling powerless was sooooo believable and yet so frightening. her anger and resentment were palpable--and her complex feelings about the fae were really fun to explore as well. on top of jude being amazing, i really loved how political the whole series was. i did not expect to be so intrigued by the court politics, but i was! 

the grand finale of this book had me literally SHOUTING and screaming. the entire book, jude characterized the fairies as sinister, tricky, and silve-tongues... and in the end, that is who she became. what a fantastic plot twist right at the end! normally i dislike cliffhangers, but this one was so juicy. and i'm lucky enough to be able to read the next two books immediately after! 

loved it as a fun, light read. definitely recommend for any of my fantasy, enemies-to-lovers readers. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Death, Violence, and Bullying

Moderate: Drug use, Alcohol, Xenophobia, and Toxic relationship

halflingnana's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

An excellent fantasy. A great take on folklore and tons of fun. Emotional and intriguing plot lines. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Violence, Blood, and Bullying

Moderate: Death of parent, Drug use, War, Blood, Child abuse, Xenophobia, Classism, and Death

Minor: Sexual content and Suicide

stewartj0421's review against another edition

dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

It took 85 pages for me to become invested in the story. The beginning feels clunky and aimless, and then all at once you’re swept up into this magical world of lies and dishonor.

I found Black’s fondness of obscure vocabulary to be at odds with the modern time period the story takes place in. I suspect her intention was to portray Faerie as more elegant and otherworldly, but the juxtaposition was jarring and, at times, unsettling in a way I can’t explain.

Despite my dislike of the writing quirks, the book eventually captured my attention. I also found it to be really well suited for the young adult genre. I will definitely be reading the next book in the series. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Classism, Murder, Blood, Death, Emotional abuse, and Violence

Moderate: Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Drug use, and Slavery

Minor: Grief, Infertility, and Infidelity

platypusd10's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional inspiring mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Blood, Death of parent, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Bullying, and Cursing