A review by morriganorgana
The Cruel Prince by Holly Black

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

4.0

The first time I tried reading this book in roughly 2019, I found it incredibly difficult to get past a certain scene (Chapter 7) as it was quite triggering. Because of this, I initially DNFed the book, gave it 1 star, and shoved it out of my mind. After a few years I decided to give it another go, and I'm really, really glad I did. 

This time I skipped the chapter I knew would upset me (thanks to another reader who helpfully looked up which chapter for me), and it was an entirely different experience. The character growth throughout the book is great, and the more you sink into the world the more you can appreciate every act and word.

Worldbuilding is brilliant, and Black uses so much faerie folklore in the series that it felt like I wasn't dipping into a new world, but walking into an ancient one that I already knew. I was so excited to see redcaps given so much love too, as their lore originates from the Scottish-English border near where I'm from, so seeing a character from a Redcap's household was a fantastic surprise. 

Overall a great book, and I'm so glad to say that the series only gets better from here.
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