A review by thebetterstory
The Stolen Heir by Holly Black

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

3.75

A fast, fun read that doesn't quite have the spark of The Folk of the Air.

I think Holly Black's writing has gotten more mature over time, and it's generally much smoother to read now. Wren's a great protagonist—sympathetic, unsocialized, impulsive—and Oak is likeable here, even if I felt that he was almost too easy to like and trust for the purposes of the story. It's obvious fairly quickly that all the wild rumours about him being irresponsible or cunning are exaggerated, but the book seems to want you to wonder at his true intentions, even when he literally can't lie about them.

My main complaint is with the weak ending, wherein
all the traits we've seen in Wren so far are abruptly thrown out, like her fierce hatred for imprisonment, over her discovering she has Mellith's heart and that Oak didn't mention it. It doesn't feel like nearly a big enough "betrayal" to warrant her 180 in personality and using the bridle on him, especially after making much ado about not wanting to see it on anyone. Not to mention Oak literally tells her outright that he was just keeping it from her so she would be able to truthfully say she didn't know where the heart was. Way more angst and development would have been needed to make that cruelty feel like a realistic next step, the way Jude betraying Cardan felt real in the original trilogy.


Still, I marathoned this within a day and immediately put a hold on the next book, so I can't say I don't recommend it. It's a good time, even if the character development doesn't always hold together towards the end.
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