The front cover of my much-loved paperback edition.

The plot, Characters, and Writing

Disclaimer: I consider “spoiler-free” to mean anything not revealed on the back cover and/or online summary for the book on Amazon and/or Good reads or within the first few pages. I am not paid or compensated in any way for writing this review or for any of the links or products I include.

The Cruel Prince is a book I might not have picked up if not for the utterly stellar opening scene. I can still vividly remember how the second paragraph of the prologue that inescapably captured my attention

“Inside the house, Juse sat on the living room rug and ate fish sticks, soggy from the microwave and dragged through a sludge of ketchup. Her twin sister, Taryn, napped on the couch, curled around a blanket, thumb in her fruit-punch-stained mouth. Ant on the other end of the sofa, their older sister, Vivienne, stared at the television screen, her eerie split-pupiled gaze fixed on the cartoon mouse as it ran from the cartoon cat. She laughed when it seemed as if the mouse was about to get eaten.”
-Holly Black, The Cruel Prince

What an amazing opener! Immediately the audience has a clear grasp of the age and characterization of these three, the level of technology and general time in which the story is taking place, and the voice of the author.

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The writing itself is lovely, especially the wording of the descriptions such as “sludge of ketchup” and “fruit-punch-stained mouth”. What I love about the way Black writes description is that it’s always vivid without being overdone and she never goes for the obvious choice. It makes for an enormously compelling and engaging read.

The characterization is strong in this story as well and though there were many times when I wasn’t sure what certain characters were up to or where their true motivations lay, I was always certain that Black knew and that all would be revealed with time.

Without spoiling anything I will say that the opening scene immediately jumps into gripping action featuring irrevocable turns in the plot and a very clear foundation for the three girl’s personalities and motivations as they grow older. It’s no exaggeration to say that this book has one of the best openings I’ve ever read. Similarly Black is a master of the art of ending the book spectacularly, but we’ll get to that in a minute.

The first chapter is only one sentence.

“In Faerie, there are no fish sticks, no ketchup, no television.”
-Holly Black, The Cruel Prince

It’s so striking to look at the page and see only this. It’s a bold choice that not many books are willing to make, to display one sentence so prominently and potently. In this small handful of words, we can discern the enormity of the changes ahead for the characters, the passage of time, and the true otherness they will have to face as strangers in a strange land.

As far as Faerie itself goes, both the location and its inhabitants are cruel, capricious, and often unpredictable. Black writes faeries much closer to the Old World understanding of the creatures that were as vicious as they were magical. Though there is beauty, there is terror in equal measure.

It’s incredibly appealing how Black doesn’t shy away from the darker elements of the Faeries (going so far as to include them in her title!) or the humans who are drawn to them.

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Let me preface this by saying that I love YA! In no way am I attempting to knock on such a rich and varied genre, but it is important to recognize the common problems that the genre faces and address them when possible.

Much of YA as a genre is filled with various levels of wish fulfillment where every character is unnaturally beautiful, with the possible exception of the villain or one particular side character who gets little screen time. Protagonists and love interests in YA frequently lack interest because they aren’t allowed to make any really serious mistakes or have seriously negative aspects of their personality or mental health. It may feel safe to water things down for a younger audience, and those books and tropes certainly have their place, but not in The Cruel Prince.

This book explores darker themes without crossing the boundary into true horror, much as the best of the original fairytales do. This is a deceptively difficult line to tow and Black does it to perfection with refreshing originality. She crafts enemies-to-lovers romance very well when few authors can.

However, these darker elements are not forgiven and washed away.

“And despite myself, despite what he’d done and what he was, I came to love him. I do love him.
It’s just not a comfortable kind of love.”
-Holly Black, The Cruel Prince

Black’s narrator, Jude, is incredibly self-aware, it’s just that she still chooses what she wants anyway.

“If I cannot be better than them, I will become so much worse.”
― Holly Black, The Cruel Prince

In terms of the cruel Prince of the title, there is no instant love, no abrupt change from scoundrel to gentleman, or any of the other potentially off-putting tropes in that vein. Both Cardan and Jude have understandable motivations and consistent characterization. Their interactions are occasionally infuriating, but not in an unintentional way. The tension between them feels authentic and earned.

Now, as far as the ending goes, simply put, it was spectacular. Black is a true master of endings. Across all three books in this series, I never saw a single one of her endings coming.

I highly recommend this book to those who like deeply flawed heroes, dark love interests, and untrustworthy allies!

Book Design

Disclaimer: much of this review is based on my physical copy of this book, so newer editions might have different design elements than what I describe here.

There are some books I pick up for the cover design alone. This was not one of those books. Although I have no particular complaints about the cover design it didn’t overwhelm and intrigue me either.

The crown in the trees is a but generic looking. I do love the title font and the gold stroke around the letters. I was especially fond on the way they overlapped and wove in the trees with the title. However, I wish that they had chosen something a little more eye-grabbing for the cover.

Also, this is a personal pet peeve but that greenish beetle is featured in three places on my copy. I don’t remember any beetle from the story at all though. Unless I’m completely forgetting something there is no beetle of note. There are so many other options for significant objects/creatures that could have been displayed! Why this random beetle?

This whole cover feels like it was designed by someone who only had the title to work with and didn’t really know anything else about the book.

The map inside is fantastic: interesting, detailed, and legible. Like many avid fantasy readers, I love a map and I’m delighted they included one in this book.

The epigraph is astounding. It’s not only aesthetically perfect for the book, but it’s also beautifully rendered. The illustration around the epigraph is an extra touch that’s wholely unnecessary while adding unspeakable charm and delight.

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The same goes for the illustrations around the chapter headings and the little acorn next to the page numbers. These are all small touches that show that the interior book design is consistent not only with itself but with the story. The level of attention to detail here, and the connection those details have with the actual narrative, are really delightful.