Book Descriptions
for The Cruel Prince by Holly Black
From Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC)
Teenager Jude and her sister Taryn were only seven when Madoc, a member of the high court of Faerieland, came to the human world in search of his daughter, their older half-sister, Vivi. After killing the girls’ parents Madoc kidnapped the twins along with Vivi and they’ve been raised in Faerieland as his children. While Taryn enjoys all the privileges and trappings of their life in Faerie and longs to make a romantic match, Jude is not only more wary but wants to prove herself as a knight. But no one can forget she is human, least of all her nemesis, Prince Cardan, youngest of the High King’s sons. Cardan, a bully with power, is only one of the many dangers Jude will face in this story full of political and emotional intrigue, plot twists and turns, acts of nobility and acts of betrayal. Nothing is simple, least of all the relationships among characters whose complexities bring them into full and messy relief. At the center of it all is Jude, a young woman of great intelligence, courage, and heart. (Age 12 and older)
CCBC Choices 2019. © Cooperative Children's Book Center, Univ. of Wisconsin - Madison, 2019. Used with permission.
From the Publisher
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Holly Black, comes the first book in a stunning new series about a mortal girl who finds herself caught in a web of royal faerie intrigue.
Of course I want to be like them. They're beautiful as blades forged in some divine fire. They will live forever.
And Cardan is even more beautiful than the rest. I hate him more than all the others. I hate him so much that sometimes when I look at him, I can hardly breathe.
Jude was seven years old when her parents were murdered and she and her two sisters were stolen away to live in the treacherous High Court of Faerie. Ten years later, Jude wants nothing more than to belong there, despite her mortality. But many of the fey despise humans. Especially Prince Cardan, the youngest and wickedest son of the High King.
To win a place at the Court, she must defy him--and face the consequences.
In doing so, she becomes embroiled in palace intrigues and deceptions, discovering her own capacity for bloodshed. But as civil war threatens to drown the Courts of Faerie in violence, Jude will need to risk her life in a dangerous alliance to save her sisters, and Faerie itself.
Of course I want to be like them. They're beautiful as blades forged in some divine fire. They will live forever.
And Cardan is even more beautiful than the rest. I hate him more than all the others. I hate him so much that sometimes when I look at him, I can hardly breathe.
Jude was seven years old when her parents were murdered and she and her two sisters were stolen away to live in the treacherous High Court of Faerie. Ten years later, Jude wants nothing more than to belong there, despite her mortality. But many of the fey despise humans. Especially Prince Cardan, the youngest and wickedest son of the High King.
To win a place at the Court, she must defy him--and face the consequences.
In doing so, she becomes embroiled in palace intrigues and deceptions, discovering her own capacity for bloodshed. But as civil war threatens to drown the Courts of Faerie in violence, Jude will need to risk her life in a dangerous alliance to save her sisters, and Faerie itself.
Publisher description retrieved from Google Books.
