The Cruel Prince
Holly Black, 2018
Fantasy Young adultRomanceContemporary fiction
A mortal girl raised among faeries decides she will not be a pawn, in a court where every kindness has a price and every promise can be twisted. A tense court drama with a sharp, ambitious voice and a current of tenderness beneath the cruelty.
Feels like tenderness. About power, ambition and faith.
Who it’s for
You may like it if you enjoy morally complicated faerie politics, slow-burning rivalry, and heroines who refuse to be pawns. Be ready for a court where kindness comes with a price and betrayal is constant, so the book stays emotionally harsh rather than cozy.
Why read it
It gives you a sharp, intimate look at ambition and loyalty inside a dangerous faerie court, with a narrator who admits her own lies.
A page from the book
The loneliness of getting exactly what you wanted.
I have lied and I have betrayed and I have triumphed. If only there was someone to congratulate me. Holly Black.Before The Cruel Prince, Holly Black co-created The Spiderwick Chronicles, a children's series about faeries and goblins, with illustrator Tony DiTerlizzi.
Books that feel like this
More by Holly Black
The Wicked King
Holly Black, 2019
A mortal spy keeps a wicked faerie king on a leash, and every courtier wants to cut it.
The Queen of Nothing
Holly Black, 2019
A mortal girl raised among faeries has learned to fight for every inch of power; the hardest battle is letting someone close.
How the King of Elfhame Learned to Hate Stories
Holly Black, 2020
The boy with the heart of stone gets his own book: Cardan, before and beside the crown, and the stories that made him.
Where to get it
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Questions readers ask
- Is The Cruel Prince for me?
- You may like it if you enjoy morally complicated faerie politics, slow-burning rivalry, and heroines who refuse to be pawns. Be ready for a court where kindness comes with a price and betrayal is constant, so the book stays emotionally harsh rather than cozy.
- What is The Cruel Prince like?
- A tense court drama with a sharp, ambitious voice and a current of tenderness beneath the cruelty. Feels like tenderness. About power, ambition and faith.
- What should I read after The Cruel Prince?
- If you liked The Cruel Prince, try Queen of Shadows (Sarah J. Maas), Warbreaker (Brandon Sanderson) and Red Queen (Victoria Aveyard).
A taste of the feed
Immortal warriors are not immune to a well-cut nightgown.
Thirty minutes later, Rowan was still staring up at the ceiling, teeth gritted as he calmed the roaring in his veins that was steadily shredding through his self-control. That gods-damned nightgown. Shit. He was in such deep, unending shit.
Queen of Shadows · Sarah J. Maas
A god who has everything answers to no one, especially not decorum.
She’s only seventeen years old,” Llarimar said. “I can’t imagine being married to the God King at her age.” “I can’t imagine you being married to the God King at any age, Scoot,” Lightsong said. Then he pointedly cringed. “Actually, yes I can imagine it, and the dress looks painfully inelegant on you. Make a note to have my imagination flogged for its insolence in showing me that par tic u lar sight.” “I’ll put it in line right behind your sense of decorum, Your Grace,” Llarimar said dryly. “Don’t be silly,” Lightsong said, taking a sip of wine. “I haven’t had one of those in years.
Warbreaker · Brandon Sanderson
The difference between destruction and rain is who gets to name it.
The truth is what I make it. I could set this world on fire and call it rain.
Red Queen · Victoria Aveyard
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