The Wicked King by Holly Black Review
The Wicked King
By Holly Black
Book two of The Folk of the Air trilogy
My Rating: ★★★★★
Genres: YA Fiction, Fantasy, Romance
The Wicked King continues on from Holly Black's first book in the series The Cruel Prince (review here), so make sure to read that first.
Five months after Jude has crowned Cardan against his will, things aren't exactly going terribly, but that's not to say they couldn't get better. Navigating the world of politics has never been easy in Faerie, especially for Jude, a young mortal woman, who cannot reveal her biggest secret yet: she controls the High King of Elfhame. To make matters even harder, Cardan is determined to undermine and show up Jude, despite his uncommon curiosity about her.
When Cardan is shot and nearly killed by a jealous ex-lover, the shooter reveals to Jude what she already fears: someone she trusts has already betrayed her. Jude knows that she must find the betrayer and stop them before she or Cardan is killed, and the truth about her position is brought to light. She plots to bait her enemies into appearing by setting a series of traps at her sister's wedding, using her brother and heir to the throne, Oak, to draw them out. Yet her enemies seem to be ahead of every step she takes, evading all of her cunning plans and capturing Jude, imprisoning her in the Undersea.
Caught up in an ever-tangling web of lies and secrets, Jude must play her cards carefully or risk losing everything she has fought so hard to gain.
Content warnings: Torture, Violence, Death/Murder
I'd definitely recommend reading The Wicked King, even if you weren't too big of a fan of the first book in the series, The Cruel Prince, since this series just keeps getting better. It's great mix of romance, fantasy and action, with just the right amount of each. I'm looking forward to reading the next in the series.
Even without liars, there can still be lies.
Five months after Jude has crowned Cardan against his will, things aren't exactly going terribly, but that's not to say they couldn't get better. Navigating the world of politics has never been easy in Faerie, especially for Jude, a young mortal woman, who cannot reveal her biggest secret yet: she controls the High King of Elfhame. To make matters even harder, Cardan is determined to undermine and show up Jude, despite his uncommon curiosity about her.
When Cardan is shot and nearly killed by a jealous ex-lover, the shooter reveals to Jude what she already fears: someone she trusts has already betrayed her. Jude knows that she must find the betrayer and stop them before she or Cardan is killed, and the truth about her position is brought to light. She plots to bait her enemies into appearing by setting a series of traps at her sister's wedding, using her brother and heir to the throne, Oak, to draw them out. Yet her enemies seem to be ahead of every step she takes, evading all of her cunning plans and capturing Jude, imprisoning her in the Undersea.
Caught up in an ever-tangling web of lies and secrets, Jude must play her cards carefully or risk losing everything she has fought so hard to gain.
Content warnings: Torture, Violence, Death/Murder
"I have heard the for mortals, the feeling of falling in love is very like the feeling of fear. Your heart beats fast. Your senses are heightened. You grow light-headed, maybe even dizzy."
*spoilers ahead*
The Wicked King is another great book by Holly Black. There's a good balance of romance and action in a way that doesn't overwhelm the reader with too much of either at any one point. The first thing want to talk about enjoying today is The Undersea. In this book we get to explore this part of Elfhame a little more since Jude is kidnapped and imprisoned there by Queen Orlagh, Nicasia and Balekin. Whilst you don't get to see a lot of the actual territory, you do get an interesting look at the inhabitants of it, specifically the royal family. There seems to be a fairly noticeable contrast between them and the the Greenbriar family, mostly in the way they act. Whereas on land the royals are frivolous and carefree, Queen Orlagh and Nicasia conduct themselves with a sort of stiffness in comparison: their court is quiet, empty and they show little emotion. Perhaps this coldness has come from the water, they cannot feel the warmth of sunlight or see the beauty of the lands above, lacking in these experiences may have inexplicably changed people of the Undersea.
I also liked the development of Jude and Taryn's relationship in The Wicked King. It was interesting to see the two sisters, who had once been so close and the only person that truly understood the other, turn against one another. Who would have thought that the two people who should understand each other perfectly in their circumstances would turn against each other? Yet, we still see Taryn seeking help from Jude and leaning on her from the start of the story. They sure do have a complicated relationship. It is quite clear to see that Jude can't really bring herself to hate her own twin, since she tries to fulfil her requests and Taryn is often on her mind. Jude has a strong internal sense of good buried within her, even if she denies it, for I certainly couldn't say with that I would do my best to help out my sister if she had done what Taryn did to me. What about you?
Finally, a particular moment that stuck out to me when reading were the haunting words of Val Moren to Jude. When speaking to Jude about her role as seneschal he begins to juggle, and says this: "Juggling, you see, is just tossing two things in the air at the same time. No matter how many things you add, you've only got two hands, so you can only toss two things. You've just got to throw faster and faster, higher and higher.". After this, he adds more to what he is juggling, only to make a mistake and drop them all. "My advice," says Val Moren, "is that you learn to juggle better than I did." This really stayed with me throughout the book, and it just seems like a brilliant way to sum up the book and Jude's role. It also made me think about what even we, the readers, don't know how much Jude is planning or hiding behind her back and that it could all come crashing down at any second without any warning.
I also liked the development of Jude and Taryn's relationship in The Wicked King. It was interesting to see the two sisters, who had once been so close and the only person that truly understood the other, turn against one another. Who would have thought that the two people who should understand each other perfectly in their circumstances would turn against each other? Yet, we still see Taryn seeking help from Jude and leaning on her from the start of the story. They sure do have a complicated relationship. It is quite clear to see that Jude can't really bring herself to hate her own twin, since she tries to fulfil her requests and Taryn is often on her mind. Jude has a strong internal sense of good buried within her, even if she denies it, for I certainly couldn't say with that I would do my best to help out my sister if she had done what Taryn did to me. What about you?
Finally, a particular moment that stuck out to me when reading were the haunting words of Val Moren to Jude. When speaking to Jude about her role as seneschal he begins to juggle, and says this: "Juggling, you see, is just tossing two things in the air at the same time. No matter how many things you add, you've only got two hands, so you can only toss two things. You've just got to throw faster and faster, higher and higher.". After this, he adds more to what he is juggling, only to make a mistake and drop them all. "My advice," says Val Moren, "is that you learn to juggle better than I did." This really stayed with me throughout the book, and it just seems like a brilliant way to sum up the book and Jude's role. It also made me think about what even we, the readers, don't know how much Jude is planning or hiding behind her back and that it could all come crashing down at any second without any warning.
I'd definitely recommend reading The Wicked King, even if you weren't too big of a fan of the first book in the series, The Cruel Prince, since this series just keeps getting better. It's great mix of romance, fantasy and action, with just the right amount of each. I'm looking forward to reading the next in the series.
"There are no real answers, Jude. Why was I cruel to Folk? Why was I so awful to you? Because I could be. Because I liked it. Because, for a moment, when I was at my worst, I felt powerful, and most of the time, I felt powerless, despite being a prince and the son of the High King of Faerie."
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