Synopsis:
Jude was seven 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.
As Jude becomes more deeply embroiled in palace intrigues and deceptions, she discovers her own capacity for trickery and bloodshed. But as betrayal 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.
Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟
Edit 2nd reread: Remember how I said I couldn't stop thinking
about this book even days after I finished it? Well, it didn't stop. It
went on for months, until I couldn't resist rereading it. I've never
reread a book within such a short amount of time.
What really gets me with this book is Jude. You know how a lot of people are just head-over-heels for Mia from Jay Kristoff's Nevernight? That's me but with Jude. I love her. I would die for her. I would sacrifice 72 virgins for her under the cover of deep night. She's clever, she's strong, she makes questionable choices, but most of all, she's flawed. I ADORE her.
I love this book so much. It's dark, it's brutal, it's sexy. I'm honestly floored by how mature this book manages to be, while still being so deeply grounded in the YA genre that I would feel comfortable recommending it to my 15-year-old sister.
Honestly? This is one of my favorite books of all time.
Original review:
This book was such an unexpected gem. I can't stop thinking about it even though it's been days since I've finished it. While I had been looking forward to reading it for some time, I didn't buy into the hype. I think it's for that reason that I enjoyed this novel so much, because I didn't really have any expectations for it. This was my first Holly Black novel.
I was a little leery at first of the bullying that happens to Jude. It initially made the novel feel a little too elementary for my tastes, but boy was I wrong. What at first appears to be some innocent name-calling very soon turns much darker and more sinister than I was expecting. We've got betrayal, murder, king-making - I could not believe how the first fifty pages or so fooled me into thinking this book would be anything other than the twisty, dark tale it is. I'm usually pretty spot-on about guessing plot twists long before they happen, but every one in this novel took me by surprise.
I also couldn't guess the love interest for some time, which was extremely refreshing for a YA novel. In fact, the whole romance in general was really refreshing. It didn't overpower the plot at all, but instead added depth to it in a way that I see very few YAs do. It did feel a liiiiiittle insta-lovey towards the end, but it was mild enough that I'm willing to forgive it.
I think my favorite part of the book was Jude's relationship to power. I've read a lot of really fantastic novels with powerful female characters, but never have I seen a dynamic quite like this. Jude is most definitely an anti-heroine, yet I couldn't help but root for her throughout the entire novel. I love her. I want her to succeed, even if I can't trust her choices to always be the right ones. She's one of the most likeable purposefully-unlikeable YA heroines I've ever read.
Just...DANG. I loved this book. This book snuck up on me with how much I loved it. I wish I could unread it, just so I could experience reading through it for the first time again.
What really gets me with this book is Jude. You know how a lot of people are just head-over-heels for Mia from Jay Kristoff's Nevernight? That's me but with Jude. I love her. I would die for her. I would sacrifice 72 virgins for her under the cover of deep night. She's clever, she's strong, she makes questionable choices, but most of all, she's flawed. I ADORE her.
I love this book so much. It's dark, it's brutal, it's sexy. I'm honestly floored by how mature this book manages to be, while still being so deeply grounded in the YA genre that I would feel comfortable recommending it to my 15-year-old sister.
Honestly? This is one of my favorite books of all time.
Original review:
This book was such an unexpected gem. I can't stop thinking about it even though it's been days since I've finished it. While I had been looking forward to reading it for some time, I didn't buy into the hype. I think it's for that reason that I enjoyed this novel so much, because I didn't really have any expectations for it. This was my first Holly Black novel.
I was a little leery at first of the bullying that happens to Jude. It initially made the novel feel a little too elementary for my tastes, but boy was I wrong. What at first appears to be some innocent name-calling very soon turns much darker and more sinister than I was expecting. We've got betrayal, murder, king-making - I could not believe how the first fifty pages or so fooled me into thinking this book would be anything other than the twisty, dark tale it is. I'm usually pretty spot-on about guessing plot twists long before they happen, but every one in this novel took me by surprise.
I also couldn't guess the love interest for some time, which was extremely refreshing for a YA novel. In fact, the whole romance in general was really refreshing. It didn't overpower the plot at all, but instead added depth to it in a way that I see very few YAs do. It did feel a liiiiiittle insta-lovey towards the end, but it was mild enough that I'm willing to forgive it.
I think my favorite part of the book was Jude's relationship to power. I've read a lot of really fantastic novels with powerful female characters, but never have I seen a dynamic quite like this. Jude is most definitely an anti-heroine, yet I couldn't help but root for her throughout the entire novel. I love her. I want her to succeed, even if I can't trust her choices to always be the right ones. She's one of the most likeable purposefully-unlikeable YA heroines I've ever read.
Just...DANG. I loved this book. This book snuck up on me with how much I loved it. I wish I could unread it, just so I could experience reading through it for the first time again.
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