There always comes a time in a bookworm’s life when romance has to take a back seat to the allure of a magical realm—one of the modern bookworm problems. Well, if you’re in that phase and enjoy young adult fantasy fiction, we’ve got just the book series for you. The Folk of the Air series by Holly Black, the faerie queen herself, brought to us by WordPress Publishing, is what you seek. A heroic journey in Faerieland, where mischief reigns and danger lurks, with intricate world-building and an addictive, slow-burn romance that will keep you on the edge of your seat.
‘The Folk of the Air’ is essentially a trilogy consisting of The Cruel Prince, The Wicked King and The Queen of Nothing. The story follows Jude and Cardan’s gripping adventure and was nominated for the Goodreads Choice Award for Best Young Adult Fantasy & Science Fiction in 2018. But the story continues in The Stolen Heir duology, where we see Oak, the youngest heir of Elfhame, and his quest. Let’s dive into the summary of the first book, explore the key points of the young main character’s journey in Faerie, along with the themes that make this series so compelling. And if you like The Cruel Prince, be sure to also check out our breakdown of the iconic characters.
This is officially where the Spoiler-free zone ends, so proceed with caution, valiant bookworms.
The story starts when Jude Duarte is a mortal girl of just six years old, living a plain old day in the mortal world with her parents, her twin sister Taryn and her older sister Vivienne. When the doorbell rings, Jude opens the door, not knowing her life is going to be altered forever.
Madoc, the general of the Faerie court and Vivi’s biological father, has finally located his offspring and the woman who betrayed him. His fury escalates, and Jude witnesses the brutal murder of her parents. Madoc, however, seems to have an honorable side despite his brutality, and he will take all three children back to Faerie to raise as his own along with Oriana and their son Oak.
Jude and Taryn will be raised like any other kid in Faerie, attending lessons and training in martial arts, but it is painstakingly clear that humans don’t belong there, unless they’re servants or toys for the fae. Despite living under the same tyranny, the two sisters develop entirely different personalities; Jude is fierce and passionate, while Taryn is well-mannered and easy-going. Jude’s opinions and bravery soon attract Prince Cardan Greenbriar’s attention. The youngest Prince enjoys debauchery, fun and cruelty. He and his friends, Locke, Valerian and Nicasia enjoy teasing and humiliating Jude, but she is not one to give up.
Jude dreams of being a royal knight. She is tired of being bullied and living in fear. Her chance will be presented when Prince Dain, the most likely heir to the throne of Elfhame offers her a position in his team of spies, the Court of Shadows. With the other spies’ help, Jude trains in not only martial arts, but also poisons and strategy as well—which is one of her strong suits since Madoc has trained her from childhood.
When the whole royal family is slaughtered by Prince Balekin, who desires the crown, aided by Madoc, who has his own ambitions for the throne, the future of Faerie becomes even more unstable. But the Blood Crown requires a living relative with royal blood, so Cardan is spared and thus starts his collaboration with Jude to earn his freedom and save his people. Jude takes him to the Court of Shadows, the spies’ lair. Using her skills in deception and strategy, Jude is determined to not let Madoc steal the crown and win.
Her unexpected teaming up with Cardan leads to his confessing that he thinks about her more than he wants. They make a deal, and he promises to do everything that she says for a year and a day, no minute longer. She infiltrates Balekin’s banquet with Cardan by her side in order to restore the crown. Taking out Madoc with poison, only Balekin stands in her way. In a twist, Oak, Jude’s adoptive brother and the last heir of King Eldred, places the crown on Cardan’s head, making him the new High King of Elfhame—and making us long for the next book.
Jude and Taryn attend lessons with all their peers, including Prince Cardan and his delectable friends. Despite Jude’s effort to lay low and stay as far away from them as possible, Cardan makes it his goal to bully her. Cardan kicks dirt into their sandwiches and even threatens Jude to stay out of the Summer Tournament, or she will wish she had. Jude later seeks retribution by oversalting all their food—salt being something the fae hate. The climax of their school lessons, which comes a bit later in the story, is Jude being forced to eat faerie fruit by Valerian. Faerie fruit can drive a mortal mad with happiness and non-stop dancing. Jude gets brutally played and mocked until Cardan finds it in his heart to let her go.
From the get-go, we are introduced to Jude and Taryn being trained in swordsmanship and strategy. His lessons have been so deeply drilled into Jude that she finds herself constantly thinking strategically and concocting plans. Madoc’s denial to let her join the knights is Jude’s catalyst that sets her off to join Dain’s spies, despite the risks.
Locke’s interest in Jude is highlighted from the first time we see him winking at her in the High Court of Faerie. He is constantly around and even when his friends are being cruel, he talks and flirts with her. He takes their relationship a step further when they go to his family’s house and spend the day together. Even when his friends join them for a sort of party, he does not hide his affections for her, something that does not go unnoticed by Cardan. And thanks to this scene, we get this epic line: “I recall that your hands were on her, but her eyes were on me.” —and thank you, Holly, for that.
Jude’s main asset that no other in the Court of Shadows possesses is her ability to lie—something the fey are unable to do. However, Prince Dain gives Jude another weapon to fight the fey despite her mortality; Mithridatism. Mithridatism is the process of taking small and controlled amounts of poison daily to make one less susceptible and vulnerable to it. Jude’s stubbornness and persistence take center stage when she slowly starts poisoning herself with small doses of blusher mushroom, wraithberry, deathsweet, and even faerie fruit to build her immunity. This comes in handy when she poisons both her and Madoc’s cups to get the crown for Cardan.
An event which we all wished would take place but were not sure Jude would go through. After repeated attempts to harm her and even make her jump off a tower—which doesn’t work thanks to Dain’s geis that protects her from magic— Valerian snakes into her room and tries to kill her. But as luck would have it, our dear Jude is much more willing than he is and takes him out. She even buries him near the stables, and his body is never found throughout the series.
One of the most thrilling and unexpected plot twists is the reveal of Taryn and Locke’s relationship. While Jude knew Taryn had a lover who was testing her by keeping their affair a secret, she could never have guessed her twin sister had been standing by as the man she loved infatuated Jude. Jude’s anger is out of control, and she challenges Taryn to a fight, in which she almost takes off her head before being stopped. Jude somehow manages to put it past her and even attends their wedding. Taryn’s betrayal still makes us scream to this day and let me tell you, dear bookworms, Jude is certainly better than us because we would have never forgiven her for such cruelty.
The whole of Faerieland is expectant of a new High King rising to the throne of Elfhame and Prince Dain is the wisest choice. High King Eldred can choose any of his children as his heir, and only needs to place the blood crown on his brow to solidify the deal. But Prince Balekin does not get it and in a brutal ploy with Madoc, he massacres his whole family moments before Dain is crowned. The only one left alive is Cardan, who had been deep in his cups, merrily roaming around. Traumatized and scared from witnessing the slaughter, Jude seeks an escape and dives under a table to walk out unscathed until she stumbles upon Cardan.
After Jude brings Cardan to the spies’ lair, she asks him why he hates her so. And that’s where our cruel prince comes undone and confesses he thinks of her all the time. In response, Jude kisses him, just to torment him and confirm his interest in her. She knows to gain power she needs Cardan by her side, so she proposes a deal. Using his inability to lie, he swears to do as she says for a year and a day. He agrees to help her crown Oak, but Jude has other ideas and orders him to receive the crown instead. Since he is sworn to comply, he is crowned High King.
There are so many more moments that deserve the spotlight, but these ones take the cake.
This fantasy novel is centered around political intrigue and strategy. Let’s take a closer look at the most prominent themes and motifs.
Power is the main motivator for most of the Folk of the Air characters. Madoc seeks power and by placing young Oak on the throne, basically covets the power for himself. His teachings have instilled a want for power in Jude as well, which, compared to Cardan, who wants nothing to do with the throne at first, seems quite consuming. The Royal Family and even Locke and Taryn are searching for power, but ultimately power is not meant for everyone.
Cruelty is the vicious cycle that governs Faerie. Balekin is cruel to Cardan because his father’s favors Dain. Consequently, Cardan is cruel to everyone because of Balekin’s abuse. Madoc is a cruel and vicious killer by nature, and teaches Jude that the only way to survive in Faerie is to be cruel.
Asserting her own identity and not being defined by her mortal nature is something that plagues Jude throughout the series. The need for acceptance and inclusion drives her to seek power and establish herself. Cardan also faces a similar issue. Having been rejected by his father as a bad omen, he seeks validation from others, hiding his truly sensitive and vulnerable side under his cruelty.
Loyalty, and especially to one’s family, is one of Madoc’s values he constantly reminds Jude, especially after Taryn’s betrayal. The Royal Family’s loyalty and betrayal are also central to the story. Nicasia betraying Cardan for Locke plays a big role in Cardan’s development. Having both been betrayed, Jude and Cardan perhaps find solace in each other, that is why their loyalty to one another is something that does not waver in the end.
Ultimately, every quest is a battle of good against the evil forces. Readers know the lines are blurry in Faerie, and even Jude is not sure where she stands after not feeling too much remorse for Valerian. Cardan’s actions are very often questionable, but as their bond deepens, love and goodness seem to prevail. The High King and Queen swear to build their kingdom anew, so perhaps good wins—or maybe not.
Do yourself a favor, drop what you are currently reading, and log in to Amazon to order the Folk of the Air series. A thrilling experience with wild twists and turns that is sure to leave you amazed and with a book hangover.
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The Cruel Prince trilogy is a young adult fantasy novel with fey and lots of magic. Romance is only a subplot, as it is mostly focuses on strategy and the heroine’s quest. It has been suggested by many BookTokers, and we would say it is definitely worth the hype.
No, The Cruel Prince is not considered a romantasy series, as romance is only a subplot. Although Jude Duarte and Prince Cardan do end up together, their romance is slow to develop, and their feelings take time to show. But their wholesome romance will certainly reward patient readers.
No, The Cruel Prince Trilogy is not considered particularly spicy. There are a few scenes where Cardan and Jude share some passionate moments, but they are scarce and vaguely described. However, these scenes are very rewarding and enjoyable as they showcase the characters’ feelings and need for intimacy and love.
Always living in her own enchanted little world, Christina discovered the magic that can be hidden within the pages of a book when one dares to take a closer look from a tender age. An avid reader, she is constantly inspired to delve into the secrets woven between the lines and challenges herself to find her own voice amidst the chaos. She is a dedicated fan of the classics, but the supernatural creatures that have tormented readers for years are her kryptonite. The mastery it takes to infuse the author's essence, molded by the era they grew up in to their innermost desires fascinates her. Undoubtedly, putting her passion and knowledge on paper has a mesmerizing allure on her, and following the steps of so many other dreamers before her she wishes to leave her mark in the literary world. Guided by T.S Eliot’s haunting words: “I will show you fear in a handful of dust” she intends to wreak havoc in the minds of her future readers.
