Is there Romance in The Cruel Prince?

Are you also a fan of Holly Black novels? Wondering where to start? Which next Holly Black novel series should you read? Or you feel left out while others talk about The Cruel Prince, and you remain silent in the group. Read more about Is there Romance in The Cruel Prince?

Hold on. Here are the answers. There’s a touch of romance, mystery, fantasy, and whatnot. The perfect romance between Jude and Cardan is the thing that many readers choose to read in this novel. 

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If you want to read some reviews before starting the cruel prince, we have everything for you. From whether it’s a good read to who wrote it, what the novel’s basic plot is, and so on. For that, stay with us till the end of this article.

A peek into the book

The Cruel Prince is a story about Jude, the protagonist’s journey into an unknown world. She is struggling to make a place for herself in a completely alien world.

At the beginning of the story, Jude’s mother’s first husband abducts her with her two sisters to Elfhame (the faerie world). Faeries hate humans because they are mortals, and that’s why Jude and her sisters have to bear all the cruelty of other faeries. Prince Cardan, the youngest son of King Eldred, creates lots of trouble for Jude when she goes to school there.

As Jude grows up, the insults become intolerable for her, and then she makes some bold decisions to get power. She becomes a knight at the court of faeries to gain permanency in the faerie world. Cardan’s elder brother, Dain, offers her a chance to be his spy, which she accepts and ends up getting into the politics of the royal family of Elfhame.

During her journey, there were a substantial number of obstacles in her way. Her journey to get what she wants is very interesting to read. Because of so many twists and turns, a reader can’t find a moment to get away from this book. The book has many questions and situations which we usually try to escape with gender roles, a strong female protagonist who stands for herself, and many more.

Holly Black wrote this novel. The Cruel Prince is the first book of the series The Folk of the Air. It got published in January 2018. Little Brown Books for Younger Readers Publication published this series. 

The relationship between Jude and Prince Cardan.

Since Jude is a mortal and Prince Cardan is fae, Jude goes through a lot of hate and abuse from Prince Cardan and his friends. Jude grew up swallowing insults from Prince Jordan and his friends because of her identity. First, we see both Jude and Cardan hating and abusing each other.

Once, Cardan told Jude that he hated her because she was always on her mind since she was attractive. Jude melts, and suddenly her feelings towards him also change. They became lovers. For Jude, every mistake by Cardan is okay until he loves her. At a point, the romance between the two seems to convey a weak message about love, where one loves the other despite their misbehaviors.

It is all about the characters.

There are many dynamic characters in the book, and that’s probably the reason Holly Black’s novels have a high reader base.

From Jude, Cardan, Madoc, to Vivi and the other characters, every character has their own story and their own struggle. Let’s look at them one by one. Jude, as we read, is the protagonist of the story.

Carden Greenbriar—is the youngest son of Asha and Eldred.

Taryn is the twin sister of Jude.

Locke: Elfhame’s former master of revels and Taryn’s husband, whom she killed.

There are many other characters like Oak Greenbriar, Nicosia, Bakelin, Van aka the Roach, Livilivers as the Bomb, Garret aka the Ghost, etc.

Should teens read The Cruel Prince?

This book is a fantasy novel, and sometimes it involves words that are too harsh for children and younger teens. So parents should think before handing this book to their children. As the book’s protagonist is passionate about power and politics and uses some evil tactics to achieve her goals, presenting this kind of role model is not good.

Then there are lots of heavy fighting scenes, though they are all only verbal. There are some instances in the book where it involves sexual references, though they are not graphic. These references were to maintain the balance. The heavy scenes like abuse, fights and intimate scenes are not presented clearly to keep them balanced. So that people understand the sense behind it without making the visual scenes. Some dilemmas that Holly Black has introduced in the novel make us think. So, this will be a little heavy for younger children to understand.

This book is wonderful for teens above 15 as they have grown to an extent when they can understand the hidden meanings behind things.

The Cruel Prince craze

You can’t find a fantasy book lover who doesn’t know about Holly Black and her novels. How can The Cruel Prince remain different from them? With the outstanding fantasy world, dynamic characters, and superpowers she gives her characters, it is no wonder that she is a bestselling author. There’s so much hype about this book simply because it offers more entertainment than regular fantasy novels where fairies are always good.

One more thing that attracts the readers is that Holly Black didn’t discriminate between the different sexes. Holly Black has represented Jude’s aspirations as any other aspiring person’s aspirations (to be accepted in society). She emphasized very little of the feminine qualities of Jude. There were instances where a character accepted that he was bisexual, and there was no other comment on that.

Other books by Holly Black

Holly Black is famous for her children’s books and adult fantasy books. Holly Black has co-authored some books with Cassandra Clare and Tony DiTerlizzi. She has written many books series, including the following:

The Spiderwick Chronicles series includes four books. They published this series between 2003 and 2004.

The next book series by Holly Black was Beyond The Spiderwick Chronicles. This series was published between 2007 and 2009. The series has three books.

Modern Faerie Tales is her third series. It is a line-up of amazing novels focused on younger adults its audience. The series includes three books, viz. Tithe, Valiant, and Ironside. Published between 2002 and 2007.

The Curse Workers book series includes three books. This series was published between 2010 and 2012.

Then The Magisterium series, including five books in a children’s fantasy series. The series was published between 2014 and 2018.

Conclusion 

The Cruel Prince is a good dose of the story for a fantasy book lover. However, this novel is more suitable for teens above 15. There’s a touch of romance and rivalry in the book. There’s a lot more than fantasy and romance. The fantasy, fight for power, and other emotional battles overpower the romantic part. This book is more suitable for someone who loves fantasy more than romance or who wants to try a genre out of their taste.

Let me tell you, this book is worth a shot. While there should be restrictions on younger children, there are some instances where there are adult references.

Frequently asked questions (FAQs)

Q1: Who is the author of the book, The Cruel Prince?

Holly Black wrote the fantasy novel The Cruel Prince.

Q2: When was The Cruel Prince published?

The Cruel Prince was first published on 2nd January 2018.

Q3: Is The Cruel Prince part of any series?

Yes, it is the first book in the series ‘The Folk of the Air’ by author Holly Black.

Q4: What are the other books in the series “The Folk of The Air”?

The first book in the series is The Cruel Prince, the second is The Wicked King, and the third part is The Queen of Nothing.

Q5: Is ‘How the King of Elfhame learned to hate stories’ also part of The Folk of The Air trilogy?

‘How the King of Elfhame learned to hate stories’ is a novella by Holly Black. It is the after story of the novel series.

Is there Romance in The Cruel Prince?

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