Folk of the Air Trilogy

This Post is Spoiler Free!

I debated breaking this up into three separate reviews, posting after I finished each book. However, I ended up reading the whole trilogy before I could post the first review, so I decided to group them together. I wrote each one after finishing the book in question, so you are getting unadulterated thoughts that I wrote (most of the time) after 2 in the morning!

The Cruel Prince

So. The Cruel Prince by Holly Black (the first book in The Folk of the Air trilogy). I read it in a day, which is unsurprising. I’ve heard many people say that they read this book quickly, and I can obviously understand why.

Holly Black’s writing is intoxicating. Her writing style is not one that I’d usually claim to be a favorite, partially because it’s in first person point of view, but it certainly kept me reading (I am up WAY too late writing this). However, I’m going to be honest… It took me a while to become invested in the story itself.

To put it simply, I was slightly intrigued by the story pretty early on (mostly because of Faerie stuff and gentry secrets), but I didn’t become properly invested until the final third of the book. I feel like that’s when Jude (the main character) found a consistent voice. Before then, she felt a little too ‘standard YA’ for me, which isn’t exactly bad, but just not enough for me to connect with. So, yeah. I was happy when her character seemed to develop more, bringing the story along with her.

I’m going to keep this relatively short (I’m equal parts exhausted and freezing… I want to get back to my bed and my heated blanket). Basically, the book was easy to read, but a little harder to connect to. However, it ended in such a way where I’m undoubtedly excited for the next book (The Wicked King). Will I read The Cruel Prince again? Possibly. It depends on the rest of the series, I think.

Fortunately, I have the next two books lined up on my shelf, ready for me to jump right into… after I get some sleep!

The Wicked King

I think that I have little to say about The Wicked King (book 2 in The Folk of the Air trilogy by Holly Black). Once more, I am up past my bedtime because I couldn’t put the book down. I read it in a day, in only two sittings. I probably would have read it in one sitting if I didn’t have plans that pulled me from the book.

Holly Black’s writing was just as good (or better) in this book. However, unlike The Cruel Prince, I got into The Wicked King immediately. The protagonist has a lot more purpose and drive, and I found that I actually liked her a bit.

Also, the plot twists were a little harder to gauge, though just as well earned. A few times, I was surprised, but not confused. It was nice. That’s how I like to be! When a plot twist straight up doesn’t make sense, I can’t get behind it. But there was enough foreshadowing in The Wicked King to make me happy.

If it weren’t so late at night, I’d pull out The Queen of Nothing right now and get to reading. But, as it is, my eyes can barely focus. And I keep yawning. My jaw feels like it might snap off. So I bid thee goodnight (or good day, depending on what time it is for you, as well as when I actually post this). 

All in all, I’m glad I stayed up to read The Wicked King. 

Also… random insert… that was a Yuri On Ice reference in the Epilogue, right?? 

The Queen of Nothing

Okay wow. I just finished The Queen of Nothing (book 3 in The Folk of the Air trilogy by Holly Black). It was amazing. I have a lot of feelings right now. Like… a lot. I feel like I can’t gush properly without giving away spoilers, and the last thing I want to do is spoil the book, so have a shortened version of my gushing instead (aka, the spoiler free version).

I spent two-thirds of the book absolutely fangirling, which was only possibly because of the characterization that happened in book 2, The Wicked King. I fangirled very, very hard. I spent the rest of the book incredibly stressed out. I knew what was going to happen, but when the thing happened, I felt relief instead of disappointment. And after that relief, I started to fangirl again.

This was a fantastic conclusion to the trilogy. Absolutely fantastic. I am in love with all of the characters, and I will happily reread all three books (even if the first book was slow to get into). It’s worth it for the entire series. So worth it. AH!

Fun fact, I managed to finish The Queen of Nothing before my bedtime (all in one sitting), so… for once… I am not sacrificing my sleep schedule for Holly Black!

If you want the whole trilogy, here’s the link!

My next read:

Wilder Girls by Rory Powers