Released in early 2018 by Holly Black, The Cruel Prince follows Jude, a human girl living among faeries. She wants to fit in, but her stubbornness and determination cause her to stand out among the royal family, where she aspires to become a knight. 

Jude has a twin sister Taryn and an older sister named Vivienne, who is a Faerie. Vivienne and Jude are both very rebellious and try their hardest to get what they want, no matter the circumstances, while Taryn is more of a people-pleaser.

The book has a very dramatic beginning, as Jude’s parents are killed, and the three girls are taken from the mortal world to the Faerie world. Jude has many enemies from the royal family in this new place, which sets the stage for eventful chapters–there’s rarely a dull moment throughout the entire book.

As for the storyline, it’s fast-paced and somewhat hard to keep up with. Jude seems to have a lot of changing goals throughout the book which leads to new characters being introduced. It was a little confusing to keep up with everything Jude was trying to accomplish and who became her friend or stayed her enemy.

Most of the characters are spunky and have their own rebellious personality, but with so many conspiring groups with different goals, it was hard to tell exactly where Jude fell in and what her plans were. The mystery of the final outcome, however, was enjoyable to read along with.

It was an interesting addition to the plot that Jude had blatantly obvious struggles in the book that didn’t get better for a while. She had to work really hard with minimal support to come out on top. It didn’t feel like the basic “hero-always-wins” scenario. The book is written from Jude’s perspective, so it was neat to be able to understand her motivations for constantly butting heads with the royal family and what her experience was when she was misunderstood and underestimated by her family.

Overall, The Cruel Prince is a great fantasy novel with an action-packed plot. The characters have very relatable personalities and although the main idea shifts towards the end, this book made for a good, enticing read with an unexpected ending.