The Wicked King by Holly Black

The Wicked King (Folk of the Air, #2)

by Holly Black

Second in the bestselling Folk of the Air trilogy. This novel and the sequel The Queen of Nothing - are the winners of/won the Goodreads YA Best Fantasy in 2019 and 2020.

An intoxicating and bloodthirsty sequel to the New York Times bestselling The Cruel Prince., nominated for the CILIP CARNEGIE MEDAL 2019.

'Holly Black is the Faerie Queen' - Victoria Aveyard

I have heard that for mortals, the feeling of falling in love is very like the feeling of fear.

Jude has tricked Cardan onto the throne, binding him to her for a year and a day. But the new High King does everything in his power to humiliate and undermine her, even as his fascination with her remains undimmed. Meanwhile, a traitor in the court is scheming against her. Jude must fight for her life and the lives of those she loves, all while battling her own complicated feelings for Cardan. Now a year and a day seems like no time at all . . .

Reviewed by abookishblether on

4 of 5 stars

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The Cruel Prince ★★★★★
The Wicked King ★★★★☆

I read the sequel to The Cruel Prince immediately after finishing the first book in the series. I think that speaks volumes for how much I enjoyed this series as I finished both books within a few days of starting the series.

The Wicked King maintained the quality I found in the first book. The fae were still as tricky and cruel throughout the story, the plot kept on being complex and surprising, and I really enjoyed a lot of consequences from the first book coming to land in this one. Jude had gained power for herself over the course of the first book, and some of the trades she made to get herself this power helped her in the second one - but quite a few came back to bite her in the ass.

Another YA series I would highly reccomend, and the ending of the second book was fantastic!

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Reading updates

  • Started reading
  • 7 August, 2019: Finished reading
  • 7 August, 2019: Reviewed