The imp’s fingers are long, her nails sharp. I sit on a cushion as an imp braids my hair back from my face. But as civil war threatens to drown the Courts of Faerie in violence, Jude will need to risk her life in a dangerous alliance to save her sisters, and Faerie itself.

In doing so, she becomes embroiled in palace intrigues and deceptions, discovering her own capacity for bloodshed. To win a place at the Court, she must defy him–and face the consequences. Especially Prince Cardan, the youngest and wickedest son of the High King. Ten years later, Jude wants nothing more than to belong there, despite her mortality. Jude was seven years old when her parents were murdered and she and her two sisters were stolen away to live in the treacherous High Court of Faerie. I hate him so much that sometimes when I look at him, I can hardly breathe. They will live forever.Īnd Cardan is even more beautiful than the rest. They’re beautiful as blades forged in some divine fire. You can also totally go back and read them afterward if you just want to binge through them.By #1 New York Times bestselling author Holly Black, the first book in a stunning new series about a mortal girl who finds herself caught in a web of royal faerie intrigue. Realistically, you can skip the novellas if you want to, but I am personally a big fan of reading the novellas, so I have included them. Therefore Jude has no choice but to endanger herself by forming an unstable alliance in order to protect herself, her sisters, and Faerie. As she gets embroiled in royal schemes and deceptions while unearthing her own power for bloodshed, civil war begins to worsen by consuming the courts of Faerie with violence. For Jude to find a place in this court, she must challenge and take responsibility for his actions resulting from that.

Unfortunately, many of the fairies despise humans especially Prince Cardan Greenbriar, the youngest but the most brutal son of the High King. Ten years later, Jude yearns to identify with them even though she is mortal. Elfhame: The Folk of the Air Book One SummaryĪt seven years old, Jude Duarte’s parents were brutally killed, and it was then that she along with her two sisters were abducted to serve in the severe High Court of Faerie.

This Holly Black’s Elfhame series has everything, royal faerie intrigue, magic, and romance, truly what more could you want? This is more of a contemporary fantasy novel, so you won’t be getting bogged down by a lot of high fantasy writing if that’s not really your thing. Let’s be honest, The Cruel Prince by Holly Black is wildly popular on BookTok and you keep seeing Jude Duarte and Prince Cardan Greenbriar fan art and you’re wondering what’s going on.

The cruel prince series in order