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

Physical Book:The physical book arrived in great condition. There were no random ink spots on the pages and all the pages were in order. The pages were all even as well, no random part of the book sticking out farther than the rest of the pages.Story:I think that this book was good and the pov of Jude had you on your toes, but I feel like more details outside of Jude’s pov could have been added to add to the story more. It kind of felt like pieces of the story was missing and that may have been to contribute to the plot twists, but I feel like different povs and story details could have made this even betterrrrr. For example, more povs from Cardan would have been nice to know how he was thinking during everything that happened.

While the first book is my favorite, I enjoyed this sequel. Many times, I find that the second book suffers from second book syndrome, but this one held its own. The romance between Cardan and Jude was a delicious slow burn, and the story had many elements from the first book I liked. My one complaint is more that the book felt more predictable and it took some of the overall enjoyment out of it for me. The first one kept me guessing, and I felt that was lacked in Wicked King. I still enjoyed it overall though, and was just as exciting as the first.

I've been waiting for this book since I finished the first one waaaaay back when that one first came out. I stayed up all night reading, and oh, it was delicious. I have bags under my eyes and I don't even care; it was well worth the few hours of sleep I missed out on.******************************************************SEMI SPOILERS***************************************************************I knew where this book was going from the first few pages. Knowing the end-game didn't make the journey getting there any less exciting, though, and for that I'm grateful. Sometimes (a lot of the time) knowing the end of something makes it totally boring and not worth finishing, but there are so many twists and betrayals and schemes going on between all the players of Elfhame that we hardly know where to look half the time, let alone look at the stuff not being explicitly shoved in our faces. So, that being said, here's the gist.The Wicked King picks up almost exactly where The Cruel Prince let off, right in the middle of it all, exactly where Jude had been angling to be. She's now the power behind the throne, the true ruler of Elfhame, which Cardan takes every opportunity to point out. She spends a lot of the book fighting to keep a step ahead of everyone else, because as Madoc warned her when she was little, attaining power and holding on to it are two different things. I find the relationship between Jude and nearly every character in the book intriguing, but perhaps her relationship with Madoc most intriguing of all. This is the guy who murdered her parents (book 1) and spirited her away to faerie and raised her as his daughter (to the best of his ability, which, let's face it, wasn't great), who tried to use her as a pawn and ended up being played. Now he's watching all her angles and looking for a way to wrest the power she stole from him back. There are few things more interesting than a mentor and pupil going head to head over a live game of chess to see who comes out the winner. At least to me, it's one of my favorite plot points.When Jude is not grappling with all the problems that arise (a tentative war, being kidnapped, betrayal, betrayal, betrayal, finding a way to keep her hold on all the power she's accumulated) she's semi-struggling with her feelings for Cardan. Mostly she's struggling to figure out how to prevent her growing feelings for him from causing her to lose her power over him. She's on a precarious ledge, this girl, and she's juggling too many pieces.And Cardan. I love this boy-king. I'd read an entire series dedicated to him, if we were so allowed that joy. I won't get into all the plot points involving him because they really are entertaining and enjoyable to witness for yourself, but let's just say he really starts coming into his own. As much fun as he is verbally sparing with Jude and as tortured as he is fighting his attraction to her and as a twisted as he is thanks to his brother and his upbringing, he is at his most intriguing and formidable when he starts acting like the royal he actually is. Even being earnest and honest and trying so hard to be good in a world that doesn't value good, he really is a power to be reckoned with when he puts his mind to it, and it is sexy as hell. Who doesn't love power plays, right?Vivi still sucks; what she did to Heather was cruel, perhaps even more so because she didn't intend it that way.Taryn still sucks; I have no idea why Jude doesn't just ignore her or banish her.Oak is still adorable.Locke deserves to be banished to the Undersea and Nicasia's bed for eternity. Nicasia needs to get over Cardan and realize that he's just not that into her.**********************************************************SPOILER*******************************************************************At the end of the book, Jude is banished from Elfhame. Then she spends time sitting on her sister's couch mopping about how she got played. BUT SHE LITERALLY HAS THE ANSWER SHE NEEDS IN HER FREAKING HAND. Cardan spent the entirety of this book dropping not so subtle remarks about Jude being the true ruler of Elfhame, telling her he trusted her, trying to get her to trust him, and basically having her back, and she's freaking pouting in the mortal world that her now-husband kicked her to the curb. Except did he really? He said until the crown pardons her she was exiled to the mortal world. Well, hello girl, you were the one running faerie from the get-go and you just got crowned Queen by marrying the object of your desire. He gave her the tool she needed to lift her banishment five pages before he banished her. She could have pronounced her time served right there on the beach in front of Orlagh and gone about her business running things with no unnecessary maybe-drama. He even "smiles at her oddly" and doesn't deny that she is in fact Queen of Faerie. If I were Cardan I would be very disappointed in my new bride for being so damn dense in that moment. This is the one thing that irritated me about this book, and I'm glad it happened in the last few pages, and super mad it happened in the last few pages lol. Jude is supposed to be so smart and clever she out maneuvered some of the biggest players in Elfhame to gain the position as Queen of Shadows and then she just accepts the fact that she's banished? Why?***********************************************************SPOILER END*************************************************************Overall, I loved this book. It's going to be heartache waiting for the next one.

So there I was.Curled up on the couch upstairs.Enjoying my lunch break in silence. Reveling in the comfort and bliss of a book of fantasy and Fae, magical creatures and humans.Devouring the pages and words with the eyes of a stalker, with the death grip of a blubbering woman not at all keen on letting go of a lover.With the enthusiasm of a book junkie getting their long-awaited fix.There I was.…Just…minding my own business.…And then…………(Jaw Drop Gif)Dear Holly Black,Please accept this as my death letter. For 2019 is ruined, and I cannot go on.~*~*~*~*~*~*~All of Jude’s scheming has finally paid off, or has it? With Oak safely in the mortal world with Vivi and Cardan successfully bound to Jude, things should be going smoothly. But Cardans constant antics and games have left Jude to be the one ruling faerie from the shadows, with Cardan fighting her every step of the way. But with new power comes something worse, the craving for more and a target on your back. There are whispers of an attempt to overthrow the High King, but when? Jude is told that she has been betrayed by someone she trusts, but who? With her feelings for Cardan in a constant state of confusion, and the fate of an entire world on her shoulders, Jude fights to keep her carefully constructed pieces from scattering in the wind.I feel nauseous.You’d think I would catch on to these blind-sides and surprises by now. If not from the mass number of books that I murder, then from reading The Cruel Prince and knowing that Holly Black likes to TORTURE her dear and devoted readers.My day had STARTED out pleasant.Now, it’s a swirling pit of misery and disgrace. I am DISGUSTED, yet slightly charmed. Wholly DEVASTATED and…a bit impassioned. My stomach feels like its attempting to crawl up my throat, dragging my heart from the depths of bleak outlooks and deprivation. As if my insides have decided “to hell with it”, and will begin seeping out and dissipating into the cruel air and harsh lighting that is my life as of now. First came the disbelief. The shock and the audible gasps. Then came the incessant repeating of No, NO, NOOOOO! The Anger! THE AGGONNNNYYY!Dramatics aside. This book is f*****g amazing. I flew down the stairs in a panic as soon as I finished; I immediately began furiously pounding my feelings away through my fingertips, onto this keyboard, and into this theatrical review. But now that I have finished throwing my feelings up all over these pages (because we ARE at two pages already), what do I say without spoiling everything?!I say this.Taryn is still a tripe. Madoc is still a devious strategist. Jude is still cold and cunning. And Cardan is still cruel, while also quite wicked. As I was reading through The Wicked King I wondered if Holly Black could really have any more tricks up her sleeve. I assumed everything that had come after The Cruel Prince would be on a milder scale. Sure, there would still be malicious games, callous moves and bloodthirsty characters. BUT, I thought the worst had passed.I am SO gullible.The backstabbing has reached a new level here, along with the “blood is thicker than water” sayings. It’s almost laughable how righteously f****d these characters are to each other, especially when you stop to imagine yourself in this world. The constant looking over your shoulder and anxiety of being plotted against. The riddles and lies that are spewed in elegance. The stab wounds and death threats that skate alongside the small smiles and kisses. IT’S ALL TOO MUCH!But as wicked as the king is to be said, Jude is truly the most wicked of them all. There’s just SOMETHING about a girl that can stab a man in the neck that just makes me do a little dance on my tippy toes. Whether it’s her Oscar worthy acting skills or her sarcastic taunts and digs, I can’t help but adore the girl to pieces. There is truly something to be said for a woman that can make her heart as cold as ice. Something of brilliance, I imagine. But next to Jude, we have Cardan. The sweet and infuriatingly dreamy Cardan. *SIGH*…what couldn’t one say of his character?! He is suave, he is arrogant and clever. He is still a jackass. Though I didn’t think much of Cardan before, I sure as hell do now! *Slow and sarcastic clapping* well done Cardan. Well done.Though now, I have even less I can say without being the Viscount of Vague! There are conversations in towers, a crown of foul-smelling mushrooms, plotted assassinations, betrayals by the trusted, time spent in the waters, poisonous poisons, duels ‘till the death, ruby rings and moves and counter moves! There is just so little I can say, but I CAN say this: waiting a year for book three is definitely and undoubtedly the bane of my existence.Until then, I leave you with this.

Why do books always leave you on a cliffhanger. I don’t understand that but I guess that’s why authors love doing it because it makes you want more.. I need more.