r/TheFolkoftheAir

I'm on book 2 and although they have chemistry I can't ignore the fact that they seem super toxic. In the first book he got her almost killed twice and even though it was Valerian he didn't attempt to help? That time she was eating that Faerie apple he also requested for her to kiss his foot? He ripped someone's wing off and honestly I feel like after Cardan's abuse was established to us his actions changed as well. Like afterward none of the things he has done before is done again? Cardan was torturing Jude because he was jealous and that's okay? I know he suffers and stuff but I don't think that's an excuse. He wasn't even just torturing Jude. And Jude betrayed Cardan and I felt bad for him. In the second book they slept together which I find super baffling. They've kissed 2 times overall before sleeping together. I know they both suffer from trauma and have secret desire for each other but I don't know this is so hard to read without me cringing at their relationship.

Hiiii,

I finished TFOTA this year and I honestly didn’t expect it to stay in my mind this much. I think what I loved the most was the atmosphere, the morally grey characters, the tension and chemistry, and the feeling that the world was actually unpredictable. Great FMC too, Jude being beautifully written (as every character of TFOTA actually).

I’m curious: what do you usually read outside of Holly Black’s books? What are your favorite genres, authors, or “comfort reads”?

I’m asking because I feel like I’ve become a very picky reader. I don’t read a lot of fantasy, because I can very easily feel overwhelmed.

I’ve been trying but I found myself being struggling with the genre. I feel like a lot of fantasy books are starting to feel very similar: the same tropes, the same character dynamics, the same type of romance… and instead of being exciting, it’s becoming a little overwhelming because I’m constantly looking for something that feels fresh.

The Cruel Prince was one of those rare books where I felt completely immersed, and it’s honestly difficult to find something that gives me the same feeling.
I’d love to know what kinds of books you enjoy (outside of fantasy too)! Maybe your usual reading habits will help me discover something new?

Anyway I’d love to discuss about it and know what you think, if I’m the only one feeling like this or not! 🤗

MASSIVE SPOILERS FOR THE QUEEN OF NOTHING INCOMING

Sorry for the vague caption, just didn’t wanna give spoilers

Okay so this may be a dumb question, (feel free to stop reading) but what was the purpose of Locke being, in a sense, killed off? Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed and was obviously astounded (in a good way) when Taryn revealed she murdered him. I thought it was a very Taryn thing. But aside from the whole pregnancy thing, (I just can’t imagine how much their relationship would be affected, positively and negatively), what exactly was the reason that Holly decided to take him out of the picture? It seems like it doesn’t serve any purpose plot-wise. What do we gain (at least in the large sense) by Locke being dead? I mean he had it coming, and nobody really liked him, but in Faerie life isn’t really fair, so…

Anyways am I missing something major or does anyone else feel this way?

I CAN'T BE THE ONLY ONE

so i don't really buy stuff plus i live overseas so i'm very much unfamiliar with these things but i wanna buy the graphic novels someday

So, I have some doubts about the ending chapters of the prisoner's throne.

I begin to recap... And at some point I find that some things don't actually make sense to me:

After Cardan is stabbed and Oak kills most of the people in that tent, I assume Cardan is already standing thanks to the same thing that happened when Jude was stabbed by Madoc in QoN, thanks to their connection with the earth.

So Oak goes to resolve the situation, without a clear plan in mind. He is then able to speak with Wren and understand what to do. He finds Bex. Bogdana arrives and while Bex is being delivered to Wren, Oak and Bogdana are about to fight. Then Oak offers to surrender in order to get sooner to Wren. I'm not sure why Bogdana accepts it, maybe because she hoped to replace Bex with him. Let's say that's it, when they get to Jude and Wren, and interrupt them before they actually fight, Oak freely speaks to Wren and Bogdana tries to manipulate what he's saying to keep Wren on her side. At this point Jude begins to play her bluffs, "Cardan is hurt, he is in that tent. Whoever nears it has to be killed" is the first. But at this moment *I don't get what Bogdana has in mind, what does she want?* Then the second bluff by Jude "I and Oak are not on the same side".

Oak is confused but Jude wants to talk to him, so uses another bluff offering Oak's head instead of Cardan's... *But why?* I know it was meant to have a chance to speak with Oak, and to assure that he was sure about Wren being on his side (like Cardan explained later), but *why does Bogdana accept that?* Does Bogdana want Cardan's head more than Jude's? She now has to deal with her and Oak, that is ⅔ of the Greenbriar lineage. Knowing that Cardan is hurt she could keep him for later. *The point is that I don't even fully understand what Wren's role in Bogdana's plan is.* She then destroyed her, and if Bogdana wanted her by her side she had to use someone as leverage, but she wasn't really using Oak. Plus how is Bogdana thinking to make Suren queen if she accepts to risk Oak being killed by Jude?

*And I can't figure out what Jude had in mind before effectively seeing Oak, what was she already planning? what was improvisation?*

Plus with her offer Jude is practically giving Bogdana a lot of simple insights like the fact that if Cardan was hurt (as Bogdana believed at that point) he wasn't a priority, compared to the other two Greenbriar and Wren whom she had in front of her at that moment.

Help, I'm so confused now. I hope some of it is quite understandable 😅. Summing it up, can someone please summarize the resolution of the plots in the finale and everyone's intentions in the "battle"? Thanks in advance.

Do you ever read a book and sometimes you just want the main character to just shut up sometimes? I dont feel that with Jude. Idk if its because she's genuinely well written but its like im always rooting for her. Also a little off topic but I barely like s*x scenes but that whole chapter had me giggling and kicking my feet! Like she got the boy, she got the crown, she's on top of the world! Anyway im just always rooting for her success

I'm not really into the fandom, so I might be wrong, but I get the feeling that nobody cares about him... And it's the same in real life. Literally, I was talking about the books once, and my friends said, "Wait, who's this guy?" For me, he's always been the best character, a kind of wise man who observes everyone from afar, whom everyone ignores. And then everyone regrets it because he really understood everything before everyone else. And I've always found him to have a kind of comforting, reassuring side. Anyway, I don't really know why I'm so obsessed with this character, but am I really the only one? (Oh, and I'm French, so it's normal if this post is a little weird !😅)

Sometimes I think about aspects of his story and think “this sounds like a twelve year who overly torments their ocs” I mean I love him! But seriously he was abandoned as a baby and the only way he stayed alive was suckling the teat of a cat. Like holly your doing the most

Balekin is interesting to me because we get the cruel side of his personality but he’s also this partier? He’s the head of the court of debauchery and he canonically went to burning man to take humans?

How does he know about burning man? Who told him about this? Does he go to Coachella too? Lollapoolza? How’s he getting there? Portals? A car? Plane? Does Balekin have a damn passport!?

Sometimes it’s hard to imagine Balekin as a partier because of how we usually see him. Which says a lot about hollys writing and making multifaceted characters. But it’s funny as hell to think about.

Also I know fae don’t care about people but damn do you think they see all the humans Balekin has and think “damn how he got so many?”

Are places like the Court of Moths and Teeth and the Undry market on the Isles of Elfhame or are they a different landmass entirely? Cuz the map in the Stolen Heir isn't exactly clear on where they actually are.