The Cruel Prince

Jude is seven when Madoc, a faerie general, kills her parents and takes Jude, her twin Taryn and their older sister Vivi to Elfhame. Ten years later, Jude wants to be a knight, but she is mortal and is tormented by Prince Cardan and his friends. She becomes a spy for Prince Dain, the High King's chosen heir. At Dain's coronation, Prince Balekin, Madoc's ally, seizes power in a bloodbath, and nearly the whole royal family dies. Jude learns that little Oak, raised in her household, has royal blood, and she hides him. Then she makes a bold play: she puts Cardan on the throne and binds him to obey her for a year and a day. In the end, Jude is the secret power behind the new High King.

1. Behind the scenesOptioned before it came out

   In June 2017, months before it hit shelves, the book was optioned by Universal, with producer Michael De Luca. The movie never happened.

   source ↗
2. Behind the scenesFaerie scavenger hunts

   Holly Black grew up believing in the supernatural. Her mother told ghost stories, insisted the house was haunted and ran faerie scavenger hunts around the neighborhood.

   source ↗
3. ReferenceThe art book that scared her

   Black says she fell for faeries through Faeries, the art book by Brian Froud and Alan Lee. She calls it beautiful and kind of terrifying, the tone she brought to Elfhame.

   source ↗
4. Behind the scenesA TikTok phenomenon

   During lockdown, the trilogy blew up on TikTok, passing half a billion views. Its UK publisher says the three books have sold over 12 million copies worldwide.

   source ↗
5. SetupWatch Madoc

   Black has said Madoc, Jude's guardian, is in some way her model. The question she leaves open is what Jude becomes if she follows his path. Notice how alike the two are.

   source ↗