✨ when in doubt: make it gay

The opening scenes of The Cruel Prince don’t hold back, depicting a would-be happy family on a summers day in the Mortal Realm when a dark figure knocks on the door, lives are lost, and children are stolen to the world of the Faerie. The children are three sisters, the oldest Vivienne, and twins Jude and Taryn. Subsequently they’re raised in a world that doesn’t value humans, trying to navigate their emotions, dreams, ambitions, and the Fey around them.

THE MAIN CHARACTERS

JUDE DUARTE:

The main character of The Cruel Prince. The narrative is told in her point of view. A seventeen year old human who decided to acclimate to her new life and was used and abused by varying Fey during her upbringing. Jude doesn't want to be powerless anymore, she fights back, and turns herself into something she doesn't recognize; she makes no apologizes for it. There is no indecision when it comes to right and wrong. She is a refreshing character who is easy to support.

PRINCE CARDAN:

A teenaged Faerie. The youngest of the High King’s sons, Prince Cardan is cruel as the title of novel says. Cruel. Sadistic. Calculating. Not to mention he can also be flirty and sarcastic. Why does it matter when his standing traits don’t leave much to be desired? Because there are underlying issues in his upbringing and home life to put him in a different perspective. Cardan puts up a front that’s expected of his species, and at the end of the day Cardan doesn’t want the crown. That doesn’t mean the reader has to trust him or even like him, but there is an understanding about who he is.

TARYN DUARTE:

Jude’s twin sister. The complete opposite of Jude, Taryn is meek and looks for a future of love and family. To have that love, she truly has to become one with the ways of the Faerie and their customs and prove her worth, even if it means betraying her twin to better her social standing. In a novel where one of the main themes sells that no one can truly be trusted, Taryn’s betrayal hits harder because it hits close to home. Jude should unequivocally have Taryn’s support. Jude always puts Taryn first, but Taryn won’t do the same for Jude.

VIVIENNE DUARTE:

She prefers to be called Vivi. A bisexual nineteen year old half human/half Faerie. Jude and Taryn’s half-sister. Vivi has no love for the father who took away her childhood and has spent life in the Faerie Realm defying and being a problem for him in return. Vivi doesn’t shy from using the powers that make her Faerie and hopes to one day use those powers to support herself in the human world were she wants to live with her human girlfriend, Heather. Vivi is probably the only character who can actually be trusted, she has no malicious motives in her. She just wants out.

MADOC:

Madoc is a war criminal and murderer who serves as the General of the High King. He is Vivi’s biological father and Jude and Taryn’s adoptive father/ward. He loves his family (even when they don’t feel the same for him), but would choose is work first in a heartbeat. His intentions rival the other Fey in power, but his grasp reaches too high.

LOCKE:

A Faerie who is a part Cardan’s group of friends. It seems he has kindness in him, but really, but has a propensity for his own cruelness. Especially when it comes to his interest in both Jude and Taryn.

The Cruel Prince while a story about Jude, tells that in the world of the Faerie there are no heroes or villains. The Faerie may be beautiful on the outside and you’ll want to see storybook caricatures in them, but in the inside they’re restless and power hungry, would even turn on each other to sit on the throne or to live lavishly with creature comforts. They love humans, they hurt humans, and they slave humans. Everyone has their place in the realm and they’re trying to survive, whether its right or wrong.

Once The Cruel Prince picks up, many are hurt, blood is shed, and a plot against the court reveals some shocking secrets. It’s meant to be dark and gritty, and at times you’ll be mad enough to throw out your book, but that’s what makes it a compelling story. Each act serves serves its purpose and is not just thrown in to look edgy.

If you can handle all of that, then I HIGHLY recommend that you get a copy of The Cruel Prince.

Trigger Warnings: Explicit bullying, harassment, and abuse Non-explicit: Suicide

If you want more details on the Trigger Warnings, message me!