Jude, a human in the world of faerie who was raised among the elites, has always wanted to fit in with the world around her. She hopes to do so by gaining power and becoming a knight. However, her own mortality, the death of Prince Dane who she was serving, the death of 3 princesses, and the subsequent power grab of Prince Balekin put a wrench in her plans. When she realizes that her adoptive father, the general, was also part of the betrayal of the court, Jude begins to make plans. Jude then kidnaps Prince Cardan, the youngest prince and the only one able to crown Prince Balekin to become King. Using Prince Cardan, Jude goes through with her plans to gain power as she learns more secrets from the world of faerie.
I enjoyed reading The Cruel Prince because I loved Jude’s characterization. She is cunning, intelligent, and a great main character to understand the world through. Along with Jude, Prince Cardan was also a very fascinating character who I could not help disliking at first and later liking. However, it was difficult to read the lengthy world-building in the beginning. I believe people who are fans of fantasy, fantasy romance, and books about faerie would really enjoy reading this book. I would rate this book a 3.5 out of 5. The book was enjoyable, but the second half was very interesting while the first half was somewhat hard to read.