Title: The Stolen Heir
Author: Holly Black
ISBN: 9780316592703
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Pages: 358
Source: Review copy from JonathanBall
A runaway queen. A reluctant prince. And a quest that may destroy them both.
Eight years have passed since the Battle of the Serpent. But in the icy north, Lady Nore of the Court of Teeth has reclaimed the Ice Needle Citadel. There, she is using an ancient relic to create monsters of stick and snow who will do her bidding and exact her revenge.
Suren, child queen of the Court of Teeth, and the one person with power over her mother, fled to the human world. There, she lives feral in the woods. Lonely, and still haunted by the merciless torments she endured in the Court of Teeth, she bides her time by releasing mortals from foolish bargains. She believes herself forgotten until the storm hag, Bogdana chases her through the night streets. Suren is saved by none other than Prince Oak, heir to Elfhame, to whom she was once promised in marriage and who she has resented for years.
Now seventeen, Oak is charming, beautiful, and manipulative. He’s on a mission that will lead him into the north, and he wants Suren’s help. But if she agrees, it will mean guarding her heart against the boy she once knew and a prince she cannot trust, as well as confronting all the horrors she thought she left behind.
#1 New York Times bestselling author Holly Black returns to the opulent world of Elfhame in the first book in a thrilling new duology, following Jude’s brother Oak, and the changeling queen, Suren.
Official Summary
06 February 2023
This book follows Suren/Wren a queen who ran away eight years ago. After being in danger she gets saved by Prince Oak. He is on a mission and needs her help with it however lots of things have changed in the world that Wren ran away from and it is going to take a lot to survive it.
This book starts slow but quickly picks up its pace and have you gripped from page one. It is in the same universe as The Folk of the Air series written by the same author. (Which BTW the mentions of Jude and Cardan in this book are the best)
I felt myself comparing this book to the TFOTA series which isn’t really fair on this book but it’s hard not to, especially because the previous series was so good. I would recommend going into this blind and not putting this book to the same standards as The Folk of the Air series.
It is so nice to see Oak in this book as he is also in ‘The Folk of the Air Series’. However, I completely forgot that he has hooves and I can’t remember if this was ever mentioned in previous books or not but WOW I did not like how often they were mentioned.
I liked Suren/Wren, I feel like she had the most personality in the book. She really goes through it in this book and you cannot help but feel bad for her. However, there are times in the book when you want to strangle her for her actions.
The ending has me chomping at the bit for the second book. I would recommend this to anyone looking for a fun fantasy book.
Also by Holly Black
The Cruel Prince
By #1 New York Times bestselling author Holly Black, the first book in a stunning new series about a mortal girl who finds herself caught in a web of royal faerie intrigue.
Of course, I want to be like them. They’re beautiful as blades forged in some divine fire. They will live forever.
And Cardan is even more beautiful than the rest. I hate him more than all the others. I hate him so much that sometimes when I look at him, I can hardly breathe.
Jude was seven years old when her parents were murdered and she and her two sisters were stolen away to live in the treacherous High Court of Faerie. Ten years later, Jude wants nothing more than to belong there, despite her mortality. But many of the fey despise humans. Especially Prince Cardan, the youngest and wickedest son of the High King.
To win a place at the Court, she must defy him—and face the consequences.
In doing so, she becomes embroiled in palace intrigues and deceptions, discovering her capacity for bloodshed. But as civil war threatens to drown the Courts of Faerie in violence, Jude will need to risk her life in a dangerous alliance to save her sisters, and Faerie itself.
About The Author
Author Bio from the Author’s Site
Holly Black is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of over thirty fantasy novels for kids and teens. She has been a finalist for an Eisner Award and the Lodestar Award, and the recipient of the Mythopoeic Award, a Nebula, and a Newbery Honor. Her books have been translated into 32 languages worldwide and adapted for film. She currently lives in New England with her husband and son in a house with a secret library.
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