The Queen of Nothing (#3)- Holly Black

"Power is much easier to acquire than it is to hold onto. Jude
learned this lesson when she released her control over the wicked king, Cardan, in exchange for immeasurable power.

Now as the exiled mortal Queen of Faerie, Jude is powerless and left reeling from Cardan’s betrayal. She bides her time determined to reclaim everything he took from her. Opportunity arrives in the form of her deceptive twin sister, Taryn, whose mortal life is in peril.

Jude must risk venturing back into the treacherous Faerie Court, and confront her lingering feelings for Cardan, if she wishes to save her sister. But Elfhame is not as she left it. War is brewing. As Jude slips deep within enemy lines she becomes ensnared in the conflict’s bloody politics.

And, when a dormant yet powerful curse is unleashed, panic spreads throughout the land, forcing her to choose between her ambition and her humanity…"

Was this series the most perfectly-plotted? The most unique? Did it break any new ground? No to all of the above. But I read every page of this with my heart pounding and a lump in my throat-- how many perfectly-plotted, unique and ground-breaking books can I say that about? These series really has been a wonderfully guilty pleasure. 

I was waiting with baited breath to see how Holly Black finished this series, especially with Wicked King being on top form. The Queen of Nothing was...not that. Don't get me wrong, I ate it up. It was fantastic. But it did not quite compare to what came before. 

I think I can tell you exactly why: the book was too short. All three books were very fast-paced. That's part of their magic. They don't give you time to breathe. But with this one I often wished Holly would slow down, focus more on the details, set the scene, make me feel the atmosphere and tension. I fear that that's why a certain character literally fell victim to negligence. I did not wait two books for Locke to die a very painful death for him to just die between two books without me being able to witness it. I deserved that. Taryn, too, never actually receives the absolution or punishment she needed. She was this complex, unpredictable character. Until she wasn't. She became nice, docile even. Her character arc was thrown out of the window.

I felt that Jude, someone who's entire character and character arch has been about revenge becomes far too forgiving. Madoc may have been punished but in a very unpunished way. I wanted someone to suffer! I wanted Jude to her usual brutal self. 

I also needed more of Jude and Cardan's relationship; they went from supposed enemies to sleeping together seemingly out of the blue, then the main event happened and then the super cheesy ending. Not much was shown in  how their relationship is actually going to work. These two characters that have been supressing their love and struggling with extreme guilt about their attraction to each other now are going to be a cutesy normal couple. Jude, a brutal vengeful solider and Carden, the most debauched and cruel Fae?? Really?

These books have been a guilty pleasure for me and I have been imagining so many wonderful and awful ways it could end. I wasn't disappointed. It was thrilling, and mostly satisfying. There where areas that I had issues with and I do feel that it lacked the emotional impact or nuance that the other books did. However, saying that I did thoroughly enjoy it. 

Age Rating 16+. Sex, death and torture.