Queen of Nothing Review! // i am forever speechless

Hi friends!

i am already screaming. prepare for gibberish.

also!! this review is spoiler-free for QoN but does contain spoilers for the previous two installments in the series.

He will be destruction of the crown and the ruination of the throne.

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…

i don’t know what it is about this series that utterly destroys me.

But what I do know, is that I love it. I could genuinely scream for hours and years. But let’s actually be a little coherent, shall we?

CARDAN AND JUDE GUYS. FREAKING CARDAN AND FREAKING JUDE. ASDFGHJKL*.

*so much for being coherent

I’ve honestly liked Cardan since The Cruel Prince. And The Wicked King only cemented my love/hate relationship. But this? This made me realize that he is one of my all-time favorite characters. His character arc is spectacularly done over the course of this trilogy, and Queen of Nothing is the height of his growth.

And Jude! I am struggling to grasp for words right now. Jude is a character who I feel like is made of rough emotions and conniving ideas. But in this conclusion, we got to see a more raw, more vulnerable side of her.

But as for Cardan and Jude? As in, Cardan and Jude together? My heart could not take it. The sheer development of both characters, of their relationship, nearly brought me to tears. It is so powerful, so wonderful, so lovely. This book is the culmination of the ultimate enemies-to-lovers ship and I will hold it in my heart forever.

“By you, I am forever undone.“

ahem. i should probably talk about other things.

Secrets come to light. Oak is hilarious. Actually, I feel like there were a couple of strings left open for future books set in this world? I’m so, so excited to see what Holly Black does next. The pacing in this book was phenomenal, mixing action with politics expertly.

Conclusions can be a little wonky. It’s hard to find the right balance between predictable and unpredictable, action and dialogue, all while tying up loose ends. Queen of Nothing did suffer a little bit. It was a little predictable, a little easy. But I still enjoyed my time reading it!

In general, I fly through these books. I’m so invested. And now I’m so sad that it’s over? This trilogy is absolutely incredible, and I’m so thankful to have read it. Tell me: Have you read this? Or anything by Holly Black?