The Cruel Prince is Holly Black doing what she does best, and doing it better than she ever has before. Rather than lingering on the outskirts of Faerie, she dives right into the middle of it, with all the magic and political machinations you could want. Perhaps the most fun aspect of reading this book is trying to decide to whom the title refers; every time I thought I had it pinned down, someone even worse would come along and prove me wrong.

I'm so happy that this is the first in a series.