Book: The Queen of Nothing
Author: Holly Black
Series: Book #3 of The Folk of the Air
First published November 19, 2019
The Queen of Nothing
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…
From the #1 New York Times bestselling author Holly Black, comes the highly anticipated and jaw-dropping finale to The Folk of the Air trilogy.
“The Queen of Nothing” is the final book in “The Folk of Air” series by Holly Black. If you have made it this far, you have read the end of ”The Wicked King” and are as surprised as I am.
Storyline
“The Queen of Nothing” begins shortly after Jude accepts Cardan’s offer to become Queen of the Fairies, only to be suddenly exiled by him to the mortal world. In exile, she spends her time with Vivi and Oak trying to prepare him to become king. Betrayed and hurt, she tries to move on with her life, but cannot forget the world of elves. Although she has never felt out of place in Elfhame, her home is becoming increasingly empty and, more irritatingly, she can not stop thinking about Cardan.
Completely unexpectedly, a new opportunity presents itself for her to return and finish what she started. Jude seizes the opportunity to confront Cardan.
“The Queen of Nothing” is the conclusion of this magical series. After two books of palace intrigue, spy games, betrayal, and chaotic relationships between characters who vacillate between hate and love, Jude must find out once and for all if she has a place in the fairy world.
I already know the story of Jude and Cardan
I do not know if I told you why I decided to read this series. I am a big fan of illustrations based on books, and I came across Jude and Cardan a lot. What bothered me a lot was why she was depicted with horns… So it all started with “Book of Night” by Holly Black, my first book by the author. Since I was very impressed with the style of the book, I thought why not read more of it.
I was pleasantly surprised by the first books. I especially liked the abundance of action. Everything in the books is very dynamic and that helped me read them with ease. To be honest, I am surprised that I enjoyed them.
The world of the elves is dominated by palace intrigue and the quest for control and power. Violence and demonstrations of power are the order of the day. While magical powers are inherited, mastery of the sword and military strategy is a matter of discipline and skill. This is where Jude’s power is expressed. In this way she can assert her control and prove that she is strong and has a place in this world. Even though she puts magical creatures at a physical disadvantage, she is determined to make up for it with bloodlust and skill with the sword.
The relationships between the characters are very convoluted and there is some interesting emotional conflict. Since Jude was raised by the man who killed her own parents, she adopts much of Madoc’s mindset. Logically, she should hate him and want to kill him, but there is a certain closeness between them. She even looks a lot like him, even though they are not related by blood.
Cardan grew up without a drop of love. In a way, this shapes his attitude toward others. Moreover, a dark prophecy weighs on his entire existence. Rejected by his mother, neglected by his father, a child of no age can keep warmth in his heart and become a good ruler.
“He will be destruction of the crown and the ruination of the throne.”
The romance between Jude and Cardan is not the typical one either. For long stretches of the story, we are not even sure there is one. There is no trust between the two, even when they are forced to work together. There is always an “if” with a question mark.
Even the sisterly relationship, which should be the form of strongest affection and loyalty, is called into question. The surprise at Taryn’s betrayal was well masked by this very expectation of universal loyalty and love.
“The Queen of Nothing”
continues in exactly the same style as the first books. Fast pace, lots of surprising encounters and twists, doubts and vague feelings. Jude is still the same opinionated and calculating mortal. And given the potential of the story, everything goes way too fast again.
Holly Black has a bad habit of skipping a few scenes. While we are in the middle of the action and things are fascinatingly tense, the next moment everything is straightened out and we are in an absolutely relaxed environment. There were very few moments where the film needed to slow down and maintain tension. I am against unnecessary stretching and delay, but I’ll be honest and say that I think Holly Black was in a hurry to end the series.
“The Folk of Air”
is a series that will appeal to fans of the fantasy genre. Despite the anabolic development in the plot, the story of Jude and Cardan manages to leave a pleasant trail and emotion with the reader. The rating I gave the book is variable. I originally rated it high, but the more I think about it, the more I am leaning towards 3 stars.
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