The Queen of Nothing

I honestly should be jailed for the fact that I ignored the hype and didn't read this series earlier

boring as hell

3.5 stars
This book needed more than 300 pages.
I enjoyed the ending but it could have been much better. Some things were too convenient, Jude's character development was weak (she seemed off through a large part of this book) and some things were added almost at the end to be resolved in a couple of chapters.
I was right about the solution for that ending of the Wicked King... and I'm mad about it.
In spite of it all, I still enjoyed reading it. It was addictive and very entertaining.

This may or may not be my favorite book out of the whole series.. this series was a journey.. one that I can say I genuinely enjoyed. Loved everything about it.

Literally just finished this book and honestly, my first reaction is a giant ‘meh.' A lot of this story was fascinating, but the way it rounds itself up in a neat little no-death bow was....disappointing? Not that I wanted someone to die, but it feels a little impossible in the world that was set up in all three books. Faerieland was supposed to be cruel and harsh and suddenly everything just works out?

Disappointing.

I did, however, like that Jude finally lightened up a little at the end. She became more likeable as The Queen of Nothing went on, though there were definitely parts where I wanted to shake her senseless.

Oh well, I guess. Another series down.

i don't even know what to say at this point. i'm so disappointed and satisfied all at the same time. stan my sapphic queens Vivi and Heather.

P.S. - “She is my mate. And my spy,” I said too quietly. “And she is the High Lady of the Night Court.” + ”She is my wife.” Cardan says, his voice carrying over the crowd. “The rightful High Queen of Elfhame.” = MY ETERNAL SUFFERINGGGGG WE LOVE SIMPING MEN WHO PUT BADASS WOMEN IN POSITIONS OF POWER

This wasn't as good as [b:The Wicked King 26032887 The Wicked King (The Folk of the Air, #2) Holly Black https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1520620414l/26032887.SY75.jpg 45959180], but that's okay. It would have been very difficult to beat the standard set by that book. The ending felt a bit rushed and several plot points could have been better developed. Taryn deserved to have been slow-cooked in a vat of oil, barring that she needed to do some pretty serious grovelling/ character development but we didn't get that here. I kept expecting her to betray everybody

okay, i finally finished my reread of this series. and i have feelings.

this series is so tough for me. while i do enjoy the story, about 2/3 through the first book i become super involved in the romance and then i don't really care about much that happens outside of that after. and a lot happens outside of that. like most of the books. after reading it i seemed to have blacked out and forgot how SLOW it burns. during my read this year i got about 1/3 of the way into this book and started losing it a little. i knew there were good moments coming up, but they really felt outside of my grasp.

then i picked it back up.

today i remembered why i soldiered on through the slow beginnings of this book because the QUOTES.

CARDAN AND JUDE.
(i feel strongly about them).

“my sweet nemesis, how glad i am that you have returned” is a line that makes me want to scream a little every time i readit. she made me wait so long to hear those lines of them finally understanding and hearing each other truly, and i am thrilled by it. anyway if you've read this please come talk to me about cardan and jude because they make me so mad and i love them in such an unreasonable way.

Hetzelfde gevoel als bij de twee vorige delen in de serie blijft overeind.
Enerzijds zoog de wereld, de personages en de hypnotiserende schrijfstijl mij helemaal naar binnen, terwijl er tegelijkertijd iets ontbrak wat me ervan weerhield om helemaal geïnvesteerd te raken.
De richting van het verhaal en de ontknoping vond ik fantastisch, maar alles voelde een beetje gehaast en verschillende zaken bleven onopgelost of werden uit het zicht opgelost.

Al in al ben ik echt wel fan van de stijl van Holly Black, de verhalen, de werelden en de personages die ze verzint, maar voor mij ontbreekt er iets in de algehele uitwerking om het echt machtig te maken.

What a great ending to a great series. Jude really grew into a queen even Faeire could love. There is just so much going on in this final book I can't even begin to explain lol. Just know the court games and intrigue, the backstabbing treachery and blossomsing love continued. What more could you ask for?

I loved that trilogy so much. Perfect combination of an entertaining story and a dark, magic atmosphere. I will miss Jude, Cardan and the others A LOT.

I read mixed reviews about this book, but I really enjoyed it. It was a great wrap up to the trilogy. For me, the story was satisfying to the end.

4.5

This series kept it weird and twisty up until the end. A very satisfying conclusion to a style of story I don't usually like but a series I greatly enjoyed.

Wow

5 stars for ending it with a pizza party

Nothing beats starting the new year with a book withdrawal, right? It's gonna be hard to top Jude and Cardan, that's for sure. ＼(^o^)／

4.5 stars. I fel kinda disappointed with the ending and I wanted more from the books.

I spent the first half of the book fed up with Jude (though tbh that has been a theme throughout this series). She kind of just gave up after the last book, sitting on a couch covered in Cheeto dust and tears, and decides a lot of things for herself whether they are true or not. She really needs to take time off sword fighting and work on her interpersonal skills. Though I kind of wanted more about her side job with the fae in the mortal world other than her one job to stop Grima Mog, I thought that was a lot more interesting than her moping around an apartment I can't see how they can afford and worrying about Heather like it's her business. Oak also seems to have aged a few years since the last book even though it's supposedly only been months? And there's no mention of him going to school, plus he can't even stop using his fae powers at the apartment playground. He can suddenly speak like an adult which was a bit jarring - it's hard to tell how old he's supposed to be here.
The second half was a lot more action with her back in faerie and Cardan rightly thinking she's a bit of an idiot but loving her anyway for some reason. We don't really get anything about what he's been up to, just bits and pieces Jude finds out by snooping or on accident, which is a bummer. He's obviously been doing a ton of thinking and planning and we get none of that because it's the Jude Show. Then suddenly he's a snake? And basically not a character for a 1/4 of the book, not even in his new form.
I loved this book because I love Holly Black's writing and her worlds but throughout this entire series Jude has really gotten on my nerves. The Strong Female Character trope gets a bit old, especially when Jude only gets through on sheer dumb luck, not because of any actual skills or communication. I look forward to whatever Black conjures up for her next original series, and hope that it doesn't focus so much on moral vs. fae and weird hair styles.

The Cruel Prince ???????????????The Wicked King ???????????????The Queen of Nothing ???????????????

I won't go into specific plot points in this book, but I will talk about what I liked and disliked briefly.

I really enjoyed Cardan and Jude's relationship for the most part. It was complicated, there were issues and it just really worked for me. The whole faerie world and its lore also was really enjoyable. I haven't read a series about fae before and I loved the setting a lot, especially the cruelty the fae loved to inflict on others. I also enjoyed how many different aspects there were to the plot, and how you could easily forget about one aspect only to be surprised with it later on.

Otherwise, I felt like this book should have been double its length. A lot of essential plot points happened off screen, or in the time between books two and three. This made the experience a lot less immersive and feel a bit cheap.

A satisfying ending to the series...most enjoyable!

It did feel a bit rushed in the middle though. I was expecting, and hoping for, a more epic battle between Jude and Maddoc and maybe some higher stakes with the whole Cardan as serpent thing. I loved that whole concept, but it seemed to be a bit too easily resolved.

Overall, really love this world and characters Holly Black has created.

My interest in this trilogy waned a bit with the middle book but this really stuck the landing for me! Very fun and satisfying <3

Yes! A perfect ending to this series: twisty and dramatic and sweet all at the same time!

This has been my favorite series by Holly Black. It's a fun story with strong and interesting characters.

This last installment of the Folk of the Air trilogy was a much faster read than the two previous novels.
Full review to come at bookblubbs . wordpress