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The Stolen Heir book review: A dark monster girl adventure

Esta Pinto

The Stolen Heir summary:

A runaway queen. A reluctant prince. And a quest that may destroy them both.

Eight years have passed since the Battle of the Serpent. But in the icy north, Lady Nore of the Court of Teeth has reclaimed the Ice Needle Citadel. There, she is using an ancient relic to create monsters of stick and snow who will do her bidding and exact her revenge.

Suren, child queen of the Court of Teeth, and the one person with power over her mother, fled to the human world. There, she lives feral in the woods. Lonely, and still haunted by the merciless torments she endured in the Court of Teeth, she bides her time by releasing mortals from foolish bargains. She believes herself forgotten until the storm hag, Bogdana chases her through the night streets. Suren is saved by none other than Prince Oak, heir to Elfhame, to whom she was once promised in marriage and who she has resented for years.

Now seventeen, Oak is charming, beautiful, and manipulative. He’s on a mission that will lead him into the north, and he wants Suren’s help. But if she agrees, it will mean guarding her heart against the boy she once knew and a prince she cannot trust, as well as confronting all the horrors she thought she left behind.

#1 New York Times bestselling author Holly Black returns to the opulent world of Elfhame in the first book in a thrilling new duology, following Jude's brother Oak, and the changeling queen, Suren.Ring shout definition

Are Jude and Cardan in The Stolen Heir?!

WAIT! Before we go any further, this is the question on everyone’s lips! And the answer is no, they don’t appear explicitly in book one, but they are mentioned throughout it. The below quotes are NOT spoilers to the plot of The Stolen Heir, just some passing examples of references to our favourite couple, Jurdan:

  • “I’ve seen the High Queen angry, and no matter how she loves him, I am not sure she will forgive choosing their father over her.”

  • “I picture the High Queen as she was in that final battle, blood flecked across her face.”

  • “Hyacinthe had heard awful things of the new High King -- that he pulled the wings off of Folk who wouldn’t bow to him, that sort of stuff.”

  • “I assume that last is a dig at the High King, well known for leaving the fighting to his wife.”

Then, will Jude and Cardan be in book two of the duology?

Holly Black says in her AMA “It’s a road trip book, so what you’re going to see is more of the Faerie universe… It’s also a duology so you will see Jude and Cardan in the second book of the duology…so yes, they’re in the duology.”

“Book two is Oak’s point of view, and it starts where book one leaves off.”

Get book two, The Prisoner’s Throne, here.

The Stolen Heir characters

The main characters are Wren (Suren) and Oak, who we first met as young children in The Folk of the Air trilogy by Holly Black. In The Stolen Heir, the narrator is Wren, and we get an inside glimpse into her thoughts, emotions and personality. 

Below is a list of all the characters that play a decent or minor part in the first part of this duology

  • Suren/Wren

  • Oak

  • Tiernan 

  • Hyacinthe

  • Bogdana

  • Jack of the Lakes

  • Queen Annet

  • Lady Nore

  • Lord Jarel

  • Madoc

  • Rebecca/Bex

  • The Thistlewitch

  • The owl-faced hob

  • Hurclaw

  • Gorga

  • Noglan

    Get The Stolen Heir duology, here.

The Stolen Heir book review

My rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
5 stars.

Spice level: 0
0/5

Firstly, I will start by saying that despite having some similarities, I found that The Stolen Heir was a much darker book than any of the other Folk of the Air books that Holly Black has written.

I found the characters compelling in being sympathetic, flawed and nuanced.

Suren

Suren, our favourite monster girl, reminded me somewhat of Jude, and has a lot of similarities. She was raised in the mortal world, lost her adoptive family (not through death, thankfully), has been traumatised by the Folk, which comes with an underlying mistrust of the Folk in general.

She appears to have a shell and tough exterior, is kind of reserved and shy, and will have to make some big decisions -- very much like Jude.

Oak

Oak took me by surprise! Holly Black did a good job of painting him as the charming, flirtatious Prince of Elfhame, but we all know that his backstory is shrouded in tragedy.

As any child of Madoc’s and sibling of Jude’s would be, he has a strategic, cunning and dark side. I suspect in book two of the duology, we’ll get to know his innermost emotions and demons, as Oak himself narrates as the main character, confirmed by Holly Black.

Other characters

We also meet Hyacinthe and Tiernan, part of the gang that Wren joins in the quest. I didn’t quite connect too much with either of them, although I suspect I moreso might in book two.

My subjective thoughts:

  • I know we’re meant to view Oak as charming and attractive. But every time I was reminded he had hooves, it alarmed me.

  • I thought Holly Black had given herself big shoes to fill because I absolutely adore Jude and her narration! Now after reading The Stolen Heir, I LOVED Wren as a narrator. Who narrated better? That’s a matter of personal choice. I feel a re-read of The Cruel Prince/The Wicked King/The Queen of Nothing coming on.

  • The character arcs in this book are phenomenal. I’m seriously blown away at them, and the skill in which they were delivered.

  • WTF was that ending?!?!? I can’t talk about it for fear of spoiling it. But I will say, that ending is gonna be pretty polarising for readers! I’m not quite sure how I feel about it yet. Perhaps book two will help me shed light on my own feelings about it, therefore I impatiently await the sequel!

Do I recommend this book? I don’t consider myself a fangirl, but still -- I really do recommend it. 4.5 stars. Despite the goat hooves, Holly Black, you are a master.

A few trigger warnings: Kidnapping, parental abuse, physical abuse, gore, violence, drugging, murder, blood, mention of animal death, suicide mention in past, mention of death in childbirth, PTSD depictions, spiders, captivity & GOAT HOOVES!

Read my review on GoodReads here.

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