The Cruel Prince (The Folk of the Air, #1)

by Holly Black

Little did Prince Dain know that my real skill lies in pissing people off.

have vowed to become worse than my rivals. Two murders completed in a single night mark a descent I should be proud of. Madoc could not have been more wrong about me.

Madoc has betrayed Eldred, and Dain is gone, taking all my hopes and plans with him. Coronations are a time when many things are possible.

“When was the last time you saw your dear friend Valerian?” I whisper. “Not today, despite the insult implied by his absence. Did you wonder at that?” His eyes open. He looks as though I slapped him awake. “I did. Where is he?” “Rotting near Madoc’s stables. I killed him, and then I buried him. So believe me when I threaten you. No matter how unlikely it seems, you are the most important person in all of Faerie. Whosoever has you, has power. And I want power.”

Instead of being afraid, I will become something to fear. If

And at the coronation: Time to change partners. Oh, did I steal your line?

“You are weak,” I tell her. “You’re weak and pathetic and I—” “I’m a mirror,” she shouts. “I’m

When I allow myself to truly think on it, I cannot fault Locke for choosing her. I am violent. I’ve been poisoning myself for weeks. I am a killer and a liar and a spy.

get why he chose her. I just wish she had chosen me.

“Most of all, I hate you because I think of you. Often. It’s disgusting, and I can’t stop.”

“You really do want me,” I say, close enough to feel the warmth of his breath as it hitches. “And you hate it.” I change the angle of the knife, turning it so it’s against his neck. He doesn’t look nearly as alarmed by that as I might expect. Not nearly as alarmed as when I bring my mouth to his.

I like this. I like everything about kissing him—the familiar buzz of fear, the knowledge I am punishing him, the proof he wants me.

fix him with a look. “I can be charming. I charmed you, didn’t I?” He rolls his eyes. “Do not expect others to share my depraved tastes.”