The Queen of Nothing

The Queen of Nothing
Holly Black
Little Brown, 2019 320 pages
Grades 9-Up
Fantasy
Folk of the Air Trilogy #3

Jude has been banished back by the High King Cardan to the mortal world. She is content living with her sister and brother, taking on odd "specialty" jobs as she can for enough cash to survive. Out of the blue her estranged twin sister Taryn shows up. Taryn is being accused of murdering her husband and Jude must return to Faerie disguised as her twin in order to clear her name. Posing as Taryn, Jude comes face to face with her betrayer husband and evil warlord father. How long will Jude be able to keep up the premise? Not very long, as her identity is discovered, and she finds herself in mortal peril. Although technically the queen of Faerie, Jude's situation is tenuous at best. She needs to reunite with old allies, repair old hurts, and depend on her wits, training, and connection to the land. As the novel progresses, the final battle for the rule of Faerie comes to a head and Jude is, naturally, in the thick of it. Who will emerge as the supreme ruler? And what will happen to the losers? All is revealed by the book's end, as well as the fate of most of the trilogy's main characters.

I first discovered Holly Black about 20 years ago and immediately became obsessed with her Faerie books. After the success of Twilight, she transitioned to vampires (as many fantasy authors did at the time). I am so happy that she has returned to Faerie with this trilogy. As many of you know, I do not read sequels: usually. My reading time is limited and I must try to cover as much ground as I can. An exception was made for this trilogy. I loved every volume and was frustrated to have to wait for the next. My eighteen-year-old daughter has also read them all and was so surprised that I hadn't finished it as soon as the last installment came out. The problem was, I was on a waiting list at the library (yes, librarians have to wait too!) and it finally became my turn. I found the concluding book as magical, enveloping, and exciting as the previous two. Black offers many plot twists, betrayals, and surprising alliances. This volume is a bit more romantic than the others in the series, which will satisfy readers. The ending ties up the various plot points in a way that will make readers breathe a sigh of relief, all while leaving room for, possibly, more companion books. Jude is a fierce character, who becomes a bit vulnerable in this final installment, proving that being human does not equate being weak. A wonderful diversion that makes reading fun. The best part, while most of us are under quarantine, the trilogy is available through Libby/Overdrive both as an audio and e-book.