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  • The Stolen Heir

  • A Novel of Elfhame
  • Written by: Holly Black
  • Narrated by: Saskia Maarleveld
  • Length: 10 hrs and 9 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (57 ratings)

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The Stolen Heir cover art

The Stolen Heir

Written by: Holly Black
Narrated by: Saskia Maarleveld
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Publisher's Summary

Return to the opulent world of Elfhame, filled with intrigue, betrayal, and dangerous desires, with this first book of a captivating new duology from the #1 New York Times bestselling author Holly Black.

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.

©2023 Holly Black (P)2023 Little, Brown Young Readers

What listeners say about The Stolen Heir

Average Customer Ratings
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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Meandering Sequal

I wanted to love this the way I did The Cruel Prince books, but Oak’s story is sadly lacking. His motivations are unclear, and annoying at best. The story is so drawn out and the plot really muddled. Unfortunately the cast of characters are the least interesting in this series.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Suren is great

Suren is great representation for girlies that bite. This book was cute i love this, more feral things in fic

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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4 stars

We had glimpses of Suren in the previous trilogy, but not enough for her to really make an impression on me, to be honest, so I was surprised to learn that this duology would be about her, and even more surprised when I realized that the book was in her point of view, but I don’t regret the author’s choice. Suren is brave and very resilient, but I was expecting her to be a little more badass, to be honest. She survived hell and still continues to care about others and try to help humans. The fact that she could remain empathetic after everything her parents put her through is impressive, and I loved seeing her mature and gain more confidence as their quest progressed, but at the same time, I feel that half of her personality revolved around her clinging to her human life and her past.

There were a few flashbacks of her past with Oak, when they were both children, and it helped us better understand her reaction to him when they met again and why she was so reluctant to trust him at first. I am not usually a fan of flashbacks in books, but there were not too many in this one, and I actually enjoyed seeing more of Suren and Oak as kids.

The secondary characters were quite bland though. I do not care much for Tiernan and Hyacinthe, they are not bad characters, and they have potential, but they were not developed enough and relevant enough in this book for me to really care about what happens to them in the next book.

If you’ve read The Cruel Prince before reading this book, you already know how deliciously dark and cruel (and creepy at times) Holly Black’s faes are, and I loved being back in Elfhame. There are also many magical creatures in this book, from faes to trolls, with hags and mentions of sluaghs, I just love the creepy magical world that is Elfhame.

This book has a different vibe from the Cruel Prince series though as it is more quest oriented, with traveling all throughout the book. It was still a great book, but I preferred Jude and Cardan and I was not expecting a quest vibe, so it took me a little by surprise. Maybe it’s my fault, but I’d read absolutely nothing about this book before jumping into it, except that it was about Oak and Suren. It is a very good book, but don’t go in it expecting something similar to the Cruel Prince.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Fantastic all around

I will preface this by saying I am a die hard Holly Black fan, so I love everything she has done, but I think this was even more clever and riveting than her other books. I love the ending and love how she keeps expanding on this world.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Returning to Elfhane with a fresh new story

Holly Black has done it again. Oak and Suren are compelling characters on a mission. Usually i don’t like MC’s the fall into the broken, damsel category, but it really works this time. Suren isn’t some classically beautiful girl who doesn’t know it; she is a monster with her sharp teeth and isolation. She just needs to decide what kind of monster she is? The kicked dog kind or the one out for revenge. Both are worthy of love.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Happily plunged back into the world of fairy

This book is for everyone! It’s heartbreaking yet inspiring. Devastating yet beautiful. “There is hope in hate” fucking brilliant Holly Black! YA fantasy, I’m 28 and loved it! I’m giving the books to my cousin to read next (13yrs) it’s everything I wanted but given to me better!

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Exactly what I needed

I loved the Folk of the Air trilogy, and often reread it because nothing quite scratches that itch for court intrigue and twisty turny enemies to lovers.
This didn’t *quite* make it—a little more obvious, but I feel like the author can bring it round in book 2 to make it just as good. She tends to get better In Subsequent books. I really enjoyed reading Oak’s story and look forward to the second book.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Didn’t meet expectations

Still a solid book, but it just didn’t wow me as much as the first series with Jude and Cardan. I didn’t find Oak as engaging a hero, nor Ren as interesting a heroine.

The ending was definitely the best part though. I liked what the author did.

Performance was solid.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Enthralling

Story was captivating and enthralling, and the performance was exceptional! At times it was a bit overwhelming with the words, and meant that I had to go back a few times to listen again to chapters, but well worth it in the end! Definitely recommend it.

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