Opening
Ten years after the Prologue, mortal twins raised in Faerie face a glittering court that treats them as prey. Seventeen-year-old Jude Duarte refuses to secure safety through marriage; she hungers for power and a place of her own, embodying Belonging and Otherness and Power, Politics, and Ambition. When cruelty from the prince of the court collides with rejection at home, Jude stops enduring—and starts fighting back.
What Happens
Chapter 1
As an imp servant braids Jude’s hair for a revel, she weighs the contradiction of her life: a mortal “honorably” raised by Madoc—the fae general who killed her parents. She rejects the idea of marrying into comfort and sets her sights on knighthood, convinced skill can carve a place for a human in a court that despises her.
Her twin, Taryn Duarte, breezes in hoping for fun, while their older sister, Vivienne Duarte, refuses to attend, clinging to the mortal world with magazines and open defiance. Downstairs, Oriana warns the girls not to eat, drink, or dance, terrified for young Oak and the family’s reputation. Madoc swallows his disappointment in Vivi and leads them to the Palace of Elfhame.
Chapter 2
Inside the hill-palace, Jude both fears and loves the beauty of the revel. After greeting High King Eldred, she maps the factions: the indulgent Circle of Grackles led by Prince Balekin Greenbriar, the artistic Larks under Princess Elowyn, and the strategic Falcons under Prince Dain Greenbriar. Jude pins her hopes on the Falcons—her most direct path to influence.
Taryn snacks from a passing tray as the sisters watch the dancers—until Prince Cardan Greenbriar and his friends, including Locke, descend. Valerian tugs Jude’s hair and sneers at her mortality. Cardan then makes a spectacle of power, ripping the wing of a moth-boy for failing to bow. While Locke helps the bleeding boy, he flicks Jude a secretive wink. Taryn, furious that Jude draws their attention, drags her to their hiding place, shaken by the display of Cruelty and Bullying.
Chapter 3
Back home, Jude studies Faerie’s nature through Madoc: a loving guardian who is also a redcap who once soaked a hood in her parents’ blood. Numbness shields her from old terror, but not from the truth of her Fear and Powerlessness. When a hob-owl asks what she’s tired of, Jude says it plainly: “Of being powerless.”
The next morning, Jude and Taryn head to lessons with the Gentry—Madoc’s decision that ensures they are both elevated and despised. Jude treats the classes as tools for survival and advancement; Vivi has already abandoned them in defiance. The twins commit to learning the court’s rules so they can survive them.
Chapter 4
On the way to lessons, Jude dreams of the Summer Tournament and knighthood. During lunch, Cardan kicks dirt onto her food while Nicasia and Valerian jeer. Jude refuses to yield: “Make me.” Cardan threatens her and Valerian dangles a twisted offer of “friendship” if she eats dirt.
Taryn rushes to apologize, and Cardan orders Jude to withdraw from the tournament—“not for mortals.” After they leave, Taryn scolds Jude for provoking danger. Jude recognizes the cold fact beneath her fear: she doesn’t want equality with the Folk. She wants to surpass them.
Chapter 5
On the walk home, Taryn reveals the slur Cardan’s circle uses—“Circle of Worms”—and outlines her strategy: belong by marrying a faerie. At Madoc’s, the sprites have smashed Vivi’s mortal treasures; a photo exposes her secret mortal girlfriend, deepening the rift among the sisters and complicating Family, Loyalty, and Betrayal.
At dinner, Madoc announces High King Eldred’s impending abdication and the plan to name Dain as successor. Taryn urges Jude to ask for knighthood now; Jude asks, and Madoc refuses: “You’re no killer.” He tells her to wait until after the coronation. Furious, Jude decides to stop being “good.” The next day, she salts the food of Cardan, Nicasia, Valerian, and Locke. When Cardan’s eyes find hers, Jude smiles. She has declared war.
Character Development
Power shifts begin at home. Jude’s ambition hardens under humiliation and paternal dismissal; Cardan’s cruelty defines the battlefield; Taryn’s longing to belong splits the twins’ path; Vivi’s rejection of Faerie offers a third way; Madoc’s love and violence keep the girls trapped between fear and opportunity.
- Jude Duarte: Moves from endurance to defiance. Knighthood is her goal, but rejection transforms her into a strategist who weaponizes her mortal limits.
- Prince Cardan Greenbriar: Crowned by entitlement and spectacle. His public brutality and fixation on Jude anchor the central conflict.
- Taryn Duarte: Foil to Jude. She pursues safety through assimilation and love, even if it means submission.
- Madoc: A paradox—tutor and murderer, protector and limiter. His “You’re no killer” misreads Jude and catalyzes her turn.
- Vivienne Duarte: Rejects Faerie outright, sustaining a secret mortal life that challenges Madoc’s authority and the sisters’ unity.
Themes & Symbols
These chapters frame Faerie as a contest of masks and knives. Jude’s drive for status crystallizes Power, Politics, and Ambition: the court’s factions (Grackles, Larks, Falcons), Eldred’s abdication, and Dain’s rise create a ladder Jude intends to climb. At the same time, Belonging and Otherness defines the sisters’ split responses: Jude seeks mastery, Taryn seeks acceptance, Vivi rejects the game.
Violence enforces hierarchy. Cardan’s assault on a lesser faerie and his harassment of Jude embody Cruelty and Bullying. Jude’s mortality marks her as prey—“Circle of Worms”—making Mortality vs. Immortality a constant pressure. Jude’s confession—tired of powerlessness—reveals the wound she intends to cauterize, while the sisters’ secrets and betrayals complicate Family, Loyalty, and Betrayal.
- Symbol: Salt. A mortal staple that harms the Folk, salt flips Jude’s supposed weakness into a weapon, previewing how she turns vulnerability into leverage.
Key Quotes
“Of being powerless.” Jude names her core wound, aligning her with Fear and Powerlessness. The admission becomes a vow: powerlessness is the condition she intends to end, not endure.
“Make me.” This is Jude’s first open refusal to be humiliated. The taunt escalates the conflict, revealing her appetite for risk and setting the tone for future confrontations.
“You’re no killer.” Madoc’s dismissal wounds and underestimates her. As dramatic irony, it foreshadows Jude’s evolution into someone willing to do what Faerie respects: whatever it takes.
“It’s not for mortals.” Cardan’s gatekeeping hardens Jude’s ambition. The line distills the court’s contempt and gives Jude the clearest possible target.
Why This Matters and Section Significance
These chapters ignite the novel’s central engine: Jude versus Cardan within a court tilting toward succession. Public cruelty, private rejection, and political transition converge to transform Jude from a survivor into a contender. Her salting of the princes’ food is the inciting act of rebellion—small in scale, enormous in meaning—announcing a new strategy: wield otherness as a blade. As Eldred’s abdication and Dain’s ascent reorder the court, Jude commits to reordering herself, setting up the battles—personal and political—that define the rest of the story.