The Stolen Heir

The Stolen Heir is Holly Black's spinoff duology set in the world of her Folk of the Air trilogy — following Suren, a half-human daughter of the Oak King who was used as a weapon by her mother and then exiled to the mortal world, and Oak, the younger brother of Jude Duarte, who comes to find her on a quest that draws both of them back into faerie politics and danger. Black returns to her Faerie world with the same world-building richness and moral complexity that distinguished the original trilogy.

The duology is designed to be accessible to readers who have not read The Folk of the Air, while rewarding those who have with connections to the earlier trilogy's characters and events. Black's interest in power, manipulation, and the specifically fae forms of cruelty and beauty carries over from the original series with new characters to express these themes.

The romantic tension between Suren and Oak develops across the two volumes with the slow-burn patience that Black handles particularly well, grounded in a genuine understanding of both characters' damage and desires.

Reading The Folk of the Air trilogy first is recommended but not required. Begin with The Stolen Heir.