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** spoiler alert ** After thoroughly evaluating my feelings about this book, I've decided to settle at 2.5 stars.

Please be aware of major spoilers ahead.

My disappointment started in Chapter 4 when Locke was declared dead. Don't get me wrong...I hated this boi with every bone in my body, but I always believed him to be an intelligent manipulator. Not someone who would be stupid enough to die an easy simple death at the hands of Taryn of all people. He's the kind of character you love to hate. His thirst to be a part of a dramatic story was so profound that he was willing to do terrible acts just to set things in motion. So naturally, I expected him to play a much larger role in this installment. He could've had the potential to be the Petyr Baelish of YA fantasy. His deserved a death to be on page. What a waste...

My disappointment then increased during Cradan's reasoning for sending Jude into exile. Really? I expected something more than just a misunderstanding.

Let's not even get started with Lady Asha. Someone, please explain to me the purpose of her character. Why was she even introduced if her character wasn't going to play a poignant role in the story? The Wicked King was filled with plot twist after plot twist. The revelation of Asha being Cardan's mother was such a huge shock factor that it makes absolutely no sense when she didn't even manage to make a tiny dent in the overall plot.

But the biggest disappointment of all...Cardan and Jude's relationship. Here is a pen and paper...someone draw me a map from point A (where Cardan love-hates Jude so much ), to point B (where Cardan loves Jude so much he wants to play the dotting husband). This relationship was supposed to build very slowly. So slow that the chemistry was constantly off the charts. And one of Cardan's best qualities was that he never lost his personality despite falling for a girl. I loved that he never got cheesy and mushy like most male characters do when a girl enters the picture. He managed to remain a sassy person while being a nicer being at the same time...and I LOVED it. But he did a complete 180 in this book. It wasn't even a slow and gradual process. He's this nice wonderful person right off the bat.

The ending was way too easy. One of the reasons I adored the first two books was because of Jude's thirst for vengeance. The Wicked King ended with an implication that Jude was going to reappear in Elfhame with fire in her eyes. She was made out to be this girl with a revenge-driven persona for being exiled. But that wasn't really the case here. I didn't expect a perfectly crafted novel. But I also didn't think everything would this easy. Remember in The Cruel Prince when Madoc went batshit crazy and killed everyone? Well, I wanted jaw-dropping scenes like that. Not necessarily a mass murder spree, but scenes that would have my eyes bulge out in surprise like they did when reading the first two books. Cardan turning into a snake was not something I could take seriously.

I know this sounds more like a 1-star review. But despite all my disappointments, I still read this book like an addict. And well...Cardan's tilted crown and weird tail managed to make me smile. Overall, this series still remains to be one of my favorites. But I wish Holly Black put more time and effort into this final installment. I felt there was still a lot left unsaid. Specifically revolving around Locke and Cardan's mother.