SPOILER WARNING May contain plot details |
| “ | Though she is their ruler, she wears only a simple white shift. A gold crown has been stitched to her forehead, and a thin gold chain that penetrates the skin of her wrist functions as her new leash, with a bar on one side to keep the chain from slipping free. Fresh scars cover her face in the shape of the bridle she wore when last I saw her. | ” |
–Spoken by Jude Duarte about Suren, The Queen of Nothing | ||
Suren, also known as Wren and Mellith, is a faerie and the queen of the Court of Teeth. She is the daughter of Lord Jarel and Lady Nore.
Physical Description[]
Suren has blue skin, the color of veins or a corpse. Her large, hungry eyes are mossy green. Her hair is a blue only slightly darker than her skin. She has shark-sharp teeth. Despite her thin build, she is very strong. Suren has pointed ears and a pointy chin.
As a child, she wore a crown of icicles, and a magical golden bridle that was placed on her by Lord Jarel as a means of controlling her. It was removed by Jude Duarte, but left scars on her face. Her nails are bitten short. Her voice is thin and rough from disuse and screaming due to the abuse she endured.
After she resurrected, she grew two feathered wings on her back. They were light blue-gray at the tips, with darker feathers closer to her body. When they unfurled, they were large enough to canopy herself and two other people.
Personality[]
Suren seems to have leaning towards cruelty, possibly due to the cruelty she faced at the hands of her parents. When Jude disbanded the Court of Teeth, she told Lady Nore that if she attempted to defy Jude's command, then Queen Suren could punish her in whatever way she sees fit. This made Suren smile in "a way that is not funny at all." Jude considered that perhaps Suren was being restrained for fear of what she might do if she were not.
As an eighteen-year-old, Suren has grown into a strong, independent, but traumatized woman. She wants nothing to do with Faerieland. Her education in Faerie was poor and her human education was inconsistent, but she has tried to teach herself by stealing books. Due to her time in the Court of Teeth, she grew skilled at breaking curses and is very good at hiding.
Suren is shown to have strong natural instincts and is able to sense when something has gone wrong immediately. She is also very clever and can think of ingenious solutions to certain problems. At the beginning, she is a rather kind character that is occasionally insecure of her unruly appearance. However, towards the end of the duo-logy, she becomes distant and cold from the constant tragedy and betrayal in her life.
Her loyalties seem to remain with her family (or "unfamily" as she calls them) throughout the story and is filled with constant longing for them despite having been driven out by them (they were forced under Lord Roiben's glamour) years ago.
Biography[]
The Queen of Nothing[]
Jude saw Queen Suren at the war camp of the Court of Teeth with Madoc and Oriana, when she was pretending to be her twin sister Taryn. Seeing Suren, Jude recalled the Living Council warning that Courts were evading swearing fealty by hiding their children as changelings in the mortal world, then elevating them to rulers. Jude wonders if that is what happened to Suren and why she was wearing an enchanted bridle.
Queen Suren is seen with Lady Nore and Lord Jarel when Jude addresses the individual political leaders of Elfhame, after Cardan has been cursed into a snake. She appears at the official coronation of Queen Jude and King Cardan, where Oak asks for her freedom after Jude disbands the Court of Teeth. Jude forces Lady Nore to swear fealty to Queen Suren, and Queen Suren swears fealty to Queen Jude and King Cardan.
The Stolen Heir[]
Suren, or Wren, is now 18-years-old. Eight years ago, she fled to the mortal realm after the Battle of the Serpent, where her parents—Lady Nore and Lord Jarel—allied with the redcap faerie Madoc in a failed attempt to overthrow High King Cardan and High Queen Jude of Elfhame. Following their defeat, Jude forced Lady Nore to swear obedience to Wren's commands. However, before Wren could issue any orders, Lady Nore escaped and sent her storm hag, Bogdana, to hunt Wren down.
Wren endured years of torment under her parents, who used the golden bridle—a magical artifact allowing complete control over its wearer—to manipulate her. Now free, it's been eight years since Suren has been living feral in the woods in the mortal realm. She devotes her days to helping mortals escape from foolish bargains with faeries. Despite her newfound independence, Wren frequently visits the human family that once cared for her, clinging to bittersweet memories of the loving life she can never reclaim.
Oak Greenbriar, now the 17-year-old Prince of Elfhame and heir to the throne, is traveling with his guard, Tiernan, and their prisoner, Hyacinthe. Oak embarks on a dangerous mission to recover Mellith’s heart. This ancient relic, demanded by Lady Nore in exchange for releasing Madoc, holds the key to her plans for conquest.
Despite the bond they once shared in childhood, Wren and Oak’s relationship has soured. Wren harbors resentment toward him for refusing a proposed marriage alliance from Lady Nore, a union she believes could have saved her from the torment of the Court of Teeth. She blames Oak and his family for failing to rescue her when she needed them most.
After years of estrangement, Oak reappears in Wren’s life, saving her from Bogdana. He asks for her help in defeating Lady Nore, whose allegiance he claims is bolstered by the stolen bones of Faerie’s first queen, Mab Greenbriar. Oak asserts Lady Nore has used these bones, imbued with the power of creation, to craft an army of monsters. What Oak omits, however, is that Lady Nore has taken his foster father, Madoc, captive.
Feeling she has little choice, Wren agrees to join Oak, Tiernan, and Hyacinthe. Along their journey, she learns Oak plans to consult the Thistlewitch, a hag possessing a dowsing rod that can locate anything, including Mellith’s heart. Wren notices Oak’s secrecy but chooses not to confront him. Hyacinthe, still bound by the golden bridle, warns Wren about Oak’s charm, suggesting he may have inherited the gancanagh abilities of his mother, Liriope, to compel others with his words. Wren feels pity for Hyacinthe and disgust for Oak and Tiernan’s control over him.
The group reaches the Court of Moths, where Oak seeks Queen Annet’s permission to traverse her swamps. Wren visits the royal seamstress, Habetrot, who crafts a dress from the dreams of her clients. Sensing Wren’s hidden longing for destruction, Habetrot creates a gown to reflect these desires. During the revel, Oak’s appeal inadvertently reveals Madoc’s captivity, infuriating Wren. Her anger grows when she learns Oak deliberately withheld the truth.
While Oak is inebriated, Wren frees Hyacinthe and other prisoners, including a merrow and a human girl named Gwen. However, Jack of the Lakes, the kelpie who guided them to the Court of Moths, betrays Wren, leading to a confrontation. To secure her freedom and that of his companions, Oak duels Queen Annet’s champion and wins, though his anger toward Wren persists.
The journey to the Thistlewitch continues, and she reveals the tragic story of Mab, who was cursed by an ancient hag to depend on Mellith’s heart to sustain her creations. The Thistlewitch also discloses that Wren carries Mellith’s heart within her, though Oak keeps this revelation to himself. Suren was created by Bogdana at the behest of Lady Nore who wanted but was unable to carry a child of her own. Bogdana deceived Lady Nore by using the heart of Mellith when she created Suren, thus cutting Lady Nore off from access to one of the three magical relics that she craved. Wren remains determined to confront Lady Nore despite Oak’s attempts to dissuade her.
The group devises a plan to rescue Madoc and retrieve Mab’s bones, using a decoy heart as a diversion. Their path leads through the perilous Stone Forest, where Oak is poisoned by the troll leader, Gorga. Finally reaching the Ice Needle Citadel, Wren and Oak are captured by Lady Nore, who demands Mellith’s heart. Oak shocks Wren by claiming he has brought it, and Lady Nore silences Wren by cutting out her tongue.
Imprisoned alongside Madoc, Wren overhears Oak’s plans to deceive Lady Nore. Hyacinthe arrives to free her, and Wren uses a fragment of Mab’s bones to regrow her tongue. During the ensuing battle, Wren discovers her true identity as Mellith, reborn with Mab’s power. Embracing her destiny, she unmakes Lady Nore, taking control of the Ice Needle Citadel and freeing her companions.
In the aftermath, Wren places the golden bridle on Oak, forcing him to remain by her side as she begins her reign, finally wielding the power that had long been denied to her.
The Prisoner's Throne[]
While Oak is imprisoned, he hopes Wren will visit him, but she does not. Oak eventually learns from a magical mechanical snake that his family plans to rescue him in three days. Fearing for Wren's safety, he escapes the prison and steals clothes to move through the palace. However, Oak decides against escaping, choosing instead to be recaptured because of his feelings for Wren. He is then beaten by the guards.
Wren allows him to be released from prison but forces him to wear iron manacles as a condition. When Elfhame soldiers arrive to retrieve Oak, Wren pretends they are engaged, claiming that he was never in any real danger. This pretense is made to protect her, as Oak saves her from potential repercussions.
Wren accompanies Oak and the soldiers to Elfhame under the guise of a wedding, all while secretly struggling with the cost of her powers. In the background, Oak continues to investigate the traitors within Elfhame, while Wren faces blackmail from Bogdana, who has kidnapped her foster sister, Rebecca. Oak and Tiernan develop a plan to rescue the sister, and Wren uses her powers to save Oak and the others—sacrificing her life force in the process.
She dies, but soon after, she is reborn with wings.
Relationships[]
Oak[]
Suren and Oak were childhood friends, but Suren left Elfhame and Oak stayed. Suren's parents betrothed Suren and Oak, but after losing the Battle of the Serpent, their betrothal was ended. However, they become engaged again at the end of The Prisoner's Throne.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- There's a discrepancy in Suren's age as it is mentioned in The Stolen Heir on two different occasions that she is ten years old and eleven years old during the events of The Queen of Nothing, while Oak's age remains consistent at nine years old. In contrast, Oak is said to be eight years old in The Queen of Nothing with Jude stating Suren "looks to be only a year or two older than Oak." Since eight years have passed since the Battle of the Serpent, Suren would be either 18 or 19 during the events of The Stolen Heir Duology. However, her exact age has not been confirmed, and it is possible that Suren herself was not aware of her own exact age.
References[]
- ↑ The Stolen Heir: Chapter 3
- ↑ The Stolen Heir: Chapter 2