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4.29 AVERAGE
4.29 AVERAGE
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Slavery
Moderate: Child abuse, Rape, Violence, War
I am obsessed.
Ok, but Laurent is such a babe and I love him. He is my ace hc in the series. What do I mean? Bro, he never lets anyone touch him. He has no interest in sex (besides Damen bc :). Maybe he is demi?) But also! He says that he would rather read books than have sex???? And he has a secret past? Lowkey think he has some sexual trauma bc he says he has had sex before, but acts like a beginner? And is tense whenever people touch him? And that tension does not ease? Something is going on there. Pls tell me C.S. Pacat. I need to know.
And ooh boy Damen is an idiot and I love him. Him just doing whatever the fuck he wants and then thinking later is iconic. Bro has maybe 1 braincell and he uses it to think about Laurent. He is also kind and loyal and strong and i love him. Cannot wait for Damianos to also be an idiot. Love Dumb-ass Prince x Genius Prince.
OK I WANT TO TALK A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT LAURENT THEN I AM DONE. I love him. He is so smart. I did not see most of his moves coming. PARTNERING WITH THE AKIELON ARMY? WHEN HIS BF IS AKIELON?? BRO. GENIUS. SO many of his decisions had me guessing and I was surprised at every turn. I love a genius.
Ok and Laurent being a potty mouth? Slay. I love that he not only speaks in the most pretentious way, but also can cut any man down with insults. He has the mouth of a viper and he can kill. He is so slay. AND THEN WHEN HE TRIES TO ANTAGONIZE DAMEN AND HE IS LIKE "don't do this" AND HE DOES IT ANYWAY THEN APOLOGIZES BC DAMEN IS ALWAYS THERE FOR HIM??????? and their dynamic of them bickering and teasing while also hating each other but really being in love is my fave. i ship
I still don't like Vere and its sex slave thing. And the Regent's Leo DiCap complex, but MUCH YOUNGER, but wtv. Everything else made it worth it!! And a strong women tribe! I loved them!! Again, not super happy with how everyone seems so sex-obsessed, but that might just be me channelling my inner Laurent. I wish I could be half of the bitch he is.
This book stole my heart and I cannot wait to start book 2.
Spoiler
OOH BOY DOES SHIT HIT THE FAN IN THIS ONE. Orlant? Aimeric? Damianos reveal??? Poor Jord being betrayed several times and losing all that is close to him??? LAURENT BEING SOFT? Laurent being a bitch?Ok, but Laurent is such a babe and I love him. He is my ace hc in the series. What do I mean? Bro, he never lets anyone touch him. He has no interest in sex (besides Damen bc :). Maybe he is demi?) But also! He says that he would rather read books than have sex???? And he has a secret past? Lowkey think he has some sexual trauma bc he says he has had sex before, but acts like a beginner? And is tense whenever people touch him? And that tension does not ease? Something is going on there. Pls tell me C.S. Pacat. I need to know.
And ooh boy Damen is an idiot and I love him. Him just doing whatever the fuck he wants and then thinking later is iconic. Bro has maybe 1 braincell and he uses it to think about Laurent. He is also kind and loyal and strong and i love him. Cannot wait for Damianos to also be an idiot. Love Dumb-ass Prince x Genius Prince.
OK I WANT TO TALK A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT LAURENT THEN I AM DONE. I love him. He is so smart. I did not see most of his moves coming. PARTNERING WITH THE AKIELON ARMY? WHEN HIS BF IS AKIELON?? BRO. GENIUS. SO many of his decisions had me guessing and I was surprised at every turn. I love a genius.
Ok and Laurent being a potty mouth? Slay. I love that he not only speaks in the most pretentious way, but also can cut any man down with insults. He has the mouth of a viper and he can kill. He is so slay. AND THEN WHEN HE TRIES TO ANTAGONIZE DAMEN AND HE IS LIKE "don't do this" AND HE DOES IT ANYWAY THEN APOLOGIZES BC DAMEN IS ALWAYS THERE FOR HIM??????? and their dynamic of them bickering and teasing while also hating each other but really being in love is my fave. i ship
I still don't like Vere and its sex slave thing. And the Regent's Leo DiCap complex, but MUCH YOUNGER, but wtv. Everything else made it worth it!! And a strong women tribe! I loved them!! Again, not super happy with how everyone seems so sex-obsessed, but that might just be me channelling my inner Laurent. I wish I could be half of the bitch he is.
This book stole my heart and I cannot wait to start book 2.
AMAZING
literally the BEST slow burn, enemies to lovers i've EVER read.
characters are complexes, endearing, interesting, SO well developed and described and it's definitely in this book that the enemies TO LOVERS start !!!! it's impossible to find a better slow burn enemies to lovers book ...
this 2nd book is one of the best book i've ever read
READ IT!!!!
literally the BEST slow burn, enemies to lovers i've EVER read.
characters are complexes, endearing, interesting, SO well developed and described and it's definitely in this book that the enemies TO LOVERS start !!!! it's impossible to find a better slow burn enemies to lovers book ...
this 2nd book is one of the best book i've ever read
READ IT!!!!
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Loveable characters:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
(reread 6/4-6/11 rtc)
quality: 4.5 / 5
enjoyment: 5 / 5
SPOILERS FOR PRINCE’S GAMBIT ARE TAGGED BUT THERE ARE ALSO SPOILERS FOR KINGS RISING MIXED WITH THEM. basically don’t hit view spoiler unless you’ve finished the whole series or don’t care.
this is the book THIS IS THE BOOK that sold me on cs pacat for life. it is everything i could have wanted from a series with this description and more. prince’s gambit is my absolute favorite book in the trilogy and it’s like half the reason i love it as much as i do.
the things i liked: the ratio of battles and politics to romantic tension was perfect, which is something i can only really say about a few series. also, as i said in my review of the first book, laurent is always the most interesting part of this series, and the same is true here. i’d say in comparison to the other books this one is really his, especially since its title is literally an allusion to him (and the american cover is his color). i would have been obsessed with laurent even if he was just the primary antagonist of the series because he’s the perfect balance between cruel and charismatic. obviously that’s not how things go down though, because in prince’s gambit pacat proves his ability to write characters with real depth. laurent is allowed to laugh and smile in this, and when he does it feels earned and believable rather than inconsistent. this is a side of him that he is allowing damen (and by proxy the reader) to see for the first time, and its a side we otherwise would not have seen while in the presence of the veretian court. the intellectual aspect of this series is also one of my favorite parts of it. at first glance, damen might seem like he’s just big and dumb until you realize how tactically skilled he is as a character. sure he uses his brute strength a majority of the time, but when he needs to he can employ some genuinely impressive military strategy. but all of that is child’s play for laurent, who is always three steps ahead and gives nothing away. everything unfolds in a way that is both engaging and logical, and everything from the climax onward is violently entertaining.
i only have a single issue with this entire book but it was, unfortunately, enough to drop it by half a star rating (still, for me, it’s impressive for a book to only have one ick. check my average rating if you don't believe me).
quality: 4.5 / 5
enjoyment: 5 / 5
SPOILERS FOR PRINCE’S GAMBIT ARE TAGGED BUT THERE ARE ALSO SPOILERS FOR KINGS RISING MIXED WITH THEM. basically don’t hit view spoiler unless you’ve finished the whole series or don’t care.
this is the book THIS IS THE BOOK that sold me on cs pacat for life. it is everything i could have wanted from a series with this description and more. prince’s gambit is my absolute favorite book in the trilogy and it’s like half the reason i love it as much as i do.
the things i liked: the ratio of battles and politics to romantic tension was perfect, which is something i can only really say about a few series. also, as i said in my review of the first book, laurent is always the most interesting part of this series, and the same is true here. i’d say in comparison to the other books this one is really his, especially since its title is literally an allusion to him (and the american cover is his color). i would have been obsessed with laurent even if he was just the primary antagonist of the series because he’s the perfect balance between cruel and charismatic. obviously that’s not how things go down though, because in prince’s gambit pacat proves his ability to write characters with real depth. laurent is allowed to laugh and smile in this, and when he does it feels earned and believable rather than inconsistent. this is a side of him that he is allowing damen (and by proxy the reader) to see for the first time, and its a side we otherwise would not have seen while in the presence of the veretian court. the intellectual aspect of this series is also one of my favorite parts of it. at first glance, damen might seem like he’s just big and dumb until you realize how tactically skilled he is as a character. sure he uses his brute strength a majority of the time, but when he needs to he can employ some genuinely impressive military strategy. but all of that is child’s play for laurent, who is always three steps ahead and gives nothing away. everything unfolds in a way that is both engaging and logical, and everything from the climax onward is violently entertaining.
i only have a single issue with this entire book but it was, unfortunately, enough to drop it by half a star rating (still, for me, it’s impressive for a book to only have one ick. check my average rating if you don't believe me).
Spoiler
i found it really selfish that damen slept with laurent at the end of the book. now it’s almost entirely in character for both of them and i dislike the criticism that it comes out of nowhere despite the constant buildup throughout the novel. i see this critique more for laurent, which is funny to me because he’s not one to do things by halves—ever. once he comes to terms with his sexual attraction to damen it’s obvious that he’s going to sleep with him, and the sex is likely triggered then by his exchange with aimeric (a fellow victim of his uncle’s abuse) and the fact that it is supposedly their last night together. but for damen, a character who is otherwise consistently a good person, puts the well-being of others before his own, and loves easily, the scene is uncharacteristically cruel. laurent knows exactly which damen he’s been spending these past weeks with, but damen doesn’t know that laurent knows. so theoretically, at least in damen’s version of things, laurent could have found out that he slept with the man who murdered his brother only after the fact. and while the reader can make the excuse that damen assumed laurent would never find out, it doesn’t change the fact that on principle the act feels so slimy.
adventurous
challenging
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
What a masterclass.
The pacing suffered a bit in the mountains (I'd say around 80 pages), but it was otherwise well done. The pace of each sentenced also made the book a breeze to read through, so it definitely helped the rhythm.
The narration finally clicked into place. Damen's pov felt worthwhile and interesting. I truly liked to see his social climbing and how he proved himself worthy in more ways than one.
The political intrigue truly ramped up, which I wasn't expecting as in my version the title is ''the warrior''. It was definitely more complex, and Damen being more involved rather than blindly following was enjoyable. I would argue the political intrigue, and how it resolves in the last chapters, is the greatest strength of this book.
The second greatest strength is how Damen and Laurent are characterized. They both were more strongly built than in the first book, in which they were slightly more shallow. Here, they build themselves in relation to the other, and the resulting dynamic that emerges between the two feels a lot more believable and genuine.
The pacing suffered a bit in the mountains (I'd say around 80 pages), but it was otherwise well done. The pace of each sentenced also made the book a breeze to read through, so it definitely helped the rhythm.
The narration finally clicked into place. Damen's pov felt worthwhile and interesting. I truly liked to see his social climbing and how he proved himself worthy in more ways than one.
The political intrigue truly ramped up, which I wasn't expecting as in my version the title is ''the warrior''. It was definitely more complex, and Damen being more involved rather than blindly following was enjoyable. I would argue the political intrigue, and how it resolves in the last chapters, is the greatest strength of this book.
The second greatest strength is how Damen and Laurent are characterized. They both were more strongly built than in the first book, in which they were slightly more shallow. Here, they build themselves in relation to the other, and the resulting dynamic that emerges between the two feels a lot more believable and genuine.
La historia comienza a ponerse realmente interesante. Me han sorprendido mucho las tramas, son de lo más elaboradas, me esperaba un libro mucho más plano y sensual y me ha sorprendido gratamente.