Reviews - Prince's Gambit | The StoryGraph

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In Prince's Gambit, the stakes are higher and Laurent's ambition grows exponentially still. Damen finds himself tangled in the politics of an enemy kingdom, tethered to its wit-ful prince and his antics.

Their dynamic transforms into something really fun and admirable to read. The gradual unfolding of how they warm up to each other's presence is very pleasing to witness. Perhaps warranting a few giggles and lightheartedness. (And a lot of unsolicited screeches) Makes one really muse on the newfound friendship in the earlier chapters between Damen and Laurent. Unexpected but utterly endearing.

The plot kept thickening and with each, I felt more anxious. This is the drama I wanted but didn't know I couldn't handle.

The first kiss, when it happened, was very satisfying (granted it had taken 30 chapters and 2 books), but was taken away just as soon as it had presented itself. Finally, the eventual surrender of the steadfast Laurent into Damen's comfort was really well executed. In very Laurent and Damen fashion; started by a tense wit-off, ending with them being comforted by each other's deep-rooted yearning, or lack thereof.

your_esteemed_reader's review against another edition

5.0

I'm not a fan of war in books but this was on a whole other level.
I was constantly at the edge of my seat because of all the unsuspected things that happened.
I think it's better than the first book, let's hope the third book is even better than this one!

**spoiler in this part**

To everyone saying it's too slow-burn... Do you really expect Laurent to just immediately kiss the enemy? It shows you don't understand who Laurent is. No, we don't know when his feelings for Damen started but it didn't 'just' happen in the last chapter. I just think it was a matter of trust and as Damen fought alongside him, it proved him that maybe he could trust him?
I'm not sure, but it would've been weird if it happened earlier than when it did.

rai232's review against another edition

4.5

adventurous dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

karak564's review against another edition

5.0

5 stars but that M/F scene with the women in the mountain village upset me deeply lol

research_department's review against another edition

4.5

adventurous challenging dark emotional

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

4.5 ⭐️, it’s really very good
Genre/subgenre: MM romance, dark, set in a secondary world (but there is no magic), open door
Narrative voice: single third person POV past tense
Tropes: slow burn, enemies to lovers, sex slave
TW: violence, pedophile side character, noncon oral sex performed on an MMC, an MMC is severely flogged, off page suicide of a side character but we see the body

I am reviewing the whole trilogy as one work, and posting the same review for all three books.

The scent of power was intoxicating, but its taste was bitter.

MMC1 is the rightful heir to the kingdom Akielos, a quasi-Greece, but his brother and his mistress conspire against him and send him, drugged, to be a sex slave to MMC2, the crown prince of Vere, the enemy country, a quasi-France. MMC1 had killed MMC2’s beloved elder brother in battle. MMC1 is honorable, but he is naive. Meanwhile, MMC2 is very complex, icy, smart and conniving, and extremely competent. He is also principled and compassionate, but he doesn’t advertise that aspect of himself, and it takes MMC1 more than the first book to begin to recognize it. Meanwhile, political intrigue and power struggles abound. Despite the distrust that the two have for each other, circumstances lead them to cooperate with each other.

Pacat delivers compelling, enjoyable reading. I’ll admit that I got sucked in by the promise of a sex slave trope and power dynamics, but there is more to the trilogy than that. I think this might be one of the best slow burn romances I’ve read. And all those who are looking for true enemies to lovers, look no further. When they meet, not only have their countries been adversaries for years, as individuals they actively despise each other. Gradually, they get to know each other more deeply and actually begin to respect and admire the other. They also each grow. Pacat takes both the time within the world and on the pages of the books to show all the little things that add up to both MMCs having a complete and believable change of heart.

To gain everything and lose everything in the space of a moment. That is the fate of all princes destined for the throne.

Ok, let’s discuss how dark this is. I think some of the criticism I’ve read about it being dark is from just after it came out, possibly when dark romance wasn’t as popular as it is currently, but I still want to address the nature of the darkness, to help those who might feel unsure about whether this is for them. I’m going to put some of this behind spoiler tags, because I will be sharing details that are not immediately apparent, but I don’t think that they are huge spoilers. There are sex slaves in one society and there are sex contract workers in another.

One MMC takes multiple books to recognize that the sex slaves are groomed and that slavery should be outlawed.

Also, MMC2’s uncle and Regent is a pedophile, which is recognized and tolerated by the court.

It becomes clear that MMC2’s uncle had sexually abused MMC2 when he was younger.

MMC2 orders a sex worker to perform oral sex on MMC1 (who does not consent) and at another point, orders MMC1 flogged, nearly to death. I don’t believe that this work glorifies violence, sexual assault, rape, or pedophilia, but they are depicted, and given the strong erotic undercurrent that is also in the work, I can understand why some people reject this work for that reason. Meanwhile, I am saying all this as someone who hasn’t really explored dark romance, so I do not have any framework how dark this is compared to other romances. I also don’t have a context for how morally gray MMC2 is compared to other morally gray main characters out there; I would say that he is complex and thorny, but not evil. And for all the darkness that is shown, I did not feel that this world was bleak.

Fans of political machinations, complex characters, power dynamics, conflicting loyalties, enemies to lovers, and the slowest of slow burns will love this.

ashshadowless's review against another edition

5.0

Okay okay, we’re getting some character growth, although their situationship should definitely not be something that is looked for in an actual relationship but after all this is a work of fiction. Could do with some more plot focus though, just more details on the battles of war and while there are some I think it could do with some more. But still a good read for me so far, even with these nitpicks I can’t put this book down.