Review by talesfromthedragonslair - Captive Prince

talesfromthedragonslair 's review for:

Captive Prince by C.S. Pacat

5.0

adventurous dark relaxing fast-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: Yes

While I consider Captive Prince to be historical fiction (because there's nothing supernatural or magical that takes place), the story is set in a fictional world that calls to mind Ancient Greece and Italy. Damen, heir to the throne of Akielos, loses everything that he holds dear when his half-brother seizes power and banishes him to Vere as a slave. His new master, Prince Laurent, is known as a cold and manipulative man who embodies the Veretian decadence despised by Damen. But the court and its politics are treacherous and before Damen realises what is happening, he finds himself in the middle of a dangerous power struggle. Forced into an unlikely alliance, can Damen and Laurent find a way to save themselves, their thrones, and their countries?

If there's one thing that I adore in a story, then it's an impossible romance. And this book has heaps of it. It's subtle, it's a slow burn and it is WAY less smutty than I had expected, but boy, my heart soared because of this story. The world building is superb, but it were the characters who really stole my heart, especially Laurent. He reminded me distinctly of a perpetually annoyed version of Robin Hobb's Fool (whom I also passionately love) with his sharp tongue and witty remarks. Come to think of it, there are also certain similarities to be found between Fitz and Damen.

The initial plot of the story also reminded me a bit of Ai no Kusabi, a Japanese novel series I read a couple of years ago. While I've always been drawn to that story, its writing style was actually very cold and distant and I did not end up liking the series as much as I would have hoped. If only it would have been written like The Captive Prince.

I devoured this series from start to finish in little over a week. I wish more stories would be published about these amazing characters…pretty please?

Content Warnings