A review by diana_raquel
Captive Prince by C.S. Pacat

adventurous dark emotional tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

 [The following review contains descriptions of content warnings that can be triggering and spoilers. Those descriptions are hidden as spoilers.]

“A golden prince was easy to love if you did not have to watch him picking wings off flies.”

Around 2018-2019, I was looking for fantasy series that would have LGBTQIA+ characters and ended up finding this trilogy. I remember that, at the time, I started reading and was immediately hooked. Captive Prince was the book that made me love Pacat but also explore less-known authors. So, when I finally got my hands on physical copies of this trilogy, I decided to read it again. And although I knew what was going to happen, I found that I still loved this trilogy as a whole. 

However, over the years, I also read a lot of negative reviews about this trilogy, especially about this book. And although I understand part of the backlash, there was this particular recurring argument that never made much sense to me, and lead me to think that the person using that argument only read the first book without giving the benefit of the doubt and continue reading. Which is totally fair - I also have abandoned series that I didn't like. What I didn't understand was that even when other people would defend the book and the trilogy as a whole, the first person would accuse the other of being a horrible person for not thinking that the trilogy was worthless trash with no value. So allow me to defend this book and this trilogy. 

Make no mistake, this book is what people would call "problematic". It's a really hard reading, full of themes that can be triggering, such as slavery, rape, sexual harassment, pedophilia, physical and emotional violence, torture, etc. It's really bad. I completely understand why people may dislike/hate the book and why it can be triggering. I'm in no way dismissing that.  What I don't understand is why some people say that the book romanticizes these elements, because the book never romanticizes these elements. 
 
Look, you are entitled to your opinion, and I will respect it, however, in my opinion, just because a book contains darker and horrible elements, doesn't mean that the book is problematic. Just because this book contains horrible elements that doesn't mean that it romanticizes those elements. Yes, slavery and rape are accepted parts of the culture of Vere, however, the book never gives the impression that this is in any way acceptable. Yes, Laurent also takes part in this, however, we later discover that this is a way to revenge his brother's death (it doesn't excuse his actions but it does provide some needed context). And don't even get me started on Damen. Yes, he is a victim. And, no, nothing that happens to him in this book is in any way excusable. However, he isn't a damsel in distress with Stockholm syndrome (side note:  Stockholm syndrome isn't considered a mental disorder, so can we stop it using it?). He never accepts what's happening to him and he resists every step of the way. 

I think that when using this argument people forget that the slave culture is also a part of Akielos culture (Damen's country) (although there are differences, it's still a slave culture). And this is important. Although Laurent is against any type or form of slavery, Damen isn't because he sees the culture of Akielos as a more acceptable form of slavery. However, after being subjected to slavery, Damen starts to see that his own culture isn't acceptable. That's why this book is so hard to read. The main character has to experience slavery and the violence that comes with it to understand that no form of slavery is acceptable. At its core, this is a story about dismantling power structures and understanding why those power structures have to be dismantled. 

Another argument used to prove the "romanticization" of this book is that, from the first chapter, is clear that Laurent and Damen are endgame. And yes, they are. However, it should be mentioned that they are mortal enemies, from enemy countries (yes, it's very Shakespeare, I know), and their relationship is one of hate, at first. However, the romanticization of their relationship only starts when they start to trust each other. With time, Damen is no longer Laurent's slave, he is a friend, and that's when feelings start to appear.


So, as a first book, this is quite a difficult book, due to its subject matter (that's why I decided to give it a 3 stars rating). However, it's a well-structured book, with well-developed characters and an intriguing plot. The pacing is perfect and the narrative flows in a very natural way. I guess that the only thing that I ask is this: if you are willing to read this book (and have read the content warnings list- seriously, do it), please, give this book the benefit of the doubt to this book and read the second one. I promise that its worth it. 
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