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A review by michaeljohnhalseartistry
Kings Rising by C.S. Pacat
1.0
Today is a great day, because I finally finished C.S. Pacat's Captive Prince Trilogy. I should be clear, it's not a great day because I've come to the close of Damen and Laurent's story and loved the ride, it's not a great day because I was so moved by this book that it lifted my spirits and made me warm and fuzzy inside. No, it's a great day because I can finally put this train-wreck of a series aside and NEVER read it again.
I might be a bit of a tough critic, I have very high expectations for the books I read, the music I listen to, the movies I watch, and I'd be lying if I said I hadn't been called a movie-snob in the past (mostly by people who love the Transformers movies... so... I'll live), but this trilogy was, without a doubt three of the worst novels I've ever read, and I've read some bad novels. I DO feel bad saying that, because as an author myself, I know how much you put into your work, and you want everyone to love it as much as you do, and I'm sure Pacat is a kind, and great woman who poured her soul into this trilogy... it's just not for me.
I was a bit hesitant at first to pick up this series. Upon my initial investigation of the series I read a lot of good reviews and things about it, but I came across one write-up that classified it as "Young Adult". And I don't read YA, I never really have. Sure I've read the Harry Potter books, the Twilight Saga, The Chronicles of Narnia... but I didn't, actually enjoy them. I might love Harry Potter and the world around it, but those books were tough to get through. I think it's because I sort of missed that YA phase in my own reading history. I went from reading beginner chapter books, and middle-grade novels to reading Shakespeare, Jane Austin, and J.R.R. Tolkien, and I remember it being a big jump at first. When I was in grade 7 we moved to a new city, and as a result I went to a new school. At this new school, my English teacher Mrs. Crosby immediately tossed us into the world of Shakespeare and classical literature... in grade 7, because she thought we could handle it. At first I couldn't it. I was completely lost, the very first time I read The Lord of the Rings I had no clue what I was reading. But I'm a quick learner, and by grade 8 I had forgotten all about YA novels.
In terms of Pacat's writing style, her characters, her plot... The Captive Prince Trilogy is definitely YA, but content-wise, it had some VERY adult themes. The trilogy tells the story of Prince Damen, forced to be a slave in a neighbouring kingdom after his brother usurps the throne. Damen thinks he has to keep his identity secret, because he was responsible for killing this neighbouring kingdom's crown prince in a past war. Damen finds himself the slave of that prince's younger brother Laurent, a cold, calculating prince who is struggling to keep his throne from an overzealous uncle. Both Damen's and Laurent's cultures are incredibly sexual, and slowly over the course of the books Damen and Laurent fall for each other... which results in some very steamy and shocking scenes. The series has been described as "slave porn", and opinions on the series seem very polarized. People either love it, or they hate it. I hated it, as much as I was confused by it. Pacat's writing is... not good. She can barely put together paragraphs, she has these weird jumps between scenes, where nothing changes. For example, in King's Rising, she has this scene jump:
"He heard the shocked murmurs, the outbreak of sound as he spoke, his words, clear and unmistakable.
'I am Damianos of Akielos, and I surrender to my brother.'
The soldiers were nervous.
Damianos. In the moments before they hurriedly ushered him through the gate, the crowd grew. Damianos."
It's the exact same scene... There should be no break... and she does this EVERYWHERE. Not only that, her dialogue is a mess, she leaves almost every other sentence unfinished and assumed we know what she means. Her character development is poor, and her characters themselves are complete idiots. Damen is dumber than a post. And while plot-wise, she has a really good story, there just isn't enough mastery of either the world or language to really make it an epic tale. It's YA fantasy... with very adult themes.
However, in this final book, King's Rising, Pacat did surprise me with a couple of lines that I absolutely loved. I even underlined them, that's how much I loved them and was impressed by them. I've written them below:
"The inches of air between them were nothing, and everything."
And:
"...Damen was lost to it, his whole body given over, the first deep pulse of his own climax just one part of a choking pleasure that took him, overwhelming and bright, into oblivion."
YES, that second one is a little sexual, WE'RE ALL ADULTS, GET OVER IT. I just found the imagery and metaphors in both sentences very pleasing and delicate. And to me it really showed that Pacat, if she really tied, could write something with more emotional depth and meaning, which is what I wanted SO BADLY from this series.
Overall, I don't think I'd recommend this series, and I doubt I'll be returning to it. However, I'm happy to be finished with it and able to move on to something else.
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FOR MORE BOOK REVIEWS, PHOTOGRAPHY, AND MY OWN NOVELS, CHECK OUT MY WEBSITE:
http://michaeljohnhalse.wixsite.com/michaeljohnhalse
I might be a bit of a tough critic, I have very high expectations for the books I read, the music I listen to, the movies I watch, and I'd be lying if I said I hadn't been called a movie-snob in the past (mostly by people who love the Transformers movies... so... I'll live), but this trilogy was, without a doubt three of the worst novels I've ever read, and I've read some bad novels. I DO feel bad saying that, because as an author myself, I know how much you put into your work, and you want everyone to love it as much as you do, and I'm sure Pacat is a kind, and great woman who poured her soul into this trilogy... it's just not for me.
I was a bit hesitant at first to pick up this series. Upon my initial investigation of the series I read a lot of good reviews and things about it, but I came across one write-up that classified it as "Young Adult". And I don't read YA, I never really have. Sure I've read the Harry Potter books, the Twilight Saga, The Chronicles of Narnia... but I didn't, actually enjoy them. I might love Harry Potter and the world around it, but those books were tough to get through. I think it's because I sort of missed that YA phase in my own reading history. I went from reading beginner chapter books, and middle-grade novels to reading Shakespeare, Jane Austin, and J.R.R. Tolkien, and I remember it being a big jump at first. When I was in grade 7 we moved to a new city, and as a result I went to a new school. At this new school, my English teacher Mrs. Crosby immediately tossed us into the world of Shakespeare and classical literature... in grade 7, because she thought we could handle it. At first I couldn't it. I was completely lost, the very first time I read The Lord of the Rings I had no clue what I was reading. But I'm a quick learner, and by grade 8 I had forgotten all about YA novels.
In terms of Pacat's writing style, her characters, her plot... The Captive Prince Trilogy is definitely YA, but content-wise, it had some VERY adult themes. The trilogy tells the story of Prince Damen, forced to be a slave in a neighbouring kingdom after his brother usurps the throne. Damen thinks he has to keep his identity secret, because he was responsible for killing this neighbouring kingdom's crown prince in a past war. Damen finds himself the slave of that prince's younger brother Laurent, a cold, calculating prince who is struggling to keep his throne from an overzealous uncle. Both Damen's and Laurent's cultures are incredibly sexual, and slowly over the course of the books Damen and Laurent fall for each other... which results in some very steamy and shocking scenes. The series has been described as "slave porn", and opinions on the series seem very polarized. People either love it, or they hate it. I hated it, as much as I was confused by it. Pacat's writing is... not good. She can barely put together paragraphs, she has these weird jumps between scenes, where nothing changes. For example, in King's Rising, she has this scene jump:
"He heard the shocked murmurs, the outbreak of sound as he spoke, his words, clear and unmistakable.
'I am Damianos of Akielos, and I surrender to my brother.'
The soldiers were nervous.
Damianos. In the moments before they hurriedly ushered him through the gate, the crowd grew. Damianos."
It's the exact same scene... There should be no break... and she does this EVERYWHERE. Not only that, her dialogue is a mess, she leaves almost every other sentence unfinished and assumed we know what she means. Her character development is poor, and her characters themselves are complete idiots. Damen is dumber than a post. And while plot-wise, she has a really good story, there just isn't enough mastery of either the world or language to really make it an epic tale. It's YA fantasy... with very adult themes.
However, in this final book, King's Rising, Pacat did surprise me with a couple of lines that I absolutely loved. I even underlined them, that's how much I loved them and was impressed by them. I've written them below:
"The inches of air between them were nothing, and everything."
And:
"...Damen was lost to it, his whole body given over, the first deep pulse of his own climax just one part of a choking pleasure that took him, overwhelming and bright, into oblivion."
YES, that second one is a little sexual, WE'RE ALL ADULTS, GET OVER IT. I just found the imagery and metaphors in both sentences very pleasing and delicate. And to me it really showed that Pacat, if she really tied, could write something with more emotional depth and meaning, which is what I wanted SO BADLY from this series.
Overall, I don't think I'd recommend this series, and I doubt I'll be returning to it. However, I'm happy to be finished with it and able to move on to something else.
-----
FOR MORE BOOK REVIEWS, PHOTOGRAPHY, AND MY OWN NOVELS, CHECK OUT MY WEBSITE:
http://michaeljohnhalse.wixsite.com/michaeljohnhalse