C.S. Pacat - Kings Rising

His identity now revealed, Damen must face his master Prince Laurent as Damianos of Akielos, the man Laurent has sworn to kill.
On the brink of a momentous battle, the future of both their countries hangs in the balance. In the south, Kastor's forces are massing. In the north, the Regent's armies are mobilising for war. Damen's only hope of reclaiming his throne is to fight together with Laurent against their usurpers.
Forced into an uneasy alliance the two princes journey deep into Akielos, where they face their most dangerous opposition yet. But even if the fragile trust they have built survives the revelation of Damen's identity - can it stand against the Regent's final, deadly play for the throne?

Comment: This is the conclusion of the Captive Prince trilogy by author CS Pacat. I keep thinking books 1 and 2 shouldn't have been divided because they look like one big book that was split for size reasons. This third book is a nice end to everything, though.

In this final installment, Damen is recognized as Akielos true king and after that he meets Laurent again already with his identity revealed. Laurent too wants to get the throne of Vere and they decide that joining forces would help both their causes even more and they have a plan to defeat the Regent and Kastor.

But will the new truths change their relationship? Can Damen aspire to anything else but scorn from Laurent?

And can we finally understand what Laurent has been planning all this time?

I'm happy with this book. I think it was  a nice conclusion to everything and it managed to explain and fix loose ends. Some hopes and doubts readers had were probably solved in ways that most found perfect, I'm sure.

What I appreciated the most in this installment was how we could see and follow the main character's relationship, how slowly but surely that happened. In the first book things were too weird and the social hierarchy portrayed not appealing at all to me, but now they are equals and that is a handy tool to level up the relationship. I enjoyed seeing how simple some explanations were and how obvious some things look after the characters talk about them and, in this case, Laurent knowing who Damen was all along wasn't a surprise for me but it brought a new light into their previous interactions, which adds emotional certainties to everything and that is wonderful.

The emotional journey both have is quite interesting and I must say I'm with those who would have wished Laurent's character to have more POV scenes so we could balance things better and have another perspective on some of his actions.

All the things they must deal with, work out help us to understand their personalities and obviously it's important to see them in certain sets so we can understand why it is important for them to get to their endgames, but the thing I loved the most was how each scene with the two of them was special, even in the beginning when I thought the angst was too much.

The author has a good world building here and interesting facts and scenes to illustrate all the things we need to know so we can defend or not this and that. But I think some situations weren't addressed as I'd have liked and although the bad guys have deserved ends I can't help but feeling that some situations weren't dealt with decisively enough. I'm thinking about the Regent's actions towards his young lovers and how everyone wasn't pleased or accepting but even in the end when it was clear he would be punished somehow, nothing was said about what he did in a way that was assertive or that would pay any moral or character debt he owned...his end was too simple in a way because of this.

In fact, if I had to point out the biggest complain I have about the whole trilogy is how we go through many pages of things we are suppose to infer, supposed to understand, to connect, to read between the lines and when it's explained later on that's great but not as much as it could be if more things were solved with more definition...

I'm happy with this final book, it offered the readers scenes and notions everyone certainly hoped for since the first installment. I liked the way small things and a look or a smile could enrich the princes' lives and even their futures. I have to say it wasn't as positive how the book ended, it was rather abrupt and, despite giving us an idea of a future scenario of happiness - which is great - I think it wasn't enough when I think about all the obstacles they faced until that whether by their own designs or by fate.

However, it appears there are short stories on the way and I hope at least one of those has a happiness stamp on it so we can see how happy the guys truly are.

In the end, this third book was a nice one, but not perfect. I still think it was a good story to read, in fact I was eager to keep reading, something that didn't happen with the same interest in the previous book and certainly even less with the first. I like this had a good and obvious evolution and the romance won me over in the end, so... good job. Let's hope we can see more of them with things already solved and peaceful.

Grade: 8/10

C.S. Pacat - Captive Prince vol. II

 With their countries on the brink of war, Damen and his new master Prince Laurent must exchange the intrigues of the palace for the sweeping might of the battlefield as they travel to the border to avert a lethal plot.
Forced to hide his identity, Damen finds himself drawn to the dangerous, charismatic Laurent. But as the fledgeling trust between the two men deepens, the truth of secrets from both their pasts is poised to deal them the crowning death blow...

Comment: So, this is the second volume in the Captive Prince series by CS Pacat. In this book we see the continuation of prince Laurent and Damen's travel to the border so Laurent can settle and fight against his uncle, the villain.

After becoming a slave and being offered to the enemy country, Damen now feels it's his duty to help Laurent because of several circumstances but he plans to get away after Laurent is settled. He knows - and Laurent knows too - things won't be simple because there are those who will want to stop Laurent from being considered worthy but he will try to be someone Laurent can trust. Laurent is very clever, always thinks ahead and despite his cold demeanor he must have feelings. Damen starts to see Laurent's vulnerable side even if they never talk about it or why.

But there are more obstacles to overcome and maybe the result won't be what either of them wants, especially when it becomes clear Damen still wants freedom...or does he?

Many people seem to love this series. Although, like I said in my previous comment about first volume, this feels weird being divided. If only I had gotten that before, I would have waited for a full length edition after volume 3 is out. I really think this would be a great book if we could read everything together.

To be honest, I feel this story isn't as emotional or thrilling as I imagined from all the hype. The plot elements are quite interesting, the characters' motivations and behavior too but the way things happen doesn't feel very exciting to me.

I still liked this second part better than the first. More things happen, the romance develops but some characters seem to be there just to play a part and prove an idea and I don't think that is as captivating as it would if they had really mattered somehow.

For instance, there is one character who acts a certain way but then we realize something bad about that person. The way things happen I got the idea that character only existed to prove a point, that Laurent is clever and anticipates certain moves. Ok, that's fine, but then that diminishes the strength that character had, his actions no longer matter. Why bother...we all know people commit treason... oh well.

Apparently one of the things most readers enjoy is Laurent's cleverness and hidden depths. Humm how wonderful it would be if we could see it firsthand with his own POV! I do understand the POV tactics but knowing everything from Damen as a way to make us think too gets boring after a while...

Laurent and Damen's relationship must be the most interesting subject in this series and how will Laurent react when he finds out Damen is the person who killed his beloved brother? This is not a spoiler, it's known from the first chapters of the first volume. Some readers have the theory Laurent already knows this (he does have the ability to know many things beforehand but only sharing that way after) so it will be interesting to see if it's correct. If he doesn't then I'm sure it will add up to the drama. Personally I think he should know just to make things move faster.

As for the veracity of their feelings...obviously we only have Damen's POV and he seems to be falling in love, or already being so, but it's difficult to have a certainty about Laurent. I actually like this relationship and how slowly it's developing but I don't think the surroundings or their personalities are that special or unique to make this as amazing as so many other seem to look at it.

Ok, everyone's different and we focus on different elements as the ones that should matter, but still... for me, this is interesting, I'm looking for to see them happy or at least with some sort of commitment, but it's not a novelty in the genre, not it is my favorite m/m story ever. Maybe the final part will be so amazing that I'll change my mind, but so far...

The execution of this book, the way things happen and why isn't that appealing to me. I like the world created, the fact things work a certain way but the characters alone don't entice me completely and with a not so brilliant world exposed, I feel this isn't as fantastic as it could be. It doesn't mean it's bad, because it's actually good in many things, the author put an effort and thought clever and interesting things, but for me it isn't the amazingness I expected. This second part reads better than the first, I did like the focus on the romance and sexual tension better, but overall, it's not quite there yet, for me. Let's see if the final volume is as epic as it promises and if the romance has a happy ending.

This second part of the story is a generous seven for me.

Grade: 7/10

C. S. Pacat - Captive Prince

Damen is a warrior hero to his people, and the truthful heir to the throne of Akielos, but when his half brother seizes power, Damen is captured, stripped of his identity and sent to serve the prince of an enemy nation as a pleasure slave.
Beautiful, manipulative and deadly, his new master Prince Laurent epitomizes the worst of the court at Vere. But in the lethal political web of the Veretian court, nothing is as it seems, and when Damen finds himself caught up in a play for the throne, he must work together with Laurent to survive and save his country.
For Damen, there is just one rule: never, ever reveal his true identity. Because the one man Damen needs is the one man who has more reason to hate him than anyone else...

Comment: This series has had so many reviews and people talking about it, I decided to try it. I've read this first volume this month, I'm reading the second one in November and will await for the third next year, as everyone else is doing.

This is the story of Damen, a prince in his country of Akielos, who's betrayed by his older brother who wants power and the throne. Damen is sent to Vere, an enemy country, as a slave. He is to be gifted to Laurent, their prince, someone described as cold and manipulative. He can't say anything not only because they are enemies but also because Laurent's brother, the heir to Vere and a good man apparently, was killed in battle... by Damen.

Can Damen survive in such a corrupted and unfair society? Can he actually do something, even in captivity, to help his people and even the man he now has to answer to?

This book is based on a great idea, not exactly new, but interesting. As soon as I knew this would feature a master/slave relationship without, apparently!, BDSM tones, I was quite eager to read it too and see what all the fuss was about.

I have to confess I expected something more romantic, even if not really explicit right away, and certainly much more intriguing and well developed. To be honest, this story didn't feel as amazing as everyone seems to think. It was rather simple and despite the world's descriptions and workings, the main characters didn't strike me as fascinating or that special...

This is the first volume of a trilogy and it shows. I wonder why this is divided, I assume it won't make that much sense as three books, not like it would as a whole book. I get it, it's easier to talk about it if you have to wait, easier to market too, but does that mean it's a sound strategy to divide it? Personally, I wouldn't say it is, because the story is divided so the "momentum" stops until the next book but then each one wouldn't make that much sense. I already got the first two but if I could go back in time I'd wait to get the whole thing completed and in one edition. Oh well.

As far as the plot goes, I wasn't very surprised, there's nothing absolutely new to make me think how wonderful everything is. In terms of world development and relationships I've read other books featuring couples with different status and origins that sounded much better. I'll reserve full judgment until I've read the three books, but based on the first one, I wonder why it's such a discussed book. Sure, it's interesting, many good details, but as a whole not that amazing.

 

Damen and Laurent are characters interesting enough but here's another thing that I wish were different: why is this told only through Damen's POV? I really understand why but in romances it's always so much better to have both protagonists' POV. I also don't think this is balanced enough to counterpart that aspect out of the whole.

Damen isn't used to be a slave of course, and in part he behaves a certain way because it fits his purposes, but  thinking about the whole story I expected different responses to what was being done to him. I also expected a more romantic vive or tone to exist. His relationship with Laurent is obviously going to be a slow one but because we only have his POV it's not clear how real such relationship really is, despite any mutual favors exchanged.

Laurent seems to be very cold and aloof and I think having his POV would be wonderful. I get it that slowly learning about him, at the same pace Damen does is supposed to make us change our minds and appreciate the depth of his personality but sincerely I think it's just conveniently easier to develop some things that way. I'm curious to see Laurent's romantic side and I really hope it does exist at the end of this.

 

This installment, so to speak, ended in what I assume to be a very strategic manner, and the balance between the two men is changing. That's positive, but so far it hasn't won me over. I really hope the next part will be more romantic and dedicated to their relationship and personalities. Otherwise, what does it matter if they change their countries? The rules? The cultural aspects? If this is the goal to everything, that is. I'll be waiting to see how things go.

Grade: 6/10