Reviews tagging 'Blood'

Captive Prince by C.S. Pacat

67 reviews

sarahndipitous_reads's review against another edition

dark 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

5.0

One of the best introductions to an enemies to lovers romance I’ve read in ages. Very dark and explicit, so be sure to check trigger warnings before reading. Book one is excellent at setting up the series with interesting politics and world building that had me not minding there wasn’t any romantic development. This is a slowburn to end all slowburns and it is pure perfection.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, and Violence

Moderate: Blood

Minor: Pedophilia, Rape, Murder, and Fire/Fire injury

shrikebait's review against another edition

dark slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

I checked this title out from my local library as it seems to be a right of passage for lovers of queer fantasy. 

I went in expecting a MM dark fantasy erotic thriller based on the blurb. While this is absolutely a fantasy book, I don't find it romantic or particularly erotic, even in a taboo sense. There are quite a bit of NC erotic tropes in the first half, but they never really pay off and aren't a consistent theme later in the book. 

Speaking of taboo...A particular ick comes in the form of a child character who is groomed as a s*x sl*ve. Rather than recognizing the horror this concept SHOULD evoke, the story portrays him as a spoiled brat, older than his years. No, thank you. 

While I enjoy the attention to detail in the clothing and customs of this world, I feel this aspect falls flat without a cohesive plot. Initially, I thought the plot was supposed to take a backseat to the erotic elements...but when the eroticism didn't pay off, I was left with characters who lacked consistent motivations and a less-than-compelling plot. 

With all this in mind, I'm not particularly interested in the next book. I might change my mind if y'all think it's a move in the right direction for the series.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Murder, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, and Violence

Minor: Blood

nikki_saulnier's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Slavery

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Incest, Pedophilia, Torture, Violence, Blood, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, War, and Injury/Injury detail

lou702's review against another edition

challenging dark tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This book has very explicit and heavy topics in it. I did not enjoy those part but they made the experience of the book different and made it worthwhile, since the characters are acting and reacting on those parts, which makes it bearable and better to read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Trafficking, Murder, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Cursing, and Blood

icfasntw's review against another edition

adventurous dark medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

QUICK PITCH: A prince is deposed by his brother. Adding insult to injury, he is secretly sent to serve as a slave for his royal counterpart in an enemy court. Intrigue and feelings ensue. 

VERDICT: Damen is a great fish out of water, Laurent is a perfect snake in tall grass, and the intrigue is twisty enough to keep me interested without being too complicated to follow. A perfect book to read in a hammock. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Confinement, Death, Pedophilia, Slavery, Violence, and Blood

Minor: Rape and Death of parent

lunahale's review against another edition

tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

i read this for the first time a few years ago, but by the first twenty pages of my reread, i realized that i didn’t remember ANY of this. some names were familiar and i remember the basic plot but everything else felt new. so it was fun to read this again, and i’m happy i did. i remember likening the second and third books more so i’m excited to keep going

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Slavery

Moderate: Torture, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail

issyharvey's review against another edition

challenging dark medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Trafficking, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Confinement, Pedophilia, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Incest, Miscarriage, Torture, Abortion, Death of parent, Gaslighting, and War

marimaia's review against another edition

dark tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

laurent repeated the question slowly in the language of akielos. 
the words came out before he could stop them. ‘i speak your language better than you speak mine, sweetheart.’

Relendo depois de 3? anos e não lembrava como o primeiro era leeeento, mas mesmo assim eu sei que ajuda a entender tudo o que vem depois então continua sendo bom. Não consigo não perceber as semelhanças entre Damen/Neil e Laurent/Andrew e isso só faz eu amar eles mais ainda. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Confinement, Death, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Blood, Murder, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

danteeeh's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Slavery

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Trafficking, Kidnapping, and War

Minor: Animal death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Infidelity, Violence, Xenophobia, Trafficking, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

goddess_of_mars's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious 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? Yes

5.0

I absolutely adore this book. I don't know how it's not super famous now, but it's got everything. It's slowburn enemies to lovers, the characters are interesting and you never know what they pull next. I love the world it's set into and the way the author is not afraid to show a different society than we are used to.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Slavery, Torture, and Blood

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Death, Rape, and Sexual violence