Reviews tagging 'Violence'

Captive Prince by C.S. Pacat

222 reviews

madscientistcat's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5


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booksthatburn's review against another edition

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ciuli's review against another edition

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

3.25

Look, I have to say that if you manage to ignore 90% of the story and the plot and only focus on the main characters, then I could probably say that this book was enjoyable. 

The whole first part of the book made me wish I could scrub my brain with soap just so I could forget everything that I had read so far. While I do understand that the whole plot of this book surrounds slavery and how they are the slaves are treated depending on the country's culture, I also believe that having people casually rape each other every now and then could have easily been avoided. 
I knew what kind of themes I would have encountered reading this book, I had read some reviews here and there, but it felt like reading glorified porn in some parts and that's just something I don't like, but that's my taste and my opinion. 

Regarding the characters, boy did I NOT like Damen, AT ALL! 
man had me wishing I could slap him irl, and a the time he was supposed to be the one I felt pity for! He is completely disconnected from the real world, thinks his country and people are so much better than everyone else just because they treat their slaves better, while completely missing the point considering how they do have slaves as well 😭 

I like Laurent, I like his scheming mind and how smart he is with everything, I like how he is always 10 steps ahead of you and you don't even know it. Is he a perfect character? Absolutely not, he almost had someone rapes in front of him and almost flogged Damen to death, but we know there's more to it and I'm curios to see what's to come! 

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sarahndipitous_reads's review against another edition

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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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anghara94's review against another edition

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

5.0


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bookishstevie's review against another edition

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3.0


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lilyoliviareads's review against another edition

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dark sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Respectfully wtf did I just read 😂 

This is not my usual kind of book but the series hails as one of the best examples of enemies to lovers on the market, thus I am along for the journey. 

I would highly recommend checking trigger warnings as there are some truly vile things that happen/are insinuated in this book.

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shrikebait's review against another edition

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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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daisymadeli's review against another edition

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dark emotional tense slow-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? Yes

4.0

This book will take some time to process. For being on the shorter side, it is dense with content and requires plenty of trigger warnings. And yet, there is something subtly beautiful about the book and the story, and I am intrigued by the next step for Damen and Laurent. Although I can see the big moments coming, I am not disappointed by that and I know that there will be so much interwoven in the interim. The book is brutal and a bit perverse but there is something special coming. 

And war. War is on its way. 

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alvyv's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark medium-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? Yes

2.5

Eh.

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