414 books
—
503 voters
Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read.
Start by marking “Captive Prince (Captive Prince, #1)” as Want to Read:
Captive Prince
(Captive Prince #1)
by
From global phenomenon C. S. Pacat comes the first in her critically acclaimed trilogy—with a bonus story.
Damen is a warrior hero to his people, and the rightful 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 ...more
Damen is a warrior hero to his people, and the rightful 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 ...more
Get A Copy
Paperback, 270 pages
Published
April 7th 2015
by Berkley
(first published February 2nd 2013)
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
Reader Q&A
Community Reviews
Showing 1-30

Start your review of Captive Prince (Captive Prince, #1)

CW: rape, sexual slavery
Sexual slavery isn’t sexy. Corporal punishment isn’t sexy. Rape isn’t sexy, and it certainly isn’t entertainment.
There are so many things wrong with Captive Prince, it’s hard to know where to start. I’m having trouble understanding how this book can be praised by so many people.
I love seeing queer relationships in books, but the characters in Captive Prince are either sex slave owners or sex slaves themselves. Personally, I don’t think that’s the kind of “relationship” w ...more
Sexual slavery isn’t sexy. Corporal punishment isn’t sexy. Rape isn’t sexy, and it certainly isn’t entertainment.
There are so many things wrong with Captive Prince, it’s hard to know where to start. I’m having trouble understanding how this book can be praised by so many people.
I love seeing queer relationships in books, but the characters in Captive Prince are either sex slave owners or sex slaves themselves. Personally, I don’t think that’s the kind of “relationship” w ...more

Oct 21, 2014
Navessa
rated it
it was amazing
·
review of another edition
Recommended to Navessa by:
Heather K (dentist in my spare time)
WARNING: I'VE BEEN DRINKING.
*hiccup*
You know-
*gestures with wine glass*
*sloshes some over the side*
I mean, this book-
*licks wine off fingers*
*tries to refocus*
What was I saying? Oh, yeah. This fucking book, man.
*takes another sip*
There's Damen. A prince betrayed by his bastard of a brother. Sold into slavery to an enemy nation.
*stumbles up to standing*
And do you know what? You know who he's fucking sold to?
*raises voice*
To an even bigger bastard than his brother!
*sits back down*
A prince name ...more
*hiccup*
You know-
*gestures with wine glass*
*sloshes some over the side*
I mean, this book-
*licks wine off fingers*
*tries to refocus*
What was I saying? Oh, yeah. This fucking book, man.
*takes another sip*
There's Damen. A prince betrayed by his bastard of a brother. Sold into slavery to an enemy nation.
*stumbles up to standing*
And do you know what? You know who he's fucking sold to?
*raises voice*
To an even bigger bastard than his brother!
*sits back down*
A prince name ...more

Feb 06, 2016
Khanh, first of her name, mother of bunnies
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
I don't read m/m fiction. It's not because I'm homophobic in any way (julio would beat my ass down if I were), it's just that it's not a genre to which I gravitate.
For example, I don't read new adult. I don't read chick lit. I don't read m/m. It's simple as that. I prefer the romance in my books to be something that I can relate to, and I feel that for me, a romance would be more realistic if it's m/f. A book has to be completely amazing to change my mind about an m/m romance, and this book, wh ...more
For example, I don't read new adult. I don't read chick lit. I don't read m/m. It's simple as that. I prefer the romance in my books to be something that I can relate to, and I feel that for me, a romance would be more realistic if it's m/f. A book has to be completely amazing to change my mind about an m/m romance, and this book, wh ...more

For Romance month at my blog, I decided to take the opportunity to read something I wouldn't normally pick - this highly-praised M/M Fantasy Romance.
The first thing you should know: this is a character-driven story. I think you will enjoy it as long as you don't go into it expecting a lot of grand world-building. The focus of this book - indeed, the whole series, it would seem - is on the relationship between two men, and their relationships with other royals, guards and slaves around them.
As ro ...more
The first thing you should know: this is a character-driven story. I think you will enjoy it as long as you don't go into it expecting a lot of grand world-building. The focus of this book - indeed, the whole series, it would seem - is on the relationship between two men, and their relationships with other royals, guards and slaves around them.
As ro ...more

I’m aware that “Captive Prince” is a highly controversial book and I know that many people have a lot of mixed feelings about it. As it seems you either hate it or you love it. There is no in-between. I think most of that is due to the fact that it deals with subjects we feel very uncomfortable with. Our modern minds have a tendency to shy away from those kinds of things, but just because a book makes you feel disgusted and angry, this still doesn’t automatically mean that it’s a bad book. Sure,
...more

Nov 07, 2012
Heather K (dentist in my spare time)
rated it
it was amazing
·
review of another edition
*ONLY $1.99 TODAY AT AMAZON US! This is not a drill! 9/3/19 https://www.amazon.com/Captive-Prince...*
This book owned me today, completely owned me.
I just have to give S. U. Pacat a huge round of applause. I was 100% drawn into "Captive Prince". It is going to be hard to write a review of just Volume 1 because I read them back to back like a rabid fan-girl so I'll just review them together. It was like my eyes were glued to my phone today. I wouldn't and couldn't stop reading.
I won't rehash the ...more
This book owned me today, completely owned me.
I just have to give S. U. Pacat a huge round of applause. I was 100% drawn into "Captive Prince". It is going to be hard to write a review of just Volume 1 because I read them back to back like a rabid fan-girl so I'll just review them together. It was like my eyes were glued to my phone today. I wouldn't and couldn't stop reading.
I won't rehash the ...more

This might get -a tad- salty.
Well... I don’t know what the fuck to make of this book but suffice it to say I finally understand why many find it polarising.
The characters were boring and one-dimensional as shit. The plot was profoundly lacking. Or more like, there was NONE. What the fuck is a story without a well rounded, well constructed plot anyway? And if you can’t deliver on a good plot at least have some interesting characters to keep the reader engaged.
This was just... please excuse my l ...more
Well... I don’t know what the fuck to make of this book but suffice it to say I finally understand why many find it polarising.
The characters were boring and one-dimensional as shit. The plot was profoundly lacking. Or more like, there was NONE. What the fuck is a story without a well rounded, well constructed plot anyway? And if you can’t deliver on a good plot at least have some interesting characters to keep the reader engaged.
This was just... please excuse my l ...more

Feb 22, 2016
Caz (littlebookowl)
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
owned
TRIGGER WARNING: rape, physical abuse, pedophilia
I am so excited to continue with the next book, the way things ended I can tell that things are going to pick up and get REALLY intense!
I am so excited to continue with the next book, the way things ended I can tell that things are going to pick up and get REALLY intense!

Mar 14, 2017
V. A Court of Wings and Ruin is NEW ADULT/EROTICA but Goodreads editors won't tell you to include it in the choice awards
rated it
did not like it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
abusive,
pleasegrowupman,
cliffhanger,
own,
dark,
excruciating,
greatwriting,
pedophilia,
misogynism,
misogynist
TRIGGER WARNINGS ALERT Stay away from this one if you prefer safe reads. Don't read my review if the word "rape" makes you unconfortable, because I use it a lot, because this book has a lot of that.

I don't recommend this if you feel uncomfortable reading about:
Pedophilia (view spoiler) ...more

I don't recommend this if you feel uncomfortable reading about:
Pedophilia (view spoiler) ...more

'Captive Prince' has been on my radar for a long time now. I have seen a plethora of glowing reviews from friends that have loved this series. As curious as I was, I kept putting off reading this series because M/M reads aren't really my thing. However, my curiosity finally got the best of me and I downloaded the first audiobook in the series.
The rest is history! I blew through all three audiobooks in a couple of days, listening to them back to back until I had devoured the entire series. This ...more
The rest is history! I blew through all three audiobooks in a couple of days, listening to them back to back until I had devoured the entire series. This ...more

More like a 3.5, I had some issues with it, but OMG. IT WAS GOOD! I'm gonna marathon the trilogy!
...more

okay. well. its not too difficult to figure out why this book isnt for everyone and i completely understand why its so polarising.
there are so many sensitive and taboo topics, but i dont think its done distastefully. this is seriously the slowest of slow burns, and i think thats important. had the relationship between damen and laurent developed more quickly, it probably would have been off-putting.
as far as the story goes, its intriguing and unlike anything i have read before. there is a nice ...more
there are so many sensitive and taboo topics, but i dont think its done distastefully. this is seriously the slowest of slow burns, and i think thats important. had the relationship between damen and laurent developed more quickly, it probably would have been off-putting.
as far as the story goes, its intriguing and unlike anything i have read before. there is a nice ...more

Holy. Shit. Folks.
I was so disappointed in this book.
I've been meaning to write a review for this for a while because there is an OVERWHELMING amount of positivity surrounding the series and I just...
WHY???
The plot was vapid beyond belief. The first 3/4 of the story goes practically nowhere and is made up of lots of weird sex and torture.
Contrived elements that were meant to make you feel desperation & sadness? They only succeeded in making me feel bitter and unconvinced.
The big reveal at th ...more
I was so disappointed in this book.
I've been meaning to write a review for this for a while because there is an OVERWHELMING amount of positivity surrounding the series and I just...
WHY???
The plot was vapid beyond belief. The first 3/4 of the story goes practically nowhere and is made up of lots of weird sex and torture.
Contrived elements that were meant to make you feel desperation & sadness? They only succeeded in making me feel bitter and unconvinced.
The big reveal at th ...more

Reviewed by: Rabid Reads
If you haven't been seeing/hearing the buzz surrounding THE CAPTIVE PRINCE by C.S. Pacat, you've probably been living under a rock. I'd seen it EVERYWHERE, even before one of my favorite authors recommended it in her newsletter (<------why I finally caved).
My impression before reading it was that it was some kind of pseudo-fantasy/MM/BDSM mashup . . . and that impression was fairly accurate.
Not my typical choice of reading material, but HYPE. And CURIOSITY. *shakes fist a ...more
If you haven't been seeing/hearing the buzz surrounding THE CAPTIVE PRINCE by C.S. Pacat, you've probably been living under a rock. I'd seen it EVERYWHERE, even before one of my favorite authors recommended it in her newsletter (<------why I finally caved).
My impression before reading it was that it was some kind of pseudo-fantasy/MM/BDSM mashup . . . and that impression was fairly accurate.
Not my typical choice of reading material, but HYPE. And CURIOSITY. *shakes fist a ...more
![destiny ♡⚔♡ [howling libraries]](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1557144778p2/15335689.jpg)
Jun 01, 2017
destiny ♡⚔♡ [howling libraries]
rated it
it was amazing
Recommended to destiny ♡⚔♡ by:
Jue.
Shelves:
diverse-reads,
tough-topics,
owned-physical,
fantasy,
adult,
audio,
lgbtqiap,
the-best-of-the-best,
owned-audio
#1 Captive Prince ★★★★★
#2 Prince's Gambit ★★★★★
#3 King's Rising ★★★★★
3rd read update, june 2019: I love this series more and more every single time I read it. ♥
original review, december 2017:
Let me begin this review by saying that these are just my opinions and I am, in no way, about to glorify rape or abuse. I am a survivor myself, and I'm fully aware that this book bothered a lot of people. I would never question another reader's rating of this book, though, and I'm just going to ask you guys ...more

Compelling Reading...I was totally engrossed from start to finish....5 Fabulous Stars
Captive Prince, literally captivated me! this is amazing storytelling and I can honestly say I picked it up to read and did not put it down until both book 1 and book 2 were finished.....it was 5am, but I was hooked! These 2 books are FREE, yes, can you believe it, such a great story is free to read. The only down side is that there is no news on book 3 yet, however I have noticed that she will be publishin ...more

Captive Prince, literally captivated me! this is amazing storytelling and I can honestly say I picked it up to read and did not put it down until both book 1 and book 2 were finished.....it was 5am, but I was hooked! These 2 books are FREE, yes, can you believe it, such a great story is free to read. The only down side is that there is no news on book 3 yet, however I have noticed that she will be publishin ...more

Buddy Reread March 2019. Loved it even more.
5++++++++ stars
Oh dear Lord, Zeus, Poseidon and Thor forgive me because I actually loved this book. The book does not shy away from sensitive subjects like rape, slavery, flogging, public humiliation. And yet I could not stop reading it, and the writing was sooo goood!, this book got my attention from page 1.

Before you read just know that when they refer to a pet, they don’t mean a cute dog or a sassy lazy cat that sleeps all day and looks at you with ...more
5++++++++ stars
Oh dear Lord, Zeus, Poseidon and Thor forgive me because I actually loved this book. The book does not shy away from sensitive subjects like rape, slavery, flogging, public humiliation. And yet I could not stop reading it, and the writing was sooo goood!, this book got my attention from page 1.

Before you read just know that when they refer to a pet, they don’t mean a cute dog or a sassy lazy cat that sleeps all day and looks at you with ...more

Readers,what do I say about this book??
Power. Brilliance. Excellence. All delivered in one perfect package.
This is fiction at its finest!!!
Captive Prince.....
This is what they mean when they say that a book has the ability to transport you to worlds beyond!!
And was I ever???
This one gripped me in it's powerful clutches,and did not let go.This is what I look for in a book.
This book entranced,enchanted and devoured me.
And I loved every minute of it!!
------------------------------------ ...more

I neither loved nor hated this book and I was surprised about that since it tends to bring out very strong emotions in people.
I'm going to be doing a full review on this book, but wanted to touch on a few things here since it is such a controversial read.
Firstly, I've always planned on reading this entire series regardless of if I hated the first book. Especially because this series should honestly just be one book. All of the books are short enough to combine.
Secondly, yes OBVIOUSLY trigger ...more
I'm going to be doing a full review on this book, but wanted to touch on a few things here since it is such a controversial read.
Firstly, I've always planned on reading this entire series regardless of if I hated the first book. Especially because this series should honestly just be one book. All of the books are short enough to combine.
Secondly, yes OBVIOUSLY trigger ...more

Dec 23, 2012
Julio Genao
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
everyone with a pulse.
Recommended to Julio by:
Susan
Shelves:
loved
glorious.
review to come; the bonus story at the end of this edition has rendered me completely useless.
holy shit.
______________
previously:

watch me twerk it to da left! twerk it to da left! twerk, twerk, tw-twerk it to da left!
______________
previously:
fucking awesome.
dafuksit with these ozzie writers kickin' ass? lisa henry, s.u. pacat... (also: supacat. niiiiice. [ETA: author has since chosen the pseudonym C.S. Pacat]).
can't even be troubled to write a full review. i've got volume two to read.
m ...more
review to come; the bonus story at the end of this edition has rendered me completely useless.
holy shit.
______________
previously:

watch me twerk it to da left! twerk it to da left! twerk, twerk, tw-twerk it to da left!
______________
previously:
fucking awesome.
dafuksit with these ozzie writers kickin' ass? lisa henry, s.u. pacat... (also: supacat. niiiiice. [ETA: author has since chosen the pseudonym C.S. Pacat]).
can't even be troubled to write a full review. i've got volume two to read.
m ...more

Jul 19, 2016
Judith
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Recommended to Judith by:
ravngirl ((prv. Jxsxph.k))
4 Stars.



This has been on my radar for so long.The ridiculous price but me off,so I was so happy when a friend lent me this series.
I read a few reviews and a lot mentioned sex slave so I was expecting maybe a bit of bondage?....maybe a bit of sexual coercion?
Well,there's none of that,in fact there's ..
No romance
It's not erotic
But there is a very hedonistic feel to the book.
I'll keep this brief because there are already some fantastic reviews out there.
Damen is the heir to the throne of Akielos an ...more



This has been on my radar for so long.The ridiculous price but me off,so I was so happy when a friend lent me this series.
I read a few reviews and a lot mentioned sex slave so I was expecting maybe a bit of bondage?....maybe a bit of sexual coercion?
Well,there's none of that,in fact there's ..
No romance
It's not erotic
But there is a very hedonistic feel to the book.
I'll keep this brief because there are already some fantastic reviews out there.
Damen is the heir to the throne of Akielos an ...more

A burn so slow, it'll have you screaming at your Kindle! I loved it....more
Now, this is what I expected from Sanderson's Warbreaker. This is political intrigue at it's finest. Think Gladiator or Hamlet (sans ghost). The plot was multi-faceted, with characters who were authentic and perfectly placed.
Damen aka Damianos, the rightful heir to the throne of Akielos finds himself serving as a slave to, Laurent, the beautiful Prince of Vere. How did he get there? Well, you need to read the book.
Laurent is o

Reread: 7th June 2018
Oh, what I wouldn’t give to relive this story for the very first time again. 😌 Laurent and Damen are the perfect epitome of my book boyfriends’ standards. 😍 The plotting, scheming, treachery, spying, danger, love, romance, suspense and a mystery, this trilogy has it all. No wonder it was considered one of the greatest MM fantasy romance trilogy of all times. 👏 D&L still certainly is my all time favorite couple. If I could only wish one thing and it would come true, I’d certa ...more
Oh, what I wouldn’t give to relive this story for the very first time again. 😌 Laurent and Damen are the perfect epitome of my book boyfriends’ standards. 😍 The plotting, scheming, treachery, spying, danger, love, romance, suspense and a mystery, this trilogy has it all. No wonder it was considered one of the greatest MM fantasy romance trilogy of all times. 👏 D&L still certainly is my all time favorite couple. If I could only wish one thing and it would come true, I’d certa ...more

Jul 17, 2013
Val ⚓️ Shameless Non-Snowflake ⚓️
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Recommended to Val ⚓️ Shameless Non-Snowflake ⚓️ by:
Lola
Re-read 2/6/15...because book 3 finally came out and - not gonna lie - I can't remember SHIT about books 1 and 2...My bad!
Original Review:
This will be short because my laptop is dying and, quite frankly, I'm feeling lazy as shit.
Tah-Fucking-Dah.
I went into this knowing it was more political intrigue and less m/m romance... I just didn't think it would be ALL political intrigue and NO m/m romance.
Obviously, the seeds have been planted for future shenanigans, but anyway, that's my onl ...more
Original Review:
This will be short because my laptop is dying and, quite frankly, I'm feeling lazy as shit.

Tah-Fucking-Dah.
I went into this knowing it was more political intrigue and less m/m romance... I just didn't think it would be ALL political intrigue and NO m/m romance.

Obviously, the seeds have been planted for future shenanigans, but anyway, that's my onl ...more

“For a prince, learning the words of an enemy was as important as learning the words of a friend.”
Why didn’t I read this FANTASTIC book before??
OMG, I’m in love. ❤️
IS SO FUCKING GOOD!!!
The story, the writing, the characters, the romance, the friendships, the politics, the development, how everything was dealt with and literally everything else was PERFECT.
Oh man, I’m in love. This is definitely on the list of my FAVORITE trilogy of all bloody freaking time.
“Trying to imagine Kastor plot
...more
Sep 26, 2014
Alienor ✘ French Frowner ✘
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Recommended to Alienor ✘ French Frowner ✘ by:
Lola

TRIGGER WARNING : graphic violence, rape, slavery
4.5 stars. Oh, the dilemma. Review it? Jump on book 2? Review it? Jump on book 2? Review it? Jump on book 2?
Eenie meenie miney mo
Catch a tiger by the toe
If he hollars let him go
Eenie meenie miney mo
Oh, screw it. I swear that I'll write a real review of Captive Prince: Volume One because Helloooo, it deserves ones, but for now my excitation and eagerness to freaking KNOW what will happen leads me to shorten my ramble and only give you reduced info ...more

“A golden prince was easy to love if you did not have to watch him picking wings off flies.”
If this book was a person it would be:

I mean. This book was full of depravity and brutality and cunning characters. And just plain ol'fucked up.
And what's worse?
I enjoyed it. A lot.

And at times, it was even quite funny. I laughed. Some parts were so twisted I really just couldn't help myself.

Let's get something straight. I don't enjoy the topics of slavery, torture, rape, sadism ...more

OBSESSED. <-me.
Captive Prince (Vol. 1) took the sharpest hook it could find and dug it deep into me and just pulled me along wherever it wanted to go.
The writing: phenomenal
The world-building: detailed & fascinating
The characters: deliciously layered
The story: political intrigue and mind-fuckery at its best
I was in a mild haze of confusion some of the time…there are a LOT of characters and countries and deceptive alliances and loyalties. But, if you just play along, it all starts to make sense a ...more


Instagram || Twitter || Facebook || Amazon || Pinterest
This was a buddy read with my friends Heather (review here) and Sarah (review here).
C.S. Pacat does with CAPTIVE PRINCE what the bodice rippers of yore did with historical romance, the differences being that (1) this is a fantasy novel and not historical (and not really a romance) and (2) it is about two men. Apart from that, the structure is eerily similar to bodice rippers, from the plot to the role that the characters play to the way ...more
topics | posts | views | last activity | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Somos gente linda...: Lectura Conjunta SEPTIEMBRE | 1 | 6 | Sep 21, 2020 09:14PM | |
Captivated : Laurent's Mother | 9 | 200 | Apr 23, 2019 02:46PM | |
Suggestions MM Romance | 3 | 87 | Feb 04, 2019 06:19PM | |
Dreamcast? | 7 | 218 | May 08, 2018 10:32AM | |
Books similar to Captive Prince trilogy? | 6 | 551 | Nov 03, 2017 12:30PM |
Other books in the series
Captive Prince
(3 books)
News & Interviews
Care to travel to past times for some serious drama? Check out this season's biggest historical fiction novels and be transported to tales of...
75 likes · 21 comments
2 trivia questions
More quizzes & trivia...
“Laurent could inspire homicidal tendencies simply by breathing.”
—
330 likes
“A golden prince was easy to love if you did not have to watch him picking wings off flies.”
—
230 likes
More quotes…