Captive Prince

This book is fast-paced: within the first chapter, the titular captive prince, Damon, is enslaved, stripped of his royal identity, and gifted to Laurent, the young prince of a decadent foreign court. Damon, yet another straightforward soldier type (they pair so well with the slippery types), is immediately caught up in the byzantine machinations of Laurent and his uncle and is hilariously out of his depth without ever seeming to realize it.

I appreciate Damon, but I adore Laurent. He is so snarky and cool-headed, running absolute rings around Damon and playing the game like a champion despite the very… show more.

Prince Damen of Akielos vows never to reveal his true identity to his captor, Laurent, no matter how he humiliates and degrades him. This is a dark, fascinating, smutty fantasy with serious worldbuilding and loads of intrigue, in which no one is what he seems.

It is the purest example of an enemies-to-lovers romance I know, and such a slow burn that there’s not even a hint of a chance of a love story until the second book. I had no idea where this series was taking me when I began it, but I couldn’t put it down. Great fun.

If you are into hurt/comfort, this is the series for you.

The slowest of burns, sprinkled with trauma, political intrigue, and a true enemies-to-lovers scenario, this trilogy had me at the edge of my seat until I’d finished every single one. Now, I usually can’t handle too much angst in my day-to-day reads, however, this series had me “listening to the audiobook while at my desk during the day” committed.

It’s heavy and intense, but beautiful and worth the read.

I enjoyed the characters and story so much, from the details of warfare to Laurent’s cutting remarks, from Damen’s internal conflict (that just kept growing) to the forced proximity trope played out so hilariously on a balcony.

I especially loved how their relationship evolved over the course of the trilogy. The slow-burn, enemies-to-lovers arc was a treat to read. This is the only fantasy series that, for me, lives up to the hype.