“Captive Prince” by Freece . [original slash, book 1 of 3] . [N10]
"Captive Prince"
26.02
There are no words for how much I love CP. This is not, as per the author's classification, an actual separate book but book 1 of 3 of the same novel. Still, it's 60.000 words and I keep re-reading chapters of book 2 (which is on chapter 27 right now) every time she posts a new one so I definitely need to count it towards my reading totals.
Summary: Damen is the true heir to the throne, but when his half brother seizes power, Damen is captured, stripped of his identity and sent to serve the prince of a rival nation as a pleasure slave.
This rival prince is spoilt, cruel Laurent, who does not take well to having a rebellious slave. But soon enough Damen proves his true value and him and Laurent start, very slowly, to understand each other. It's all from Damen's pov and while he slowly falls from Laurent he has to deal with the fact that if Laurent knew he was the prince of the enemy kingdom, the prince that once killed Laurent's beloved older brother in (supposedly during parley) battle, he would probably have him killed.
The UST is out of this world but that's the tip of the iceberg, there's political intrigues! and crosscultural misunderstandings and a society with enforced homosexuality outside of marriage (of which they don't seem to have any).
Quotes (and spoilers):
♥ "That isn't why. She would have chosen him even if you'd had royal blood in your veins, even if you'd had the same blood as Kastor. You don't understand the way a mind like that thinks. I do. If I were Margaret and a king maker, I'd have chosen Kastor over you too."
"I suppose you are going to enjoy telling me why," said Damen. He felt his hands curl into fists, heard the bitterness in his throat.
"Because a king maker would always choose the weaker man. The weaker the man, the easier he is to control."
Damen felt the shock of surprise, and looked at Laurent only to find Laurent gazing back at him without rancour. The moment stretched out. It wasn't . . . it wasn't what he had expected Laurent to say. As he gazed at Laurent, the words moved through him in unexpected ways, and he felt them touch something jagged-edged within him, felt them shift it a first, tiny fraction, something lodged hard and deep, that he had thought immovable. He said:
"What makes you think Kastor is the weaker man? You don't know him."
"But I'm coming to know you," said Laurent.
. Book 2: Chapter 17
x: recommended, *Fandomer-written, author: freece, *author: female, +gay, #queer literature, +adventures, +bisexuality, +royalty, +family, 2011, book-2011, 2011: novel in english, @read in english, [quotes], [quotes] book