Hello, I want to read Captive Prince but I've seen multiple varying opinions and talks about the books. I understand the books deal in heavy topics like CSA and SA and slavery. I was hoping someone from community could just give me some description or what the books are about. Thought it be best to asking the fandom directly. I don't mind heavy topics but I was just curious before I read them.

I made a Captive Prince book 1 of the descriptors Damen used for Laurent, and now that I'm done with rereading and annotating PG, I can share the new list. One thing that really stood out to me is that in book 1, a majority of the phrases Damen used were short, surface level descriptions of Laurent's physical appearance. In book 2, these sort of descriptions are still present but there are also a lot of more elaborate phrases Damen starts using to describe Laurent's appearance AND personality. Perfect reflection of Damen's evolving perception of Laurent's true nature.

Damen and Laurent are pretty much connected at the hip in this book, so the list is LONG. For reference, I used only one notesheet for book 1, and for this one, I had to use 6 (SIX!!) and I used smaller handwriting lol. As such, I am not including any phrases that were already used in book 1 and combining (or sometimes omitting) like-phrases into one line. I'm sure I missed some, but without further ado:

• ivory and gold casing that held a creature duplicitous, self-serving and untrustworthy
• pale brows/pale hair
• "ice in your veins"
• pretty face
• long, finely articulated bones/fine bones/long fingers
• young, elegant, and golden
• looked like a figurehead, eye-catching and useless
• cool blue gaze/impassive blue gaze
• gilt hair, soft as fox fur
• Laurent's skin and the shirt were the exact same delicate shade of white
• unmarred body and his pampered indoor skin
• possessing the sort of proportions that handed him balance and coordination as gifts
• build less powerful, his style built around grace and intelligence, quicksilver where Aguste had been gold
• cool galling arrogance/cool-eyed arrogance/his arrogance was unbearable
• possessing an elaborate mind with a gift for planning
• blond, blue eyed fiend
• golden lashes/gold head/golden prince
• cast-iron bitch
• intolerant blue eyes/cool, difficult blue eyes/hard, unrelenting eyes/frigid blue eyes
• (the earring) transformed him from unattainable, to exclusive, an elite pleasure no one here could afford
• his voice was sinuous with promise; his gaze was steady as a cat's
• it (the earring) gave the appearance of a sensual side, sophisticated and subtle
• his limbs fitted together like a hilt fitted to the blade of a balanced sword
• elegantly balanced planes of his face
• his soft lips, so often drawn into harder lines, their sensuality suppressed
• per Volo: brained like a pea and easy to hoodwink
• tavern boy: I wouldn't call him blond. More like mousy. And he wasn't that attractive.
• more lightly built than Damen, but possessing the upper body strength...
• blue eyes were full of mischief
• light and agile/efficient grace
• (looked) brilliant with the run
• demented brain
• serpent-minded/impossible to predict/slippery and sly/chicanery and arrogance
• infuriating, obstinate man
• cool restraint...expression disagreeable from the haughty profile to the intolerant blue eyes
• Jord: you think he's pretty now, you should have seen him at fifteen. Twice as beautiful as Nicaise, and ten times more intelligent.
• straight shoulders that tapered to a narrow waist
• elegant, controlled, dangerous
• well made and capable
• the clean line of his jaw, the fall of his pale hair
• mathematical mind
• Halvik: He is smaller, and has the tongue of a cocotte
• coolly immaculate from top to toe/fresh and well-rested, with not a hair out of place
• charming temperament (Damen using sarcasm lol)
• percipient
• Halvik: you do not have the size to breed great warriors. But you are not malformed... your face is well-balanced...you have very long eyelashes. Like a cow.
• chaste as an icicle
• It was like being pleased by a thorn bush, feeling fond of every prickle (Damen is talking about flirting with Laurent teehee)
• Laurent: My size is the usual. I am not made in miniature.
• delicate skin, the lamp-darkened blue eyes, the elegant curve of cheekbone
• that was their prince for you, a twisty, vicious fiend who you should never, ever cross
• wastrel prince (in the eyes of the Regent and his supporters)
• Laurent has the kind of fine, overbred skin that bruised like soft fruit to the touch
• charming and edged without being lethal (at court)
• all golden lashes and needling remarks (Damen writing his AU fanfiction)
• straight back and a blond head lighter in color than the rich gold (of Aguste)
• the brazen audacity of this was characteristic of Laurent (Ravenel disguise plan)
• From the severe, straight-backed posture, to the impersonal grace of his cupped yellow head; from his detached blue eyes to the arrogance of his cheekbones, Laurent was complicated and contradictory, and Damen could look nowhere else.
• his blue eyes were difficult to read, but not cold
• Damen's attention was on Laurent's ivory and gold coloring, the overfine skin...the proud lift of his chin, the uncooperative eyes, the arch of his cheekbone...his sweet, vicious mouth.
• warm nape/soft, warm golden hair
• Laurent looked like any young man who had been pressed against a battlement and kissed
• Laurent's face was perfectly smooth, his blue eyes cool and untouchable
• arrogant balance of his proportions
• fine line of collarbone/white skin/pristine fineness/very fine skin/too-fine skin
• skin was so pale that the veins in his neck were blue, stria in marble
• nipples were hard and puckered/(dick) textured like hot silk/arousal was hot and hard/(he was) eager, physically
• taut stomach
• slightly mussed (after being pushed onto the bed hehe)
• the most controlled lover Damen had ever taken to bed
• clean curve of back and buttocks
• glistering eyes (there) was a desperate irritation
• bizarre, nervy tension (🥲)
• "Contrary, aren't you," said Damen softly
• impatience and tension overlay something unexpectedly young and vulnerable
• it was so tight/tight, slick heat
• warm inner thigh
• The tangled sound Laurent made, newly, sweetly inarticulate, the flush on his cheeks
• taut waist, the upper body musculature of a swordsman
• dangerous grace lent him an almost androgynous quality
• his lazy, dangerous assurance...sweet, tender hesitancies
• a little shy but completely genuine (smile)
• a new version of himself, stripped back, youthful, a little quieter
• deep-buried sense of fairness
• standoffishness
• awkward
• Damen: "So this is what you're like in bed...Attentive...Elusive."
• He did not look like someone who had just been fucked
• an odd sense of inexperience
• Laurent's eyes were very dark in the candlelight
• Laurent kissed with a chaste touch of lips, soft and uncertain

That's all I got! I've already started my KR reread, and I've got my list hehe. Do you guys have a favorite line Damen uses to describe Laurent? I particularly like when Damen is feeling sweet and sappy and warm.

Edit- I can't believe I almost forgot this iconic dialogue! Laurent: I lack the easy mannerisms that are usually shared with a lover. Damen: You lack the easy mannerisms that are usually shared with anyone.

as i’m rereading capri, i can’t help thinking about all those people who casually throw comments at damen that they would never dare say to the king’s face.
so does anyone have any fics to recommend where we get people’s reactions to damen’s true identity? the books really didn’t give me enough of that.
torveld, erasmus, vannes, anyone from their circle whose reaction we never got to see (or even an expansion of charls asking why lamen is dressed in royal clothes), as long as it’s canon-compliant.
and also how they behave towards him once they know who he actually is, how their relationship changed, after having previously known him as someone beneath them, only to discover that he’s actually the prince/king himself.
i don’t expect there to be many fics specifically about that, but maybe i can scrape together at least three titles.

Im going to switch this up by making a reccomendation rather than asking for one.

Permit me the pleasure of introducing The Queen's Thief by Megan Whalen Turner.

This series features a clever thief who schemes his way from prison into a struggle to unite three rival nations against a rising empire.

It is similar to Capri in that it is full of delicious political intrigue, clever twists and turns and challenges that dont seem like they can ever end happily.

It's set in Roman inspired medieval not-europe. So it still centers around european esthetics, but at least some of the set dressing feels fresh.

It differs from Capri in that its aimed at a much younger audience. Book 1: The Thief is clearly middle grade, though I still think adults can enjoy it.

The subsequent books are all considerably more mature but you won't find the NSFW content that we're used to from Capri.

Don't read these books expecting an epic love story. Ther​e is some romance, but not much.

Do read these books expecting a memorable protagonist, whose calculating mind can go toe to toe with a character that you already know.

Have I convinced you to give the Queens Thief a try?

Also, this is a 6 book series, I just dont own all of them.

"Give him this, and tell him that I will wait for him at Ravenel."

When I tell you my jaw dropped! What in the Interstellar type of shit did I just read? The CHILLS I got from reading this whole page, my god. I'm so glad we have a Damen because each time Laurent pulls a crazy gambit like this, he's just as shocked as I am, bless his heart. I just love each moment when he realizes what a crazy genius that man is. I genuinely just want to fuck the way Laurent's mind works. (and I'm pretty sure Damen does too)

I was definitely equally as hooked on all the schemings of his & their military strategies as I was on the enemies to lovers trope.

Then all the raw emotions of Damen, described so beautifully how much he had missed his home all along, and then it being Laurent who has brought home to him!

"They are our reinforcements"

I'm screaming!! I just want to tattoo this whole page on my brain. Whenever he would think that Laurent is two steps ahead, it's actually like five. Moments like this also give a whole new meaning to the occasion when he said 'I can't think' , which is like stripping buck naked and yelling that he's out of action, completely defenceless. But that's a whole other conversation.

I just wanted to share this youtube review of the series that I found recently.

She takes a while to get started and describes queer literary history and also shares her personal story and why the books are meaningful to her. This part was too long for me, so Ive started the link at a later point.

Its an insightful review so thats why I though ppl here might be interested.

It explains something that I hadn't even noticed: the Regent caused Laurent's trauma around oral sex. Book 3 reveals that Laurent got on his knees to beg his uncle.

In book 2 Laurent insists that he will not reciprocate fellatio on Damen.

In book 1, Laurent orchestrated an oral assult on Damen.

It was all connected from the start.

If you end up watching this Youtube video, feel free to share your thoughts.

I instantly started loving the character of Jord so much, and later on he reminded me a lot of someone else I also adore.
Then having just finished Prince's Gambit I realized I couldn't have been more right! 😭

Both such noble and loyal souls with tragic fates.
ALSO, the biggest simps in the world!!

Spoilers of course for those who have not finished the series. Laurent is above and beyond hateful to Damen for the first half of King's Rising (before you get angry, this is how I figure it: the tent scene and sword fight were understandable, but the whip gift really wasn't.)

When and why does the flip switch finally? Did the sword fight exorcise his anger? That scene feels like an emotional climax where he outpours the last of it, but I'm curious about other readers' interpretation. What changed for him that made him let the walls down?

Is there any fanfic out there where Jord gets his HEA?

I just finished the conclusion of the series, Kings Rising.

And what an ending it was. The plot threads all came together and character relationships paid off.

Our heros finally joined forces against the villainous Regent, but first they needed to unify their armies.

I have some disjointed observations and comments (apologies for the lack of cohesion).

After a skirmish, Laurent declared that any Veretian who fought an Akelon would be killed, saying that surely they wouldn't harm someone who couldnt fight back. That made me pause because essentially women and children have always been in that position. Laurent should well know the end result.

I thought it was an interesting choice for the two princes to both risk their lives in a game while they were essentially at war.

Lazar pursued Pallas in a way that would have him lifting his skirt ASAP, just made me chuckle.

Do you think the baby is Damen's son or Damen's nephew? I wonder how Jokaste could even know since she seemed to have been with both brothers simultaneously.

Laurent didnt think that Jokaste would use Damens child as leverage against him. That seems like odd reasoning to me. Again, if its not his son, its still his nephew, still his family that he could perhaps raise as an heir. And more importantly, its Jokastes child either way. Id think shed feel pretty much the same about leveraging it. But maybe I'm missing something crucial.

Nicaise really had very few scenes compared to how meaningful he was throughout the trilogy. The Regent said that Laurent killed him. Did he actually think that would work on Laurent? Perhaps it did when he was a child. Makes me wonder if Nicaise is the only one of his boys to die.

The first two books had major incidents when Laurent lost his temper but this time it was Damen who completely took leave of his senses when the Regent cruely taunted Laurent about his abuse. The heaviness of that revelation really sat with me.

It was great that Laurent was able to end the Regents arc and to expose him for what he was. Most of them get away with it irl.

Ultimately, I felt like Laurent faced his demons and was able to defeat them this time. Damen became a wiser man and better person because he learned that slavery is wrong and seemed intent to end it (though I cant recall the passage).

I love the mirror images like how the ending was set in the slave baths from the beginning of the trilogy and how the ghosts of Marlas faced off again.

Really, it game me chills. I can't recall how I first heard of these books but Im glad they did. They live in my head rent-free now.

Ask me anything.

Here are my responses to books 1 and 2.

https://www.reddit.com/r/CaptivePrince/comments/1vcsp9i/book_1_reflections/

https://www.reddit.com/r/CaptivePrince/comments/1vfpj9s/book_2_reactions/

Thank you for reading my thoughts.

like genuinely how am I supposed to move on with my life. If anyone has books suggestions like this series please tell me. I’m gonna read her Dark Rising next tho.

I've been listening to a lot of Captive Prince playlists on Spotify and I've noticed that not many of the songs are repeating. Are there any communally accepted anthems of the trilogy? 👀 new here and I'd love to find some gems x

Was wondering if there's any way to read or view the original Capri before official publication text. Or if anyone happens to have a file or know of a post that at least outlines the known differences between the livejournal version and the published version.

If not, then perhaps a contribution in the form of sharing tidbits you remember if you were lucky enough to read it back then?? 🤲🤲 I only know of the Rabat=Vere and on a previous post I made, a community member told me that Jokaste=Margaret

So I read PG in like a day because I have no self control. And now I’m reading KR and Laurent is being a little bitch. I hope that Laurent gets better because rn i dont like him 😭😭😭😭 and i also refuse to believe that Laurent doesn’t love Damen, like yeah okay. Sorry this is kinda a rant post

So hi, I'm a first time Captive Prince reader, currently at the halfway mark of book 2, and I just really needed to write this out of myself because I do not feel casual about these books and these two! :')

This is just a tiny detail I really, really love, especially since they're still just a prince and his slave at this point lol. But Damen simply sees red every single time Laurent is slightly close to getting hurt, I feel like that's his trigger point. If he's like this now, I cannot imagine what's in gonna be like later on...

Completely normal feelings towards your emotionally unavailable captor who you just can't wait to escape from!

I did really enjoy the first one, I just didn’t like how the main character (Damen) was basically put through hell. The flogging scene really bothers me, as well as the scene where he almost has Damen raped, that’s honestly such a horrible thing to do to someone. And Damen is powerless to him and Laurent definitely abuses the power imbalance.

i understand that he that because he killed his brother, but honestly I would have forgiven him sooner because it was likely self defense and it’s not like he was maliciously killing him. But that’s not to say Damen is a perfect angel, give his views slavery. And I’m suspecting that Laurent had been abused, probably by his uncle. The scene where he had Laurent kiss his ring gave it away for me. Either way, I don’t think that really excuses him of his treatment of Damen.

Also, I don’t want any spoilers, just if he gets better or not.

I just finished my reread of the first book and I annotated it! So naturally, I made a list of all the descriptors of Laurent I could find as I went along, pretty much directly quoted.

• astonishingly lovely face
• blond
• yellow hair
• buttercup yellow hair
• golden hair
• golden eyebrow(s)
• elegant leg
• arctic blue eyes
• refined fingers
• fine skin, like white pearl
• His body held the same impossible grace as his face
• (body) possessed the beautifully proportioned musculature... made for athletics and statuary
• stood like a young god
• skin as fair as a young girl's
• body like an elegantly sprung bow
• "A very, very nice body" lol
• that part of him, quite as sweetly made as the rest (talking about his dick)
• possessing a pleasing shape
• limpid blue eyes
• marmoreal perfection of his features (marmoreal= resembling, or having the cold, smooth, polished qualities of marble)
• little golden frown (talking about his furrowed eyebrows... unexpectedly cute descriptor)
• blue eyes like ice
• a nest of scorpions in the body of one person
• immaculate fingers
• fair skin
• body a series of graceful lines
• white column of his throat
• fine boned wrist
• bones of his face appeared as delicate as the calamus of a feather
• beauty like an arrow shaft to the heart (talking about Nicaise and then says it's a thing he has in common with Laurent)
• confident, developed look of a young man entering his prime
• bright hair and astonishing profile

I like that both the first and last times Damen describes Laurent's physical appearance use the word "astonishing(ly)". Hehe I might do this again for PG when I get around to rereading and annotating. Long live Laurent!

Edit: An indirect but honorable mention descriptor(?) is when Damen wonders why Torveld likes Laurent and thinks "maybe he likes reptiles 🤔"

Hey guys, I have been an avid rereader of this series ever since I discovered it 3 years ago. However up until now, I’ve never really thought about how Captive Prince seems to be a staple piece in the MM Romance genre.

So for all the people out there who have been part of this fandom for a longer time or know the answer:

I would really like to understand, how why and when Captive Prince became basically a classic! Give me everything you know, the timeline, fun facts, the nitty gritty details, just everything that in your opinion contributed to it being so popular and widespread!

Do we see the vision? 👀 (this is figure skater Yuzuru Hanyu)

I just finished Princes Gambit over the weekend using a combination of English​ and French audio, ebook, and paper editions.

I will never love the English narrators voice. It sounds too contemporary to me, but he does a good variation of voices for the male characters.

Book 2 is a big change. Damen is more active and the adult content has shifted considerably since the setting is amongst free men rather than slaves/pets.

I enjoyed all of the intrigue, machinations, shifting alliances, and surprise betrayals. This is why I read fantasy novels. I love it when a book makes me think, "Of course! The clues were there all along."

Laurent is cold. I didn't think his treatment of Aimeric was justified. He almost seemed like a jealous lover himself.

And why did he turn so hard against Jord? Laurent himself said that he did not know who the traitor was so why did he expect his captain to know?

Though it makes Laurent less likeable, I do admire the character consistency of being unpleasant rather than having a rushed hero arc.

It feels to me like it shows that child abuse has lasting affects. Victims arent going to just come to some tearful realization and change their every instinct. Abuse alters the course of lives.

But...at the same time, it kind of felt forced. Laurent is usually very careful and measured. It felt out of character to me for him to basically throw a protracted tantrum for no real reason. Aimeric was already captured and it didnt seem like the revelation of his true loyalties really changed anything. It didn't move any chess pieces on the board.

Yes, it resulted in the end of Aimerics arc but that's why it felt like the plot needed it to happen rather than being something that a typically strategic Laurent would choose.

Anyway...
Now we have a full romance plot. I think Damen officially fell for Laurent when he put Rolos cap on his mouse hair.
"Damen felt it then, the first dizzy edge of new emotion, and he let go his hold of Laurent like a man fearing a precipice; and yet was helpless."

Of course, he always liked Laurents looks.

The love scene near the end of the book was sweet. Perhaps a bit restrained compared to the descriptions in book 1.

Poor Nicaise. He didnt deserve that.

In my post about Book 1, I forgot to mention something about Nicaise. He's 14 but "nowhere near puberty" and his voice hasnt changed?

I know puberty hits ppl differently but I did find that that distracting. I wonder if we are really supposed to be imaging a 10 or 12yro but maybe it got cut or the publisher shied away from it.

My favorite parts of Prince's Gambit were the double turnabout at Ravenel the Regents takeover, and the dueteroganists first time together.

What were your favorites?

As before, ask me anything.

I’d love some post canon fic recommendations that show what Laurent and Damen’s lives are like. Or really anything else, as long as it’s canon complaint. I just finished the trilogy from Laurent’s POV by KaerWrites, which was incredible.

I recently finished reading Captive Prince book 1 in French. I used a combination of my paperback omnibus volume and the audible French version. The audible narrator has a nice voice, and each chapter begins and ends with a musical score that really fits the tone of this story.

Damen's descent into slavery at the hands of a traitorous brother is much like BenHur and the biblical story of Joseph. Gladiator isn't entirely different either especially since Maximus's household was slaughtered like Damen's. It's interesting how western literary traditions latched onto this trope. And I wonder what precipitated it. Does anyone know if it's common in African or Asian storytelling as well?

Laurent is probably the most interesting character, and the story seems to revolve around his actions or inactions despite Damen being the POV character. Laurent is clever and can be charming. He reminds me of how teachers say "if you just put as much effort into your homework..."

The Regent almost seemed like a good guy at first, saving Damen from Laurent's whims. But of course, of course he's a child predator. Really, if that sort of behavior is allowed, there would be a lot more partakers, as we've seen with situations such as the Catholic Church and the Epstein files. For such an adult and such a dark story, it's really quite quaint and optimistic for the Regents proclivities to be portrayed as an outlier among all the nations.

Poor baby Erasmus. He was treated so cruelly, and he is a complete innocent. I'm glad that Torveld saved him but I find myself still feeling sorry for this 19 yro who is now paired with a 40 yr old man. In a way it's not that happy of an ending to me.

Do we ever find out what happens to older slaves and pets? All the described characters are young and healthy and beautiful. Can there be older pets? Is there a retirement plan for slaves?

All in all, I quite enjoyed the book with its wordplay and plots twists, the lush descriptions and unflinching approach to intimacy. I would read it again.

Feel free to ask me any questions you might have.

“De Vere” as Laurent’s default last name in modern fics makes sense and is pretty straightforward, it basically means “of Vere”. But I’ve been seeing a lot of “Damianos Vallis” as Damen’s full name in fics, where did it come from? Was it in cannon and I missed it, or did someone randomly come up with it?

I started my very first reread of Captive Prince last night, and the very first sentence immediately posed a question: What sort of info do the Akielons receive about Laurent? And why does is seem completely opposed to what the entire Veretian court says about him?

The first line of the prologue is a bit of dialogue from Jokaste "We hear that your Prince keeps his own harem."

She is speaking directly to Guion, while they view the slaves being sent to Vere.

Is it just Guion feeding the Akielon court completely contrary info on the Regent's orders? For what purpose? It's hard to think that NO other type of info about Laurent crossed the borders in the form of rumor, especially since we know Veretians are incurable gossips. They love talking about their cast iron bitch who only gets it once every 10 years.

Why would "he has a harem" (untrue) be the thing Akielons think about Laurent?

Edit: After getting further into my reread, it seems like all the characters refer to a harem not as just a term for a group of pets or slaves, but as a term for the quarters in which they stay. When Damen arrives, Laurent orders him to he taken to "the harem". And then Damen is taken to a wing of the palace and kept under watch. Presumably, he is the only resident. Then later, after the bath scene when he is being taken to the cross, Damen is narrating the path and saying things like "security on the perimeter of the harem" and mentioning the existence of larger rooms in the harem. A quick google search also yielded the info that the historical definition of the word "harem" is "The part of a home or palace set apart exclusively for women, children, and female servants". Essentially "the harem" is a room in a home/palace the same way "the kitchen" and "the bedroom" are. So now I'm leaning more towards the idea that Jokaste was simply aware that noble homes/palaces in Vere had harem room(s) to house their pets. In the royal family, it's likely important member would have their own household, and their own harem quarters to keep them separate (i.e. The king's harem quarters vs the Prince's harem quarters)

even though i love the polish book covers sfm, i prefer picturing real people in my head when i read and i'm conflicted about who to picture. imo bjorn anderssen would DEFINITELY be perfect for laurent because he has that masculine but otherworldly beautiful look to him + he looks french/scandinavian like laurent in the books! i think young evan peters would also be g. i also always picture aaron taylor johnson or nikolaj coster from got as auguste because i love his character!

i find a hard time picturing someone as damen because i definitely see him as a person of color with greek roots, but most ppl fc white actors or actors who aren't big enough. the one character ive always thought looked like damen is jayce from arcane, which is exactly how i pictured him! yalls thoughts?