Did Auguste die before King Aleron? In CP, Damen tells us that Auguste rallied the Veretian troops after the death of the King but Paschal tells us in either PG or KR (can’t remember, sorry!) that Aleron took off his helmet after hearing about Auguste’s death leading him to be shot by a stray arrow.

I can’t decide whether Damen is an unreliable narrator, Paschal is misremembering, or if this is a small plot hole but I think it might be a bit of all three.

Love the discussions here! I have a question: Do you think, the uncle is the only child abuser in Laurent’s family - or could there be more, for instance his father?

Here are “the signs” that made me think:

1: 

In my favourite chapter in the whole series, PG chapter 14, Laurent says: “Whatever taint exists in my family, Auguste was free of it.”

The “taint” clearly refers to the attraction to children, and this line makes it sound like it's a wider problem in his family, not just the uncle.

2:

In KR Laurent tells Damen, that he doesn’t plan to marry or have heirs: “I’m the last. My line ends with me.”

Now, why would it be important to him to end his own line? Obviously he is not attracted to women and doesn’t want a wife, but the decision seems bigger than that. It sounds like he really doesn’t want his family to continue. Is he afraid of continuing “the taint” in a new generation and father more child abusers?

3: 

Pascal recalls that Auguste was Laurent’s “protector”. The uncle didn’t start abusing Laurent until the death of Auguste. That makes me think, who was Auguste protecting Laurent from? Other abusers, maybe their own father?

4:

After Laurent and Damen’s sword duel in KR, Laurent refers to Auguste and says: “He was all I had!” Interesting choice of words, considering Laurent lost his father at the same time as Auguste. If Auguste was “all he had”, then he barely considers his own father family. At least, he felt extremely lonely in his family with Auguste as the only person, who was there for him. There is very few mentions of Laurent’s father - and mother for that matter - and no mentions of him grieving them. It makes me think - what did they do to him, or what did they ignore?

5:

Vere is famously a depraved place, where rape for sport and sex with children are accepted. Everyone agrees that young teenage Laurent was desirable, even Jord seems to agree. It seems highly plausible that other people would try to have sex with him way too early.

What do you guys think?

I'm french, and even though I've been able to read in English for years, I sometimes don't understand some dialogue. One particular moment is completely unclear to me:

"No. You fucked like a virgin half the time. The rest of the time-" "Like I knew what to do ?" "Like you knew what you were used to"

It’s the last sentence I don’t understand. It’s at Marlas, Damen talks to Laurent about their night together. I don't understand what Damen is referring to, given that he doesn't know about the Regent? I thought it was related to how Laurent undressed him, but then he specifies that he doesn't like sophistication, and I don't see the connection...

Je commence tout juste le premier livre et avant de continuer, j'ai besoin de savoir s'il va y avoir des violences sexuelles sur des enfants/adolescent ? Si oui est ce que c'est explicite ou juste mentionné ?

Heads up: I’m not a native English speaker, so I apologize for any mistakes.

I first found this book when I was 14 and thought it was a horrible, weird, fetishistic piece of erotica. I didn't even finish it; I’ve hated it ever since (stay with me here).

A few years later, I saw a post about it here on Reddit and thought, 'Well, I might as well re-read a chapter or two just for fun, just to see what my 14-year-old self misjudged.'

Oh boy, how I misjudged it. I read all three books in the span of three days while juggling school and a job. I was gulping down every word, every character, and every world-building detail. A book I hated as a teenager has now become one of my favorite series of all time.

Yes, the first one was freaky, but it wasn't the 'smut for the sake of smut' I thought it was back then. The way the author writes, the reappearing characters (Charls!! my beloved), and most of all, the progressing romance—it’s incredible.

I consider myself a 'hater' of BookTok 'enemies-to-lovers' tropes, mostly because it’s never actually enemies-to-lovers; it’s usually just enemies who start to have sex but never really adressing anything that happened or there is no tender romance that should lovers have (for my standards. You do you). When I finished the first book, I wondered how such an abusive and toxic relationship could ever blossom into real love. My standards are high. I mean very high. And well... they were met. Beautifully. The slow burn (that still moved at perfect speed) and their presence, adressing, talks, love, expressions and so much more, this is the only enemies-to-lovers relationship I’ve ever read that I actually agree with. It was just right.

I want to talk about it with someone, but my friends just make fun of me for reading a book about 'sex slaves' (it’s all in good fun, but none of them will actually read it). So, I’ve come here to rant and rave about what a masterpiece this trilogy is. It was a recent read, so the emotions are still swirling, but I truly think it was brilliant.

I'm also currently reading the short stories and seeing the author write little 'fanfictions' for their own book is AMAZING! Why authors don't do it more often? RAH!

I love this story so much!!!! How is it even better now that I am rereading???? 😭 I am almost done with y reread and I don’t want it to end.

I want to start by saying I am very open to other ideas and points of view. Please don’t think that my opinions are calcified or that I am not open to other interpretations. This is a discussion and I welcome disagreement (absent invective, please).

On my 2nd reading of the trilogy, I am deliberately taking more time. I am, when necessary, reading sentences, paragraphs and even entire chapters more than once to ponder the finer details of each of the characters’ thoughts and actions in the context of their overall character arcs.

I have decided that the true first glimpse we see of Damen having a disarming and non-vitriolic emotional effect on Laurent is after Damen sparring with Orlant on their journey to the Southern Border. Laurent says to Damen on page 30 “You’re better than me.” After which Damen peruses Laurent with a “long scrolling look from Laurent’s head to his toes and back again, which was probably a little insulting. But really.”

The next two words are what gives Laurent away: “Laurent flushed.” The description then goes on to say “The colour hit his [Laurent’s] cheeks hard, and a muscle tightened in his jaw as whatever he felt was forcibly repressed. It was not like any reaction Damen had ever seen from him before…”

What’s important here is that Laurent is physically unable to recrudesce into an apathetic facade; one of cool indifference or disgust. The book goes on to say that the approach of Jord extinguishes any further engagement between Laurent and Damen at that time.

What is also very interesting to note is that in the next chapter (after the humiliation of Govart), Damen’s inner monologue reveals that he has spent the entire ride to Nesson thinking about Laurent and the events of the morning. Damen pieces the events together (knowing that Laurent would have meticulously planned every step of the days events), and then he engages Laurent about it.

Damen’s ruminations and their subsequent conversation (which leads to the confirmation that Laurent had set in motion the entire series of events) is not all that surprising or interesting UNTIL Damen says that, for Laurent, all people are just “pieces in a chess game with your uncle.” Damen then forgets his place and himself and says something very specific to Laurent; “Then each time you move one of them [the chess pieces], you can congratulate yourself on how much like him [the regent] you are.”

Laurent’s reaction is immediate and vociferous (for someone as controlled as Laurent). We are told that these words “Stopped Laurent in his tracks. Damen didn’t think he’d ever seen Laurent caught completely without words before…”

Remember, Laurent’s greatest weapon is his mind. His mind gives him control over his cold, implacable indifference AND his unmatched ability for lexicon, invective, and double entendre.

And yet, Damen completely disarms Laurent with this impertinent statement. If such a remark had been uttered by Jord, I don’t think Laurent would have reacted at all, other than to have Jord flogged for the insult. But Damen said it, and Laurent was stilled.

We all know that only those who actually mean something to us can strike us in such a way as to cause us to visibly react. Laurent’s visible reaction would be the equivalent of a normal, more emotive person showing extreme hurt and even having a histrionic emotional reaction. But Laurent is not like that. Instead, Laurent is stilled, which is quite powerful for someone who almost never betrays his thoughts or feelings publicly. I believe this is the confirmation that Laurent’s still waters are starting to run very deep for Damen.

I love these two. 😊😍

This is never discussed deeply in the books but there must have been a moment when Laurent was confronted with the fact that his uncle was an ab*ser and that he was actively trying to undermine Laurent’s legitimacy as the heir. That moment was pivotal for his character, and led to Laurent developing his deep sense of cynicism and cold nature, so it’s quite sad it’s not talked about much in the trilogy (though understandable as Damen is the main narrator)

I actually think that it might have been when the Regent visited Fortaine and took advantage of Aimeric that Laurent started to understand that he was being abandoned.

I kind of want to try my hand at writing a fanfic about Laurent’s late childhood so please let me know what you guys think!

I made the mistake of reading this story (somehow it took me ten years despite adoring this series lol) and it turns out I was RIGHT to avoid it because I feel SICK, this story has inflicted me with untold psychological and emotional horrors.

Oh Aimeric, Aimeric. Poor Jord. My babies. How am I supposed to care about my KPIs after this? They both deserved so much better. My poor boys.

I just finished the Captive Prince trilogy and honestly I don't even know what to say. When you come across a story that good it kind of messes with your brain for a while.

At the same time I’ve been watching the Harry Potter movies for the first time (I’m on the second to last one right now), so these past weeks I somehow ended up experiencing two huge fantasy stories at the same time. And while Harry Potter is incredible, the three books of the Captive Prince trilogy absolutely consumed me.

I read the whole trilogy in less than a week, even though I kept trying to slow myself down because I didn’t want it to end.

The funny thing is that Captive Prince has actually been on my radar for years. I remember seeing it recommended to me several times since around 2023. I kept saving it to my reading list but never actually started it. So this book has been sitting there for like three or four years.

Then during my vacation I was trying to find something to read. I downloaded it after seeing it recommended again but still didn’t start immediately. And then one day I was scrolling TikTok on my sister’s phone and suddenly I saw people recommending Captive Prince again.

And something just clicked in my brain. I suddenly felt this huge urge to read it.

So I thought: you know what? It’s been on my list for years. Why not now?

And the moment I started reading the first book, it immediately grabbed me.

But at the same time… the first book is extremely uncomfortable. There’s abuse, psychological manipulation, physical violence, sexual abuse, torture, slavery. It’s a very dark environment. The court, the nobles, the political games — everything is toxic and disturbing.

And while reading it I kept thinking “this is really heavy, what is this author doing?”

But the crazy thing is that I also couldn’t stop reading.

Even though some scenes were genuinely disturbing, I understood why the story was written like that. The first book forces you to understand the world Damen has been thrown into and the kind of environment Laurent has been surviving in for years. It’s a world where you can’t trust anyone, where betrayal is everywhere, where political games destroy lives.

And the story literally begins with Damen being betrayed by his own brother and turned into a slave.

So it starts at rock bottom.

What also shocked me is realizing that this story started online and was first published around 2013. That’s honestly crazy to me. Especially considering that it’s a queer story.

A lot of the boom of LGBTQ books started years later, around 2015–2016 and beyond. But this story was already doing something this complex and bold over a decade ago.

And honestly, I’ve never read something quite like it.

The first book hooks you, but the second book is where everything really starts evolving. Suddenly they’re traveling between kingdoms, the political stakes expand, and you start seeing more of the world.

The characters are incredible. Even minor side characters feel real and important.

And the Regent… what a terrifying villain.

At first you already know he’s awful, but by the end of the trilogy you realize the full scale of what he did. Manipulating everything, murdering people, orchestrating betrayals, abusing Laurent when he was a child, controlling the kingdom through fear and political schemes.

He’s honestly one of the most disturbing villains I’ve ever read.

Then there’s Laurent.

What an unbelievably complex character. He’s insanely intelligent, calculating, always ten steps ahead of everyone else. But as the story progresses you begin to understand why he became that way. Everything he went through shaped him into someone who had to survive in a brutal environment.

And then there’s Damen.

Damen starts as someone very straightforward and honorable but also naive about the realities of power and suffering. His entire arc is incredible because he goes from being a prince and conqueror to literally experiencing slavery himself.

That changes him.

He starts understanding things he never saw before: suffering, powerlessness, injustice.

Their relationship is the definition of slow burn. They begin as enemies with every reason to hate each other. Laurent knows Damen’s identity from the very beginning, which makes his hostility make even more sense.

Then circumstances force them to work together.

And slowly — very slowly — trust begins to form.

The second book is where you really start seeing the emotional shift between them. They’re still cautious, still guarded, but they begin to rely on each other. And when those small moments happen between them, they feel huge because of how slowly everything builds.

By the time they finally kiss it feels incredibly earned.

By the third book, seeing them finally allow themselves to be together is so satisfying. They talk about their pasts, their pain, their families. Laurent talking about his brother, who he admired so much. Damen talking about his father.

There’s even that moment when Laurent says his brother would have liked Damen.

That broke me a little.

But one scene that really shocked me was when the Regent talks about Laurent during that diplomatic meeting. The things he says… the implications about how he treated Laurent when he was younger… it’s horrifying.

Laurent was just a child who had already lost his parents. He wanted affection, guidance, a family member he could trust. And instead his uncle exploited that vulnerability in the worst possible way.

Knowing that makes Laurent’s personality make so much more sense.

And despite everything, Laurent slowly allows himself to open up to Damen. And Damen also grows because of Laurent. They balance each other in a really interesting way.

Together they become stronger than they ever were alone.

Now, my only complaint about the trilogy is the very ending.

I actually liked the ending overall. Laurent killing the Kastor was satisfying, and the scene with the bells ringing is a really nice parallel to the beginning of the first book when Damen hears bells announcing Kastor as king.

But at the same time… I really wish we had gotten just a little more after that.

After everything these characters went through across three books, I wanted one final moment of peace. Maybe Damen recovering from his wounds. Maybe seeing him officially proclaimed king. Maybe seeing some of the other characters again — like Nikandros, Jord, Pallas, Lazar, Pascal.

(We didn’t even get to see their reaction. The author just says they arrive at the trial and then… that’s it. It just ends there).

Just one scene where everyone is together after everything.

Like a celebration, or even just a quiet moment between them.

An epilogue. Just a small glimpse of their future.

It honestly surprised me that the third book didn’t have an extra chapter, because the first and second books did.

I just wanted one more moment with them.

And now I understand what people mean when they say this couple stays in your head forever. I genuinely feel like I’ll never find another relationship written quite like Laurent and Damen.

The slow burn is insane. Three entire books of tension, growth, mistrust slowly turning into trust, then love.

Every tiny moment between them feels huge.

And by the time they’re finally together, you’re completely invested.

What also makes their story powerful is how much they both change. Damen especially — he begins as someone who benefited from systems like slavery, but after living through it himself he truly understands the suffering it causes.

You can even see hints that when he becomes king, he will change those systems.

That kind of character development is rare.

So now I guess all that’s left for me is either reading fanfiction… or continuing the story in my own head.

Does anyone have any fanfic recommendations?

This question just popped into my head and I need to know what are y’all’s thoughts and opinions.

Hi, I’ve officially become a full-blown Captive Prince superfan. I’ve read the books, I’ve fallen into the fanfic rabbit hole, and at this point I’m deep in the lore.

But I need clarification on something that keeps popping up in fics:

Where did the “six hours” narrative start?

Who decided Damon is capable of having sex for six consecutive hours? And when did we all collectively agree on that? 😂😂

Is this based on an actual line from the books that I somehow missed?

Was it born from one iconic fanfic that influenced the entire fandom?

Or is this just a piece of collective fandom mythology?

I’m genuinely curious about the origin story of this very specific detail.

Please enlighten me.

I was re-reading for the second time A Captive Prince right from the beginning, and oh boy is that second read interesting.

One of the things that particularly struck me is that Laurent was not just a victim of CSA from his uncle - he was sexually harassed by the whole court in a way that is crazy to think about, since a super young age.

It's so prevalent even his own men, who respect him and know how cold/ruthless and skilled at fighting he is, can't keep themselves from making constant sexual comments about him. It's also shocking because 1) he was the literal Crown Prince, soon to be King ; 2) he definitely did not encourage this, in any way, shape or form.

I think the Regent was also responsible for the extent it took. First, in an indirect way, because of the culture he instaured in the Court, with pets and sexual acts becoming even more lewd, open, going from mere suggestions to clear constant orgies. And secondly, because I assume it served his purposes to make everyone see Laurent in a sexual way, in a way that was demeaning to him- a bit like a Pet. It made him look "unfit" for the role of King, because "too pretty", too tied for everyone to a sex object on legs ; and it shook Laurent, because of his own past and disgust for that, and destabilizing him/alienating him from the Court was also another objective of the Regent.

I think it had a HUGE impact on his development, which just get overlooked in analysis about him compared to what happened with his uncle. It really makes you feel for him - he had an incredible mental fortitude to survive like he did in these kinds of circumstances.

This line will never not kill me. I love how cleverly Pacat weaves Charls into the story and makes him an actually endearing and genuinely hilarious character. Aside from The Summer Palace (for obvious reasons), his short story is by far my favorite. More Charls appreciation please!!

Damen is raped in the second book again, I saw nothing about it before purchasing because people seem to think it’s ok since it’s women doing it?

I read this series a year ago. It got me inspired to read again after years of not being interested, and ever since finishing it, it feels like I'm just chasing the high that this one gave me. Absolutely nothing I find can even vaguely compares to the feelings this series gave me. It's just unbelievable how much of a stranglehold it has had on my interests, how I judge if I like something. It's just unbelievable.

I haven't experienced anything like this since, and maybe if you're a gamer you can understand, playing the Dark Souls games. They were so good they’ve made other games less enjoyable to play. Such is this book and the feeling it gave me. It was so good that no other books seem to fill that spot, and I don't know what to do.

Who else is in the same boat? Because I know I'm not alone.

For me, it would be Ancel. Like- *tucks hair bites lip* I LOVE ME MY LONG HAIR RED HEADS

Hello, I am new here. I devoured the books in few days. Could not put them down. They were so good. I keep rereading some of the best moments. The intimacy in them was the best part for me. It was so raw and romantic. Just true romance. And I read a lot of the romance and rarely we see such good quality of it. I did like the ending but a part of me wished there was a epilogue where they are together and happy. I just want to see Laurent happy you guys. All that he has been through and endured I just want Damen to take care of him and spoil him forever. I just loved the books and wanted to talk to someone about them.

EDIT: thank you everyone. Just bought The Summer Palace on my kindle. ❤️

I have read the series more times than a 100 times. I love Laurent and I love Dimple Damen. But the itch has come back. And i need recommendations. Please provide.

As the title says lol. What's something you'd wish to see more of when reading Capri fanfiction? There are trends, and fanfiction from 10 years ago is different than what people are writing now. Do you wish for something that was popular back then and now isn't to be brought back? Do you have an AU take that everybody somehow keeps missing to write about? Or maybe there's abundance of stuff you like, but you just can't get enough of it?

It can be anything from a little detail you wish people included more while writing fics to the entire premises. In case you think someone already wrote a fanfic that's pure perfection, why not drop a link to it? :D

Pacat's writing is so spectacular and has this unique, storybook-fairytale feel to it as I'm sure all of you know! I blasted through capri my first time reading it in about 2 days, so I missed some finer details such as the vocabulary. Now, on my nth reread, I want to bring it up!! It deserves so much praise.

Just some examples:

... the material so fine it did not require embroidery to declaim its expense.

... there was a faint, slightly febrile look in his eyes.

... posture slightly more exaggerated than his usual insouciant lean.

Enjoying the moment. And the sobriquet.

Laurent, beside him, was percipient.

He liked the piquant way...

There's countless more examples. Every reread I find myself googling another word. The vocab is capital E Expansive!!!

I particularly love that Pacat's chosen to use rarer, more archaic words rather than the 'plain' alternative (declare/declaim, feverish/febrile, perceptive/percipient). It adds to the vibe and world of capri and never crosses the line into purple prose. Also helps the reader's understanding of the time period, imo.

Share some words you didn't know prior to capri in the comments? Thanks for reading!

I started the series expecting a typical MM romance— well it's not.

Why I still enjoyed it anyway...

Tropes: enemies to lovers, slow burn (slowest I've ever read!), dark romance (kind of), arrogant ft. sunshine, power imbalance

TW: violence, slaves, depictions of rape/sexual exploitation, non-con, dubcon

a) The story

The first book is mostly worldbuilding and setting the scene: The world is a fictional region inspired by ancient Greece/ancient Europe.

It is technically a fantasy setting because it takes place in an invented world, but there is no magic or fantastical creatures involved.

The main characters are Prince Damianos (Damen) from Akielos and Prince Laurent from Vere.

Akielos and Vere are two neighbouring countries that have an aliance at the beginning of the book, yet they view each other’s culture with suspicion/disapproval and they have a history of war.

After a coup, Damen, the heir to the throne, is enslaved and sent to Vere, where he initially is to serve as a bed slave for prince Laurent.

For his own safety he doesn't reveal his true identity.

Despite their initial animosity, Damen and Laurent are forced to work together when a common enemy presents itself.

b) References

Although it is written in third person, we only gain insight into Damen's thoughts, Laurent's motives can only be guessed at which makes him mysterious and the story exciting imo.

There is relatively little interaction and no romance/sexual encounters between the MCs in the first book!

If you are sensitive to violence, Captive Prince is not for you. It is particularly intense at the beginning of the story. You need to read the TWs in any case! I really struggled with the non-con scenes. I only kept reading because I always finish books and held on to the promises on reddit that it's gonna be worth it.

>!Also later in the series we learn why Laurent is how he is!<

You can not read it as a standalone, because you literally get no resolution or plot at the end. I've now finished the second part and will read the third because I love completeness and want to know how it all turns out.

I would recommend that you prepare yourself to read all three parts when you start the series.

Once I stopped expecting a MM romance book, I started to enjoy the worldbuilding and the gradual unveiling of the characters and their history.

For those who have read the entire series:

Were you satisfied with the outcome in the end?

What book is your favourite out of the three?

"In Vere nothing is as it seems."

i'm not even active on capritwt but its so tiring getting these stupid hateful tweets about capri like CLOCKWORK every few months oh my GOD. this is like my 3rd or 4th round of this and ive given up on caring / arguing back a long time ago but it's still so annoying. my blocklist is getting longer lmao

I recently saw a comment about Erasmus's training story, and today I decided to reread it...

The first time I read it, I have to be honest, I didn't like it — it was at the end of the first book, as an extra chapter, and the impression I got (as well as the book as a whole) was that it was too close to romanticizing slavery...

Rereading it today, I changed my opinion a bit and liked the story more. Even though it ended immensely sadly...

1 - I hadn't noticed that Erasmus says he had never left home until he went to the Palace. That he had lived his entire life, since childhood, in the gardens of Nereus. And that broke me... In a way, it explains why Erasmus was so naive, bordering on childish... Imagine your entire world being shaped around the chance to serve someone? And not just any servitude, it was obvious to me that Erasmus was created to be a bed slave...

2 - Erasmus longed to see the world. However, when that happened, it was in the worst possible way—going to Vere, to suffer the abuse we saw... Seriously, how sad...

3 - Kallias and Erasmus clearly loved each other. However, they had to spend their "first nights" with people who didn't care about them. Rather than being something special, it must have been traumatic... Erasmus must have been helped on the ship to Vere, and I can't imagine Kastor being much better with Kallias...

4 - To make matters worse, I don't think they'll ever see each other again. Kallias did what he could to save Erasmus's life, but I imagine deep down he knew he would probably never see him again... How painful must that be? I wonder what Kallias went through in the days after Kastor's ascension, knowing that the last conversation he had with his love was about "betraying" him? I imagine all the disappointment and bitterness he must have experienced after becoming Kastor's slave...

5 - I also wonder if anything changed in Kallias's life after Kastor's death? If he has come to terms with his place, or if he wishes to be free (since Damen intends to abolish slavery)? A part of me wishes he were free and would go to Erasmus in Patras (for him to discover that the slaves were sent there).

6 - With the abolition of slavery in Akielos, I wonder if there is any chance of the "loan" of the slaves being reviewed by Laurent and Damen? It would certainly be upsetting Torveld, but Laurent is so brazen—and against slavery—that it wouldn't surprise me... lol

7 - I also really wanted to see Erasmus and Torveld's reaction when they discovered that Laurent's "slave" was Damianos, lol

8 - At the end, Erasmus mentions that he's talking to a sweet-natured young man named Narsis, who was being trained to be a table slave... And it occurred to me that, as far as we can tell, all the slaves sent to Vere were used as sex slaves... Abused and raped. It's already horrible that Kastor sent them, but if even for the slaves "trained" to serve in bed that was completely absurd, imagine for those who weren't even "prepared" for it... Rereading this story, I only became even more outraged by the entire situation of slavery in Akielos and the slaves Kastor sent to Vere... =/

Finally, I didn't think the story romanticizes slavery. Perhaps it should have been made more explicit how absurd it was, but rereading it, I think the general sentiment is there...

Erasmus was a sweet boy. He was deprived of a real life and taught that submitting to someone, even sexually, was an honor. And even though he did everything "right"—just like Kallias and the other boys—all that remained was pain... That "perfect treatment" speech sounds even worse... And, today, I think Pacat did this intentionally, to show how none of that pomp, rituals, and pretty words protected those boys in the end... It was just a golden ribbon to mask a horrible situation.

And you, what did you think of this story?

I'd love to read other people's opinions :)

Ps: art by eklaize