Kings Rising

This is definitely the strongest book of the series. Packed with action, romance, and intrigue that felt like a roller coaster. Pacat really came into her own with the writing of this one, with the struggles I mentioned in my review of the first book. It's almost a shame you have to read the first two books for this book to have that impact because I'd definitely recommend this one on it's own.

These books are really satisfying. Definitely recommend if you enjoy both m/m and historical fantasy.

This trilogy deserves a million stars! I am in awe that a new author wrote a story of this caliber. So many twists and turns...you never know what's coming and it keeps you on the edge of your seat right up until the very end. Well done, C.S. Pacat. Well done.

Well done also for making me love this story when I normally loathe trilogies. I don't read them. Ever. I hate cliffhangers. But when my hold became available at the library, I downloaded purely out of curiosity and found I couldn't stop reading. I'm sure it helped that my library had all 3 parts of the story, but even if they hadn't, I would have wanted to know what happened next, would have needed the conclusion to Damen and Laurent's story. It's the kind of epic romance that consumes you, that you just want to keep reading without stop.

It had all the odds stacked against it...a trilogy, and one that takes place mostly on the battlefield, something I thought would bore me to tears. It didn't. Not even a little bit.

It also takes a very long time to get to the sex, which normally for me would be a big strike against it. In this case, however, it felt right. Considering the dynamic between these two men, one held against his will as slave to the other, I was actually glad that it took as long as it did for them to be intimate, because when it finally happened it was consensual. It wasn't rape. It is also quickly apparent that something happened to Laurent in his past that put him off of sex, so the way it unfolds between them slowly, gently, makes total sense.

That being said, the dynamic between Damen and Laurent as slave and master is still so hot. Damen is the bigger man, physically, of the two...heavily muscled. A fighting machine. It goes against everything in him to act as a slave when he should be a king. Gradually he comes to accept it, in part because he's slowly seeing Laurent for who he really is and falling for the flesh and blood man beneath the facade, and in part out of guilt for having inadvertently hurt Laurent in the past before he ever knew him, something that remains an obstacle between them and any real relationship.

I highly recommend the epilogue The Summer Palace, book 3.5, as an accompaniment. It's beautiful and romantic, and I loved reading more of their happily ever after.

Very rambling spoilery review

I'm so much in love with this series and the characters, so this is probably going to be less of a review and more of a random rambling about my favorite parts in this book. I apologize in advance for sounding quite incoherent.

I don't talk about it much, but I love action sequences. I love reading about or watching elaborate fight scenes and this book had exactly one of those. We've always known Damon is a great warrior and he killed Auguste but watching him decimate his enemy ruthlessly, despite his disappointment about Laurent abandoning him, is a sight to behold. He is a whole class apart and this book shows how natural it is for him to transition into his role as King. We also learn early on that he is going to be a great one.

Instead of dealing with his conflicting feelings about the man who killed his brother, Laurent decides to go back to his facade and cut down Damon with his humiliating words. But Damon understands Laurent so much and he can see past the hurtful words and understand the feelings of a boy who lost his beloved brother. We've always known Laurent's strength is his mind but in this book, he also shows he is capable of physical strength when needed. And the scene where he tries so hard to fight with Damon is very very intense, but it feels more like an argument between lovers who don't know how to express their anguish except through a sword fight.

But when it's time to put their differences aside and unite their forces to fight the Regent and Kastor, we see how much they really trust and love each other. Their understanding of each other is at a level where they don't even need to communicate and just know exactly what the other person needs. It's beautiful to see two people so much in love. As days go by, they grow comfortable around each other and it's wonderful to see them on equal footing and also letting other people see their relationship.

Nikandros is my new favorite character in this series. He is so loyal and loves Damen a lot, not just because he is his King but because he is his closest friend. He is very skeptical of Laurent and tries to dissuade Damen from being in a relationship, but ultimately supports him in whatever he chooses to do and always has his back. It speaks more to Laurent's strength because he never had that kind of support in his life after Auguste. And it's heartening to see Damen become that support system for Laurent.

I hate the Regent even more than I thought I could. We all knew he was manipulative and cunning, but the lengths to which he could go to discredit Laurent and becoming King himself was just disgusting. I was actually expecting the revelation of Laurent being abused by his uncle since book 2, but watching it unfold and Damen's visceral reaction to it quite mirrored mine.

The way the ending played out and the truth was revealed seemed fitting because Laurent was never going to defeat the Regent in all out war and it had to be in front of the court. But I still didn't see the revelation coming. Never thought the Regent could be so cruel in his greed for power. I'm glad the council saw the truth but I still think the Regent got a very easy death. Damon deserved to serve the death blow and I think that's my only gripe. The whole story comes full circle when Laurent kills Kastor to protect Damen. There is no epilogue and I was very disappointed because I just wanted to read more about how the kingdoms would go on from there and how Damen and Laurent would proceed with their relationship. But I know they will be together.

Initial thoughts
WOW WOW WOW!!!!
Angst and tension is at a whole different level here... I just can't even describe all the emotions I felt. All I know is this is one of my all time favorites now and I wish there was more Damen and Laurent..
RTC