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A review by mspilesofpaper
Captive of the Horde King by Zoey Draven
emotional
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Captive of the Horde King is the first instalment in a SciFi romantasy/erotica novel that takes place on the planet Dakkar as Earth isn't viable anymore. It is heavily inspired (*cough* rip-off *cough*) by Game of Thrones' Dothraki and imagines them as aliens. It is a short and quick read as it is fast-paced and has a relatively simple plot.
The following review might contain spoilers.
PLOT
Luna lives with her brother in a small village that's supported by the Uranian Federation until her brother tries one of his many experiments to increase the fertility of the earth as the entire village is starving. The result of the experiment calls a horde of Dakkari to the village as they take offence to the experiments as it goes against their religion. To save her brother's life, Luna bargains with the horde king and goes with him as his war prize. She expects to be one of many concubines as all stories about the Dakkari paint them as barbaric monsters. She learns quickly that she isn't meant as a concubine but to become the wife and queen of the horde king, and learns with time that all the stories about the Dakkari aren't true.
WORLD-BUILDING & MAGIC
The story plays on Dakkar, which is an alien planet that isn't defined further (as in where it is in the solar system etc.). There are mentions of the old Earth and it is implied that living there isn't possible anymore, which is why humankind left the Earth several centuries ago to find a new planet. Dakkar seems to be one of many settled ones. The humans live in small villages that are within the territory of the Dakkari. Aside from the Dakkari, which are the dominant race on the planet, there are also other species mentioned that settle on Dakkar but are considered enemies to the Dakkari. Due to the nomadic lifestyle of the Dakkar, there's not much in terms of architecture etc. They follow the movements of their preferred meat source (that isn't described at all but I suppose it might be some type of bovine), live in tents and care a lot for their horses (alien type though, they eat meat and are more vicious). There's one major, permanent settlement where the king of all Dakkari lives. They have a religious system that is based on nature, which is why the Dakkari forbade humans to hunt and limit their farming a lot.
It's a relatively superficial world-building but I suspect that it will either increase with the following books or will continue to stay as simple for the sake of it being a romantasy/erotica novel.
There's no magic system.
CHARACTERS
Two main characters with Luna and Arokan (the horde king). Both are very two-dimensional and lack depth but I don't expect utterly fleshed-out characters in these books. Arokan is basically a better version of Drogo from Game of Thrones as he's more respectful of Luna and doesn't force himself upon her. He has alpha tendencies but it isn't as awful as other alpha males in romantasy books. He's highly protective of his people and Luna. Meanwhile, Luna is reckless and rarely thinks through her interactions although she has also the tendency to overthink. Despite being called Queen multiple times, she takes ages to make any effort to learn more about the Dakkari. She's also stubborn and slightly stupid (e.g., not eating the offered food for days because "my village starves, so I cannot enjoy this").
Aside from them, there are also several side characters: Luna's maids (who also feel like copies of Daenerys' maids), Arokan's aunt who dislikes Luna for no explicit reason, Luna's brother, and a few even less important side characters that are often just mentioned in a few sentences.
ROMANCE
Very much insta-lust and insta-love from Arokan's side where Luna requires more time to warm up to him although she considers him as attractive early on despite his alien looks (e.g., long dark coarse-looking hair, black eyes with a golden ring, a tail, ...).
As I mentioned that he's more respectful than Drogo: while Arokan wants to fuck her from the beginning, he stops as soon as he realises that she's sore (from riding) or uncomfortable with him. Of course, there's a ceremony after which he claims her but he stops having sex with her when he notices that she doesn't react to his touch in any way as he thinks that she doesn't want him.
In terms of the overall spiciness of the scenes: 3 🌶️ as the scenes are explicit and graphic in description but still rather mild compared to other erotica novels, in my opinion.
TWs & CWs
For the TWs: hunger, poverty, fantasy racism, death (beheading), kidnapping (of the FMC), sexual assault, threat of raping of the FMC, wanted pregnancy
For the sexual CWs: oral and vaginal sex, fingering, vibrating knot (not actual knotting but male Dakkari have a knot at their base that vibrates for the enjoyment of their females), light choking
TL;DR
Alien Dothraki romantasy novel (with spicy scenes) that plays on another planet. While the male character has alpha tendencies, he has taken a good sip of "respect women" juice and treats his wife rather well. The development of the romance happens relatively quickly but the insta-love/insta-lust is one-sided on the MMC's side for the first chapters.
The following review might contain spoilers.
PLOT
Luna lives with her brother in a small village that's supported by the Uranian Federation until her brother tries one of his many experiments to increase the fertility of the earth as the entire village is starving. The result of the experiment calls a horde of Dakkari to the village as they take offence to the experiments as it goes against their religion. To save her brother's life, Luna bargains with the horde king and goes with him as his war prize. She expects to be one of many concubines as all stories about the Dakkari paint them as barbaric monsters. She learns quickly that she isn't meant as a concubine but to become the wife and queen of the horde king, and learns with time that all the stories about the Dakkari aren't true.
WORLD-BUILDING & MAGIC
The story plays on Dakkar, which is an alien planet that isn't defined further (as in where it is in the solar system etc.). There are mentions of the old Earth and it is implied that living there isn't possible anymore, which is why humankind left the Earth several centuries ago to find a new planet. Dakkar seems to be one of many settled ones. The humans live in small villages that are within the territory of the Dakkari. Aside from the Dakkari, which are the dominant race on the planet, there are also other species mentioned that settle on Dakkar but are considered enemies to the Dakkari. Due to the nomadic lifestyle of the Dakkar, there's not much in terms of architecture etc. They follow the movements of their preferred meat source (that isn't described at all but I suppose it might be some type of bovine), live in tents and care a lot for their horses (alien type though, they eat meat and are more vicious). There's one major, permanent settlement where the king of all Dakkari lives. They have a religious system that is based on nature, which is why the Dakkari forbade humans to hunt and limit their farming a lot.
It's a relatively superficial world-building but I suspect that it will either increase with the following books or will continue to stay as simple for the sake of it being a romantasy/erotica novel.
There's no magic system.
CHARACTERS
Two main characters with Luna and Arokan (the horde king). Both are very two-dimensional and lack depth but I don't expect utterly fleshed-out characters in these books. Arokan is basically a better version of Drogo from Game of Thrones as he's more respectful of Luna and doesn't force himself upon her. He has alpha tendencies but it isn't as awful as other alpha males in romantasy books. He's highly protective of his people and Luna. Meanwhile, Luna is reckless and rarely thinks through her interactions although she has also the tendency to overthink. Despite being called Queen multiple times, she takes ages to make any effort to learn more about the Dakkari. She's also stubborn and slightly stupid (e.g., not eating the offered food for days because "my village starves, so I cannot enjoy this").
Aside from them, there are also several side characters: Luna's maids (who also feel like copies of Daenerys' maids), Arokan's aunt who dislikes Luna for no explicit reason, Luna's brother, and a few even less important side characters that are often just mentioned in a few sentences.
ROMANCE
Very much insta-lust and insta-love from Arokan's side where Luna requires more time to warm up to him although she considers him as attractive early on despite his alien looks (e.g., long dark coarse-looking hair, black eyes with a golden ring, a tail, ...).
As I mentioned that he's more respectful than Drogo: while Arokan wants to fuck her from the beginning, he stops as soon as he realises that she's sore (from riding) or uncomfortable with him. Of course, there's a ceremony after which he claims her but he stops having sex with her when he notices that she doesn't react to his touch in any way as he thinks that she doesn't want him.
In terms of the overall spiciness of the scenes: 3 🌶️ as the scenes are explicit and graphic in description but still rather mild compared to other erotica novels, in my opinion.
TWs & CWs
For the TWs: hunger, poverty, fantasy racism, death (beheading), kidnapping (of the FMC), sexual assault, threat of raping of the FMC, wanted pregnancy
For the sexual CWs: oral and vaginal sex, fingering, vibrating knot (not actual knotting but male Dakkari have a knot at their base that vibrates for the enjoyment of their females), light choking
TL;DR
Alien Dothraki romantasy novel (with spicy scenes) that plays on another planet. While the male character has alpha tendencies, he has taken a good sip of "respect women" juice and treats his wife rather well. The development of the romance happens relatively quickly but the insta-love/insta-lust is one-sided on the MMC's side for the first chapters.