A retelling of the Prince and the Pauper set in the Ravenspire universe.

After spending 10 years earning high honours at a prestigious academy in a neighbouring kingdom, Prince Javan is ready to return home and make his father proud. But on the eve of his return trip, he survives an assassination attempt only to find an imposter taking his place in the palace … with his uncle’s support. Javan is thrown into prison and forced to participate in the bloodthirsty tournament his uncle has implemented, facing down all manner of dangerous beasts — and other prisoners — to win an audience with his father and prove his true identity before it’s too late.

Just like with the previous books in this series, I was totally invested in these characters and their story! Loved it! ( )

Javan Najafai, crown prince of Akram, has spent the last ten years at an elite boarding school, far away from his kingdom. But his eagerly awaited return home is cut short when a mysterious impostor takes his place and no one believes Javan is the true prince. ( )

I'll admit, while she had me absolutely enthralled with both The Wish Granter and The Shadow Queen, I came into this read thinking I wouldn't really love it as much only because I don't really have a strong connection with the fairytales it's based on, The Prince and the Pauper and The False Prince.

But boy was I wrong.... Redwine BLEW. ME. AWAY.

After spending 10 years training at an elite boarding school, and graduating top of his class, Prince Javan of Akram is set upon by assassins intent on killing him before he reaches home while a boy who strikes an uncanny resemblance to Javan is instilled in his place back at the palace. Thrown into the formidable prison, Maqbara after confronting the impostor, Javan has but one hope to be granted audience with his father and out the impostor; win the deadly gladiator style tournament hosted twice at year in Maqbara. Finding an unlikely ally in Sajda, stoic and cold slave of the ruthless warden, the two work together to try and keep Javan alive long enough to gain audience with the king. Sajda is hiding her own deadly secrets and in a place as dangerous as Maqbara, everyday is a fight to stay alive.

Absolutely blown away once again by Redwine! Girl can write! The Traitor Prince was full of all the same elements I have come to know and love from one of her fairy-tale retelling's; the well crafted characters, heart pumping action scenes, heartbreaking loss, and incredibly detailed writing style. Her words comes alive on the pages and the breath she has breathed into her characters is something rare indeed. Can not sing her praises enough! I am eagerly and impatiently awaiting the next Ravenspire novel. ( )

While Javan, the young prince of Akram, has been away for ten years at an elite boarding school, his uncle has been secretly grooming his illegitimate son to take his place on the throne. After several botched assassination attempts, Javan finds himself in the worst prison in Akram literally fighting for his life and his spot on the throne. However, if his uncle, his cousin, the warden, several prisoners, and creepy monsters get their way, Javan will never again get to see the light of day.

This story broke my heart several times and then tried to piece it back together. Ms. Redwine knows how to weave a tale and I stayed up really late to find out how this one was going to end. ( )

Literary Merit: Very Good
Characterization: Excellent
Recommended: Recommended
Level: High School

C.J. Redwine’s The Traitor Prince is a really fun fairytale retelling of an old Arabian tale called The False Prince, with a hint of The Prince and the Pauper. The characters are well written and fleshed out and the plot is interesting and pretty fast paced. The villain is more of a collection of people rather than one individual like in the companion novels, but is frighteningly, diabolically evil none the less.

Prince Javan has been away at school for ten years, fulfilling his mother’s dying wish to excel in his studies so that one day he may become a King most fit to rule his kingdom of Akram. In his absence, his bastard cousin assumes his identity and begins to slowly poison the king so that he may one day rule. Prince Javan later finds himself thrown in prison and forced to compete in a tournament for an audience with his father, whom he hopes will recognize him as his true son, and set every wrong right.

I really enjoyed the Prince’s character. He is loyal and strong and smart, wanting only to be a good, fair, and just ruler to his country. He stands up for others and values every life equally. He’s not judgmental or bigoted, and that is expressed when in prison, he meets Sajda, the warden’s slave, who turns out to be a dark elf, a creature that most have been taught to fear and hate.

Sajda is quite fierce and mostly sticks to herself, having been sold into slavery at the age of five. She tends to the beasts at the prison that are used in the tournament and has very few friends, until Prince Javan. The two quickly become allies, helping each other survive the beasts of the prison, both animal and human, day in and day out. Sajda hides the fact that she’s a dark elf, fearing the fallout, but when Javan figures out what she is, he only continues to embrace her with love and friendship. The romantic relationship that develops between them is very sweet and well plotted. There’s no instalove, only a bond that forms and flourishes through survival and understanding.

This is the third book in Redwine’s Ravenspire series; however each book is written as a standalone, and can be read individually of each other. Nonetheless, there are a few cameos from characters from the previous books but nothing in depth enough to have had to read them to understand what is going on.

Overall, I really enjoyed The Traitor Prince, and can’t wait to see what C.J. writes next for this ( )