A thrilling retelling of the star-crossed tale of Romeo and Juliet, from the New York Times bestselling author of the Morganville Vampires series.

In the Houses of Montague and Capulet, there is only one goal: power. The boys are born to fight and die for honor and—if they survive—marry for influence and money, not love. The girls are assets, to be spent wisely. Their wishes are of no import. Their fates are written on the day they are born.

Benvolio Montague, cousin to Romeo, knows all this. He expects to die for his cousin, for his house, but a spark of rebellion still lives inside him. At night, he is the Prince of Shadows, the greatest thief in Verona—and he risks all as he steals from House Capulet. In doing so, he sets eyes on convent-bound Rosaline, and a terrible curse begins that will claim the lives of many in Verona…

…And will rewrite all their fates, forever

This is a retelling of the Romeo and Juliet story, but in text and from the Point of View of Benvolio, Romeo’s cousin.

Romeo makes the occasional appearance, as is appropriate for the young heir, still living in his father’s house.

Juliet makes two appearances, one at the famous party, where she meets Romeo for the first time, and one later where her behaviour is already cause for concern and puts her betrothal to Paris at risk.

Caine makes good use of the spaces left in Benvolio’s appearances during R&J and portrays the secondary characters well. The set pieces (such as the fight between Tybalt, Mercutio and Romeo that leads to the death of two and the banishment of the third) are handled well and add further dimensions to the original.

Benvolio has developed a skill as a cat burglar, which allows him to be places and see things that forward the story that wouldn’t have progressed otherwise. Because this is a time without phones, but with paid thugs roaming the streets, there are plenty of fights, but news travels slowly and often through rumour before fact.

Benvolio’s sister is used as an example where women are there to be “traded” in marriage for political means. Men are there to protect the family honour, which means protecting the heir as necessary and progressing the line where necessary – the further away from the heir, the more “disposable” your life is.

In summary: an enjoyable story, that is easy to read, where it is not necessary to know the original text (though it does help to understand the context of some of the set pieces).

lovely retelling of romeo and juliet from the pov of benvolio and rosaline. Rachel Caine adds a nice spin on the classic, giving more depth to the characters and storyline. also, who doesn't like a little vigilante "bad" boy? ( )

This story focuses on Benvolio Montague and Rosaline Capulet and how they fall in love. It also focuses on Mercutio, a gay boy trying to hide his romance, as well as Romeo and Juliet and how their love doomed their families. Rachel Caine presents the Shakespearian characters on a different light and makes the circumstances in which they fall in love supernatural (a result of a curse) and overall more understandable had it been that way in the original.
A good twist on an age-old tale that is bound to make Romeo & Juliet lovers find a new favourite read. Plus, Rosaline was awesome and I wish there were more scenes with her.

“Let houses burn, as long as you are together. Nothing else matters but love.”

“Love well, if not wisely.” ( )

I CAN FINALLY REVIEW THIS.
Rating: 4 stars

I've read Romeo and Juliet. I've read a book told from Rosaline's perspective, Romeo's Ex - Rosaline's Story. Prince of Shadows tells the story of Romeo and Juliet from Benvolio's perspective, as well as the stories of many other characters - strong-willed Rosalie, and passionate Mercutio. I liked how Caine expanded and created a world for the characters, with their backstories and motivations. The Montague matriarch, Benvolio's grandmother, is not one to be trifled with. So everyone has their desires, and then there's Benvolio, a normal guy trying to keep his cousin Romeo out of trouble. But only during the daytime - because at night he transforms into the Prince of Shadows!

It was great to see how this all played out, because Caine took the liberties of making the tale readable and relatable. Romeo, Mercutio, and Benvolio are average Veronese guys, drinking, flirting with the ladies, and picking an occasional fight with a Capulet. As the Prince of Shadows, Benvolio would be like Robin Hood, except he just keeps what he steals for himself. He does help out his rival family's daughter, Rosaline, whenever she's in need. But things change when Veronica Montague reveals Mercutio's secret relationship with Thomas, and the latter is hanged for this 'sin'. Everything keeps on crashing down after that.

I loved almost all the characters. And even the ones I hated, were fun to read as well (I'm talking about you Veronica!). They're not entirely good or entirely bad, and the women in particular have to be devious and conniving in order to make a claim in society. Rosaline by far was my favorite - she's just trying to do her own thing, and read books, but the Capulets keep on trying to send her to a convent. And Romeo pining after her with his terrible poetry - hilarious! Oh Romeo, such a lovesick puppy.

I really had an attachment to a lot of the characters, so you can imagine how I felt when some of them died. Except Tybalt. I knew Romeo and Juliet would die (e-gasp a spoiler?) but Veronica and Mercutio's death struck me the post. Poor Veronica - she's one of those spoiled little sisters trying to get her way, but in the end feels sorry for what he's done. And Mercutio - I felt bad for him from Thomas's death to his own. He went through so much. (As you can see the secondary characters are my favorite's to read!)

This is unusual for me, but I preferred the beginning - middle to the end. The end started to get this magical curse vibe that I didn't see coming, and couldn't picture it as clearly. Really, there's a curse that caused all this? And the steps Benvolio and Rosaline had to go through to stop it - a bit silly, but there's always a need for some tension.

Regardless, it's a good retelling/POV change of Romeo and Juliet, and I recommend it to those Shakespeare buffs out there!
( )

A dark, clever retelling of Romeo & Juliet, full of twisted politics, heartbreaking relationships, and a wry, witty narrator in the form of Benvolio, an Italian Robin Hood bent on holding his world together, no matter how deftly it explodes. Love that Romeo was portrayed exactly as he should be: a bratty, self-absorbed, yet still lovable 16-year-old. It's Meecutio, who completely and utterly broke my heart. Intrigue, horror, love & heartbreak abound! Don't miss this one. ( )