Synopsis
I was sixteen
when I vowed I would never marry him.
We shook on
it. Pinky swore. Even put it in writing and all but signed our names in blood.
It was the
one and only thing we ever agreed on.
To the world,
he’s Prince Ian, Duke of Montcroix, second in line to the Chamont throne.
Panty-melting accent. Royal charm. Hypnotic presence. Blindingly gorgeous.
Laundry list of women all over the world who would give their first born for
the chance to marry him. Most eligible bachelor in the free world …
But to me,
he’s nothing more than the son of my father’s best friend—the pesky blue-eyed
boy who made it his mission to annoy the ever-loving hell out of me summer
after summer as our families vacationed together, our parents oblivious to our
mutual disdain as they joked about our “betrothal.”
He was also
my first kiss.
And my first
taste of heartbreak so cataclysmic it almost broke me.
I meant it
with every fiber of my soul when I swore I’d never marry him.
But on the
eve of my 24th birthday, His Royal Highness has the audacity to show up at my
door after years of silence and make a demand will forever change the
trajectory of our lives: “We have to break our pact.”
PURCHASE LINK
EXCERPT
“Ms.
Belleseau,” he says before moving aside. “Welcome. Won’t you come in?”
Her
eyes lift across the small space until they find mine, and her hands clasp in
front of her waist. She’s in jean shorts, a white tank top, sandals, and a
wildly colorful cardigan. Her long hair is piled on top of her head—hardly the
look of a queen, but I like it nonetheless.
My
all-American sweetheart …
“I’ll
do it,” she says as Harrison locks the door behind her. Emelie takes a few more
steps closer, until we’re only a few feet apart. “But I have terms and
conditions.”
“Such
as?”
“No
sex,” she says.
I
hide my disappointment with a smirk. “Glad we’re getting that one out of the
way. What else?”
“No
romance.”
“Easy.”
“Limited
public engagements,” she adds.
“I’m
afraid that one isn’t up for negotiation,” I say. “But you’ll be pleased to
know that we aren’t allowed to demonstrate any public displays of affection, so
any and all public engagements will require nothing more than a smile, a
curtsy, and a few kind words.”
“Fine.”
Her arms fold across her chest, like she still isn’t comfortable with the idea
of this arrangement. “You get me until my twenty-ninth birthday and not a day
longer.”
“Deal.”
“Oh.
And I’m allowed to see my family at any chosen time, regardless of schedule or
engagements,” she says.
I
hesitate—logistics and all of that.
“That’s
my non-negotiable,” she says. “My mother and my sisters are my everything. If I
want to see them, you’re going to make it happen or the deal is off. And my
friends too. I want my friends to be able to visit."
That’s
her non-negotiable? I figured it would’ve been the sex …
“All
right,” I say. “Shall we pinky swear on this as we did with our last
agreement?”
She
fights a smile—a good sign—but her poker face returns in an instant, rendering
her back to unreadable.
“You
have my word if I have yours,” she says, not moving so much as an inch closer.
Her chin lifts and her shoulders straighten as she looks me dead in the eye. I
can’t tell if she’s feeling good about her decision or giving me her best poker
face.
“Apparently
pinky promises aren’t as binding as we thought now, are they?”
My
joke falls on deaf ears. She isn’t amused.
Her
arms lower to her sides, as though she’s feeling slightly less defensive than
when she first walked in the door.
“You’re
going to make an amazing queen, Emelie,” I say, envisioning her in my
great-grandmother’s glimmering Belcast tiara. “Welcome to the royal family.”
MY REVIEW
I
enjoyed both characters. Emelie and Julian.
I was interested in the plot and like the writing.
What
I did not enjoy as much was the execution and the pace. The relationship between Emelie and Julian felt
rushed. The relationship curve from hate
to love, for me, came about too quick.
Too much, too fast after so many years.
As result, I didn’t feel the connection between these two that I should
have. I loved both characters separately
but together, I did not feel the spark or passion between them.
I
also have to say that I didn’t agree with how the ending came about. The decisions the characters made, for me,
seemed abrupt and out of character. It
doesn’t feel like there was any weighted thought on the major decision they made
nor the repercussions.
With
that being said, I liked the story overall.
This book does not put me off this author. I am interested in seeing and reading what she
comes out with next.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Wall
Street Journal and #1 Amazon bestselling author Winter Renshaw is a bona fide
daydream believer. She lives somewhere in the middle of the USA and can rarely
be seen without her trusty Mead notebook and ultra portable laptop. When she’s
not writing, she’s living the American dream with her husband, three kids, and
the laziest puggle this side of the Mississippi.
And if
you'd like to be the first to know when a new book is coming out, please sign
up for her private mailing list here ---> http://eepurl.com/bfQU2j
CONNECT WITH WINTER
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