Susanna
is not having a good day. The fellow she had been friends with for
twelve years, experiencing the ebb and flow of romance, has just told
her he cannot marry her. She is stunned. Marriage had been their plan
since their sophomore year of college. But on his last tour in
Afghanistan, he fell in love - with someone else.
Her
day gets even worse when she finds her car has a flat tire. And then
some creepy guy starts to bother her as she struggles with the tire
iron. Then, out of the sunset, riding his trusty steed – well,
actually a black SUV – is the most handsome man... He introduces
himself as Nate and is more than happy to help her change her tire.
What
Susanna doesn't know is that “Nate” is really Nathaniel, Prince
of Brighton. He's having an American vacation on St. Simons Island,
and will be the guest at a benefit put on by his distant cousin.
Susanna, through quirks of accident, does not find out Nate's true identity for quite a
while.
Nate
is struck with love the very first time he sees Susanna. But he has a
problem. His father is dying of leukemia and Nate may end up being
king sooner than he had anticipated. His vacation at the cottage his
family has owned for decades may soon have to come to an end. How can
he bear to leave Susanna?
Susanna
finds out by accident Nate's true identity. She is crushed. Why did
he lie to her? Just when it looks like they might work it out Nate
gets word his father has died and he must return to Brighton
immediately. He must be king.
What
a fun and well crafted modern fairy tale. There is the damsel in
distress. There is (literally) the prince who comes to her aid. There
is even a fairy Godmother, of sorts, in the quirky character of
Aurora.
There
is the typical romance problem. He is the king of (fictional)
Brighton and the country has had a law for two hundred years that the
king cannot marry someone not born in Brighton. Hauck really
heightens the anxiety as conditions back in Brighton are not helping
Nate and Susanna's romance at all.
This
was a delightful novel to read. In addition to the traditional issues
in a romance novel, Hauck also tackles the concept of being in love
with an idea, rather than the person, and whether one marries out of
(political) responsibility or love.
This
is the first in the Royal Wedding series. The series is off to a good
start! Watch a trailer here.
I
am taking part in a blog tour of this book. You can see other reviews
here.
Rachel
Hauck is the bestselling author of ACFW Book of the Year winner Sweet
Caroline, and RITA Finalist Love Starts With Elle. She
lives in sunny central Florida with her husband. She is the past
President of American Christian Fiction Writers and now serves on the
Executive Board. Visit her web site at www.rachelhauck.com
to sign up for her newsletter, read her blog and to follow her on
Facebook and Twitter.
Zondervan,
352 pages. Please visit your local Christian bookstore to purchase
this book.
I
received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher for
the purpose of this review.
No comments:
Post a Comment