4.5 ( )

4 1/2 stars!

Royal romances are a definite favorite and I loved Emma St. Clair’s take on this familiar trope. Everything is here: a beautiful fairytale-like setting, balls, gowns, handsome royalty, and all the perks of being a princess. What sets this apart is Emma’s ability to convey a deeply heartfelt romance, the realistic struggles of the Duke of Devilishness himself, and hilarious situations like killer swans that make this a fun, enjoyable read.

Princess Serafina has to choose a husband by her father’s birthday or the monarchy is in jeopardy. She’s always counted on Prince Callum, her childhood friend, to marry her. After all, their families have drawn up contracts saying so. Unfortunately, Prince Callum is determined not to go along with an arranged marriage. He even has an American girlfriend, a fashion designer with a particularly unusual sense of design. When Rafe, the darkly handsome Duke of Weldon offers to be her date to the ball and make Callum jealous, Serafina goes along. But, what happens when she learns the playboy duke has much more to him than a bad reputation?

I absolutely adored Rafe. He genuinely loves Seraf as he calls her and wants what’s best for her. His real struggles and tragic family history endeared me to him. I wanted so badly to see him win Serafina’s heart. Despite his time in the tabloids, he really is a caring, thoughtful person who’s put his roguish ways behind him, except for the delightful ways he teases Serafina.

For a soon-to-be-queen, Serafina is surprisingly easy to relate to. Ahh, I loved the incident with the antique table and her poor bum, her drooling over Rafe eating strawberries, and using power tools during Working Day. She’s known as the Ice Princess, but that’s because she’s been forced to maintain an unemotional facade. Rafe brings out the best in her and while she struggles with her feelings for both Callum and Rafe, I was thrilled to see her quickly recognize how each man makes her feel.

I listened to the audiobook version of the book and absolutely loved it! The narrators do such a great job bringing each character to life. I enjoyed having both male and female narrators and these two were particularly good. The British accents made listening to the story even better.

With plenty of laughs, awkward situations, great side characters, swoony romance, and a little bit of drama, this royal romance swept me off my feet and I can’t wait for more books in the series! Highly recommend to romcom and royal romance fans. This is a sweet, closed door romance with mild language and innuendo. I purchased the ebook, but also received a complimentary audiobook from the author. All opinions are my own and I was not required to provide a positive review. ( )