Once Upon a Prince, Royal Wedding Series #1 -eBook
4.3
5
17
17
Themes of Surrender, Faith, and Trust
Oh! Oh! Oh! Will Avery win Colin's heart next?
Wait. ThatâÂÂs hopeful speculation about the next book, not a review of the first. I just finished reading Rachel HauckâÂÂs new book, "Once Upon a Prince," the first book in "The Royal Wedding Series." IâÂÂm ready for Book 2. And since there are only so many actual, factual princes in this world, I think itâÂÂs kind of fun that Hauck is making up her own for her characters to marry. (The only time I had trouble suspending disbelief was in the few scenes where Hauck had her pretend people hobnobbing with real royalty. That kind of broke the fairy tale spell for me.)
The strengths of this book were the characters and the settings. St. SimonâÂÂs Island, Georgia, where our heroine, Susanna, and her family are from, is a real placeâÂÂone IâÂÂve enjoyed visiting and loved finding in a story. Prince Nathaniel is from Brighton, a fictional country somewhere near England. Nate and Susannah meet the day her boyfriend of 12 years breaks up with her. On vacation on St. SimonâÂÂs Island, Nate comes to SusannahâÂÂs rescue when she gets a flat tire. He chooses to keep his royal standing a secret.
Scattered throughout the book are thoughts on trusting GodâÂÂs plan instead of always clinging to your own and believing that He knows what HeâÂÂs doing when He places you somewhere youâÂÂre not sure you want to be. The dominant theme is total surrender to GodâÂÂs Will and, perhaps, remaking that choice daily.
Fans of happily ever after will enjoy this story. I thank Zondervan for sending it through BookSneeze for this honest review.
May 21, 2013
Exquisite
This book was sooo good. I loved it. Lovely. Exceptional! Hard to put down.
Due to family issues when she was a child, Susanna needs to have everything in her life settled & planned out. But she is thrown for a loop when her boyfriend of twelve years deviates from the plan and instead of asking her to marry him, breaks up with her.
Then, as she deals with her sadness and the stress of everyone on the island knowing her ex had "the right ring but not the right girl," crown prince Nate Kenneth comes to her rescue when she has a flat tire, and again when she faces a family medical crisis. The two become friends as Nate starts working at her family's restaurant, and she designs the garden at his family's vacation home on the island. As Susanna leans on the Lord to get through the many changes in her life, she encourages Nate to trust Him as he faces changes and challenges in his life. But because of the physical distance that separates them, and the differences in their stations in life, they don't admit their growing love for each other.
The writing was exquisite in this novel, and more than once, it took my breath away. Here are some more memorable lines:
"Nate jumped up, taking her with him and catching her up in his arms. He whirled her around with a merry laugh."
"With her prayer and her touch, Nathaniel felt certain he'd just experienced a little bit of heaven on earth."
"'Maybe we can't have everything we want in this relationship, Susanna.' He bent his lips to her ears and whispered, 'But we have this ball and tonight, you are my queen.'... She let him lead her to the dance floor and take her into his arms, swirling again through the stardust to the music of their own hearts."
May 20, 2013
Once Upon a Prince by Rachel Hauck
Friday, May 17, 2013
Once Upon a Prince by Rachel Hauck
Thomas Nelson publishers just sent me a free copy of Once Upon a Prince to review. With a modern day setting off the coast of Georgia, readers are in for a royal treat. Susanna Truitt has a plan for her life- get married to her boyfriend Adam of 12 years and work as a landscape architect. But God has other plans. First, Adam decides they are better off as friends and makes plans to marry someone else. Then she finds herself without a job and has to work at her parent's diner. Prince Nathaniel, from the small British island of St. Simons, has come to Georgia for vacation time before becoming King. His father is close to death and he is next in line for the crown. Susanna and Nathaniel meet under the fabled Lover's Oak and have an instant connection. Susanna, not realizing he is a prince, accepts his offer to landscape Nathaniel's family vacation home in Georgia. Nathaniel gets a true dose of southern living when he helps out at her family's diner. He loves this chance to be himself before taking on the duties and stress of King. Susanna is the perfect girl for him! Yet Prince Nathaniel's advisors and family have a future queen in mind for the good of their nation and a long ago royal law states that the king can not marry a foreigner. Nathaniel can't think with his heart anymore, he must think of what is best for his country. Susanna knows she isn't queen material and this wasn't part of her "plan". Yet when Susanna travels to St. Simons for Nathaniel's coronation, she feels like she fit into this fairy tale life. But will their love be enough and what is God's plan for their lives? This was a new author for me. Rachel Hauck was recently chosen by Family Fiction readers as one of the top 5 romance authors in CBA. According to her biography, she has already written over 15 novels. Overall, I liked her writing style. At times the story seemed to drag along at too slow of a pace. And so much of it seemed to not be close to real life that I had a harder time getting into the book. But for those that like stories about royal life, life in the south with a touch of British, this story is for you!
Posted by basketballorange301 at 7:45 PM
May 17, 2013
A True Pleasure
Every little girl dreams of that perfect fairy tale. As little girls become bigg(er) girls we tend to get a *little* bit more realism, but never truly lose that dream of someday falling in love and riding off into the sunset. âÂÂOnce Upon a Princeâ has taken every little girlâÂÂs dream and given us a soul mate in Susanna.
Good thing to love about Susanna: she has a good head on her shoulders. If it were me and I were in love with a prince (literally a PRINCE charming. ;-), I think my hopeless romantic side would start to take dominance. SheâÂÂs competent, sweet and good, with a bit of sass which makes me to just want to cheer when she says something I would *never* say.
The romance is just about as sweet as you can get. The writing quality is right up there with stories that simply come to life in the mindâÂÂs eye. I did get lost in all the political talk. (I think because it basically goes right over my head) and it slowed the rhythm down for me.
Otherwise, the ending completely made me sigh. (I was waiting for like over three hundred pages for that kiss!!). I LOVED how much Nate loved Susanna and took time to really woo her. This is definitely a story for the heart of a hopeless romantic. A true pleasure.
This review is my honest opinion. Thanks to the publishers through Litfuse for my copy to review.
May 14, 2013
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