Hand-Me-Down Princess

This week, the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is introducing Hand Me Down Princess CANDID Publications (August 31, 2015) by Carol Moncado

MY THOUGHTS:
Could you imagine being contractually betrothed to someone in this day and age? And marryng a prince whom you had never met? The American way isn't the standard way, and in a kingdom far, far way this was the beginning of a fun story!

Carol Moncado has created an impossible situation and makes it seem realistic. She takes the reader inside a fabulous castle from the perspective of a reluctant bride and groom who determine to make the best of a difficult situation. The stuff fairy tales are made of, but then she throws in twists and turns that make it a fascinating read! I enjoyed the concept of the book and the characters.

This is the first in a new series she has created, The Brides of Belles Montagnes.  I would recommend reading her other Princess series, the Montevaro Monarchy, first. While the story doesn't rely on those books, the characters show up and it's a bit confusing if you don't know their history.

The only negative I found was the number of misprints/typos. There were a few misspelled words, but I found several places where the wrong word was placed in a sentence, causing me to stop the flow of the reading to go back and figure out what was really meant. I know I can be a bit of a grammar nazi, so I feel compelled to warn you about this. 

That said, I recommend this book to anyone who wants to escape this world and dream about castles and handsome princes!



ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

When she’s not writing about her imaginary friends, Carol Moncado is hanging out with her husband, four kids, and a dog who weighs less than most hard cover books. She prefers watching NCIS to just about anything, except maybe watching Castle, or Girl Meets World with her kids. She believes peanut butter M&Ms are the perfect food and Dr. Pepper should come in an IV. When not watching her kids – and the dog – race around her big backyard in Southwest Missouri, she’s teaching American Government at a local community college. She’s a founding member and President of MozArks ACFW, category coordinator for First Impressions, blogger at InspyRomance, and represented by Tamela Hancock Murray of The Steve Laube Agency.


ABOUT THE BOOK

Prince Malachi Van Renssalaer of Mevendia is getting married. The problem? He’s never even met his bride. His father arranged everything, right down to the marriage contract. Malachi swears to himself that he will be nothing like his father in the ways that count - including his fidelity to his wife.

Jessabelle Keller would happily spend her entire life in obscurity, but her father once saved the life of a future king. Before he dies, her father is committed to seeing that king make good on his promise to have one of his sons marry her so she would be taken care of for life.

No sooner than Prince Malachi and Jessabelle return from their honeymoon, they find themselves dealing with both private trauma and the very public drama of groundless accusations from the press. Just as they begin to weave their fragile trust back together, a ghost from the king’s past arrives and threatens everything they’ve ever held dear.

Secrets have a funny way of coming out and this one could rip the faith of the country in their leaders to shreds. Malachi is determined to protect Jessabelle no matter what it takes, but will it ever be enough for her to not feel like a Hand-Me-Down Princess?

If you would like to read the first chapter of Hand Me Down Princess, go HERE.