Book Reviews

Book Blurb

A royal deception. An accidental romance.

When fast-living flight attendant Brayden Wood agrees to accompany a first-class passenger to a swanky charity ball, he discovers his date—“Call me Flip”—is actually His Royal Highness Prince Antoine-Philipe. And he wants Brayden to pretend to be his boyfriend.

Being Europe’s only prince of Indian descent—and its only openly gay one—has led Flip to select “appropriate” men first and worry about attraction later. Still, flirty, irreverent Brayden captivates him right away, and Flip needs a date to survive the ball without being match-made.

Before Flip can pursue Brayden in earnest, the paparazzi forces his hand, and the charade is extended for the remainder of Brayden’s vacation.

Posh, gorgeous, thoughtful Prince Flip is way out of Brayden’s league. If Brayden survives three weeks of platonically sharing a bed with him during the romantic holiday season, going home afterward might break his heart….

Book Review

A royal deception could be bad, but an accidental romance sounded very promising when I read the blurb of what turned out to be a very entertaining and fun novel. Set in a fictional Baltic country called Lyngria, it contains a fake boyfriend, an openly gay crown prince, some utterly charming members of a mixed-race royal family, and an unexpected whirlwind romance with lots of heart. It all starts as a seemingly innocent date for a charity ball, but with both men being attracted to each other from the start, I did wonder…

Brayden is a Canadian flight attendant who is totally unprepared for the kind of scrutiny someone dating a royal is under as soon as the paparazzi sniff out his existence. He has avoided commitment like the plague after being traumatized when his crush (they hadn’t even gotten around to talking to each other) was killed in a car accident when they were sixteen. So when one of the men on his flight turns out to be a rich guy who needs a date (ha!), Brayden agrees because he is about to start a three-week vacation to explore Lyngria and figures a local tour guide might be fun (double ha!). Imagine Brayden’s shock when he discovers the truth!

Flip is heir to the throne of Lyngria, pretty lonely, and openly gay. Yeah I know, but stick with me – this is fiction and a pretty cute modern-day fairy tale, so suspending disbelief is a small ask, I think. Brayden’s father is an utterly charming former Bollywood star and his mother, the current queen, a warm-hearted woman with a spine of steel. Flip has inherited some of both his parents’ traits and between his flawless manners, natural politeness, and determination to find his own partner he had me charmed from the very start.

This is a story filled with pomp and circumstance, breaches of protocol, sneaky episodes of Braden and Flip trying to just get to know each other, and lots of family pressure and interference from both sides of the Atlantic. The initial “deception” turns serious pretty quickly, but falling in love under the spotlight of public attention is not easy. There are obstacles to overcome, misunderstandings to deal with, and I held my breath when it looked like it might all fall apart. What an emotional roller coaster!

If you like fairy-tale romances in a contemporary setting, if you think a flight attendant and a prince might just be a perfect couple, and if you’re looking for a highly engaging read full of humorous moments, delightful characters, and a wonderful romance in a special setting, then you will probably like this novel as much as I do. It is definitely going in my reread folder.

 

 

 

 

DISCLAIMER: Books reviewed on this site were usually provided at no cost by the publisher or author. This book has been provided by Dreamspinner Press for the purpose of a review.

Additional Information

Format	ebook and print
Length	Novel, 212 pages/56324 words
Heat Level
Publication Date	18-June-2019
Price	$4.99 ebook, $9.99 paperback, $9.99 bundle
Buy Link	https://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/books/fake-dating-the-prince-by-ashlyn-kane-10555-b