The Accidental Princess

I Was Smitten

The Accidental Princess, the first book in Her Royal Duty series, kicks off with a little bit of romance and a whole lot of magic! Love is in the air in San Montico and it all has to do with the royal family’s enchanted engagement ring. Legend has it that anyone who the engagement ring fits is destined to marry the future king, and everyone but Prince Richard believes in the legend. Richard is ready to bring San Montico into the 21st century, leaving old ideologies behind, and feels he has the right to choose whom he marries and not have an enchanted ring pick for him. He also has a conundrum: he has to marry by his 21st birthday or forfeit the throne. No matter how hard he’s tried he cannot find “the one” and quickly finds himself at a crossroads.

At his royal birthday party, Prince Richard meets Christina Armstrong, an American heiress whose klutzy reputation precedes her. When she tries on the ring and it won’t come off Christina feels like she has committed the ultimate blunder, especially when her first meeting with Prince Richard didn’t go so great. This sets in motion a chain of events that neither Richard nor Christina could’ve possibly imagined, making them both wonder if there is truly magic in the ring.

From the beginning Prince Richard rubbed me the wrong way. He comes across as incredibly selfish and closed-minded, and there were even times I felt predatory vibes from him, which was off-putting. Though he does start to redeem himself as the story progressed I never could quite shake my dislike of him.

Christina, on the other hand, has a heart of gold, so it was easy to fall in love with her. Doing every crazy thing the prince asked her to in an attempt to remove the ring without question says so much about her character, though I do wish she would’ve fought him just a little bit more, and had just a touch more sass.

The part that I knew I was enchanted myself was when Richard and Christina visit the children’s hospital and Christina helps the little girl with her drawing for the prince. Both Richard and Christina show their compassionate sides and this is when I could see a true change in the prince, which was a welcome change for me. From then on I couldn’t put this novel down, as I had to see if the ring could truly work it’s magic, and make these two open their eyes to what is right in front of them.

Melissa McClone has done it again! I’m not normally one for stories that involve royalty but I was smitten with this Cinderella-inspired story. The characters are down to earth and engaging, and it’s a quick story that you can easily get swept away in.

*I have voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book which I received from the author/publisher. All views and opinions expressed are completely honest, and my own.