The Knight's Kiss

The Knight’s Kiss
Nicole Burnham

[some mild spoilers]
Domenico, 12th century, was following his duty to the king, and made a difficult decision not to assist someone in need. He was cursed until he could abandon his ambition and sacrifice his desires for the sake of another. What was the curse? Immorality: He stopped getting older

Fast forward 800 or so years... Princess Isabella of San Rimini wants an expert to catalog the extensive royal collection of art cached in/below the palace- Not someone with ulterior motives, like fame or fortune or political reasons, but rather an expert who loves the work/art and who will complete the museum expansion project started by her deceased, beloved mother. She is not at all interested in being distracted by an interesting and great looking man with a sense of humor. She wants Nick Black for the project: a highly recommended, leading collector of San Riminian medieval art and relics. Nick, who would love like a “chance to live out the rest of his life surrounded by those who knew and cared for him, maybe even enjoying the love of a wife and children”. So what’s the problem? Is it that he’s a recluse? Ugly? Nasty? Nope, none of those things. Nick is none other than Domenico. He has had to to reinvent himself and move every decade or two so that people don’t realize that he’s always the same age.

When first meeting Nick, Isabella is intrigued by several contradictions. He has extensive experience but looks relatively young. He collects historical artifacts, but has modern art and technology in his place of business. He’s reclusive, but very affable. Intriguing

So what happens when the busy but somehow lonely princess hires the ever-young expert on San Rimini? Nick reluctantly takes the job, hoping to find an antidote to the curse, and instead finds an impossible love, one that he can’t hold onto if he truly loves her. Isabella finds someone who understands her, but has guarded his secrets from her. This book kept me captivated as I watched Isabella and Nick fall in love, and wondered how they would reach their happy ever after. There was a fun scene in the bakery, and glimpses of people from previous books in the series ( I love Prince Marco and Amanda!). I’m looking forward to Prince Frederico’s story next, and hoping to see more of his children in it. Four stars.

This book was provided to me free of charge in exchange for an honest review.

Isabella and Nick have a very unique story in this series. I honestly think this could be my favorite book of the series. Nicole added some magic (literally) and the burden of time to bring together two lonely souls. Neither of them are fully satisfied with their lives. Nick is burned with the task of freeing himself from a curse - no matter how much he feels he’s sacrificed and helped others, it isn’t enough to set him free. Then there’s Isabella. She has the burden and duty of her position. She loves helping others, but at the end of the day, it’s just her. It even appears that her own family doesn’t notice it’s her birthday, but she goes on being everything for everyone around her. They are the other half of each other. Both being the answer for each other and, in the end, breaking the curse.