The Prince Who Loved Me by Abigail Sharpe

He loves her.
She loves him not...yet.

Brandi Clayton spent years being a chameleon, trading on her looks for the security of having a man taking care of her. After all, being alone is what her mother taught her to fear. When her grandmother’s will surprisingly reveals Brandi inherited the family business, a new path opens up for her. She’s determined to take charge of Belle’s Medicinal Brewery and her own life. And if she can take that leap, she can find a man who loves her for exactly who she is. With her long-time friend Sebastien’s support, she’s bound to succeed, but she can’t take advantage of Sebastien forever.

A royal with no responsibilities, Prince Sebastien of Casagnes spends his days near Brandi, sketching, and helping his friend whenever she calls. His love for her is like his art -- safely hidden where it can't be rejected. But when Brandi uploads her profile to dating sites, Sebastien fears losing the one woman who is his everything. Can this loyal royal find the courage to put his heart on the line and paint a picture for Brandi of their life together?

The Prince Who Loved Me is a Just Add Peaches novel. Each book in the series is a stand-alone, passionate and playful contemporary romance, but you'll want more than one juicy bite.

Title: The Prince Who Loved Me
Author: Abigail Sharpe
Series: Just Add Peaches (Book 3)
Pages: 350
Genre(s): Contemporary, US, Small-Town Romance, Unrequited Love

Pleasantly gentle

3 stars

This is my first Abigail Sharpe novel and as such, I’ve not read the first two books in the Just Add Peaches series, Moonshine and Magnolias and Cupcake of the Month. I did feel a wee bit confused by the setting of the story (a brewery and an Inn) and the relationships between some of the characters as I hadn’t read the first two books. Sometimes, authors rehash story lines of their previous novels to get readers up to speed. It often annoys me if I have already read the novels they’re rehashing - but in this case, I really could have done with the catch-up.

On that same note, our heroine, Brandi obviously appeared in the first two novels - seemingly in a less than favourable light. As such, I felt much of the first third of the novel was the author apologising for Brandi’s prior behaviour and proving to readers that she has changed. Apparently she was a self-centered little madam on a man-frenzy with not a responsible bone in her body. The present-day Brandi is trying hard to be a responsible adult and overcome her surprising lack of self-worth. Surprising because she is well aware of her physical attributes, but obviously less so of her other charms. Yet she’s still a serial dater, going through a number of men before Sebastian catches her eye.

Sebastian is a nice enough hero - and not as wet as you might assume what with his having been in love with Brandi for years and having done little to nothing to make his move. Even when he does make his move it still quite gently done. In fact, gentle is a good word for this book all round.

There’s some declarations, some mama drama, some personal dilemmas… yet none of it ever makes more than a ripple in our characters’ lives. I’m not saying that this is necessarily a bad thing, but I do prefer a little more feistiness or excitement in my stories. And while ‘sweet’ might be another word to describe this story, there is a wee bit more spiciness than you might expect from such a descriptor.

I don’t think I can write a review without mentioning this book’s cover. Or more accurately, the attempt to ‘ginge-up’ the model portraying red-headed Sebastian. Seriously, are there no stock images with ginger male models? I definitely know there are trained graphic designers/artists who could help. I spent much of the book with Sebastian walking round my head with comedically painted on hair and beard. It’s not affecting my rating of the book but I’m definitely grumpy about it.

Anyway, this was a pleasant book with likeable characters and sweet love story. It didn’t set my world on fire but the writing was good and made the read an enjoyable one for me. A solid 3-star read.

 

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