After inheriting his title from his brother, the margrave has two weeks to find a noble bride. What will happen when he learns he has fallen for a lovely servant girl in disguise?
The Margrave of Thornbeck has to find a bride, fast. He invites ten noble born ladies who meet the king’s approval to be his guests at Thornbeck Castle for two weeks, a time to test these ladies and reveal their true character.
Avelina has only two instructions: keep her true identity a secret and make sure the margrave doesn’t select her as his bride. Since the latter seems unlikely, she concentrates on not getting caught. No one must know she is merely a maidservant, sent by the Earl of Plimmwald to stand in for his daughter, Dorothea.
Despite Avelina’s best attempts at diverting attention from herself, the margrave has taken notice. And try as she might, she can’t deny her own growing feelings. But something else is afoot in the castle. Something sinister that could have far worse—far deadlier—consequences
My Thoughts
This Princess and the Pea meets Beauty and the Beast tale is definitely one of my new Melanie Dickerson favorites! I actually devoured all 307 pages of this book in one afternoon due to an impending deadline but I would have burned through it rapidly regardless because I loved it from the beginning to the end!
When we met the Margrave of Thornbeck in the first book of this series I wasn't sure what to make of him but as I got to know him I realized he was a hero I could admire. He had dealt with a lot of pain in his life and as a result had a gruff exterior but despite that he still had a kind heart. It just took the right person to bring it out in him. And that person was Avelina. She was loving, kind, clever, genuine even though she was being forced to be someone she wasn't, humble, and yet bold when it was necessary. I loved watching their romance play out through all of it's ups and downs.
There were a couple mysteries throughout and a bit of adventure near the end but I liked how the main focus of this story was on Reinhart and Avelina's journey to love.
I really enjoyed seeing more of Jorgen and Odette from The Huntress of Thornbeck Forest and I loved Magdalen's character! I hope she gets her story told!
If you love fairy-tale re-imaginings or just a good story I highly recommend this book!
Meet the Author
I received this book free from the publisher in exchange for my review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.
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