He never lost a battle until he met the one woman who might succeed in...Charming the Prince.
Dear Reader,
My enemies know me as Lord Bannor the Bold, Pride of the English and Terror of the French. Never in my life have I backed down from any challenge or betrayed so much as a hint of fear—until the war ended and I found myself a reluctant papa to a dozen unruly children.
Realizing that I couldn't lop their little heads off or throw them in the dungeon, I sent my steward out to find them a mother and me a bride—an attractive, meek, maternal creature too plain to tempt me to get her with child. You can imagine my horror when he returned with Lady Willow of Bedlington, a spirited beauty who made me think of nothing else!
With her cloud of dark curls and the sparkle of passion in her eyes, Willow was everything I'd sworn to resist. I never dreamed she would join forces with those mischievous imps of mine to teach this cynical warrior just how sweet surrender can be.
Bannor the Bold,
Lord of Elsinore
Dear Reader,
My enemies know me as Lord Bannor the Bold, Pride of the English and Terror of the French. Never in my life have I backed down from any challenge or betrayed so much as a hint of fear—until the war ended and I found myself a reluctant papa to a dozen unruly children.
Realizing that I couldn't lop their little heads off or throw them in the dungeon, I sent my steward out to find them a mother and me a bride—an attractive, meek, maternal creature too plain to tempt me to get her with child. You can imagine my horror when he returned with Lady Willow of Bedlington, a spirited beauty who made me think of nothing else!
With her cloud of dark curls and the sparkle of passion in her eyes, Willow was everything I'd sworn to resist. I never dreamed she would join forces with those mischievous imps of mine to teach this cynical warrior just how sweet surrender can be.
Bannor the Bold,
Lord of Elsinore
Ren's Review:
4.5 stars.
So, I just bought this book from an online shop which usually sells many used books. The price is cheap. Just 50000 rupiahs or maybe 4,99 dollars. I decide to read Charming the Prince, first because I really loved the blurb, its rare to find characters letter for a synopsis. And I was kinda stuck with UF/PNR books I read lately. So I want to change my usual genre for a little while :)
I read this for 4 hours.And of course that a good sign! If I can't stop reading it, that means the story is good. And yes,Charming The Prince is really good.
So, what we have from this book?
Charming the Prince is re-telling from Cinderella story. With "Cinderella" having a weak father, evil stepmother, and 10 bothersome, annoying step-siblings. Lady Willow of Bedlington hopes her new mother will love her. Alas, what her stepmother does is to poison her father with her sweet venom talk. She makes them poor and that makes Willow as a servant for her step-siblings..
The story moved forward 13 years later. We meet the Prince Charming (he is charming after all), Lord Bannor the Bold, Pride of English and Terror of The French. Must always be successful winning every war and captured all his enemy, but not this war.. Not when his enemies are his TEN children, whose faces are like an angel, but their attitude are worse than Black Prince (King Edwards's son) himself. Bannor then ask to his steward, Sir Hollis, to search him a bride. An unattractive, meek, not so beautiful woman, but have maternal instinct.To babysit his children of course and left him at peace...
To Bannor's surprise, Hollis take Willow as the bride. Willow who desperately goes out from her home, and wants to find her own happiness, is insulted with the way Bannor treated her. Little does she know Bannor avoids her, because he's attracted to Willow, but don't want to sire another babe. Since Bannor believes he was to virile, and said, its must be a curse. Because his father and grandfather have so many children too (the usual slogan of Bannor house is to conquer and die which he change as be fruity and multiply )
Not just from Bannor act, his children decide to "torture" Willow too, because they don't want a new mother. Even though later they support her, and decide to teach their father to become a "real" father, and "husband" to Willow. (or like the blurb said, how sweet surrender can be).
I'm happy my sleepless night is paid off well :). This is my first book by Teresa Medeiros and definitely not the last. When it comes to Historical Romance, I'm always picky, since some themes of that genre are bothering me. Like infidelity, or rape. I don't like them all. That's why I never read Johanna Lindsey, that's why I dislike Private Arrangements by Sherry Thomas. Just one historical author who I adore, and thats Lisa Kleypas. Even I found Bridgerton's Julia Quinn is a little boring for me. But now I'm glad to find another Historical Romance book which I enjoyed. Teresa Medeiros's writing is flowing, easy to read, funny, with some heartbreaking moment.
Some readers may find they don't like hero who is a bastard or a widower and have so many children. We will think some of Bannor's children are bastards. But when the story goes, we know that the children not his bastards. Just another people's child who Bannor took to his home. Because he doesn't want them to have same fate with him, to be abandoned by his father and live poor. I love Willow strength too, even she always live tormented at her home, she still face it.
Another character I like are Bannor's children. They are all naughty, but not like Willow's step-sibling who have a mean bone. They do that because they want Bannor to care for them, to watch them and love them like a real father.
Why I don't give this full 5 stars, maybe because I found the "love scene" was too flowery for me, lol. I think I read too much erotica, or PNR. Which sex scenes are always told directly, hot and so steamy *grin sheepisly*. And I find myself snorting and giggling when I read these types of sex scenes in books. But not that bad, just a "little tame" to my preference, LMAO!
My favorite quote of this book is by Fiona, Bannor's house servant and caretaker.:
Love isn't a burst o' trumpets and flock o' doves descendin' out o' the heavens to roost on yer heads. Tis' sharin' a cup o' tea by the hearth of cold winter's night. Tis' the look in yer husband's eyes when ye lay yer first child in his arms. Tis' the ache in yer heart when ye watch the light in his eyes dim fer the last time and know a part o' ye has gone out o' this world with him
If you love Historical Romance which took place at Tudor era, make sure to include Teresa Medeiros's book at your list :)
So, I just bought this book from an online shop which usually sells many used books. The price is cheap. Just 50000 rupiahs or maybe 4,99 dollars. I decide to read Charming the Prince, first because I really loved the blurb, its rare to find characters letter for a synopsis. And I was kinda stuck with UF/PNR books I read lately. So I want to change my usual genre for a little while :)
I read this for 4 hours.And of course that a good sign! If I can't stop reading it, that means the story is good. And yes,Charming The Prince is really good.
So, what we have from this book?
Charming the Prince is re-telling from Cinderella story. With "Cinderella" having a weak father, evil stepmother, and 10 bothersome, annoying step-siblings. Lady Willow of Bedlington hopes her new mother will love her. Alas, what her stepmother does is to poison her father with her sweet venom talk. She makes them poor and that makes Willow as a servant for her step-siblings..
The story moved forward 13 years later. We meet the Prince Charming (he is charming after all), Lord Bannor the Bold, Pride of English and Terror of The French. Must always be successful winning every war and captured all his enemy, but not this war.. Not when his enemies are his TEN children, whose faces are like an angel, but their attitude are worse than Black Prince (King Edwards's son) himself. Bannor then ask to his steward, Sir Hollis, to search him a bride. An unattractive, meek, not so beautiful woman, but have maternal instinct.To babysit his children of course and left him at peace...
To Bannor's surprise, Hollis take Willow as the bride. Willow who desperately goes out from her home, and wants to find her own happiness, is insulted with the way Bannor treated her. Little does she know Bannor avoids her, because he's attracted to Willow, but don't want to sire another babe. Since Bannor believes he was to virile, and said, its must be a curse. Because his father and grandfather have so many children too (the usual slogan of Bannor house is to conquer and die which he change as be fruity and multiply )
Not just from Bannor act, his children decide to "torture" Willow too, because they don't want a new mother. Even though later they support her, and decide to teach their father to become a "real" father, and "husband" to Willow. (or like the blurb said, how sweet surrender can be).
I'm happy my sleepless night is paid off well :). This is my first book by Teresa Medeiros and definitely not the last. When it comes to Historical Romance, I'm always picky, since some themes of that genre are bothering me. Like infidelity, or rape. I don't like them all. That's why I never read Johanna Lindsey, that's why I dislike Private Arrangements by Sherry Thomas. Just one historical author who I adore, and thats Lisa Kleypas. Even I found Bridgerton's Julia Quinn is a little boring for me. But now I'm glad to find another Historical Romance book which I enjoyed. Teresa Medeiros's writing is flowing, easy to read, funny, with some heartbreaking moment.
Some readers may find they don't like hero who is a bastard or a widower and have so many children. We will think some of Bannor's children are bastards. But when the story goes, we know that the children not his bastards. Just another people's child who Bannor took to his home. Because he doesn't want them to have same fate with him, to be abandoned by his father and live poor. I love Willow strength too, even she always live tormented at her home, she still face it.
Another character I like are Bannor's children. They are all naughty, but not like Willow's step-sibling who have a mean bone. They do that because they want Bannor to care for them, to watch them and love them like a real father.
Why I don't give this full 5 stars, maybe because I found the "love scene" was too flowery for me, lol. I think I read too much erotica, or PNR. Which sex scenes are always told directly, hot and so steamy *grin sheepisly*. And I find myself snorting and giggling when I read these types of sex scenes in books. But not that bad, just a "little tame" to my preference, LMAO!
My favorite quote of this book is by Fiona, Bannor's house servant and caretaker.:
Love isn't a burst o' trumpets and flock o' doves descendin' out o' the heavens to roost on yer heads. Tis' sharin' a cup o' tea by the hearth of cold winter's night. Tis' the look in yer husband's eyes when ye lay yer first child in his arms. Tis' the ache in yer heart when ye watch the light in his eyes dim fer the last time and know a part o' ye has gone out o' this world with him
If you love Historical Romance which took place at Tudor era, make sure to include Teresa Medeiros's book at your list :)
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