Some Enchanted Evening

In the Lost Princesses trilogy, the French Revolution has swept Europe into turmoil. The king and the dowager queen of the small mountainous country of Beaumontagne have sent his three young daughters to England for safety.
In the neighboring little county of Richarte, a cruel usurper has seized the throne from the rightful prince. He’ll do anything to find and kill the princesses, for the eldest princess and the prince are destined to wed in order to unite the two countries.
In the first book, the middle princess, Clarise, and her younger sister Amy live the lives of peddlers and charlatans. They claim to be exiled princesses to sell face creams made with special “royal” ingredients. Though their scam often works, it’s show more attracted the attention of a nefarious English magistrate who wants to see Clarise hung. As they employ their skills in a little Scottish town, the local laird takes Clarise under his protection, but he doesn’t believe she’s a princess.
Robert MacKenzie, the earl of Hepburn, needs to rescue his friend from a vicious officer in the English Army and requires Clarise’s help. After seduction fails, he blackmails her into helping him.
Clarise is a kind, beautiful, compassionate woman who always tries to make other people feel good about themselves.
Robert is stubborn, determined, so single-minded in his objectives, and downright cold at times. Once you learn his back story, however, his calculated coldness makes a lot of sense and you see the honorable man underneath the dark veneer.
My favorite character is Lady Millicent, Robert’s older spinster sister. I loved the way she blossomed into her own woman, gained confidence, and finally started to live her life.
Though Robert got his revenge and I loved the way it happened, I wished the despicable Colonel Ogley would’ve been publicly humiliated and punished for his sins.
There are a few unanswered questions. The most important one, in my opinion, is that Clarise and her sisters went into hiding because people wanted to kill them. By the end of the story, Clarise is no longer “hiding” and it should be very easy for the bad guys to find her, but this isn’t mentioned as if she’s no longer in danger. Also, I found the timeline of the story confusing. The princesses have lived in England for several years, but there are discrepancies as to how long when you compare the number of years to their ages.
The pacing slowed in the middle. There were a few typos but nothing major. I love stories told in multiple POVs—more than just the H/h—but this one sometimes lacked scene breaks to denote the change, which led to confusion. Even so, I really enjoyed it, and I’m anxious to read the next book in the series.
4 Stars show less

The three princesses of Beaumontagne have been lost for years. People are after them, wishing both harm and rescue, and they are trying to stay one step ahead. Clarice and Amy have been running a racket selling "royal secret" creams and unguents to make the less than fair townsfolk beautiful. But Clarice gets more than she bargains for when they ride into Freya Crags. The Earl of Hepburn is as handsome as he is tortured. Yeah, they're totally going to fall in love.
The main plot, as well as a couple of subplots involving a Colonel who tortured Hepburn while in his regiment and a magistrate Clarice is on run from, are compelling and suspenseful. The sexual tension between to two crackles, but when they actually get down to it, the show more descriptions are laughable. Seriously, I had to skip those parts as I would chuckle aloud, then my husband would ask what was funny and I'd read it to him, and neither of us could go back to reading soon because we were laughing too hard. However, besides that it was a delightful novel and I'm looking forward to Amy's story next. show less

I picked up the novel with the exquisite cover art and immediately thought of one of my Mother's favorite songs ~ Some Enchanted Evening ~ as performed by Frank Sinatra and I could often hear the music and the words in the back of my mind as I read this historical romance.

"Some enchanted evening, you may see a stranger,
You may see a stranger across a crowded room,
And somehow you know, you know even then,
That somehow you'll see here again and again.
Some enchanted evening, someone may be laughing,
You may hear her laughing across a crowded room,
And night after night, as strange as it seems,
The sound of her laughter will sing in your dreams.

Who can explain it, who can tell you why?
Fools give you reasons, wise men never try.
Some enchanted show more evening, when you find your true love,
When you hear her call you across a crowded room,
Then fly to her side and make her your own,
Or all through your life you may dream all alone.
Once you have found her, never let her go,
Once you have found her, never let her go."
Songwriters: Richard Rodgers
Some Enchanted Evening lyrics © EMI Music Publishing

Earl of Hepburn (Scotland), Robert MacKenzie's stranger is Princess Clarice of Beaumontagne. And Princess Clarice's stranger is Robert MacKenzie. It's a dazzling love story of the ages. And for all those who have ever questioned whether life should be fulfilled by duty and honor or by following one's heart, it is a novel not to be missed. show less

This was a fun quick read. I haven't been reading many historical romances in the last few years and had forgotten how fun they can be...and quirky...and over-the-top...along with a bit of cheesy dialogue...lol. Christina Dodd is always a fun read.

This this the first in the trilogy "The Lost Princesses". When revolution comes to their country following the revolt in France, the three young princesses are bundled off to England for safety. Over time, circumstances change and their whereabouts become unknown. Now that the country is safely back under the family's control, the Dowager Queen wants to bring the princesses home.

Rating: 3.5

My Synopsis:

Some Enchanted Evening (Lost Princess Series - Book 1) by Christina Dodd

(E-book from the Library)

Princess Clarice of Beaumontagne finds herself in quite a predicament. She and her sister Amy must fend for themselves when they are forced to go into hiding as their home is swept into a revolution.

Clarice uses her knowledge of herbs and beauty secrets to make living for them as a charlatan, peddling her wares and sometimes running away in the middle of the night when her customers become less than satisfied.

When the princess enters the town on Freya Crags in Scotland, she meets the handsome earl of Hepburn, Robert McKenzie and fears that she may have met her match. The earl of Hepburn is more than what he seems and he has plans show more for Clarice. Will Clarice lose her heart to the earl? Who is the stranger who lurks in the night? What scheme has Robert conceived to save a friend?

My Thoughts:

This is the first book in the Lost Princess series by Christina Dodd. I had often heard the author was one of the best in Historical Fiction and I would have to agree. The story had the air of a fairy tale, with princesses and balls and heroes and villains.

The characters were very likable. Clarice as the protective sister who must provide for herself and her sister in any way she can and Robert the unknown hero. Two very opposite characters who seem to fit together in all the right ways. There is a bit of love making in this one that probably isn't suitable for some readers so be advised of this. It's definitely steamy!

I liked the way the author was able to keep up the suspense of the story. I was on pins and needles to see what was to happen next. The supporting characters like the earls sisters and the old men of the town add color to the novel and comic relief.

I give this one 4 out of 5 apples from my book bag!

The link is for the paper back which has a different cover than the e-book. show less

The first book in a trilogy. Fairly enjoyable; I might read the others.

Clarice is a princess without a country. She is exile with her little sister, hiding from those intent on taking her country and removing her grandmother from power. She is the second sister of three, and travels around peddling beauty products to young ladies throughout the UK. Undercover (so to speak), she calls herself a princess but doesn't say where she is from, which seems strange to me, but I will let it go. Classic historical romance hero Robert not only ferrets out who she really is, but also falls madly, deeply in love with her. Nothing new with the storyline from other novels of the type, but I did find it an amusing way to pass the afternoon.

What saved it show more for me was the last chapter and the epilogue. It took it from "meh" to "maybe I will read the other two." show less

What a great story! I laughed and cried many times! Such wonderful writing and really engaging characters!! I love this authors work!!

Loved the princesses adventures. This was a great start to the series!

I am currently on a Regency kick and this one was terrific!!