Rating: ★★★1/2 starsDate Published: January 6th, 2015
Publisher: Berkley
Synopsis: First in a new series!
From New York Times bestselling author Katie MacAlister comes a series about finding your own wonderland—through one roadblock at a time...
Nothing about Alice Wood’s life is normal right now. Her fiancé, Patrick, called off their wedding and relationship only days before their nonrefundable wedding trip. And though a luxurious European river cruise for one is just what she needs, it’s not what she gets...
Due to a horrible misunderstanding, Alice is now cramped in her “romantic” suite with one of Patrick’s friends. Instead of cruising along the Rhine, Main, and Danube rivers sipping champagne with the love of her life, she’s navigating the waters with a strange—yet mysteriously handsome—British aristocrat.
An author, Elliot is just looking for some alone time to write. But his stodgy, serious self is about to be sidetracked by a woman who seems to have jumped out of the pages of a fairy tale, one who is determined to shake up his life...and include him in her own happily ever after.
What I Thought:
I haven't read a book written by Katie MacAlister in quite some time, and I was really excited about this book. While I enjoyed reading it, the story both surprised me and underwhelmed me. It may seem a little confusing and allow me to explain.
I may have a thing for nobility, as in I love to read about them. I adored Elliot and his too serious nature. I wanted to see the sparks that he and Alice gave off, but I just didn't. I do think they were perfectly paired with each other and that was all well in good, but I one moment they were unhappy with their living arrangements and it seemed like in the next, they were having sex. Another point where I think the story missed it's mark was toward the end. There was this one big twist/reveal which really seemed to come out of left field. I did a double take as I thought I'd started accidentally reading a completely different story.
There were things I did love. I loved seeing some of Europe's landmarks through Alice's eyes. As someone who hasn't seen them, she has the same enthusiasm I do about seeing locales and landmarks like that. I liked both Elliot and Alice. I felt bad for Alice, in regards to the shock she'd received form having her heart broken, but when she got involved with Elliot, I wondered how heart broken she'd been to begin with. I really loved Elliot's mother. She was a total loose cannon and she made me laugh a lot. I also loved Elliot's brothers. The jury is out on his sisters, but that may change with the coming books in this new series. My first Katie MacAlister book in some time wasn't the home run I'd hoped it'd be, but it was still entertaining and quite adorable.
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For as long as she can remember, Katie MacAlister has loved reading. Growing up in a family where a weekly visit to the library was a given, Katie spent much of her time with her nose buried in a book. Despite her love for novels, she didn’t think of writing them until she was contracted to write a non-fiction book about software. Since her editor refused to allow her to include either witty dialogue or love scenes in the software book, Katie swiftly resolved to switch to fiction, where she could indulge in world building, tormenting characters, and falling madly in love with all her heroes.
Two years after she started writing novels, Katie sold her first romance, Noble Intentions. More than thirty books later, her novels have been translated into numerous languages, been recorded as audiobooks, received several awards, and are regulars on the New York Times, USA Today, and Publishers Weekly bestseller lists. She also writes for the young adult audience as Katie Maxwell.
Katie lives in the Pacific Northwest with two dogs and a cat, and can often be found lurking around online.
*Thank you to the publisher for providing a copy via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own and I was not compensated for them in any manner*
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