Title: That Prince is MineAuthor: Jayci Lee
Pages: 400
Publication Date: July 30,2024
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Genres: Fiction / Romance / Contemporary
Synopsis:
A love-averse Korean royal court cuisine instructor in search of a perfect-on-paper husband is waylaid from her practical, heartbreak-proof plan when she meets a gorgeous professor—and prince in disguise—who will do anything to prove to her that love and happily ever after can be theirs.
Emma Yoon runs a small business as a culinary instructor in Los Angeles teaching Korean royal court cuisine to young ladies striving to marry into the exclusive upper crust Korean families. She has built her business alongside her renowned Korean matchmaker godmother, which brings her one step closer to her dream of opening up a culinary school on her own. But when her godmother’s fellow matchmakers decide to meddle in Emma’s love life in a bid to sabotage her godmother, and indirectly push Emma’s dream out of her reach, she must go on a series of arranged first dates and find herself the perfect-on-paper husband to help save both, her godmother’s reputation and her dream–even if she’s not ready for love. But when she meets Michel Aubert, a professor at USC, after a series of disastrous first dates, she wonders if she might reevaluate her position on love.
Prince Michel Aubert is bound by duty and responsibility to his country, but an arranged marriage is the last thing he wants. If he is going to spend the rest of his life in service of his people, then he at least wants someone he loves and trusts by his side while doing it. He needs to find a woman who loves him for who he is before his engagement to his handpicked bride is announced. Emma Yoon might be just the woman he is looking for.
This blog uses affiliate links for some book recommendations, and if you purchase through them, I may earn a small commission. Thanks for supporting this little bookish corner of the internet!
This is a fun and quick contemporary romance with secret royalty and mouth-watering cuisine. It’s the perfect palate cleanser (pun intended) for me after reading a pretty heavy and dark fantasy. Switching to this lighter and steamy romance where a prince falls for a cooking instructor was a great choice. The author’s writing style, the love story, and the yummy dishes all made for a fun and enjoyable read.
Emma’s a Korean royal court cuisine instructor, and her dishes sound mouth-wateringly delicious. Michel sounds delicious, too. A professor and prince in disguise with a heart of gold – what’s not to love? The story is told from a dual POV, which I liked because you could understand their thoughts when they made some pretty unreasonable assumptions. Their romance is as delicious and spicy as some of the food!
Emma and Michel fall for each other pretty quickly, especially Michel, and though insta-love isn’t my favorite trope, it made sense with this couple. They have a lovely connection, though family expectations and pressures, secret identities, and more prove to be major obstacles in their relationship. It’s interesting to see how they handle all that comes their way.
There are also two secondary characters, Sophie and Gabriel, that I loved. I kind of hope they have their own story because they definitely need a happily ever after together!! Special thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing me with a copy of the book. All thoughts are my own.
- friends to lovers
- secret identity
- royal/commoner
- he falls first
- miscommunication
- insta love
Jayci Lee writes poignant, sexy, and laugh-out-loud romance featuring Korean American main characters. Her books have been in O, The Oprah Magazine, Cosmopolitan, Entertainment Weekly, Hollywood Reporter, E! News, and Women’s World. Jayci is retired from her fifteen-year career as a litigator because of all the badass heroines and drool worthy heroes demanding to have their stories told. Food, wine and travel are her jam. She makes her home in sunny California with her tall-dark-and-handsome husband, two amazing boys, and a fluffy rescue.
My library pre-ordered this, so I’m already on hold/waiting for it to come in, and cannot wait – it sounds like such a nice end-of-summer read 🙂
I hope you enjoy it!! 🙂
I use pallet cleansers after heavy historical fiction, and this sounds perfect. Sweet review, Julie.
Yes, it’s exactly that kind of read.