by: Emmy Grayson
Series: The Van Ambrose Royals
Genre: Contemporary Billionaire Romance
Release Date: May 24, 2022
Publisher: Harlequin Presents
Amazon | Paperback | Barnes & Noble | iBooks | Kobo | Google Books | Goodreads
This Cinderella romance from Emmy Grayson has it all—drama, revenge…and a royal proposal to remember!
His royal ring is on the table…
Her destiny is in his hands!
Small-town bartender Briony Smith’s exhilarating flirtation with customer Cass is a welcome distraction from her very ordinary existence. She’s speechless when Cass reveals he’s a prince and she’s a long-lost princess!
She’s even more shocked by his convenient proposal! Marrying Cass will allow her to be part of the family she’s never known. And their powerful attraction can only sweeten the deal. But will it still feel like a fairy tale after Cass’s admission that making her his bride is part of his plan for revenge?
From Harlequin Presents: Escape to exotic locations where passion knows no bounds.
Bringing Cinderella to Life
I love fairy tale retellings, especially when they’re tackled from a sexy romance angle. In creating Cass and Briony’s journey, I wanted to incorporate elements from the original tale into their story while giving it a modern approach. I really enjoyed rewatching the 1950 Disney animated classic. It was one of my favorite cartoons growing up, which is why I incorporated elements like a bartender named Gus in honor of my favorite of Cinderella’s mice helpers. But my absolute favorite film rendition (so far) of Charles Perrault’s original fairy tale is Ever After starring Drew Barrymore. Not only do Barrymore and Anjelica Huston rock their respective roles as Cinderella and the Evil Stepmother, but I love the strength and courage Barrymore brought to the role. It’s what inspired Briony’s feistiness and determination as she fights to find her place in the world and allow herself to fall in love with a man who has captivated her even as he's withheld a terrible secret from her.
While I loved including Easter eggs like Gus, I shied away from some of the original story’s less-Disney-friendly details. For example, unlike the eye-rolling antics Cinderella’s stepsisters employ to get the glass slipper to fit in the cartoon, Perrault’s 1697 version involved a paring knife. The less said about what transpired to get the slipper to fit, the better!
Probably my favorite element: making Anna Vega from A Deal for the Tycoon’s Diamonds, the third book in my Cabrera Brothers trilogy, the fairy godmother. It was hard to say good-bye to the Cabrera Brothers. Being able to gift Briony with beautiful dresses and bring back a member of the Cabrera family for one final hurrah was a special treat!
Pretty far down the road of self-pity, she thought with a disgusted sigh as she shivered in the winter cold and glanced over her shoulder. Her suite was a vision of royal luxury. A rounded bed dominated one side, raised up on a dais with a peaceful painting of the mountains on the wall, was covered by violet silk sheets and a thick white comforter. Marble steps led down to a sitting area comprised of a red fainting couch and matching chairs done up in velvet and trimmed in silver. Wood roared in a stone fireplace, flanked on either side by bookcases set into the.
Poor little rich girl. She’d heard the sentiment often enough, had done her fair share of eye-rolling when she’d read an interview with the latest actress or model who talked about the hard parts of their lives, the lack of privacy, the pervasive loneliness.
Except now she understood it all too well.
The door swung open. Her eyes narrowed even as her heartbeat sped up at the sight of Cass standing in the doorway. Clad only in his dark trousers and midnight blue shirt, sleeves rolled up to reveal his tan forearms, he looked sinfully good.
She turned her back to him. How could the man be so manipulative and still look so handsome?
The door to the balcony clicked open.
“Cold out here.”
The shiver that traveled down her spine had nothing to do with the freezing winter air tugging at her hair.
She gritted her teeth. Just because her body found Cass physically attractive didn’t mean the man wasn’t a manipulative snake.
“Matches the personalities of most of the people who live here.”
Poor little rich girl. She’d heard the sentiment often enough, had done her fair share of eye-rolling when she’d read an interview with the latest actress or model who talked about the hard parts of their lives, the lack of privacy, the pervasive loneliness.
Except now she understood it all too well.
The door swung open. Her eyes narrowed even as her heartbeat sped up at the sight of Cass standing in the doorway. Clad only in his dark trousers and midnight blue shirt, sleeves rolled up to reveal his tan forearms, he looked sinfully good.
She turned her back to him. How could the man be so manipulative and still look so handsome?
The door to the balcony clicked open.
“Cold out here.”
The shiver that traveled down her spine had nothing to do with the freezing winter air tugging at her hair.
She gritted her teeth. Just because her body found Cass physically attractive didn’t mean the man wasn’t a manipulative snake.
“Matches the personalities of most of the people who live here.”
Purchase A Cinderella for the Prince’s Revenge from:
The Van Ambrose Royals Series:
The Prince's Pregnant Secretary releases October 25, 2022
Emmy's interest in romance can be traced back to her love of Nancy Drew books, when she tried to solve the mysteries of her favorite detective while rereading the romantic chapters with Ned Nickerson. Fast-forward a few years when she discovered a worn copy of "A Rose in Winter" by Kathleen Woodiwiss on her mother's bookshelf, and she was hooked. Over 20 years later, Harlequin Presents made her dream come true by offering her a contract for her first book.
When Emmy isn't writing or reading, she's chasing around her baby boy, feeding her menagerie of fur babies or carving out a little time on her front porch with her firefighter hubby.
Places to find Emmy Grayson:
I always love a good Cinderella story.
ReplyDeleteGreat excerpt and cover.
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to reading A Cinderella for the Prince’s Revenge! Thank you
ReplyDeleteI love the cover! It sets the tone for the book.
ReplyDeleteThat was a great excerpt! Thanks, it sounds good!
ReplyDelete