Penelope and Prince Charming: Fantasy Romance

Jennifer Ashley

Aug 2016 · Nvengaria Book 1 · Jennifer Ashley

About this ebook

 Welcome to Nvengaria, a land where magic happens, shape-shifters are real, and fairy tales come true.

England 1819

Wallflower Penelope Trask believes nothing will ever happen in her village of Little Marching, Oxfordshire. Handsome princes only sweep in and carry off innocent maidens in the fairy tales she collects, never in real life.

Prince Damien of Nvengaria is tired of living inside a fairy tale. His entire life has been ruled by prophecy, magic, and avoiding being assassinated by his mad father and the head of the Council of Dukes. When his father dies, he inherits a kingdom divided, his opposition led by Grand Duke Alexander, who will do anything to keep the monster's son from ruling Nvengaria.

To make good his claim to the throne, Damien must fulfill a prophecy that reunites the lines of the original two princes of Nvengaria, best friends who'd carved a kingdom out of wild lands near the Transylvanian mountains. Damien's task—to bring back the Princess of Nvengaria, her line lost centuries ago. The price of disappointing the people, Alexander promises, will be Damien's execution.

Damien tracks down the long-lost princess to the village of Little Marching in England, where nothing remotely interesting ever happens. He will have to convince the lovely Penelope that he is no charlatan, and that Damien's life and his kingdom depends on her facing danger with him. Along the way, the prophecy says, they will fall in love. And the prophecy is never wrong ... 

Note that the Nvengaria series is a paranormal historical, the books loosely based on well-known fairy tales:

Penelope and Prince Charming—Cinderella

The Mad, Bad Duke—Beauty and the Beast

Highlander Ever After—Snow White and the Seven … Highlanders

The Longest Night—Little Red Riding Hood (and the Big, Bad Wolf)

Ratings and reviews

A charming combination of history, magic and romance, this delightful story tells of a child of a minor English baron who turns out to be the prophesied princess of a tiny kingdom hemmed in by Russia, Austria, and the Ottoman Empire. Her destined role is to restore Nvengaria after it has been devastated by its hereditary tyrant king. The king's heir starts out his reign by taking time off to travel to England to find his princess. During the time it takes to accomplish this task, many adventures result and miraculous events occur to fulfill the prophecy. The prince's delegation finally arrives, but too late to meet the specified deadline. I will let the author tell the full story and content myself with saying that I immensely enjoyed reading this lighthearted tale and definitely recommend it to any to whom magic, romantic love, and historical settings have appeal. Great book!

Really liked this story! It has a historical fairy tale feel to it, but it is oh so hot and smexy. A prophecy and a kingdom at risk are the dominoes that start the event, and everything just tumbles from there. Some unexpected turns, and an HEA worthy of legends <3

My old love, historical romance, and my new love, paranormal romance, have come together wonderfully. You will fall hard for the characters and enjoy a 'true love' story while riding a wild adventure across Europe and living through assassin attempts. And wait, I haven't even spoken of legend, magic, and shape shifters! I now need the next book of this series!!!

About the author

New York Times bestselling author Jennifer Ashley writes historical, paranormal, and contemporary romance, as well as mysteries as Ashley Gardner and urban fantasy as Allyson James.