Considering the title, one may expect Prince Charming Undercover to be a light hearted book about handsome princes and contemporary Cinderellas. It is, instead, a fast paced, emotional story featuring a family of modern Romani descendants.
Prince Charming Undercover is clearly meant to be the beginning of a saga. The plot is rich and intricate, with many parallel stories mingled together. The main storyline is a gruesome and unusual investigation, carried out by an undercover, by the books police detective among a family of colourful, noisy, warm hearted and very skeptical Romani individuals.
Their personalities are unconventional and their reactions to the circumstances of the story mostly unpredictable.
Grace, the heroine, is a very good example. She is strong, smart and passionate. Even when very concerned for the well being of her family, she bravely confronts her opponents refusing to be coerced into doing what she doesn’t believe is right. She is also fierce and proud, but she doesn’t let this get in the way of pursuing what she wants.
Nick, the male protagonist, is a solid, good hearted, generous individual. He loves his job as a police detective, likes to be on his own, even if at the same time he dreads the upcoming day of his parents move to their retirement home, leaving him alone with his dog.
The Romani community is the farthest thing from his ordered and organised life. The assignment, however, as odd as it seems at first glance, gives him the opportunity to rediscover his origins, and to set free his loving, caring and generous nature.
Overall, during the course of Prince Charming Undercover, the author gives the reader a first glimpse into the fascinating and unexplored universe of the Parlier family. At the end of the book, it is clear that there is much more to their story, and I’m sure that, same as me, many other readers look forward to hearing more about their captivating and intriguing adventures.
I voluntarily reviewed an advanced reader copy of this book. Opinions and comments are solely my own.