He's the guy every girl wants... She's the girl he can never have...
High expectations are nothing new to Jace Dawson or to Princess Vivienne, but everything else about their lives is completely different. He’s striving to achieve his dream of playing professional football. She’s been constrained since birth from everything except preparing to rule a small country. His family’s farm in Nebraska is struggling financially, while she’s accustomed to the opulent walls of a palace. He’s arrogant and determined; she’s capricious and aloof.
Unprecedented revelations suddenly push Vivienne even closer to the throne, but also provide her with the opportunity to experience what she’s always wanted more than anything: normalcy. An intricate plan sends her to Lincoln University. There, she discovers American royalty wears football jerseys instead of crowns the moment her newfound anonymity first encounters Jace. Both Vivienne and Jace are used to being treated with deference, but refuse to extend it to each other. She finds him conceited and exasperating, while he’s intrigued by her temper and unveiled contempt.
He has no idea she’s actual royalty, and she doesn’t care everyone else treats him like he is. One semester of freedom is all Vivienne has before returning home to eventually rule. One season is all Jace has left to ensure his own future and that of his family.
Neither of them can afford to feel more than annoyance towards the other, but as they each see glimpses behind their respective facades, that may be more difficult than either anticipated. Impossible, even.
C.W. Farnsworth is the author of numerous adult and young adult romance novels featuring sports, strong female leads, and happy endings.
Charlotte lives in Rhode Island and when she isn’t writing spends her free time reading, at the beach, or snuggling with her Australian Shepherd.
Find her on Facebook (@cwfarnsworth), Twitter (@cw_farnsworth), Instagram (@authorcwfarnsworth) and check out her website www.authorcwfarnsworth.com for news about upcoming releases!
*It looks like there’s multiple editions of this book, but the one I read was a little over 500 pages and was published in 2021. * I absolutely ADORED this book! It feels like this story, (about a secret foreign princess going to college in the US) has been done before, but it hasn’t been done in this way. The story is sweet and a little angsty, but never over the top. At first, the bickering between the hero and the heroine feels a little contrived, but I grew to love and crave their dynamic. The book is surprising in some unique ways that I won’t go into here, but for instance, you would expect characters like the princess’s mom to be strict and uncaring, but it was the quite the opposite, and I loved her father, the King, so, so much, as he’s a loving and kind father. I’ve seen some reviews critiquing that the book could have been shorter. I agree that it could have been cut down by one or two hundred pages, but honestly, my favourite romance books have a lot of meat to them, including backstory and side characters and subplots, and this book doesn’t disappoint in this regard. I’d rather have a character with a rich backstory than a cookiecutter hero and heroine and only scenes featuring the two of them together. When I read a book, I like being immersed in the world that the author has created, and Farnsworth did this fabulously with this book! I’m looking forward to checking out more of her stories. POPSUGAR Reading Challenge 2022: This book fulfills the "A book about someone leading a double life" category.
If you considered the early 2000s as the best rom-com period and are familiar with the classic movie that is ‘The Prince and Me’, then this book is for you 🍿
The fact that one character is royalty and the other is a college student is probably where the similarities ended between my two references, but nonetheless, it made me feel nostalgic.
The plot followed the classic case of a royal trying to escape reality for a while and transition into a ‘normal college student’. Her reality consisted of royal obligations, pressures, family illness and constantly being in the spotlight. Despite likening it to a Rom-com, it’s not in any way a Hallmark-esque story. The FMC experienced a lot of trials and has to make decisions throughout the book that shouldn’t be placed on someone so young.
I initially thought she might be a bit conceited, but I think that was a misjudgement based on people's reaction to her. She's definitely sure of herself but never acted above anymore. She was always trying to soak up every independent moment.
The MMC was royalty in his own right, but this reign was limited to the University campus. Her involvement with him was probably not the best way to stay under wraps, but they were equally very self-confident and strong characters, so kept being drawn to each other.
It wasn’t a very cut-and-dry romance. They were both continuously reluctant to start anything. She had a secret country she had to get back to and he wanted to concentrate on being drafted. Slightly different priorities. I really liked the push and pull of it all. It’s predominantly her POV, but towards the second half of the book, his POV was also added.
I’m a big fan of Farnsworth’s other books and she always seems to write these great little moments that stick in your head. For me, in this book it's the ‘house party’ chapter and when they get caught on the football field. It's the banter and familiarity that they share in both moments that make it so funny & sweet to read.
To me, there are two distinct parts of the books. The second part seemed like a whole new journey and a lot more intense, but also more rewarding. I'm trying not to give anything away 😅
This is a re-read for me because I apparently never used to review books I enjoyed 😂 I was previously drawn to the plot, but also the original cover which had a very romantic feeling. I believe it's now been replaced by this graphic one above. There may be multiple covers, but I'm not sure. Try and find it if you're interested.
This is definitely a comfort read for me, so I will re-read it again soon!!
𝐏𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐕𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐧𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐚 (h) wants a normal college experience now that she knows her father has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and she’s next in line as sole heir to be Queen. She requests this and when it’s approved, she selects to go to a school in Michigan where she meets 𝐉𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐃𝐚𝐰𝐬𝐨𝐧 (H), when she literally bumps into him. The two don’t get along right away, but when they keep running into each other they eventually develop something close to a friendship. Meanwhile, her identity is still a secret and no one knows she a princess, she knows this is all a temporary lifestyle and she’ll have to go back home eventually. When the media reveals her secret and she’s forced to go back home, it threatens her relationship with Jace and what it entails for their future.
◦•●◉✿𝐑𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 ✿◉●•◦
Jace wanted to be drafted to play professional football, and when he finally does he gets out of it FOR LOVE. I’m sorry but I hate romance that requires sacrifice in the form of a career to be with that one person. I hated it, which explains my rating. It’s unfair that he had to give up something he was amazing at simply because he wanted to be with her. If anything, HE made the effort again and again but she never tried anything. She was willing to give up on their relationship and settle for marrying Charles but Jace was the one who was willing to change the trajectory of his entire life. I wish he hadn’t done it because now I’m wondering what he’s going to do with his time.
He gave up football for her and it just doesn’t make sense. He was the best of the best and he threw it all away for someone he met and knew for four months? I’m sorry but no way. I wish his friends had discouraged him from this decision because it’s resentment waiting to happen. They were cute at first until he gave up his dream, after that I wanted to skim. She should have married Charles and gotten to know him better, they had potential and he was honestly nice. He deserved better than the ending he got, like why is he at a bar alone — give this boy his happy ending.
𝐎𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐥, it would have been better if Jace had stayed playing football and she married Charles tbh. I didn’t care for their relationship anymore because it was just really selfish not to stop him from ENDING HIS CAREER. I’m sorry but I would never allow someone I loved to give up their entire dream just so they could be with me. That’s not it at all.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Genre: contemporary romance First published: 23/09/2022 POV: 1st person (dual) Setting: Lincoln Univercity, Michigan, USA; Marcedenia (fiction county in Europe) DICKtionary: 18, 29, 38 chapters
Tropes: ❀ enemies to friends to lovers ❀ college romance ❀ princess FMC ❀ football player MMC ❀ forbidden love ❀ hidden identity
FMC: princess Vivienne, 19 MMC: Jace Dawson, 22
Quality of writing: 5/5 Ease of reading: 5/5 Plot: 4.5/5 Main characters: 4.5/5 Other characters: 5/5
Cons: for some people, the number of pages in this book may be a disadvantage, cause its almost the size of two regular novels. But it's not like that at all, I enjoyed every page, didn’t want it to end.
I absolutely adored this book. It was incredible, sweet, cute, funny, and at the same time sometimes sad, I couldn't put it down. It will make you feel all the feelings you can feel while reading romantic novels. It was my first time reading a book by this author and I hope that her other books are as wonderful as this one.
Fairytale sports-related quarterback/princess storyline that was over 500 pages long. Cute storyline that could have been cut to 300 pages and probably worked just fine. There was a ton of same ole/same ole repetition throughout. I was drawn by the cute cover and the fact that I could get it through Kindle Unlimited.
The book has its exceptional moments and then the bottom drops out before gathering its momentum once again. There's a basket full of entertaining secondary characters that keep things lively. All in all a fun-to-read "make believe" day of reading.
I really enjoyed this book for the first two hundred pages or so. But then it went on and on and on. I cannot believe it was 500 pages. There were several moments where I thought, “Oh, big romantic moment - surely this is the end,” but then they would go play beer pong or watch a football game. It badly needed an editor to cut down on all the random stuff.
4,5⭐️Charlotte is a great story teller and usually I can’t put her books down. Four months, three words was no exception although it did have some ridiculous elements… like the author needed to come up with something, but she didn’t have any better ideas - because why, out of all places, some European duke would have a house in South Carolina? Maybe if it was a better known holiday destination or politically interesting destination (like Washington DC) it would make more sense…
2.5 stars* okay, i really enjoyed the premise of this book and i was excited to read it but the writing style was just Not For Me and it unfortunately put me off. perhaps this book could have been shorter and some things felt rushed and i thought the conflict went on a bit too long? not to say there weren’t moments where i wasn’t really enjoying this book, because there certainly was and i was invested in the relationship but i was bored overall
tbh i had to dnf this book at like 85% but i’m still counting it as read bc i put too much time into it not to. this books just really fell apart at part 2 i really only read so far to see how the logistics worked out but at that point i just really didn’t care to see the couple together and happy.
if u like twisted games by ana huang, then you’ll like four months three words. they have similar story lines, but barely any romance happens. i read the edition that’s only 200 sm pages long, and it was very insta lovey but no love at all. they bicker all the time and never get along but u can tell that he never actually hated her, and the first time they kissed i was so shocked. in a bad way. like there was no development and barely any chemistry. but i love this author so hope the sequel will be better than the first one.
This was a nice lighthearted read and good pallette cleanser. I didn't love this one as much as I have loved the rest, but overall it was still pretty good. It had all the right tropes for a swoon-worthy romcom. Though I think the thing that made it hard for me to get into this was how similar this whole thing was to 'The Prince and Me'. Almost too similar.
Either way it was a good read and I would definitely recommend this for a cold and rainy afternoon by heater.
הסיפור הקלאסי של נסיך פוגשת פשוטת עם, רק עם טוויסט מודרני של נסיכה פוגשת פשוט עם. וויויאן היא נסיכה, יורשת עצר בממלכה דמיונית בשם מרצדניה. בשל חוק מטופש היא חייבת להתחתן לפני שתוכל לרשת את הכתר מאביה החולה. אבל לפני כן היא רוצה לחוות קצת חיים נורמלים. אז מסדרים לה זהות בדוייה וסמסטר אחד של לימודים באוניברסיטה בארה"ב. היא פוגשת שם את כוכב הפוטבול של הקמפוס. זה שכולן מאוהבות בו, אבל הוא ממוקד מטרה ומתרכז רק בפוטבול. העובדה שוויויאן לא מזהה אותו ולא מבינה כלום בפוטבול מיד מושכת אותו. והם מתחילים בקשר של חיבה-שנאה שמבוסס על עקיצות הדדיות. בסוף הם מתאהבים, אבל אז הוא מגלה שהיא נסיכה. הסיפור חמוד מאוד. מתאים בעיקר לבחורות צעירות - גם מבחינת עומק הדמויות (לא ממש קיים) וגם מבחינת תחומי העניין של הדמויות (מסיבות ואלכוהול). העלילה זורקת על הגיבורים דילמות שאולי נחשבות למורכבות, אבל עבורם הכול ברור ונפתר בקלות. כי ככה זה כשצעירים: מאמינים שלכל בעיה יש תשובה חד מימדית. אז היה מאוד נחמד לקרוא את הספר, אבל כשסיימתי אותו אמרתי לעצמי: בחייאת! אפילו בעולם דימיוני, העלילה הזאת לא הגיונית. אבל הספר לא רע. זורם לקריאה. העקיצות בין הדמויות משעשעות. הדמויות חביבות מאוד. אהבתי שממש התאמצו לתאר את המלך והמלכה בצורה לא סטריאוטיפית. עם זאת, תנחומי לממלכת מרצדניה, שהמלכה הבאה שלהם היא בחורה כזאת צעירה אימפולסיבית וחסרת ניסיון.
הייתי קצת סקפטית לגבי הספר, האם הוא יצליח לשכנע אותי. יש כאן שתי עולמות/ סגנונות שמתנגשים, מצד אחד הספרים הרומנטים העכשווים: הוא שחקן מצליח, הגבר המוצלח ביותר שמתאהב בבחורה. וממד שני עולם הפנטזיה, היא נסיכה באה מעולם של חוקים. אם חושבים על זה לעומק, כן, היו כמה דברים שלא היו ככ אמינים, אבל הספר הוכיח לי שזה באמת לא מדנה. כשספר כתוב היטב, העלילה זורמת ומעניינת אז הסופר יכול למכור לך הכל. ברגע האמת אתה נשעב פנימה וכל הדקויות האלו נעלמות. הספר היה מוצלח בעיניי, הצליח לשאוב אותי, גרם לי לחסך שינה, לדמעות והלרגשות והניב לי סוף יפה. נותרתי עם טעם לעוד קצת, דבר שמאוד קשה לגרום לי להרגיש- אני תמיד חותכת בפרק האחרון, כי זה סתם מרוח. בקיצור, מומלץ ביותר. תהנו נ.ב לרוב, כשקוראים ספר של אותו סופר ברצף מקבלים משהו דומה. כאן היה שוני מוחלט בין שני הספרים שלה שקראתי, מבחינת הכל. האינטימיות, העלילה. הדבר היחיד שהיה משותף לשניהם שהם היו מעולים ושווים 5 כוכבים
A college football star and an undercover princess? Yes, please!
I love a good enemies to lovers and this one delivered in spades. Jace was arrogant, Vivienne was haughty and did they ever clash in the beginning . . . until all that irritation and dislike twisted itself into some good old-fashioned lust that slowly grew into more.
I can't wait to see how this ends! Moving to book 2 immediately.
Ok I love angst BUT THIS WAS TOO MUCH ANGST!! Was not expecting the length of this book, wow! I found it dragged on at some points when I wished it would get to the next part in the story.
DNF at 60% - I couldn't take it anymore. Sometimes the worst thing we can do is read a book by an author and think "omg I liked this, I will read another one". Sometimes we are set for disappointment, which was the case with this book. I came after reading "Six summers to Fall" and well... I liked the premise, but didn't like the delivery. Viviene is like the most annoying character in the world and for someone who is about to turn queen, is very immature. I get that she is a teenager and being immature is part of that ahah but she really had this "I like to drink whiskey like I am mature and because I am different from all the others" vibe. And the cliché with Jace being all smug - like ALL the football players - enough is enough. We all love clichés, but when they are well written... I found myself skipping a lot of pages, because I simply was bored and ultimately I just gave up all together. Some things were not that bad, that's why I gave two stars.
So I lowkey think it deserves a two BUT there are redeeming qualities so a three it is. Like idk everything moved by so fast, and the characters especially Jace weren’t too developed. Idk I’m having a hard time deciding if you’d like it. I have liked other books from this author but this reads like something a 14 year old would right. Then again I’m not looking for peak literature so there were some good things. Like I LOVED jace what a sweetheart. The romance wasn’t well developed and it moved way too fast, but there was def so much potential. Back to the bad ig but I got too many moments of second hand embarrassment and I already get enough in my life so no more pls😭. I mean you might like it. It was enjoyable enough
AW HELL NAW I DIDNT READ THE LAST PAGE AND APPARENTLY I HAVE TO READ ANOTHER WTF
I don’t think I’ve rated a book this poorly in a long time. it’s not that I don’t like Farnsworth’s writing (First Flight, Final Fall was a MASTERPIECE), I just couldn’t get past Vivianne’s attitude all of the time. usually, recklessness doesn’t make me this frustrated, but her level of recklessness and being a spoiled brat was enough.
although I did read all 510 pages of this novel, I was invested. I wanted to know if Katie and Vivianne ended up still being friends. I wanted to know if Vivianne and Jace were going to stay together. and I got my answers. but this book was screaming ‘pick-me’ the whole damn time.
I definitely think first flight, final fall was a better book. and keep loving c. w. farnsworth! she’s amazing—this book was just really not it for me.
Just a bit too long for me. Loved the idea of this story. Liked the characters. Lotta back and forth in the second half… don’t need to know what outfit she wore to every. single. outing! It just dragged and dragged sometimes.