Jump to ratings and reviews
Rate this book

The Balfour Brides #3

Emily and the Notorious Prince: A Contemporary Royal Romance

Rate this book
She fled from her fairy-tale lifestyle when she'd discovered it was built on lies. Now naive Emily Balfour is struggling to make ends meet. Prince Luis Cordoba instantly recognizes the Balfour heiress-the only woman who didn't fall at his feet! Penniless Emily can't refuse the offer of a roof over her head-even knowing she'll be sharing the playboy's bed!Whisked away to his royal kingdom, inexperienced Emily is no match for Luis's potent sexuality. But her heart is warning her not to become just another notch on his regal bedpost!

190 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2010

30 people are currently reading
331 people want to read

About the author

India Grey

132 books94 followers
India Grey was born in England, UK. A self-confessed romance junkie, she was just thirteen years old when she first sent away for the Mills & Boon Writers' Guidelines. She can still recall the thrill of getting the large brown envelope with its distinctive logo through the letterbox, and subsequently whiled away many a dull school-day staring out the window and dreaming of the perfect hero. She kept these guidelines with her for the next ten years, tucking them carefully inside the cover of each new diary in January, and beginning every list of New Year's resolutions with the words Start Novel. In the meantime she also gained a degree in English literature and language from Manchester University, and in a stroke of genius on the part of the Gods of romance, met her gorgeous future husband on the very last night of their three years there. The last fifteen years have been spent blissfully buried in domesticity, and heaps of pink washing generated by three small daughters, but she has never really stopped daydreaming about romance. She's just profoundly grateful to have finally got an excuse to do it legitimately! After meeting the bestselling novelist Penny Jordan, she returned to writing romance, and sold her first novel in September 2006. In 2009, her novel Mistress: Hired for the Billionaire's Pleasure won the Love Story of the Year by the Romantic Novelists' Association.

Ratings & Reviews

What do you think?
Rate this book

Friends & Following

Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!

Community Reviews

5 stars
106 (22%)
4 stars
131 (27%)
3 stars
184 (38%)
2 stars
40 (8%)
1 star
20 (4%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 43 reviews
Profile Image for StMargarets.
3,207 reviews630 followers
August 4, 2018
Heroine has run away from home. Her beloved mother died and then she found out her father had an illegitimate daughter. She has lived in a bubble of the rich and famous and is barely scrapping by in London, tending bar at a strip club. She is a classically trained ballerina, but she can't dance anymore because she is dead inside. Instead, she volunteers at a children's charity teaching ballet.

Prince of an island nation off the coast of Brazil hero met the heroine the year before at the Balfour ball. He put the moves on her, not realizing she was so inexperienced. Her reaction to his advances dented his ego, so he was less than kind in their final exchange of words. He recognizes her immediately when he attends a recital at the children's charity. (He's trying to rehabilitate his image of playboy prince after his older brother died, so he's doing these PR stunts.)

Hero lets the heroine's father know where she is and then, with the help of his closest adviser, devises a plan to bring the heroine to his island nation to teach ballet to his grief-stricken niece.

Reviewer's note: I know. None of this makes sense. Why would dragging an English socialite to his country help his image? Same reason he's hanging around London while his father is on his deathbed.

Whatever the motivation, the author now has the H/h together and bonding with the sweet little five year-old niece. They eat at a family restaurant, they camp out on the beach, etc . . . The hero takes the heroine to the ballet and they exchange angsty stories about their respective families. Heroine tells the hero she loves him first, but hero can't handle it.

The black moment comes when the King dies and the advisers inform the heroine that she should leave so the hero can marry a handpicked duchess. Hero finally puts his foot down and decides to commit to the heroine, spelling out I love you on the beach so the heroine can see it from her departing helicopter.

There is a sweet epilogue, written like a newspaper story, describing their secret wedding at the Balfour estate chapel.

I liked the reconciliation between the heroine and her father. H/h were both immature in the sense that they had to come out of their self-absorbed bubble to face reality. Taking care of the H's niece was good for both of them.
Profile Image for AvidReader.
1,473 reviews331 followers
December 17, 2019
The ending was spectacular!
This is a reread. I liked the beginning too. What I hated was UNNECESSARY informations about hero’s past playboy days. Hey, I already understood he is a playboy of spectacular level no need to drive that home again and again.
Heroine was a gem and little Luciana was a joy to read.
Epilogue was missing.
Recommended.
Profile Image for Treece.
521 reviews150 followers
December 16, 2016
Ok. Long time HP romance fan. Yep. You will say I'm being petty. Yep. I admit it. Mills& Boon do a fantastic job with their covers. The best artists in the business, and with graphic design and computers being the norm, hey! The sky is the limit when creative license meets technology.

Why in the heck is the book cover not representing the characters accurately?? Is this so much to ask?

Yes, I'm expected to use my imagination but come on *rolls eyes*. Really?

The sexy Portuguese hero, Prince Luis, is a golden god of a guy. Blond hair, golden eyes, golden sun tan. Emily, the heroine, is an English beauty, la belle ballerina-pale skin, brunette hair and the Balfour blue eyes. The couple on the cover are not the same people. Heck, I don't know who these people are on the cover. Not Emily and Luis.

Ok, I'm done. For now.

It was not easy getting through this story. It had potential but I could not connect with Luis. His 'tragic' past was sad but not enough to make me 'feel' he was a tragic prince who needed redeeming since what happened could not be reconciled to what he became. Emily was more interesting, yet they failed to have the chemistry I was looking for. She was passionate and driven, but her reasons for leaving home were childish. She needed more knocks to make her transformation believable and she succumbs to Luis' guile and sex appeal too easily. Some areas felt forced and didn't flow for me as I expected, particularly the rushed HEA which was a bit cheesy.
A decent read that was really 2 1/2 stars, and a disappointment. Perhaps a more accurate cover would have saved the day. Who knows? But marketing failed on this one, and the author's physical descriptions were far more palatable. I guess the notorious playboy prince wasn't up to mark, and the poor little rich girl ballerina felt a bit flat. It happens sometimes in the land of Mills & Boon.

Cheers.



Profile Image for *CJ*.
5,097 reviews623 followers
March 18, 2018
"Emily and the Notorious Prince" is the story of Emily and Luis.
When the youngest Balfour, Emily is confronted with her father's scandals and mother's death, she is heartbroken and runs away without a forwarding address. Months later, she works as a voluteer at a community center teacher kids ballet, struggling to make the ends meet- when a man from her past, Prince Luis Cordoba shows up and whisks her away by manipulating her.
If you like a uber naive heroine, an ass of a hero and loads of drama- this one is for you. I had issues with almost everything the hero did- the lying, the ignoring duty and niece, the blatantly using h's attraction against her- and the half baked confession at the end+ sudden ending did not help.
Im just having a terrible luck with books in the last few days.
Eh.
SWE/Unsafe
1/5
2,246 reviews23 followers
May 15, 2017
It is a category romance novel about a prince. That is what it says it is; that is what you get. No complaints there. That said, I was a little confused/irritated as to why the heroine also had to be the daughter of a British billionaire with a million sisters, but then realized this is part of a series, so obviously that is why. It is kind of distracting, though. Additionally, every time the hero praised the heroine's beautiful, sensual feet (which he does far more often than you'd think), I cringed - the woman is supposed to be a ballet dancer, a professional ballet dancer. Their feet get absolutely battered. Come on. Other than that it was fine.
Profile Image for Colleen.
199 reviews33 followers
December 4, 2012
I don't know what to give this book. At first, it was ok, then I didn't really like it, then I did and then I REALLY liked it and then it was ok again and then it was cheesy and then it was over.
So I'm just going to go in the middle and say it was average.
Three stars from me.
Profile Image for Megzy.
1,193 reviews70 followers
April 23, 2013
The third one in the series. Nothing special but better than some of the others.
Profile Image for Fanniny Moreno Zavaleta.
465 reviews102 followers
June 2, 2015
If there weren't so many problems with the Portuguese in this book I would have give it the four stars
Profile Image for Xenia Pavlidou.
262 reviews40 followers
December 4, 2023
💕 Έμιλι Μπάλφουρ & Λουίς Κόρντομπα💕


🌟Οι Κόρες του Μπάλφουρ🌟
Βιβλίο 1: Το Σκάνδαλο της Μία
Βιβλίο 2: Η Περηφάνια της Κατ
Βιβλίο 3: Η Αθωότητα της Έμιλι
Βιβλίο 4: Η Πολιορκία της Σόφι
Βιβλίο 5: Το Μάθημα της Ζόι
Βιβλίο 6: Το Μυστικό της Άννι
Βιβλίο 7: Το Ημέρωμα της Μπέλα
Βιβλίο 8: Το Ξύπνημα της Ολίβια
Profile Image for Cameil Ramouche.
80 reviews
December 8, 2017
I like this book

It's a good story I don't like that there is no mention of the previous books and I don't like all the information that's repeatedly and the end of every book I feel that space could have been used for more of the story.
95 reviews
September 16, 2021
Me ha gustado como afrontan las dificultades de Louis porque yo hubiera esperado más del argumento de Emily
Profile Image for Tania Martins.
1,075 reviews59 followers
February 3, 2021
História mais ou menos previsível mas a personagem feminina era fofinha e a relação dela com a sobrinha foi muito bem delineada, romance querido e homens dominadores como sempre!
Profile Image for Makii.
663 reviews
August 31, 2012
Ohhhhh que tierna historia...
Un príncipe de cuentos y una joven en busca de amor.
Seguimos con la mas pequeña de las hijas de Oscar Balfour, la que tuvo su ultima esposa y a la que mas amo. Cuando Mía llega a la mansión anunciando que era la hija ilegítima de Oscar, Emily ve ante sus ojos como toda su vida se destroza. Con su madre en el lecho de muerte, una hermana que no sabía que tenía y un padre que resulto que le había mentido toda la vida el mundo de ella se ve reventar como una burbuja. El día después de la muerte de su madre decide abandonar a su familia y su legado.
Subsistiendo como puede, la joven y rica heredera ve morir ante ella el gran sueño de su vida: ser una bailarina de ballet.
Hasta que aparece el príncipe Luis de Santosa. Joven, rico, sexy... y con una imagen pública desastrosa. El futuro rey es todo lo que Emily deseaba desde hacía un año cuando lo vio por primera vez y la rechazó.
Y ahora quería llevársela con el? Podrían resistirse? Podría él cumplir el juramente que le había hecho a su hermano en el lecho de muerte?

Me gusto mucha esta historia...
2 personajes con complejas historias y con pasados llenos de dolor. Pero con un anhelo y un deseo demasiado poderoso como para resistirse. Es una de las historias con mas sentimientos de la serie...
Emily es frágil e inexperta, hasta que descubre su pasión y decide arriesgarse.
Luis tiene un gran peso en sus hombros y lucha contra su destino que tanto rechaza. Pero Emily lo hace sentir pleno y le muestra que la vida puede ser diferente si hace las cosas con sentimientos.
Y el es tan sexy... quien no quiere un príncipe así?
Quería que supieras que no me importa lo que diga la gente ni lo que publique la prensa. Te amaré hagas lo que hagas y estés donde estés, y seguiré amándote en público y en privado cada minuto y cada día del resto de mi vida.

Sigo esperando mas relación entre las hermanas. Esperaba mas de ella con Mía que fue con quien tuvo problemas cuando apareció en sus vidas. O algún trato entre las herederas. Siento que si sigue esta línea no voy a encontrarlo en ninguno de los otros que vienen.... Una lástima, porque tienen el material y no lo usan como podrían para mejor. Al menos, en este vemos mas de ella con su Padre. No debería ser así en todos? Ojala lo hicieran....
Lo bueno es que el padre en este no hizo ni de casadero ni ella quedo embarazada.... con 2 historias anteriores asi, me estaba preocupando!!
Profile Image for Angela Noviana.
464 reviews23 followers
December 11, 2013
Bagaimana ya rasanya mengetahui bahwa ayah yang kamu sayangi ternyata selingkuh dari ibu yang kamu cintai? Dan ketika mengetahui keburukan ayahnya, Emily memutuskan untuk meninggalkan kekayaan keluarga Balfour sehari setelah ibunya meninggal.

Mengajar balet merupakan satu-satunya cara Emily bertahan hidup dan membuatnya tetap waras. Dua bulan bertahan di tempat tinggal yang kumuh membuat Emily rindu akan rumahnya, tapi dia tetap bertahan sampai pangeran yang dulu mencuri cinta dan ciumannya muncul di pintu tempat kerjanya.

Luis tak menyangka bertemu dengan Emily dengan keadaan seperti itu. Dengan segala politik yang ada di negaranya dan musibah yang dideritanya, Luis memutuskan untuk memaksa Emily ikut dengannya ke Cordoba.

Tapi sebenarnya Luis memiliki rencana lain dengan membawa Emily ke tempat asalnya....

India Grey adalah penulis baru untukku. Hal yang aku suka dari Harlequin adalah ceritanya yang ringan, jadi gak terlalu capek bacanya. Untunglah aku menemukan penulis ini :)

Ceritanya ringan dan chemistry yang dibangun perlahan-lahan dan tak terburu-buru itu terasa menyenangkan untuk diikuti.

Aku suka banget sama keponakan Luis. Lucu. Imut-imut banget. Aku bisa membayangkan ketika Luis dan keponakannya membahas mengenai kalau mereka bisa menjadi binatang, mereka akan menjadi apa. Begitu juga ketika mereka mengadakan acara ultah anak itu. Mauuuuu....

Oh ya, di sini juga diberikan gambaran tentang kehidupan kerajaan walaupun secuil. Hidup di kerajaan yang kaya itu tidak selalu enak. Selalu ada saja yang harus dibatasi dan membuat anggota kerajaan tidak bebas dan menjadi dirinya sendiri. Huffftttt....

Overall, nice story. Kalau ada waktu, aku mau cari untuk buku lainnya dalam seri ini :)
Profile Image for Sophie.
837 reviews27 followers
May 2, 2011
This was not as good as other India Grey titles I've read. Perhaps because the author had to make her story fit the "Balfour Brides" series, the book took a long time to get moving. Since I'm not familiar with the other Balfour titles, much of the exposition-heavy opening was confusing to me, and I didn't think there was much emotional connection between the hero and heroine until around halfway through the book. The familiar Harlequin Presents scenario of a rich, powerful man and the shrinking virgin who corrals him is in place here, with the added fillip of the hero's royal status. The second half of the book was much better than the first, but the ending was sillier than I would have liked. All in all, not bad, but not exceptional either.
Profile Image for Megan.
3,606 reviews45 followers
August 9, 2019
Quick Info
Standalone/Cliffhanger?: Standalone
Part of a Series?: Yes
----------------------------------
Meeting the Characters
Emily
Luis
----------------------------------
What happens?
Emily is the youngest of the Balfours, she runs away when it is clear her beloved father cheated on her mother and Emily has to lie to her dying mother about it.
Luis comes across the Balfor and can't leave her alone he has to find a reason to make her come with him.
Final thoughts
This was a sweet romance and I really needed to read something like this.
Luis was a bit cold and Emily and him did kind of have a wham moment but they were still sweet.
Would I read again?: Yes
Would I read this author again?: Yes
220 reviews
April 4, 2011
Youngest of the Balfour sisters, ballerina, sweet, loves children. She meets prince whose bad boy rep has to rehabilitated. Rationale for sex seems contrived (one minute she was adamantly resisting his advances and then she has an emotional breakdown after watching Giselle and becomes needy. What the...?!) The proposal scene on the beach is made-for-tv romantic though. Hence the three star rating.
Profile Image for Ladyacct.
863 reviews
May 3, 2011
While this is the third in the Balfour Brides series, it is also the one that has the most information on what is supposed (or I think) to be connecting the books. I really haven't seen much connection so far other than 8 sisters. I was under the impression that there was some great mystery to unravel, so far, not so much.

However, this was the best story so far, and would have been better (in my opinion) if it HAD NOT been involved in the series at all.
Profile Image for Carmen.
625 reviews18 followers
March 25, 2016
This was a short book that was sort of a quickish read for me. It seems like things for the Royal Cordoba family is done more with a sense of duty rather than honesty. I also thought that it would be difficult for a child to understand and carry out royal duties. This book had a nice ending for me. Here's the link for the Amazon review: https://www.amazon.com/gp/review/R3TB...
504 reviews2 followers
September 15, 2011
Emily Balfour fled from her fairy-tale lifestyle after her mother died and found that her father was not all she thought. She never realized how hard life was and is struggling to make ends meet. Enter Prince Luis Cordoba who recognizes her as the Balfour heiress and for his own selfish reasons offers her a job to teach his neice ballet. In the end it was the Prince who learned.
Profile Image for RomLibrary.
5,789 reviews
June 3, 2021
She fled from her fairy-tale lifestyle when she'd discovered it was built on lies. Now naive Emily Balfour is struggling to make ends meet.
Prince Luis Cordoba instantly recognizes the Balfour heiress—the only woman who didn't fall at his feet! Penniless Emily can't refuse the offer of a roof over her head—even knowing she'll be sharing the playboy's bed!

536 reviews
November 28, 2016
Emily ran away and hid who she really was until Prince Luis recognized her and persuaded her to help with his young niece. She knew he was a "playboy" so what were his intentions?
It's all about the "writing in the sand"!
A pretty good read.
Profile Image for Delacey.
1,195 reviews8 followers
Want to read
October 31, 2019
1st read of an India Grey novel, and I'm on the fence as to reading more of her books, or if I want to find more from this series. This book started off interesting, but I found both characters weak, and the chemistry between the two lacking. Overall, blah.
Profile Image for Kate Hewitt.
Author 874 books1,685 followers
October 13, 2010
India Grey writes another amazing book with a gorgeous hero, a determined yet fragile heroine, and a beautiful, poignant love story. Really well done!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 43 reviews

Can't find what you're looking for?

Get help and learn more about the design.