Once upon a time—yesterday actually—I had the great pleasure of reading a delightfully fractured fairy tale by Eloisa James. Released on July 27th, A Kiss at Midnight puts an enticing new twist on the classic story of the little cinder girl finding a great love with her handsome Prince Charming.
“Miss Kate Daltry doesn’t believe in fairy tales… or happily ever after.
Forced by her stepmother to attend a ball, Kate meets a prince… and decides he’s anything but charming. A clash of wits and wills ensues, but they both know their irresistible attraction will lead nowhere. For Gabriel is promised to another woman—a princess whose hand in marriage will fulfill his ruthless ambitions.
Gabriel likes his fiancé, which is a welcome turn of events, but he doesn’t love her. Obviously, he should be wooing his bride-to-be, not the witty, impoverished beauty who refuses to fawn over him.
Godmothers and glass slippers notwithstanding, this is one fairy tale in which destiny conspires to destroy any chance that Kate and Gabriel might have a happily ever after.
Unless a prince throws away everything that makes him noble…
Unless a dowry of an unruly heart trumps a fortune…
Unless one kiss at the stroke of midnight changes everything. “
From the cigarillo, chain-smoking, evil step-mother to the less-than-fairylike godmother, Eloisa James has spun re-imagined elements of the traditional fairy tale into a humorous and believable array of characters inhabiting the slightly out-of-time world in which Kate and Gabriel journey to find their “Happily ever after”.
Being a personal fan of “fractured fairytales”, as well as this author’s other novels; the release of A Kiss at Midnight was one of my most anticipated reads of the summer. From cover to cover, (which is beautifully done) this book surpassed my expectations and then some.
Written By: Staff Writer, Teresa St. Mary
