Penelope & Prince Charming

by Jennifer Ashley

Book Overview

Wallflower Penelope Trask believes nothing will ever happen in her village of Little Marching, Oxfordshire. Handsome princes only sweep in an carry off innocent maidens in the fairy tales she... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0843956062
• ISBN13: 9780843956061
• Release Date: January 2006
• Publisher: Leisure Books
• Length: 373 Pages
• Weight: 0.45 lbs.
• Dimensions: 6.8" x 1.0" x 4.1"

Customer Reviews

Penelope and Prince Charming Charmed Me!

I finished Penelope and Prince Charming by Jennifer Ashley yesterday. I had started it months ago, and put it aside. Not that it wasn't good. I did the fatal reading habit thing: skimming ahead. The love scenes are definitely on the erotic side. As we have discussed, I am iffy about erotic elements in a "mainstream" romance. But on the second read the love scenes were tastefully done. I suppose that Jennifer felt that she needed to push the sensual envelope as the Nvengarians are very sensual, wild, and sexually explorative people. I think that she did compromise and kept things as tame as possible for a mainstream romance. And I use the word 'tame' in the sense that the love scenes are definitely hot, but the reasonably prudish romance reader who likes her love scenes could handle them. Penelope... is a sweet love story about the power of love to redefine and to defy the odds. Penelope is a rather ordinary daughter of a baronet who resides in the country with her widowed mother. She is most definitely on the shelf after two broken engagements (neither of which are quite her fault, although it has earned her a reputation of a jilt). And in fact, she has almost given up on finding her Prince that her romantic heart quite longs for. In swoops a bonafide Imperial Prince, Damien. He was imprisoned by his rather insane, evil father, who feared him taking over his rule. And once freed, he fled his homeland, working hard to support himself until he became wealthy, and developed a reputation as a dilettante expatriate, equally good at seducing women as he is at charming diplomats. But when his wicked father dies, he realizes that his people need him, so he decides to take over the rule of the country from the ultra-powerful Council of Dukes, one in particular of which, Grand Duke Alexander, is determined to kill him to prevent him from subjecting Nvengaria to tyrannical wicked excesses as his father did. In order for Damian to be accepted by his people, he has to fulfill the prophecy of bringing back the long lost Princess as his bride. His search brings him to the tiny town of Little Marching, in England, where he sees that the long lost ring that would mark the princess is in the hands of the frivolous baronet widow, Lady Simone. As he can obviously not marry a woman past childbearing age, he immediately asks for Penelope, her daughter's hand. But this is not a burden to him, as he is captivated by her. It is made clear that part of the attraction is due to the magic of the prophecy. However, I believe that there was a magic that came from the meeting of two soulmates, completely unrelated to the prophecy. Quite frankly, after having been engaged the first time around to a complete scoundrel, Penelope doesn't want to be atttracted to the incredibly attractive, somewhat roguish prince, but her heart and her hormones are doing their own thing. Damien is a master at seduction and is drawn to Penelope in a way he cannot resist. Their engagement is inevitab

Great Fairy Tale for grown -ups!

I have to start this by saying, OOH, I loved this book! What a great fairy tale, with all the fairy tale elements. Handsome prince, wicked king, power crazed duke, lovely maiden, spells and magic. Add to that, sensual scenes that make you blush and some cute humor, and you have this wonderful book. Sometimes it is the hardest thing; you just can't see why a hero loves a heroine. That wasn't the case here. You can see the characters draw strength from each other, even when they think it is just magic. The romance stays front and center throughout the book, weaving in the fantasy and intrigue parts to strengthen the romance. I highly reccomend this book. Ashley may be my new favorite author next to Kleypas and Robards.

Charming, really...

Damian is the Prince of Nvengaria and years ago his father banished him from his country when he was still a little boy. Years later, Damian has dragged himself out of the pits of poverty and has made a name for himself in royal courts across the continent and has earned his own money. Now his father, The Imperial Prince, has died and Damian returns to his beloved country to begin the slow process of healing after years under the cruel dictatorship of The Imperial Prince. The only problem is that the Grand Duke, Alexander, has the country firmly in hand and refuses to let the spawn of The Imperial Prince drive what is left of Nvengaria under his boot. Squeezed between the Austrian Empire, Russia, and the Ottoman Empire, Nvengaria believes in the deeep magic and prophecy that the country is founded on. All signs of the prophecy indicate that it is time for Damian to find the lost princess from Prince Augustus the First. Finding and marrying her will reforge the bond of the original two princes of Nvengaria and the country will prosper again. Penelope is believed to be the female descendant from the Augustus lineage and once Damian tracks her down in the small, remote village of Little Marching, all he has to do is convince her to marry him and get her back across the country and in Nvengaria by Midsummer's Day. I liked it but boy did I get a surprise! Okay, sure, it said on the back that the book included wild magic, but I didn't think that mean it was a paranormal! **Warning to historical readers--as much as this book is a historical, it contains prophesies, mages, seeing into the future, magic and demons that take human form** I like the characters Penelope and Damien. They were well created/developed and their dialogue was realistic. I felt Penelope put up the perfect amount of resistance against Damien and his arguments were always sound and believable. The sex and almost sex scenes were hot. The only thing I would have liked to see was more of Nvengaria. I didn't think they were ever going to get there! By page 200 the betrothal rituals and obstacles started to feel really drawn out.

Sultry Activity.

Every author has a trump card, a golden gift that is uniquely theirs. For Karen Ranney - sentence structure. For Mary Balogh - poignancy. For Catherine Anderson - first-class heros. And for Jennifer Ashley? SENSUAL scenes! This author can write awesome, magnetic, sensual scenes. Whew! Her carnal action literally sizzles! Damien, the Imperial Prince of Nvengaria, finally found her! His bride. Penelope Trask. A modest spinster who lived in a small English village and filled her days by writing fairytales. Remarkably, the prudent, sweet Penelope Trask would soon become the Imperial Highness Princess of Nvengaria, his wife. The sinful Prince of Nvengaria knew his people would adore her. She was beautiful and very spirited. Miss Penelope Trask would complete the prophecy; she would carry out the magic! This delightful sorceress would soon reunite his beloved Nvengaria. Whether he was a prince or a trickster, he was the most baffling man Penelope had ever met. Prince Damien of Nvengaria talked of fairy tales, eight-hundred-year-old rings, and Midsummer festivals! Imagine a plain, English girl marrying royalty! Prophecy? Prosperous! Penelope's peaceful existence soon grew into a tumultuous love affair. Sweet simplicity gave way to profuse love. Penelope wanted Damien to be free - free from fear and tension; she wanted him to live, to love, to reign. She would become his princess; she would become the people's princess; she would become the elegant Imperial Highness Princess Penelope of Nvengaria. I am giving PENELOPE & PRINCE CHARMING page-turner status, because I liked Jennifer Ashley's story. I will admit, I am normally not a big fan of the fantasy/paranormal genre and here, at times, I did struggle with the fantasy/fairy tale concept. However, I did like Ms. Ashley's style. PENELOPE & PRINCE CHARMING was a light, clever, and very, very sexy read. Grade: B MaryGrace Meloche.

Nvengaria Prince Charming - Oooo........I Want One!!!!

All I know is that if there is a real Prince of Nvengaria, or any other Nvengarians out there - I want one! That is what the reader will find themselves saying throughout this story. Jennifer Ashley captivated fans with her Pirate Series and enthralls them once again with this sensual Fantasy Regency in her unique style. Passionate love scenes blend in a magical fantasy world that at times leave the reader breathless. Love at first sight, prophecies, court intrigues, and mythical creatures called the logosh are woven into a wonderful tapestry from England to the Transylvania mountains to create a story that cannot be put down. Ms. Ashley makes us dream and believe in Prince Charming. Penelope & Prince Charming is an enchanting Cinderella Story. Romances already have a bit of magic to them, but this book proves you can never have too much magic or romance. I loved this book!