Sweet is...sweet

Gwynneth Ever After has a distinctly fairytale-like quality to it. There's a damsel in distress (even if she doesn't know it) and an uber-wonderful prince-slash-hero who appears in her life as if by magic. Hero sweeps damsel off her feet, overcomes a few obstacles, wins her heart, and voila, everyone lives happily ever after.

Okay, so maybe it's not that simple, but it was darn close. Gwynneth Ever After is not, in any way, shape or form, a trauma and drama book. It's a low-key, feel-good romance with an abundance of sweetness and charm. Sweetness isn't something I normally look for in the books I read, but every once in a while I have a craving for "book sugar", and Gwynneth Ever After came along at just the right time to provide it.

So did I like the book? Yes. Would I add it to my favorites list, or put in in my re-read pile? No. It's a nice story, but for me, that's all it was - nice. It didn't stir up any big emotions, and as far as bite goes, there simply wasn't any. I wanted the stakes to be higher, the challenges to be more...well, challenging. What the characters considered to be major obstacles in their relationship, I viewed as pebble-sized bumps in the road that should have been just kicked aside and forgotten.

I think part of the problem is that I've read - and completely love - Linda Poitevin's urban fantasy series, the Grigori Legacy, so when I started Gwynneth Ever After, I expected a book with at least some type of bang, and all I got was a soft whimper.

You may feel differently, though. If you are in the mood for a warm and fuzzy story featuring a drop-dead gorgeous hero, a sympathetic heroine, and a well-balanced blend of sweetness and spice, then this book will be right up your alley and I encourage you to read it. As for me, I'm going to stick with the author's Grigori Legacy.

3 Stars ★★★
ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.