Reviewed by Kat
TITLE: The Nerd and The Prince
SERIES: Small-Town Dreams #1
Dreamspun Desires #66
AUTHOR: B. G. Thomas
PUBLISHER: Dreamspinner Press
LENGTH: 264 pages
RELEASE DATE: September 18, 2018
BLURB:
A Small-Town Dreams Story
Prince Charming is the man next door.
Small-town business owner Jason Brewster has big dreams: world travel, adventure, and most of all, a passionate romance worthy of a fairy tale. But he doesn’t believe fantasies can come true….
Until Adam moves in next door.
He’s handsome, cultured, European, and best of all, interested in Jason. It’s like something out of the stories Jason loves.
But Adam—whose real name is Amadeo Montefalcone—has a secret. He’s royalty, prince of the small country of Monterosia. Only he doesn’t want to rule, and especially doesn’t want the loveless marriage waiting for him at home. So he ran away in search of true love. With a man. And with Jason, he finds it.
But Adam can’t run forever. The truth will come out. If Jason can forgive Adam’s deception, they might find their happily ever after.
REVIEW:
I have been looking forward to reading another book by this author since I fell in love with his co-authored book with Noah Willoughby “Mele Kalikimaka”. It was actually on my “Best of 2016” list.
Amadeo Montefalcone is running from his country. He is the Crown Prince of Monterosia, a small country located between Italy and Slovenia. He is expected to marry and produce an heir to the throne. Unfortunately that is not in the cards for him since he is a very closeted gay in his conservative counrty. In order to even have the chance at happiness he longs for he must escape his homeland. His younger brother is the Chief of security for their country and helps him escape to Buckman, Missouri in the United States, a place where being gay isn’t as frowned upon as back home. What luck he has when the first two men he meets in this new home are both gay and desire the handsome new stranger to their town. Jason Evander Brewster owns a small used book shop and breakfast/lunch eatery called “The Briar Patch”. He has always known he was gay and a nerd but meeting a man that shares his love of literature, especially stories about his beloved Greek Gods, seems like a fairytale. That is until the gorgeous man moves right behind his home. But can an ordinary shop owner keep up the attentions of a suave European Prince?
What I wasn’t expecting when I chose this book was the high amount of Greek Mythology that ran so prevalently throughout. I don’t know much about the Greek Gods and their powers so I was at a bit of a disadvantage. I went back to read the blurb again to see if I missed this being mentioned but it simply wasn’t. It made following some of the conversations a bit more difficult to follow and a struggle to understand. Add in the extensive use of Italian and I was lost a bit. Luckily I have an app that can translate the words for me. I am not one for much fantasy and supernatural themes so I was also bit out of my comfort zone. I have been trying to step outside my box and this wasn’t too much of a stretch. I did learn why some people pour out a bit of wine (something I had always thought odd) on the ground. It turns out it is homage to the gods.
This book had a pretty low angst level. The men fell in love basically at first sight however they took their time to get to know one another before they jumped into a physical relationship. I was somewhat bothered by the fact that Adam could trust his heart and body to Jason but couldn’t force himself to tell him who he really was. As open and honest as Jason was it seemed to be a stretch that he couldn’t share his truth, to the point of almost breaking it off with the man of his dreams!
The part I didn’t get at all was when the men went to Monterosia. All that went on there was a bit too mysterious and confusing. Maybe if I had understood Greek Mythology more then I might have made sense but I was totally lost.
What I did really enjoy was Jason and Adam’s chemistry. They seemed like the perfect match for each other. I guess that was some of the “Gods” at work to arrange their meeting from half way around the world. They say that you have one true soul mate and this story made that seem true. I also loved watch Adam grow as an out gay man. I loved getting to watch him get the chance for him to truly be who he was.
Although I was a bit confused with all the Greek Mythology lore I did find that I really enjoyed this book. The men were likeable and I found myself hoping for a happily ever after for them. I truly enjoyed the end of the book.
RATING: 
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