Dark heroes are hard to write. Really. They usually come across as brooding and temper-tantrum-y. That said, I really liked Christina Dodd's brooding hero in this book, mostly because he wasn't a brooder by the end. Fun story with cute characters. I enjoyed it.

It's not "AMAZING" romance by any means. But it was definetly a good read. I'd recommend it if your favorite writers -- much like mine -- are busy writing something new and you need something to tide you over :)

This is the first novel of the Lost Princess series. This book has a great mystery, danger and amazing love story. The novel is based around three princess who leave their country due to war. They left their home as children and now young women trying to survive. This story is Clarice story (the middle daughter) who find love with Earl MacKenize. I can not wait until the next novel coming in Feb. 2006.

This is the second novel by Christina Dodd that I have read in the past year. I also read, "My Fair Enchantress". I gave that book four plus stars - it was an excellent read and I really enjoyed the story line and characters. In this next book, "Some Enchanted Evening", I found the characters interesting as well as the story line but, I would not rate it as great of a read as the first book I had chosen.

Although I liked the story line of this book quite a bit - three princesses (Sorcha, Clarice & Amy) are taken from their respective countries and are sent off in hiding as killers are after them and their ruling families...a fellow prince (Rainger) of a neighboring country is also taken away and once released from his captivity makes an agreement with the princesses grandmother to get them back. If the prince finds the three girls, he can chose one to marry. So...it's off to the races. This story focused on the middle princess - Clarice. She also had an older sister Sorcha and a little sister Amy. Sorcha was gone elsewhere whereas Clarice and Amy were able to stay together.

Clarice and Amy managed to outwit the bad guys by traveling town to town, peddling their family cosmetic secrets to local gals for their money and lodging. They would move on to new places to keep up the game and stay out of reach of the bad guys. They managed to do this for many years. Their grandmother was due to put notices in local papers when they could return to their own country safely - that had not happened yet.

So...they find their way to a local town where a high ranking earl - Hepburn - Robert Mackenzie is running the show and the locals pay honor to him as an old war hero. They peddle their goods in his town and charm both men and women alike with their winsome ways. They state clearly they are princesses on the run and have stopped to give women happiness via their face and body creams. Everyone buys into the show. The girls stay on in town and thus...an attraction and relationship develop between Robert and Clarice as she stays at his castle to help with a large ball that is being thrown in honor of another great war hero- Ogley.

Robert finds out Clarice stole her horse and is on the run from that too. He uses this information to bribe her to help him outwit the nasty war hero Ogley. She is to use her cosmetics and winsome ways to pretend to be an ex-mistress of Ogley so, that Robert and his friend Waldemar can corner the ex-war hero and get him to provide proper discharge and honorary release in the military to Waldemar that was taken away by by Ogley. Thus...a charade begins to help Robert fulfill this need help his friend. In turn, Clarice is trying to stay outside the bad guys trying to find her and Amy and the local magistrate who knows she stole his horse.

I won't give the ending away suffice to say, the story course works itself out in the end (a wee bit too perfectly if you ask me) and everyone is happy, happy, happy. The story also alludes at the end that a new book will follow regarding Princess Amy and where her future travels will take her as she does not want to be a princess any longer. Not surprising there.

I did find some inconsistencies in the story that prevented me from liking the story better. For instance...you would think lots of time elapsed between Clarice first coming to town, meeting the villagers, staying with Robert and his sister Millicent at the castle, the ball occurring and help being done for Waldemar and she outwitting the magistrate who arrests her. But...in reality, only a handful of days go by for all this to occur. During this time, Clarice and Robert manage to be highly attracted to one another, have many sexual outings and manage to fall head over heals in love and want to marry. This time frame didn't work for me at all - not realistic. A lifetime of events occur in about a two week time span (if not less) and I couldn't get into the emotions of these characters and find it real with so little time devoted to developing their relationship.

Also...Clarice is supposedly on the run from not only bad guys trying to kill her and Amy for the crown but, also after her for horse theft. So...what would a girl do to stay hidden in obscurity...well for starters, ride into town after town, manage to make everyone notice her due to her beauty and outspokenness and proclaim loudly each time that she is a princess adrift from her country but, she is there to help everyone nonetheless. I would say that's keeping a low profile, don't you? I kept thinking if any of the bad guys or magistrate had half a brain and network of spies, she could have been found and nabbed very easily. Plus...she is supposedly a top beauty on a rare and priceless horse yet...no word of this goes from town to town after she leaves? And is it safe to be out riding alone like that - wouldn't someone try to rob or steal from her or worse? No...not our heroine. Apparently, she has a special protective safety bubble the rest of us don't have. These things didn't work for me.

Also...Robert was in this emotionless bubble since coming back from war yet, in a matter of days he is suddenly a new man because of Clarice and their sexual and emotional encounters? Or that Clarice wants to return to her kindom and have a top marriage to continue the line yet..she will have sex with Robert at a moment's notice and not worry anymore about her thrown? Or that Millicent was this dull, dry and aged spinster with no back bone to show for herself and in a matter of days suddenly transforms into this lovely beauty with wit, spunk and courage? Once again...too many inconsistencies for me.

Even though Clarice was a princess and Robert's sister Millicent running an Earl's estate...I didn't care for the way they treated their servants. For some reason, it was not appealing that the two main female leads would snap their fingers for something to happen, talk down to their staff and act as if they were less than average people. Yet...both Clarice and Millicent would be kind and warm to nearly everyone else. I felt they were demeaning to those in their work staff and that was not appealing to me. This was a small thing but, I noticed it anyway. You can be firm and have directive without being snotty and snooty.

Last...I am not sure why this book is titled, "Some Enchanted Evening" (just because she's a princess in exile doesn't support "enchanting"). I do not remember any special night outing that would support such a title. I think they could have come up with a better title to support the story line. I say this because I like to have title's support the book as well as the cover designs and photos. For me, it helps for some reason.

Rainger, the forgotten prince, actually seemed like an interesting character but, we only got to see snippets of him as a child at court and then once or twice as an adult as he searched for and found Clarice at the end. I think a story with him might be interesting and expect it will follow one day if it has not yet. My guess is that Amy will end up with her own knight in shining amour such as Clarice found and that oldest Princess Sorcha will end up with Prince Rainger as her own? Just my guess but, I would like to see that happen. We'll see.

There were times during the reading of this book that I started to feel myself drift off and get bored - that's never a good sign in a love story. I gave three stars more for the author herself than the book. I like how she writes and feel she is very talented. This story just didn't seem well developed for me. Even though I would not consider this one of the best or better books I have read, it still had enough going on to be over-all pleasing. I would consider more of her books and hope you do too. Enjoy!

SOME ENCHANTED EVENING is the first book in another series by Dodd, three princess/sisters who go into exile in England and lose each other and their contact with their kingdom. Clarice has to support her younger sister Amy so she sells cosmetics at parties (Mary Kay, anyone?) and gets tangled up with Robert, an earl who wants to use her and her skills at make-up in a scheme of revenge. It was a great story set in Scotland with a lot of excitement, adventure and of course great sex, but how long do I have to wait for the next story? I want to know what happens to the sisters, their grandmother the queen, and the prince. I really enjoy reading Dodd's books, but I wish she'd hold them until the whole seris can come out at once.