Disappointmentville: Once Upon a Wedding Series, Book 1

Format: Kindle Edition | File Size: 450 KB | Release Date: September 7, 2010 | Publisher: Book View Cafe | Obtained: Amazon.com

"The Fairy Tale Bride" [Once Upon a Wedding Series, Book 1] by Kelly McClymer

My Book Summary : Five years ago, Simon--the Duke of Kerstone--had every intention of asking for Miranda's hand in marriage; despite her inclination to whole-heartedly believe that fairy tales can happen for everyone. That is until he over hears his mother tell his dying father about him being a bastard. After hearing that, Simon decides that he'll honor his "father" enough to make sure a true blood relation gains the title of Duke of Kerstone and teach him how to complete his duties, then he plans on disappearing.

Five years later, his plans have thus far worked to his advantage that is until Miranda comes back into his life with every hope of helping out her twin brother's happily-ever-after but instead she ends up becoming married to Simon!

Even after getting married, will Simon be able to follow through with his long ago plans or will he find that he has a change of heart?

My Book Review : 2.5 out of 5 stars. Wouldn't life be wonderful if fairy tales were real or if everyone could always get their own happily-ever-after? Miranda always believed things are supposed to be that way, so when she ends up being married to Simon--a man who is stoic and is very cynical of people--she makes it her mission to find a way to learn his secrets while assisting him to make sure he will have a very full life. If it were only that easy...

I found that while I loved the first seven chapters, right up until they got married, the challenges that Simon and Miranda seem to face from then on bounce between mysterious to ridiculous at times. Even more so when they both find more ways to not tell each other the truth then they do to nurture their relationship. And I do realize that yes, Simon's goal is to enjoy only about 75% of his relationship with Miranda so he won't mess up his plans, the antics and lengths that these two go through to finally get what they both want is a bit unbelievable.

Overall, I really wished I could like this novel. I read through it because I kept rooting for Simon and Miranda, wanting them to come to terms with what their original plans were and to truly get together, but I really think it was dragged out too much.

Even though I wasn't a fan of this novel, I recommend this novel to anyone who is a fan of Ms. McClymer and/or those who truly like all kinds of historical romances.

Purchase This Book and/or The Other Books From It's Series Here :

Author's Novel Extras : The Fairy Tale Bride - Overview & Excerpt | Backlist Soon to be Up Front Again! | We Interrupt our Ebook Format Saga to Announce: The Fairy Tale Bride is Live! | Front Matter Matters: Another in the Do What I Say, Not What I Do Series | Instant Karmic Smackdown — Hubris, I Thee Banish! | Results: The Grand FREE Experiment | Writers’ Chat: Self-Publishing in the Digital Age: Pitfalls and Advantages of Indie Publishing | Wedding Sale: The Fairy Tale Bride for 99 cents

Author's Series Extras : Once Upon a Wedding Series - Overview | The Star-Crossed Bride - Overview & Excerpt | The Unintended Bride - Overview & Excerpt | The Infamous Bride - Overview & Excerpt | The Next Best Bride - Overview & Excerpt | The Impetuous Bride - Overview & Excerpt | The Twelfth Night Bride - Overview & Excerpt | June Bride Blitz — A Month of Books with Brides and Weddings! | Confessions of a Turtle Mom: 47 – A Frown is Just an Upside Down Smile | Channeling Konrath, Eisler, Hocking and Locke – What I Learned in 50 Days Promoting My Backlist Book Sale | New Book! New Covers!! | Turtle Mom Wedding Whinesday: How Many Cards Tuck Into a Wedding Invitation? | Turtle Mom Wedding Whinesday: A Long-Haul Marriage, The Kardashians, and Bob and Sheri

Book Teaser(s) :

"Simon, I beg to be introduced to your lovely new bride." He came around the table and clapped Simon on the shoulder as he beamed at Miranda.
Simon could not help reflecting that Arthur would have been just as effusive if Miranda had been four feet tall and possessed of hairy warts on her nose and chin. Arthur had always been a bit unsure of his ability to carry out the duties of an heir. Simon's mother had sarcastically called him the "heir-reluctant." Simon might have laughed, if it were not so patently true.
He patted Miranda's hand briefly and then released her. "Yes. Miranda, I am pleased to present you to my cousin Arthur. Arthur, this is my bride, Miranda."
Arthur beamed. "Welcome to the family, my dear. I have been telling Simon that what he needs is a bride and children-not a distant cousin culled from nowhere to learn to perform duties he's not very good at to begin with."
Miranda looked at him in puzzlement. "Culled from nowhere? Surely not."
Arthur colored. "Of course I am a bonafide Watterly. I am just from a very distant branch of the family. We'd quite forgotten our ties to the Dukes of Kerstone until Simon reminded us, I daresay."
And happy to have done so, Simon thought to himself as he remembered the arguments that had preceded Arthur's agreement to be trained as Simon's heir. It was only the fact that, as the closest male relative, he would indeed inherit the title and lands whether or not he trained for the task that convinced him to take the offer and come to learn about his future duties. ~ within Chapter 12

Resolutely, she cleared her head of thoughts she could do nothing about and began writing again in a careful, flowing script her mother would have exclaimed with pride over. Duchess of Kerstone. Yes, her mother would have been pleased.
She thought of the life her sisters would bring to this austere home tomorrow. Swift upon the heels of that thought was the worry that Simon's health would be adversely affected. Well, then, Katherine and she would need to be even more observant than they had been. Not that there had been much to discover.
She wondered if Simon had tried the tea she had brought him this morning. The brew had smelled quite awful even with the lemon and sugar they had to add to make the odor more inviting, but Katherine thought it might help.
Try as she might to see Simon's point of view, she could not see the harm in drinking a cup of herbal tea. But his warning still rang in her ears — he did not want to be dosed.
When he had raised an eyebrow at the tea, she had forced herself to lie and say that Cook had over brewed it. She wondered if he had believed her. At least, if he had not, he made no protest. She took comfort in that small victory. ~ within Chapter 15

For more information on this book, series, and/or any other books by Kelly, then please check out her website.