Once a Princess (Cardinia's Royal Family Book 1)

I love this book. The two main characters drove me crazy with all the resentment and mistrust at first. It made me want to read it that much more to see if they resolve everything. Johanna Lindsey is one of my favorite authors and I have never been disappointed by one.

The author made the mistake of letting the "tension", misunderstandings, and false perceptions go on WAY TOO LONG. To the point, that I barely cared anymore when they finally "get together" (at p. 337, jeez!)...I was so annoyed by the whole thing. A good romance novel allows the reader to enjoy the couple playfully falling in love, even when there are misunderstandings and tensions, while reading the book. It was difficult to enjoy or like this romantic couple because the author never let their relationship develop beyond the misunderstandings and arguing....she throws a few bones to the reader with passionate kisses, but it never satisfied the reader's desire to understand if they were actually making an emotional connection; it never seemed that it was anything other than manipulation or lust. The author also wraps up some plot lines (like the attempts on the heroine's life) in the last 10 pages....way too contrived and unbelievable.

Most of the action in the story takes place with Tatiana and Stefan's journey to Europe, and it's really not all that interesting, even when you figure in their annoying arguements. I would have liked to ready them stopping at a few places, New Orleans, European cities - some of those backdrops could have provided some interesting sub-plots. Or even how Tatiana fares and adapts to the court at Cardinia. But, it's not to be, instead I had to endure page after page of her attempted escapes Missippi or Natchez.

The author had a good storyline, but she blew it by letting the couple flounder and plod along with their misunderstanding of each other, didn't allow the reader to savor a slow genuine seeming "falling in love", and wrapped up the plot too quickly at the end.

Overall, this is a wonderful book. I love the premise of a "lost princess" who by some very bad luck has ended up working in a sleazy tavern, only to be "rescued" by a king. What is great is that Tanya is believable in the sense that she doesn't believe that the foreign men are telling her the truth, (I mean who would believe a story like that??) and she tries VERY hard to escape them b/c she thinks they mean her harm. The book is actually much funnier than I remembered and much of this is due to the lovable characters and their chemistry as a group. I love the supporting characters as well as the main couple. The only reason I'm giving this 4 stars instead of 5 is that the fighting b/t the couple went on too long, it could have been resolved much more quickly and realistically if people would speak to eachother instead of getting so angry over nothing and then avoiding eachother for LONG periods of time. Also, the fighting went on so long that it became a little difficult to see when exactly this couple fell in love, they certainly had a physical connection, and it was really sweet how protective and possessive Stefan was towards Tanya, but I couldn't remember why they actually LIKED eachother. Sadly this is somewhat typical of JL novels b/c she often focuses more on physical attraction b/t a couple instead of their non-sexual relationship. But still, this is a fun read and a cute story that I found entertaining.

Two decades ago in a small country in Eastern Europe, a beautiful princess was born and christened Tatiana Janacek. But she was born amidst chaos for there was a blood feud between her royal family, the Janaceks, and another powerful clan, the Stamboloffs. After several of her family members have been murdered, and with her father, the then King of Cardinia, fearing for his own life, Tatiana was immediately betrothed to the son of Sandor Barany, who became king after the rest of Tatiana's family were murdered. As the only remaining Janacek, King Sandor sent Tatiana to America with a baroness as her only companion. But tragedy seems to follow Tatiana wherever she goes for shortly after reaching America, the baroness died from illness leaving Tatiana at the hands of an elderly couple, with whom she grow up in near poverty and completely unaware of her regal birthright.

Fast forward to 1835 and King Sandor decides to abdicate the throne so his son Stefan could succeed. Now Stefan isn't too happy especially with the news that along with the throne comes his imminent wedding to the exiled princess. But worried for his father's fading health, he sails to America, albeit reluctantly, to bring his queen back home. But were he and his three companions in for a shock! For not only are they sent on a wild goose chase trying to find the princess, but when they finally do, it is to discover that she is not the pampered beauty they expected her to be but a feisty tavern wench who is completely ignorant of the circumstances of her birth. What astounds Stefan more is his instant attraction to Tatiana, who goes by the name of Tanya Dobbs. And for a moment, he is actually pleased that Tanya isn't the great beauty everyone claimed she would be, for he had long ago given up on beautiful women after being left scarred, both physically and emotionally, while trying to save his younger brother from being attacked by wolves. But that is another shock for him because Tanya's real appearance is soon unveiled. And this adds to the complication for he knows that he can't afford to lose his heart to the beautiful woman who he believes is repulsed by his appearance.

ONCE A PRINCESS is a tale about a girl deprived of a regal upbringing through tragedy, and a reluctant king who must give her back what is rightfully hers. Tanya/Tatiana is a heroine who has suffered all her life from the terrible beatings of a man she grew up thinking was her father, yet it is also this tragedy that has moulded her into the courageous and feisty woman that she has become. A woman whose only ambition is to one day have full ownership of the tavern she grew up in and live an independent life without the ties of marriage. Stefan, on the other hand, is a man who must overcome his insecurities and believe that there is a woman who will love him "scars and all".

This is a thoroughly enjoyable book. Tanya's attempts to escape Stefan had me laughing and cheering. I was held in suspense waiting to see how far she could make it just so she could drive Stefan and his friends demented. Stefan's friends, Vasili, Serge and Lazar also add to the fun, and then include a jealous mistress and a would-be assassin and you know you're in for an adventure.

A delightful story with a nice ending, you will love how both characters find true love despite their initial qualms and mistrust in each other's intentions.

Once a Princess by Johanna Lindsey is a fairy tale with a twist!

Princess Tatiana Janacek of Cardinia is the last living Janacek after a series of murder in her family line by the traitorous Stamboloffs due to a family feud. In order to save her life and to keep the line of the Janaceks alive, the newly crowned King Sandor devised a plan in which he smuggled the infant princess to the Americas and there to live and be raised as a person of high birth.

This is in the hope that when she grew up and it is safe for her to return, her betrothal to his son will be in fulfillment and she will again sit on the throne where she rightfully belongs. But fate intervened and she lived her life not as a princess but a tavern manager!

The right time came when the new King Stefan, given a missive by his ailing father, King Sandor, who abdicated the throne for him, to look for the long-lost princess. To their surprise and disgust, they found that their princess is not who they expected and this princess did not believe an ounce of what they told her.

Once a Princess is a fairy tale for adults with a humorous take of a princess who did not believe in fairy tales and did not believe she is a princess while the new King of Cardinia who was averse to the idea of marrying a pompous and spoiled princess only to find himself in love with the princess he did not expect!

The Princess is not your average princess but instead a hardened woman who learned to live her life the hard way. She is a woman driven by the dream of a life not answering to anyone but herself. Because of a different upbringing, her views in life are different which makes her a better match to the arrogant, short-tempered - albeit - desirable King. The new King, however, had demons of his own and has a personal conflict of accepting his short-tempered attitude which borders to violence - he didn't want to hurt his princess, after all.

Johanna Lindsey takes us to the small Kingdom of Cardinia in Europe in a world of betrayal, trust, friendship, acceptance, and love. It is a fairy tale with a happy ending but what delights me the most is the journey of Tanya and Stefan and the difficulties they have to face and overcome to reach that happy ending.

Lindsey's early works are shining examples of what Romance books can be: well written, happy, and enjoyable. Alas, Lindsey has gotten complacent in her success, and this book shows it. The plotline is stale, the attraction between the couple is minimal, there is no feeling of building attraction and excitement. The intimacy seems obligatory rather than natural to the plot, and the entire thing just feels padded and slow and boring. That said, the book cover description of the plot is spot on: girl grows up in poverty and then finds herself a princess with all the trimmings. I suggest you skip this and choose a book Lindsey wrote early in her career instead. Most of them aren't politically correct today, following the standard Romance plot of the day, but the impact is much more enjoyable.

King Sandor of Cardinia is dying. He turns the throne over to his son Stefan and orders him to go to America to find his betrothed princess. Twenty years before, the previous royal family was nearly wiped out except for Tatiana, the infant princess, who was smuggled out to safety. Before leaving with her protectress, she was betrothed to Stefan. But tragedy befell the royal escapees. The princess' guardian died of a fever, leaving her in the hands of a cruel tavern keeper and his kind-hearted wife. Raised in this atmosphere, Tanya grew to be a skeptical and sarcastic woman often hiding her beauty so as not to attract men. Upon finding her, Stefan is stunned that this tavern whore could be his princess. He is aware that she is disguised, but unaware of the true beauty that lies beneath. Tanya disbelieves the story Stefan and his men are telling her and they must take her by force. Stefan believes that his disfigurement is the reason she pulls away from him, never realizing that Tanya has already seen past his scars and is undeniably attracted to this man who would disrupt her life.
Tanya is not the whore the man believe her to be. Instead, she is a realist, a survivor, a woman striving to gain independence for herself and her future. Stefan is a man determined, a future king with an arrogant temper that he must control. Together they are made for each other. This story is a bit longer than most of her other books, but keeps your attention up until the end. I kept hoping that they would get things straightened out sooner. When Tanya does make her confessions to Stefan at the end, it is heartwarming and touching. A great story!!

"Once a Princess" focuses its attention on Stefan and Tayna. Stefan is the son of the dying king and is being forced to marry (against his wishes?) to a princess that he was engaged to when she was little more than an infant. Because of family hatred, the baby (Tayna) was secreted out of the country to be raised like a royal in America. Only her protector dies and leaves her in the hands of a cruel tavern owner who sees Tayna little more than a slave. Tayna grow up to be a very independent woman who is accustomed to life's hardships and cruel tricks. Is it no wonder that when Stefan shows up and tells her she is a princess that she doesn't believe him?
From there it is a merry chase with numerous escape attempts (all of them failed). Finally they arrive in Stefan's homeland only to be greated by Stefan's mistress (I was a little disturbed by the caviliar attutidue the author portrayed to this subject) who tries to kill Tayna. Then out of nowhere (like 5 pages from the end) comes Ivan Stroboli, the last remaining member of a family that killed the rest of Tayna's family. He just appears in her room and tries to kill her, but Stefan shows up just in time, but for a totally unlreated issue.
I thought the plot of the book was weak and if not for the constant fighting of Tayna and Stefan the book wouldn't have held my attention. I also thought that Ivan could have been integrated more into the book to give the plot a little more help and life.

A typical Yohanna Lindsey love story. The heroine is a princess who has been brought up in scallor. As a baby she was spirited away to America in order to escape some assasins but her mentor died and she has been brought up in poverty. When the story begins she is working as a tavern wench. In order to preserve her virginity from men who frequent the tavern, she hides her beauty behind layers of dirt. Now the hero, future king of her country comes to find her. On the orders of his father the king; he must return her to her rightfull place and marry her in order to become king. The hero explains that she is a princess but the heroine refuses to believe him and the hero is forced to kidnap her. The interaction between hero and spirited heroine is hilarious. First the heroine will not believe that she is a princess and insists that the hero is a kidnapper who is bent on selling her as a whore at a profit. Then the hero believes that the heroine is a tavern whore until the last. 'What good does it do to tell you anything. You won't believe anything. You insist on believing that I am a whore.' says the heroine. 'Even last night when I give up my virginity; you didn't notice.'.'I am sorry' says the shamefaced hero. Hilarious...

This story is simply amazing. Johanna Lindsey outdid herself with "Once a Princess," a novel about a girl raised in a Mississippi tavern who is really a long lost Eastern European princess.

Tanya is a splendid heroine. She is feisty, spirited, and witty, AND she knows how to stand up for herself. Stefan is her perfect match: dark and brooding with "devil's eyes," the future king of Cardinia fights fire with fire, with some passionate results. The two are an excellent pair together and fun to watch.

The fact that Tanya absolutely refuses to believe she's a real princess leads her into quite a few adventures as Stefan and his dashing companions escort (er, kidnap) Tanya back to Europe. Stefan's three companions are great characters, but the best is Vasili, the nasty conceited peacock who is so gorgeous women fall all over him. Of course, he gets his own book in the sequel "You Belong to Me."

What else can I say about "Once a Princess" but read it, read it, read it. It is my second favorite JL, the first being "Savage Thunder."

I felt like throwing this book across the room because it was infuriating to the end. I hate sarcasm. I liked the hero and heroine, but it was unbelievable how long the author dragged out all the misunderstandings. I enjoyed some parts but I was more annoyed than anything. I kept waiting for the part when they would be completely sincere and the truth out in the open. It failed. The pants with blood? She doesn't raise hell when his mistress kisses him in front of her? She thinks she is the butt of a joke for way too long, and he thinks to the very end that she is a whore. I still gave it 4 stars because the storyline. I had high hopes for this one, but in the end it was sadly forgettable. I would still recommend because it does have some great parts.

This book is definitely a four star romance...I loved the plot & the characters, and had a marvelous time reading the book. The heroine, Tanya (Tatiana), was found and brought up in a saloon in frontier America that she hopes to one day inherit. Fate, though, has other plans.
Stephen, the hero, comes to America looking for the fostered off princess he is supposed to marry. What he finds instead is a skeptical barmaid loathe to leave her station.
Typical Lindsey plot insues...heroine dislikes hero and gives good chase. Unfortunately (or fortunately), all ten escape attempts fail. You can't help but wonder why they run at all!
No matter, all Linsey fans will get their money's worth as this book has an excellent shelf-life!

After a blood feud kills most of her family, Princess Tatiana Jacanek of Cardinia is sent to America to be raised in exile so that her family's enemies will never find her. Years later, King Stefan of Cardinia travels to Mississippi to find his erstwhile bride.

The spark between Stefan and Tatiana is electric from start to finish. In the beginning, I just kept hoping that one of them would lay their cards on the table and stop playing games, but their catty interplay was part of what I liked most about this book. The chemistry between these two makes this book shine as one of my favorite Lindsey novels. I would definitely recommend it if you're in the mood for a solid romance.

Lindsey can create some story lines that have potential. She falls short in creating likable leading ladies. With the exception of Reina, the ladies are always blah, Pretty but stupid. Try reading C L Wilson or Catherine Anderson for true ladies of depth and worthiness. Now Stephan had potential. Passion, strong, loyal, and flawed. But with Tanya your just thinking someone please kill her. I could not stand her. Dumb ending as well.

I chose a five star rating because of the enchanting story. I love the entire story. Johanna is one of my top three authors, she introduced me to historical romance with my favorite book, a few years ago. To say, keep up the exceptional work, is indeed unnecessary.

The chemistry between these two while battling each others will is great. Then mix in mysterious unknown assassins and a princess who thinks they are just full of it when they tell her who she is. Made for a very entertaining story.

This is my all time favorite Johanna Lindsey novel. The heroine is extremely bright and capable and undauntable. I loved that she didn't buy into what truly was an unbelievable story told to her by three obnoxious gentlemen. And I loved that they kept underestimating her time and time again. Tatiana was no victim here! And her chemistry with Stephen was riveting.

Lindsey demonstrated that she could truly write on something so touching. The characters were so very intriguing all the time. A sequel should be made. I have read the book over and over so many times and each time I read it, I love it even more. Johanna Lindsey is superb at storytelling.

I really enjoyed both books and read each several times because it left me wanting more. I wish she will write a sequel for the Great, Handsome King Stefan and the SO Very Handsome Vasili and their wives. All are some of my most favorite charactors she has ever written about and all very strong. Then write about their beautiful Children and don't forget Lazar and Serge. If someone know how to writ to Ms. Lindsey, please ask her to write seques to Cardinia.

Johanna does a superb job writing to ensure the reader is captivated, the characters are realistic, the details and descriptions are clear. It is like watching a movie with the eyes. There is noone who writes a better romantic novel. A person can not go wrong buying any of her books. I have every book she has written.

A keeper to read over & over. All the characters are amazing and lovable. This story has such a heartwarming fairytale quality. And it's packed w/ humor! Never boring. The sequel 'You Belong To Me' is wonderful too.

I Loved this book, Stephen is the perfect man for Tanya. There is so much heart put into this book. I Love how you can feel the attraction between them.You can almost feel the heat! 0-o
I also Love how the book ends you know Tanya is finally
home.

Once a Princess This was my first Johanna Lindsey novel, I didn't go to sleep the whole night so I can finish this book. I became an instant Johanna Lindsey enthusiast! One of her best books ever! I highly recommend this book as well as "Secret Fire" by Johanna LindseySecret Fire.

The concept was good, the execution was poor. Lindsey had a great idea for a plot but I could barely get through the book because of it's poorly written style. The characters lacked depth and I felt no emotion for them. Having read a few of her books, I don't believe she wrote this. And if she did, she must have written it within a week. I would not recommend this book to anyone.

An unenjoyable book. The main characters were constantly fighting, arguing, misunderstanding and misinterpreting each other's words and actions. The heroine was particularly annoying, and by the end of the book (if you can make it that far) you feel no empathy or affection towards her. Definitely not a keeper.

Although not my MOST favorite of Lindsay's books, it was definitely worth staying up to read. I really enjoyed the characters & found it to be a lot of fun. I enjoyed the chemistry of the characters & would not mind a follow-up novel!

Once a Princess revitalizes the whole Cinderella tale. One of the most entertaining books I've read in a long time. Johanna Lindsey is one of my favorite authors. Her characters are strong and willful, making you actually see who they really are.

I absolutely loved this book. This was the first book I read by JL. It was very romantic, classic can't get the girl or the guy until it's almost too late. Tanya was awesome, so was Stefan. I loved it. I wish there would be another book for Tanya and Stefan.