"The Beautiful Pretender" by Melanie Dickerson

About this book:

  “After inheriting his title from his brother, the margrave has two weeks to find a noble bride. What will happen when he learns he has fallen for a lovely servant girl in disguise?

  The Margrave of Thornbeck has to find a bride, fast. He invites ten noble born ladies who meet the king’s approval to be his guests at Thornbeck Castle for two weeks, a time to test these ladies and reveal their true character.

  Avelina has only two instructions: keep her true identity a secret and make sure the margrave doesn’t select her as his bride. Since the latter seems unlikely, she concentrates on not getting caught. No one must know she is merely a maidservant, sent by the Earl of Plimmwald to stand in for his daughter, Dorothea.

  Despite Avelina’s best attempts at diverting attention from herself, the margrave has taken notice. And try as she might, she can’t deny her own growing feelings. But something else is afoot in the castle. Something sinister that could have far worse—far deadlier—consequences”


Series: Book #2 in the “Medieval Fairy Tale Romance” series or also known as the “Thornbeck” series. (Review of Book #1 Here!)

Spiritual Content- Many, many prayers; Talks about God, faiths & chapels; ‘H’s are capital when  referring to God; Many mentions of God; Many mentions of prayers; Many mentions of chapels; Mentions of those in the Bible; Mentions of sins & judging; Mentions of Jews; A few mentions of Bible reading; A couple mentions of Heaven;

*Note: A mention of d*mning information.

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: four forms of ‘stupid’; A couple mentions of curses (said, not written); A bit of sarcasm; Wolf attacks (along with killing wolves), blood, pain, injuries & wounds (lots of all, semi-detailed); Almost dying & being killed (semi-detailed); Nightmares (up to semi-detailed); Hitting & wanting to hit someone; Many, many, many mentions of deaths, murders, killing, fires, threats & executions (up to semi-detailed); Many, many, many mentions of rumors & gossip (including that Reinhart killed his brother, which he didn’t); Many mentions of pain & injuries; Many mentions of wolves, their kill & shooting them (up to semi-detailed); Many mentions of hunting & killing animals; Many mentions of drunks, strong drinks, drinking & wine; Mentions of battles, fighting & killing; Mentions of the pillory, being beaten & shamed; A few mentions of a poacher (Book #1); A few mentions of horse manure & the smell; A couple mentions of self-harming & suicide; A mention of a woman falling to her death; A mention of breaking someone’s limbs; A mention of a threat of cutting someone’s tongue out; A mention of rat droppings.

Sexual Content- a hand kiss, two cheek kisses, two hair kisses, two barely-above-not-detailed kisses, four semi-detailed kisses; Remembering kisses (barely-above-not-detailed); Lots of Touches, Embraces, Warmth & Nearness (semi-detailed); Attraction & Butterflies; Noticing & Smelling; Wanting to be kissed & loved; Wanting to kiss, touch & embrace; Wanting someone; Dorothea had trysts with a knight & is now with child (and many, many, many mentions of that and rumors); Many, many, many mentions of lovers & mistresses; Many mentions of Reinhart’s brother, his brother’s lover & their unborn child; Mentions of bare ankles & a man’s bare chest (along with trying not to stare, up to semi-detailed); Mentions of flirting & jealousy; Mentions of wooing & loving a woman; Mentions of kissing & kisses; Mentions of Reinhart’s parents’ unhappy marriage (they hated each other, both had lovers & those facts make Reinhart wonder how he and his brother came out of that marriage); A few mentions of unfaithful spouses; A few mentions of temptations; A couple mentions of men who impregnated different women; A couple mentions of a maidservant & her lover being alone together at night and having a good time; A mention of a 15year old boy taking advantage of any girl that would let him; A mention of molestation; A mention of a newly married couple going to their bedroom; Love, falling in love & the emotions.  

-Avelina Klein, age 20

-Reinhart Stolten
                                        P.O.V. switches between them

                                              Set in 1363 {Medieval}
                                                        307 pages

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Pre Teens- 

New Teens-

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens-

My personal Rating-

A retelling mix of The Princess and the Pea and the Beauty and the Beast, Melanie Dickerson brings us back to Thornbeck and we get to learn the mystery behind the Margrave's past. While “The Beautiful Pretender” can be a stand-alone, it will be enjoyed much more if “The Huntress of Thornbeck Forest” is read prior to reading this one. Odette and Jorgen are still in this one, which I was so excited to see! This novel got kind of kissy near the end, but I did like all the prayers. I really liked Avelina (that name is fabulous!) and her personality. Reinhart (again, fun name!) was a good hero for this story and I found it very touching how protective he was near the end.
Overall, this was another great Melanie Dickerson book and I can't wait to learn more about the next book in this series! :)

See y’all on Friday with a new review!

*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.

*I received this book for free from the Publisher (Thomas Nelson) for this honest review.