A Kiss at Midnight - Eloisa James

Miss Kate Daltry doesn't believe in fairy tales . . . or happily ever after.
Forced by her stepmother to attend a ball, Kate meets a prince . . . and decides he's anything but charming. A clash of wits and wills ensues, but they both know their irresistible attraction will lead nowhere. For Gabriel is promised to another woman—a princess whose hand in marriage will fulfill his ruthless ambitions.
Gabriel likes his fiancée, which is a welcome turn of events, but he doesn'tlove her. Obviously, he should be wooing his bride-to-be, not the witty, impoverished beauty who refuses to fawn over him. 
Godmothers and glass slippers notwithstanding, this is one fairy tale in which destiny conspires to destroy any chance that Kate and Gabriel might have a happily ever after.
Unless a prince throws away everything that makes him noble . . . 
Unless a dowry of an unruly heart trumps a fortune . . . 
Unless one kiss at the stroke of midnight changes everything.

I have enjoyed the books I've read by Eloisa James, I won't say I've loved them all but I have enjoyed them and thought them well written. I have been in the mood for something light and funny and when I discovered that she had a series inspired in fairy tales I couldn't resist giving it a try.

A Kiss at Midnight is inspired in the Cinderella story. Kate Daltry is the orphaned young girl that a wicked stepmother has prevented from having a normal upbringing and a season in London. Instead Kate has spent her time managing the estate and learning some unconventional abilities for a young lady. Through a chain of events she ends up pretending to be her half sister and being introduced to Prince Gabriel, a relative of said sister's fiancé.

Prince Gabriel is hosting a house party for friends and relatives while he awaits the arrival of his betrothed. It is an arranged match that will fill his coffers and allow him to support his relatives and an assortment of wild animals that he ended up with. He finds Kate interesting, especially as she usually forgets to pretend to be her sister and is her irreverent self for most of the time. But Gabriel has a duty to marry for money and for a while he may be interested in Kate their road towards a HEA is not easy. 

I did like the lively dialogues between the hero and the heroine and loved some of the secondary characters like Wick and Kate's godmother. I didn't much like what happens at the ball, I don't want to spoil it but if you've read it I'm sure you'll agree that it was not very worthy of a fairy tale. I felt it was a story part fairy tale and part serious historical romance and I think it would have been better if it had been totally a fairy tale. Still it was a light and fun read and it made me want to pick up the next one in the series.

Grade: 3.5/5