The Charmer in Chaps (Princes of Texas #1) by Julia London .. This is the first book in a new series PRINCES OF TEXAS by Julia London.. Thanks to her, the publisher and #NetGalley for allowing me to preview this book. This is Lucas and Ella's story... they each have their problems to get over... she has crushed on him since high school ..she was a foster child and is trying to make ends meet ..he is good looking and rich. This story has laughs, tears, angst, problems to solve, interesting family to meet and steamy sex all getting us to a very HEA. I enjoyed this story and can't wait for the next book THE DEVIL IN THE SADDLE...

Reasons I enjoyed this book:
Funny Happily Ever After Wonderful characters Easy-to-read Steamy Great world building Romantic Page-turner Entertaining

This first book in Julia London’s new series is all about perceptions, and how what you think you know based on what you see, may not necessarily be the truth. From the rich family that has it “all”, the woman who grew up in foster care (and worked her way thru college), the sheriff who is a bully and predator, all are seen thru a lens of ones own experiences. Yes, it is a wonderful, feel good, romance, but it is so much more. Read it and let it live with you even after you finish it, as it has done with me.

Julia London's newest series lands us in Texas, where we meet Ella and Luca. Both have overcome a lot in their lives - one living what appears to be a charmed life while the other is battling their way to respectability. And the obstacle now is each other. A wonderful read with a great cast of human and animal characters.

Thank you to the author and Berkeley Publishing for the chance to read an advanced copy in exchange for review.

Luca and Ella are a great couple. Good chemistry. Great story to start of the series. Look forward to his siblings stories as well as hearing more about some secondary characters. I liked the premise of the story

Ella, raised in the foster system, with no family or money. Luca, living his life with privilege and wealth, but hiding his imperfections. Can they help each other overcome their demons from the past? I loved this book. Luca is a playboy but I love how in meeting the girl next door, seemingly not impressed by him, he starts to show his true self. I thought the characters fit well together despite their differences. I was rooting for Ella and Luca! Can’t wait for the next book in this series!

I really enjoyed Ella and Luca's story. From their first meeting since high school when Luca doesn't remember Ella to the way Luca can't get her out of his mind, the fun banter and slowly growing relationship is delightful. The themes of conservation, learning disabilities, and foster care that run through the story brought more realism to it. I loved the way they grew together as they helped and supported each other and was very satisfied with the ending as they chased their dreams together.

He's been able to get by on his looks and charms, being part of a rich family didn't hurt either, until he decides he wants more. Ella has had a hard life, now she's moving back to her childhood home, ramshackled though it might be it was hers! But coming home isn't always easy especially when the highlight of you high school career turns out that the guy doesn't even remember you! Plenty of emotions, walls and laughs in this charming story. Luca has a lot to make up for, he may seem to have it all but not everything is rosy. Great characters, and engaging story line will keep you pulled in.

It's always sweet when a renowned "playboy" falls for the girl-next-door, changing his lifestyle and everything else he thinks will help him prove to her that he's serious about her. London adds an additional layer by weaving in the the defense mechanisms of a rich guy who's had to hide his illiteracy his whole life and a poor woman who was raised in one foster home after another, making their journey one big struggle to get past one another's emotional boundaries. I liked both Luca and Ella, and their scenes together portrayed such a sweet relationship. The love could easily be felt between the lines and was also explicitly played out for readers to experience. My only issue: the bulk of Luca and Ella's relationship plays out at her run-down house. While their scenes together are charming, it's no wonder why Ella has trouble believing in how Luca feels about her and whether or not they can truly make a life together when they come from such separate backgrounds and have spent very little time in his "world". I will definitely look for the second in the series, though, because I really enjoyed how the emotional investment could be felt between Ella and Luca.

The Charmer in Chaps is the first book in the Princes of Texas series. We are introduced to the wealthy Prince siblings. Nick is the oldest and has twin siblings, Nick and Hallie.
This story belongs to Nick. Nick is a very unique and strong hero. He has suffered from dyslexia since he was young and due to this he has moved along life without being able to read, hold onto a job and have a more stable relationship. Nick has a very big heart and I thought he was a very sweet and real hero.
Nick runs into Ella one day and sparks begin to fly. These feelings are renewed for Ella, since she had a major crush on him when they were in high school. Ella has not lived an easy life, but she has been able to survive and succeed on her own and does not want to be pitied. Due to her hardships she has developed a wall around her heart. It was sad to see that she felt inadequate to be with Nick. I liked that their relationship was not cookie cutter one and that it took work from both of them to finally accomplish their goals.
The story felt very real with these characters. It is very worth the read and I loved that it takes place in Texas. The author's description of the lands was like looking outside my window. I look forwards to the rest of the series, especially Nick's story.

Great first book to a new series! It is a second chance story with a first love that was very well written and quite engaging. I absolutely loved her menagerie of stray animals especially the dog. This is a great book for anyone looking for a contemporary cowboy.

The Charmer in Chaps by Julie London is the first book in her new Princes in Texas series. I loved reading this sweet romance, in a small western town, with some great characters.

Ella Kendall, our heroine, returns to Three Rivers, Texas, after her grandmother died and left her a rundown house. Ella, just barely makes ends meet, as she tries to find more work as an accountant. Ella had a difficult childhood, moving from different foster homes, as her mother was in jail; but before that she had a huge crush for the handsome and rich prince charming, Luca Prince. She has never forgotten an out of no where kiss from Luca when school was over; now that she has returned to Three Rivers 12 years later, she tries her best to avoid Luca. Ella is very shy, and lacks confidence, and when she does run into him, he doesn’t even remember her, but he being the playboy that he is, Luca knows he wants to find out more about this girl that intrigues him.
Luca doesn’t understand why Ella wants nothing to do with him, but quickly learns that she went to school with him, and doubles his effort to make amends in trying to win her over. With Ella’s house falling apart, Luca starts offering his help to fix things, as well as helping with Ella’s dog, a pig and 3 wild horses that came with the house. This was a cute addition. Slowly, Ella begins to enjoy Luca’s company and the chemistry between grew hotter with each passing day.

When the Prince family loses their patriarch, the family is in disarray, and we get to spend time with their dysfunctional family, Luca, Nick, Hallie and their mother, as they realize that need to live differently, as the money is not as much as they thought it was, due to their father’s gambling problem. Luca having inherited 2000 acres want to build his environmental conservation dream, and Ella gives him more confidence, especially as she learns he is dyslectic, and never could read. This was another wonderful addition to this story, as we watch Luca learn to overcome his disability.

The Charmer in Chaps was a wonderful, fun, enjoyable story that holds our attention throughout. Both Luca and Ella were great, and we loved them together. It is Ella’s fear of having always lived on the poor side, that holds back her relationship with Luca. Will she trust his love and allow him fully into her life?

I always find that when you have a lot of likeable characters, it makes the story so much better. I did like the Prince family despite some issues. I loved Luca and Ella. I did not like two characters, Stacy (Ella’s friend who used her constantly) and the sheriff, Blake; but there were so many other great characters, this did not matter. The Charmer in Chaps was a perfect, small town romance that was written so well by Julia London. I suggest you start with this first book of a series that I intend to be reading.

This is the story of a poor girl, Ella, who meets back up with her high school crush, the rich Luca Prince. She has to overcome a lot of her back history -- a foster-child upbringing, an absent mother, not knowing her father -- and has to be convinced that she is really a great person and to let others in. He has to overcome a learning disability and convince Ella that her upbringing makes her that much more beautiful because she's made something of herself while he had almost everything given to him.

Lots of struggles, lots of ups and downs, many social messages. But there's a HEA, so all is good!

I received this as an ARC from the author for an honest review. #TheCharmerInChaps #NetGalley

I loved this book. It is a sweet romance that pulls you in from the start and holds onto your heart until the very last word. The challenges that both characters face in this book are real and relevant to today's society. Wonderful read!

I absolutely loved this contemporary romance by Julia London. It may be the best book of hers that I ever read. The characters are complex and fascinating. The storyline is stellar, original and captivating. I wish there was a way to give it more stars because this book packs a powerful punch and is the best book I've read in at least the past twelve months.

The book is about life challenges and some of the struggles people go through. Luca and Ella have grown up in totality different worlds. Although they have learnt to deal with their own problems, now they have to learn to open up and brake down some of the barriers they’ve put up to let each other in. Heart warming story with great supporting characters.

The story has a lot of similar attributes that we see in a rich cowboy scenario. One of them is the girl next-door.

After meeting in high school, Ella developed a man-size crush on Luca that never faded. When opportunity came knocking for her to have her own home that happened to be a neighboring lands with the Prince family, she dreaded running into Luca.

Shy and unassuming, Ella is definitely not one to stand out in a crowd. When Luca realized who she was, he remembered why she made an impression on him so many years ago but she is not having anything to do with him!

Luca is not as he seems which is one of the factors I really enjoyed in the story. He has his faults and his family supports nothing that he does. When his dad passes away unexpectedly, their lives are in turmoil.

The story has a lot of similar threads that we see in other western style reads, but London does an excellent job separating and creating characters that balance and give the story loads of interest as well as a few social messages too.

There’s a lot of highs and lows in the story. Good things and bad. Struggles and breakthroughs. In the end, we may get our HEA but it seemed like we had a lot of work to do to get there.

Super-sweet story that ultimately leaves you feeling great which is something London is known for with her writing style. A true blue, all American love story.

Although I love Julia’s regency novels and have read most of them I found this book not as suspenseful, don’t get me wrong I did enjoy it but there was no ‘I can’t wait to see what’s next ‘ I did like the characters but found they lacked a bit of umph. Will I get the next one probably yes just to see what happen’s to Hallie. Would I recommend it yes if you want an easy holiday read.

(I received this free e-arc in exchange for a fair and honest review, any opinions are solely mine and not influenced by the author or publisher)
I was super excited to read another contemporary book by Julia London and was not disappointed! While I do feel the book gets is a little slow in the beginning, I was definitely hooked by the characters. As an avid reader, I really felt for Luca as he battled his dyslexia. The idea of craving to read and being unable to, was actually painful for me and had me very empathetic toward his character.
Ella bugged me in the beginning because she seemed so self aware and smart but still lets herself be manipulated by Luca, which after her upbringing just seems off to me.
I loved the story overall, and really grew to root for Luca and Ella. It's an enjoyable read and I recommend it highly.
The Charmer in Chaps is also great as a standalone but I'm definitely looking forward to the next in the Prince series

I enjoyed Charmer in Chaps. The characters were vivid, witty and not perfect, which gave the story some reality. The author gives a thorough description and background of the main protagonist. The truth that no matter how rich or poor you are, there are no perfect families. I especially enjoyed the clever banter between the main characters. The book was enjoyable to read with a bit of “what will happen with the situation?” I’m looking forward to reading the next book.

 

Thank You

Veronica.

This is a must-read for anyone who enjoys contemporary romance with a western flair. But don't pass this one up if you don't typically reach for books with a cowboy hero. This is sure to appeal to anyone who also likes a small town Texan setting or a story that features a prominent wealthy family.

I especially enjoyed the main characters, Luca and Ella, and the difficulties they encountered. They had serious challenges and obstacles to their long term happiness together, but they were clearly meant to be together. They were a couple to cheer for. Although this book deals with some serious topics, it is so well-written that the story flows and is effortless to read.

Seriously, you must read this if you like the idea of a hero who is equally as attractive and comfortable working on a ranch in jeans, tshirt, and chaps as he is hosting an exclusive event in a tuxedo and man bun. It is a beautiful marriage of the best of both worlds. I loved the glimpses into both.

This was a fantastic first book in a new series. It can be read as a standalone. Although there are interesting secondary characters, this is not a book that simply sets up a series. It is brilliant and complete on its own, yet it will leave you excited to read the upcoming books. There was humor, sizzling chemisrt, and some touching heartfelt moments. I highly recommend this book!