Ooof, what to say about this one.

First, it took me forever to read, but not because it was bad, just because it was slow. Second, I really enjoyed the things that this book had to say about being a woman and where our worth and identity come from. Caroline trained her entire life to be the fastest woman on earth, treating her body like a tool and asset until she physically could not. When she ends up married to the prince of a small country, she is faced with the reality that her body is once again an asset, but not in her favor and nowhere near within her own control. This book gave me a lot of righteous anger and made me feel deep outrage, especially in the way that Caroline's children were leveled against her to keep her in line.

The author uses her pen to rip the institution of a monarchy to shreds in her novel. A famous athlete becomes a princess and is used as a tool and brood mare for the lineage.
I think the author was writing about a thinly disguised Monaco with her fictional kingdom between France and Italy.
She paints the underbelly of being a married outsider in the monarchy and the high toll it costs women. I didn’t agree with all of her assertions in her afterward, but it is a reminder that being a royal is not living a fairy tale, but it does come with a host of built in responsibilities that some are unwilling to shoulder.

I had so much fun reading The Force of Such Beauty that I finished it in just a couple of sittings. Fast-paced and the ending took me by surprise.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the free e-copy.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advance reader's copy of this novel.

DNF at 37%, but I am open to revisiting at some point. I love the premise of this novel, and I was hooked in the beginning. I was fascinated by the main character's past as the fastest woman in the world, and how much her life had changed. But then the book really started to drag and I started dreading going back to it. Life is too short to force myself to read something I dread. Maybe I will be in the mood for it later.

A fairytale- a runner and a prince meet - though the princess realizes being a princess is t all it’s cracked up to be - not when you have a collar and leash - a great exploration of dreams hopes and growing up to realize what you really want -

Four Stars

My first thought when I read the premise of this book was its many similarities to the real life Princess of Monaco, the former Charlene Wittstock, an Olympic swimmer. There were rumblings in the press before her wedding to Prince Albert that she had tried to escape the principality of Monaco on perhaps two occasions before the wedding, and her passport was confiscated- preventing her from leaving. In recent times, there have been weird reports of Charlene spending a year away from Monaco with a sinus infection or exhaustion. In fact, while reading this book the main character of Caroline assumed the likeness of Charlene in my mind's eye. As the book begins, Caroline is attempting a desperate escape from the principality.

Caroline broke an Olympic record as a runner, but her career halted forever after a devastating fall. She had to have a hip and knee replaced, and a shattered cheekbone repaired with plastic surgery. This was all necessary because Caroline was signed on to lucrative advertisements as a result of her Olympic triumphs. The irony was that after the implants to repair the shattered side of her face as well as teeth bonding, she was more beautiful than ever. While in recovery at an upscale rehab she met what turned out to be a prince of a European principality, Ferdinand. After their engagement, she was subjected to a frank interview with his severe mother, as well as an impromptu exam to confirm she was able to have children. Caroline was already ensconced in the suffocating marble edifice of the Castle Talon prior to the marriage, but the more she learned about what her life would consist of as a royal wife, the more untethered she became from her reality- that she simply loved Ferdinand. There were staff to handle every single task such as to improve/maintain her physique and health, hair extensions, wardrobe creation, personal security, and the most important goal of birthing an heir.

Upon completion of the book, I found parallels in real life to both Princess Charlene of Monaco and Princess Diana. It may look like the grass is greener due to the status and opulence of living as a royal, but your life isn't your own and it seems really claustrophobic. The writing style was good overall, but I tuned out a bit in parts where the financial business of the principality was discussed. The book really seared into my mind how much a prisoner of the system you can become as a royal, and even with all its perks, it's not for everyone.

Thank you to the publisher Penguin Group / Dutton for providing an advance reader copy via NetGalley.

I just finished reading The Force of Such Beauty by Barbara Bourland. I was totally immersed in this title, and was very sorry when I finished it.

Caroline dropped out of school to train for the Olympics. Th.e more she trained, the faster she became, until she was the fastest woman in the world. Suddenly, due to a catastrophic fall, her running career was over.

Caroline met Finn, a real live prince, in rehab.. Caroline was beautiful, strong , unsophisticated and uneducated; she was the perfect candidate to become a princess.

Did Caroline find her happily ever after, Or, did she share the fate of many princesses today - those terribly unhappy young ladies who try to escape, time after time.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone who loves reading about royals and/or psychological thrillers.

In the interest of full disclosure, I received a free digital copy of this book to review from Net Galley.

#The Cost of Such Beauty#BarbaraBourland#IsabelDeSilva

Thank you so much to NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this book. Unfortunately it was a book that has an amazing plot, but I didn’t love the execution. I loved the prologue because it really set an intense moment and I wanted to know what led to it happening. The writing can be extremely flowery and detailed when describing things, which is fine. My issue was that the plot moved either incredibly slowly due to the over description or moved really fast with no development. I would have liked a better balance.

Ooh, this was an enthralling story with beautiful, evocative writing. It is full of glamour, tension, and unease.

Caroline “Caro” is a young, gorgeous Olympian from South Africa. Recently injured, she is devastated as she finds her promising career over. Her main identity is “runner/fastest woman in the world”, and, without that, she wonders who she is. Caro finds herself adrift in Portugal, unable to get a job and generally at a loss for what to do next.

One night in Lisbon, she catches a glimpse of Finn, a dashing man she met while recovering from her injury, and she becomes determined to see him again. Finn also happens to be a prince of the fictional country of Lucomo (reminiscent of Monaco). She finds herself falling in love with Finn and wants a future with him. Unwittingly, Caro is a perfect candidate for royal spouse and mother - as malleable as she is beautiful. Soon, she discovers that being a princess isn’t as alluring as it seems…

In The Force of Such Beauty, Caro tells us her story. Immediately, you feel as if you are in conversation with your most intriguing acquaintance. The novel has a riveting and frenetic quality and feels as expansive as it is claustrophobic. I was dazzled by Barbara Bourland’s storytelling and am eager to read her other work.

Thank you very much to Penguin Group Dutton for the opportunity to read this ARC via NetGalley.

I received an ARC of this novel from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

My daydreams of becoming a princess were shattered by the realistic portrayal of what actual princesses may go through in their very public lives.

3.5 stars

This book was an easy read and somewhat interesting, but it wasn't GREAT literature which is okay. It will be good to read by the beach or the pool this summer.

There are many similarities to Monaco, which made it feel not original to me. I felt like I was reading someone's personal story that was fictionalized. It was a sad, sad book full of back-biting, murder, manipulation, and just ugliness in a royal family in a small, but wealthy monarchy.

I feel that some editing could have been done and a deeper dive into some of the main characters would have been helpful. The ending was not what I expected at all.

LUKEWARM RECOMMEND

Caroline Muller was chosen to marry Prince Finn for her absolute beauty, which was enhanced by surgery following a devastating accident. She was so beautiful that people who visited the principality wanted to be seen with her and she knew it. “The force of such beauty is meant to destabilize a person. I was no exception.” She became a national treasure, of sorts.

When she wanted more independence Finn in exasperation explained, “It’s evidence of God. Without beauty we’re merely bureaucracy. You are necessary, Caroline. You are an ideological necessity.” In other words, play along. As Caroline learned, the fantasy and romance are make-believe. Don’t miss the “Author’s Note” which is very telling.

What a riveting, gritty, heart wrenching book! Caroline is a record setting Olympic marathon runner, until an accident ends her promising career. She meets Finn while recovering from surgery, and their paths cross several times before she discovers he’s the prince of a small European country. After a whirlwind courtship they are wed, and she becomes Princess Caroline, and she finds that all is not gold in her new life. The revelations are startling, with Caroline caught in a web of lies and deception, making her desperate to escape her tarnished fairy take life. Although fictional, this book opens our eyes to the realities, domination, and sordidness of royal life.

I really love this author. Her stories are really dark and I love it.

In this one, she creates a modern fairy tale and then turns it on its head to show it for the nightmare that it truly could be. An athlete, after her career has ended, meets a prince (made up principality) and falls for him. Instead of following her own path, she joins his as his wife. I'm not going to give you all of the details, but let's just say that it's mostly a façade.

This definitely gave me Grace Kelly vibes, though I don't actually know what inspired the story.

The premise of this novel didn't interest me at all, but I loved Barbara Bourland's second novel, Fake Like Me, and wanted to see what she'd do with the story. This book is terrific: compelling and absolutely absorbing. She really does a fantastic job manipulating the reader's emotions and creating a real sense of tension and suspense even though nothing terribly dramatic happens, plot-wise (despite an occasionally busy plot, even the few "big reveal"-type moments are pretty muted). This book was not always fun to read -- there was obviously a point to the occasional sense of repetitiveness, but there were (brief) moments when it felt like a slog. I would personally recommend Fake Like Me over The Force of Such Beauty, but Caroline Mueller is an unforgettable character and I was sorry to say goodbye to her.

Caroline is a former runner. Olympic level runner. She’s well-known and well-loved. Then she has an accident that stops her from running and ruins her career.

When she meets Finn, she doesn’t know he is the prince of a small and very backward country.

Her leash may be made of diamonds but it’s still a leash. Everything she does is carefully examined. Her children are not her children. They all belong to the country. And once she opens her eyes to the bargain she has made, she wants out. She isn’t getting out. Ever.

The concept was good but the execution was not. It felt rushed to me and I did not care for the abrupt ending.

NetGalley/ July 19, 2022, Penguin Random House/Dutton

Don't all little girls dream of marrying a prince and becoming a princess? On the outside it all looks so glamorous, but within the pages of The Force of Such Beauty, we see a quite different tale. The many requirements and limitations, expectations and demands placed on royalty. Startlingly, once you are in, there is no way out!

A book and main character I’m still thinking of days later, The Force of Such Beauty packs a powerful punch. Girl meets prince, they fall in love, live happily ever after…..wrong. The reality of the situation is much different and although Caroline is loved by the prince she is also a prisoner, her main role to produce heirs and look good on his arm. It’s a book about power, men’s domination over women and each other, greed, women’s role in their society, and the evil perpetuated. Sounds too dark, but the writing flows and you’re drawn into the role exactly how Caroline was, ensnared, needing to know what happens. And when you add the fact the author gives us reason to believe this is partly non fiction the book is even more compelling. Especially the ending.
A solid effor I highly recommend.

A novel that flips the idealized life of a princess on it's head. I read that this story is based on the true story of Charlene Wittstock, the princess consort of Monaco. Not a sweet love story at all, but rather an anger inducing look at modern royalty and privilege.

First, the problems I noted: page 67 of 891, chapter 2 "I knew exactly what what was happening to him...." Multiple indents were missing at the beginning of paragraphs (p 217, 568, 694) Chapter 23, page 518 of 891, "This had the surprising the effect of holding us above the waves."

But, wow! I was completely taken in by Caroline & Finn's love story, which was wonderful until it was awful! The end came as a complete shock! And the author's note at the end, about real princesses in our world, felt raw and harsh but utterly what Caroline would have said. Very well-written, all the characters are fully fleshed out and complete except the children, who don't feature much in the narrative. I had a couple of tense days, reading the end 25%, and the last bit shocked me out of my trance. A definite must-read for those who enjoy stories of royalty (but not the romanticized versions) and the 1% rich.