Review: The Demon and The Princess by Laura Greenwood

The Demon and the Princess (Fated Mates and Monster Dates #2)
by Laura Greenwood

My Rating: 3 stars

Genre: Monster Romance/ Paranormal Academy Romance
Age Category: New Adult
Type of romance: m/f

Blurb:
Being the secret bodyguard to a demon princess was never going to be easy.

Sophia is looking forward to being away from the demon court and the constant reminders of her royal status. Whether it’s classes, parties, or friends, she wants to give her all to her time at the academy.

With his education at stake, Lucas made an agreement that he regrets the moment he sees Sophia, and the more they get to know one another, the more obvious it is that he should never have said yes in the first place.

When secrets start spilling out, the budding mate bond between Sophia and Lucas is tested more than either of them is ready for.

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The Demon and the Princess is a cozy m/f monster romance and part of the Fated Mates and Monster Dates series. It features a demon princess, a secret bodyguard, and a mate bond that’s about to be tested.

If you enjoy cozy fantasy, monster romance, fated mates, university settings, steam, and a happy ever after at the end of each book, start the Fated Mates and Monster Dates series!

My Review

I received a free copy from the author and voluntarily reviewed it.

I first read the Demon and the Princess when it was still a contemporary romance story, the author has decided to change it into a paranormal monster romance story instead and it was fun to re-experience the story. I did feel that I enjoyed it less this time, not necessarily because of the genre changes, more because of already knowing the way the story would progress as well as the fact I’ve read books by I enjoyed even more by this author. The twist also now is already in the book description and I think not knowing the secret Lucas has makes the story more interesting.

Mostly this is a sweet and fun monster romance set at an academy setting. Main character Sophia is a demon princess and wants to experience a normal life here at the academy and her parents have allowed this and she only needs a bodyguard outside of the academy grounds. It’s fun seeing Sophia experience life at the academy and I really liked her friendship with Lottie and glad I read her story first and know a bit more about Lottie. There are some scenes about them studying and the secret parties going on at the academy.

I liked the romance well enough, but I felt like knowing what was going to happen made the story less enjoyable. I also wished there was a bit more to the story after a bit of conflict they deal with as now we don’t really get to see any of the rebuilding trust they do. Their first date at the crazy golf was still fun, but somehow I remembered it even more favorably. I like seeing them together and how Lucas treats her well and also doesn’t really let the fact she’s a princess influence how he acts around her. They are sweet together and just like the first time I read it, I do like how Sophia is the one to bridge the gap after the conflict.

The paranormal elements were a fun addition. It isn’t super much focus on the paranormal, but I liked seeing the changes and how the fact that they are demons and have tails and horns does get mentioned a few times. It mostly feels like everyone now is a monster instead of a normal human being and it does give the book a different vibe, but it still feels pretty similar to the first version of the story I read. I just didn’t really care for the whole mate bond thing, it didn’t get explained as well and I feel like the fact they’re mates now is a bigger part of why Sophia wants to mend things. There isn’t a lot of world building or explanation about what it means to be a demon and I would’ve liked a bit more of that.

To summarize: This was an interesting experience as I first read this book when it was a contemporary romance and now it’s a monster romance. I liked seeing the changes and the paranormal aspect worked well, but besides that not as much has changed and I still remembered enough from reading it the first time. I did feel like this time reaidng it I enjoyed it a bit less, I think because I already knew what would happen and what the secret Lucas keeps is. I still enjoyed reading about Sophia and Lucas and seeing them figure things out. I did wish the book was a bit longer and there was a bit more time between them resolving the conflict and the epilogue to see what happens. They are sweet together and the crazy golf date they go in is fun. I also like Sophia’s friendship with Lottie. The paranormal elements give the book a different vibes, but I would’ve liked a bit more world building and what it means to be a demon in this world. All in all this is a fun monster romance book and I look forward to the next book which is a new one I haven’t read yet.

Links:
– Goodreads
– Bookbub
– Amazon
– B&N
– Kobo

You can also read my review on Goodreads and Bookbub.