3.5 stars

Emma was a culinary instructor, and she was teaching young women about Korean cuisine. Michel was a prince, but he didn’t let anyone know. He needed to get married and wanted to find someone who loved him for him, not his title.

This was such a cute story! Michel was instantly attracted to Emma, and he was so sweet to her. Emma had her reservations, but she eventually gave in. And they had such a great connection!

Michel’s grovel? So adorable.

The story was interesting, but it was a bit slow at times. And I didn’t <i>love</i> the ending. I mean, it was a HEA, but I didn’t like the way it came out.

This was still a great read, though. And I loved reading about the Korean cuisine.

After years Emma Yoon has established herself as an instructor of Korean royal court cuisine and is ready to let her matchmaker godmother set her up with some potential matches. During one of her dates Emma is saved by Michel Aubert who is a visiting professoat USC. Since her godmother’s matches don’t seem to be successful Emma decides to go out with Michel and try an unconventional connection. But Michel has a secret, his is actually Prince Michael Aubert and doesn’t have much time left in California before he must return to his country and duties. Will their connection be able to withstand the realities of Prince Michel’s royal obligations?

This was an enjoyable read reminiscent of a Netflix rom com. The supporting characters were especially entertaining, and I loved learning about all the Korean dishes!

Royalty romance books are my jam. That Prince Is Mine by Jayci Lee delivers a charming romance that will delight fans of the sub-genre.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for sharing this book with me.

I am always a fan of Lee's books and this was good and cute and fun romance and I loved learning about the world the characters were in

This was cute. I always have a good time with lee's books. I love the classic prince & regular girl story and this one was adorable.

This book delivers a sweet and heartwarming romance with plenty of swoon-worthy moments and endearing characters. Emma, a passionate culinary instructor, and Michel, a charming prince in disguise, share a slow-burn connection filled with cute and romantic gestures. While their love story is touching, the insta-love vibe and third-act breakup felt a bit predictable, and the ending, where Emma abandons her dreams, felt slightly unrealistic. Still, the story’s charm and emotional moments make it an enjoyable read for fans of lighthearted romances. Three stars. Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the ARC!

Emma has a practical approach to marriage: she'll have her matchmaker godmother set her up so she can find someone she's perfectly compatible with and avoid the pitfalls of love. There's just one problem: the handsome stranger at the cafe where she's going on the dates her godmother has arranged. He's gorgeous, kind, and funny. And she worries she might be able to fall for him.

Michel has already been in LA for a month and is no closer to finding a woman he can see himself marrying. If he doesn't succeed in the next two months, he has to go back to Rouleme and marry his childhood friend before he takes the throne. But then he meets Emma, and he knows almost immediately that she's the one.

Emma and Michel have such different attitudes toward love, and I loved how that played into both of their decisions. I really liked both characters and loved how the feelings played out. I also really liked the focus on Emma's food--it was so beautiful and made me want to try everything! And I appreciated that, while the story didn't focus on the racism Emma could face if they end up together, it acknowledged it. It was the perfect balance of the fairytale love with an acknowledgement that things aren't always so easy, and that there are practical issues in the real world--while still letting that fairytale play out.

I stayed up WAY too late reading this and really loved it!

Royal romance and add in cooking? Count me in.

This one was enjoyable but however did fall flat for me. While I did not DNF it, mainly because I really loved the plotline, I did feel like the romance was a little forced.

Nonetheless the plot was fun, interesting and did keep my attention. The characters were overall interesting and I liked them as a whole. The pacing could have been a little quicker, and there were a few points I felt like I could have skimmed over.

I LOVED a royal romance and this one did not disappoint. It was light and fluffy and everything you could want in a cozy romance.

I wanted to love this one, but it just wasn’t for me. It felt forced and one I don’t think I’d recommend.

A royal cooking romance is the trope fusion I didn't know I needed in my life. Emma, a culinary instructor specializing in Korean royal court cuisine, meets a local professor who is a prince in disguise. Both are on a timeline to find love before they are stuck in an arranged marriage, and luckily they find each other just in time.
This book was a bit slow-paced, but I loved all the food references and learning more about Korean culture. I enjoyed Olivia Song’s narration of the audiobook, although I would have preferred a second narrator to give Michel’s point of view. Overall, this was a cute, fun read with good chemistry.
Thank you to SMP Romance, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley for the advance copies.

This wasn’t my favorite romance. I’ve read a book by this author before and it didn’t hit for me either so I think this is just a me thing!

Covert royalty in a romance can be hit or miss for me, but this one was a hit. It was cute and nothing exceedingly deep or complicated, but it was more than many of this type of book I have read. Jayci Lee does a great job of creating characters that I cared about and wanted to root for. There was enough drama without it being a bunch of non-issues blown up into something more. The characters actually had to think about what they wanted and work through their own troubles as well as figure out how they fit together. I actually cried a little bit in this book. It was exactly what I needed out of it, and I will definitely be looking for more from this author. I loved the non-white representation and everything that Emma's Korean heritage added to this story. I would definitely recommend this for anyone wanting a fun romance that is just a little bit more.

First I would like to thank St. Martin's Press for providing me an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

A love-averse Korean royal court cuisine instructor in search of a perfect-on-paper husband is waylaid from her practical, heartbreak-proof plan when she meets a gorgeous professor—and prince in disguise—who will do anything to prove to her that love and happily ever after can be theirs.

What I Loved:
- Food, I was very hungry reading this book cause all of the food sounded amazing
- Prince and Me Vibes, I'm a huge fan of the Prince and Me movie and this book gave me those same feelings
- Families, both Emma and Michel are close to members of their families and play a major part of their love story and I just LOVED all of the family members nosing their way into their business
- L.A., I haven't spent a lot of time in LA but I feel like this was a bit of a love letter to the city as well

This was such a sweet romance where at points I wanted to shake Michel for hiding anything from Emma and Emma for being so stuck in her 'plan' but in the end I was always rooting for these two to be together. If you are looking for a book with a secret identify, an amazing cast of characters, set in LA with major Prince and Me vibes then this is the book for you.

Michel Chevalier is a prince running against the clock to find the love of his life before he's forced to marry for duty. Emma Yoon is a Korean-American cooking instructor who's looking for a perfect husband despite not being ready for marriage and not believing in love. A random encounter in a coffee shop in LA has Michel convinced he's found love and Emma doubting her sanity for accepting to date someone who isn't perfect on paper. But there's no denying the heat and connection between them and they're both going to have to make some big decisions.

It's a perfectly enchanting romance starring two lonely souls that takes readers on a romantic ride. Michel is way too good to be true, but it's part of the story's charm to imagine that a humble and perfectly sane prince is a thing that can exist. But Emma is incredibly relatable and you can feel every bit of her doubts to understand her hesitation. Both have a strong sense of duty that leads them when making decisions, but it's great to read a story where people actually communicate with their loved ones in order to make informed decisions. It's what turned this into a 5-star read for me, the fact that characters have actual conversations to help them make proper decisions.

I'm also obsessed with the side romance and need to read their story ASAP, please.

Delighted thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin for the lovely read!

This book was well-plotted, but I found the dialogue almost sickeningly sweet to the point where it distracted me from the plot. The character were all perfectly likable and I wanted to keep reading, but I found the ending to be very rushed, especially given the size of the book.

A prince in disguise. A woman looking for her perfect-on-paper match, but not necessarily love. A crush of familial expectations.

✨ Book Review: THAT PRINCE IS MINE by Jayci Lee

I have a soft spot for royal romances, but felt this book wasn’t quite balanced. The nuances of Emma’s life were so believable and her cooking was described in mouth watering detail, but there wasn’t much information provided about Prince Michel’s home country and culture. The romance also surprised me by being both overly sweet at times but also surprisingly spicy.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 (3.5/5 stars)

😘 Thanks to St Martins Press and NetGalley for the gifted eARC and to my library for the audio copy of this royal read. All opinions are mine alone.

Emma Yoon is a culinary instructor specializing in Korean royal cuisine and she has dreams of opening up a big cooking school. She isn’t really looking for love, even if the arranged dates she’s being going on seem to say otherwise, until Michel comes into the picture. Michel is a visiting professor at USC, but he’s also the Prince of Rouleme. The connection between Michel and Emma is instant and undeniable, but will they be able to make a relationship work when their lives are in two different counties going two different directions.

When I picked this book up I was in the need of a sweet romance that pulled me in and this book did just that. I fell in love town Emma and Michel instant and couldn’t wait to see how their story played out. The romance was cute and the supporting characters were great for this story. At points the story was a little slow, but I did enjoy it from start to finished nonetheless. The characters made this book for me and it was the perfect amount of sweet. I wish the lead up to the ending was handled a little differently, but it still worked the way it was. I needed a sweet romance and this book gave me exactly that.

This was such a cute and entertaining read! I love royalty in my romcoms and this book did not disappoint. I will absolutely be adding this to my trophy shelf in the near future.

This was a bit to long for me but the story was cute and I did want o DNF but I pushed through and finished. Not to many prince's looking for their soulmates in Los Angeles California. Not every book is going to be for everyone I recommend you try it for yourself.

My thanks to NetGalley, the author and publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.