That Prince is Mine by Jayci Lee was like a spicy Hallmark movie, and I'm not mad about it. Emma Yoon teaches others how to cook Korean royal court cuisine--and is currently being set up on dates by her godmother, an esteemed matchmaker, because she values compatibility over love. Michel Chevalier is a visiting professor--and prince in disguise--seeking his one true love before he's forced into an arranged marriage.

Drawn together like magnets, they decide to spend the time he has left in California with each other--but he has bigger goals. He knows this is true love, so he has to convince her to give him--and his country--a real chance.

I did want to shake Emma because I was like, "OPEN YOUR EYES WOMAN!" She was so committed to not repeating her parents' mistakes, but I was like "arghhhghghgh."

Olivia Song delivers a wonderful narration, bringing Michel's slightly British/slightly French accent to life. I love me a made up country--gives me Princess Diaries warm fuzzies.

That Prince is Mine was super cute. I love that it took place in Los Angeles. I really enjoyed the whole storyline and it honestly made me want to take a Korean cooking class- would have loved to have taken a class with Emma as my cooking instructor for sure.

Super cute! I loved the ending, but there was so much buildup throughout the whole book that the ending for me felt a little rushed. There was a lot of hesitation between both Emma and Michel on reasons why their relationship couldn't and wouldn't work and it just seems like in the end just overnight, they just decided to say screw it to all of their reasons for hesitating just decided to be happy together, which is great because all of the excuses, especially when it came to Emma, were not very strong reasons and were a little petty for me.

Another thing I didn't like was how rushed everything was by the time Michel and Emma started dating, Michel had already been in the states for a month and he had 2 months left so it was really just a 2 month-ish window of them dating and falling for each other and everything just seemed to really rushed for me.

I also had some issues listening to all of the chapters in the audiobook. Not sure if it was netgalley or the audiobook itself, but there were like four or five chapters that wouldn't play and I had to skip them and that kind of ruined things from me as well.

Overall it was just super cute romance book. I would definitely recommend it to anyone looking for an easy, fun romance book to read.

This was a cute story. I enjoyed the FMC and MMC a lot. Their interactions were romcom in the best way. Also the side characters were a lot of fun. You will be craving Korean food while reading so be warned. 🤣

This is probably the first and one of the only times I will say this but the narration on this book did it no favors. It made the main characters seem so young and childish that I honestly did not like this one. It didn’t help that the author made their dialogue little childish but the combination was just not good at all. Maybe this one would be better in print but based on the mediocre plot line and the cringy dialogue, I’d really advise you skip it altogether.

This was an enjoyable read. As a fan of Korean food, I often found myself getting hungry while reading this story. While I'm usually not a big fan of royal romances since many of them feel quite similar, I appreciated how this book stood out. It offered a fresh take on the genre by incorporating various aspects of Korean culture, which added depth and uniqueness to the story.

This was a very cheesy book, but in a way that some may become obsessed with. I personally think it lacked a certain special aspect that would make it fully stand out, but a fun quick read

Emma Yoon has a dream. She wants to run a culinary school. Her godmother is a matchmaker. The two of them are able to help each other. Her godmother find a woman who needs to learn how to cook. She sends them to Emma. But Emma is single and how can a matchmaker godmother be good at her job if her 29 year old goddaughter is single. Emma tries to find her match but while at the cafe she meets Michel.

Michel wants to find love and he sees it in Emma but he’s a prince and she’s a commoner. She lives in California and he lives in a different country. Can they make it work?

This story was not for me. It was well written for someone who likes this type of story but the MISCOMMUNICATION. I wanted to throw my phone so far multiple times. It was the entire story. Not just the 3rd act but the whole story. Also I love the prince and me or the Christmas prince or any of those movies it felt like this would be that type of story but I didn’t realized how much I disliked being in their head probably due to the miscommunication trope.

I did enjoy the side story characters. They were less problematic well until Emma decided to give her opinion. I am so glad she didn’t listen to Emma.

But I can’t be all upset, everything ends well and everyone got their happily ever after

Thank you NetGalley, The Publisher and the Author for the ARC of this book

I love the clash of cultures in this book and the way that they're embraced. I absolutely adored every moment of this book.

While I enjoyed the overall story and concept, I definitely struggled to stick with it until the end. There wasn't anything in particular that stands out, but I wasn't invented in the story until Emma and Michel were on the page together. It was a cute story, but the final 4 chapters were the best part for me, and that's saying a lot since I love audiobooks!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ a very sweet typical romance. Emma teaches Korean cuisine and dreams of opening a culinary school. Prince-in-disguise Michel wants to find true love instead of arranged marriage. Emma is actively participating in Korean upper middle class matchmaking. When they meet, sparks fly and they both need to rediscover what it means to fall in love and share their story.

For fans of Hallmark movies, this one is a pure romance. I loved the Emma/Michel couple. Fair warning; there is a bit of S M U T I had to skip through. I also got to learn more about Korean American culture and cuisine. I googled Korean restaurants and sadly I have none in Des Moines. It’s on my list for my next trip to LA. Easy dialogue and very readable. I did get a bit weepy at the end, it’s quite sweet.

I enjoyed the audiobook because the narrator is excellent, also I liked to hear proper Korean pronunciation. The book gives a little lesson at the beginning.

Thanks to #netgalley and #stmartinspress for the advance copy. Book to be published July 30, 2024.

I love the threads of Korean culture and food that are all through this book. You really can't go wrong with a royal romance and this read just like a Hallmark movie, but with steam! It was fun and easy but engaging and just right for doing chores. Like a Hallmark movie, it was good. But I found myself wanting a little more of something from the story...depth, connection, relationship, something.

The audio and narrator were fantastic!

Overall this was a super cute romance about finding true love regardless of who you are. This book felt like a Hallmark Movie sometimes with a prince in disguise trying to see what living a normal life would be like and also falling in love with an average person.

I loved the relationship between Michel and Emma. The meet cute in the coffee shop was swoon worthy and the way that Emma wanted to show Michel the "normal" world that he did not know being a prince was so fun. It was also very interesting to read all the descriptions of Korean cuisine that Emma was making.

While the story was cute it was also extremely long and it kind of dragged in the middle. The spice was pretty good but also brief and not too descriptive.

I listened to the audiobook and I did not enjoy the performance by Olivia Song. I felt like the narrator made Emma seem much younger than she was supposed to be and her male voices were awkward. Since this book was basically written with dual POVs it would have been nice to have two narrators.

If you like romcom TV movies, this may be a good fit for you. It felt like the holiday movies I like to watch on Netflix and Hallmark.

Although I love a good cheesy romcom and I am passionate about multicultural lit, this was a DNF at 15% for me. The story had the feel of a 90s multicultural lit, with the main character feeling primarily frustrated with her native culture. She has a love of Korean food and a love of family, but she seems to have a negative take on Korean community, men, and societal expectations. I feel like I've already seen this type of story before, the one where the Western love interest comes to the rescue of the girl who's facing a loveless arranged marriage. I've been swayed by the tendency of today's YA romcoms to have a bit more cultural appreciation and complexity. I was hoping to get some nuance, even with a cheesy romcom, but with a 12 hour listen, it seemed like too long of a wait to get there.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing an audiobook ARC in exchange for an honest review!

That Prince is Mine is a cute romance that incorporates the ideas of following future stability or following your heart. The cover and description caught my attention right away, and I was captivated by the situations the characters were in. I did enjoy the author’s writing style, but there were times that the dialogue felt prescriptive and even stilted. Perhaps I got this impression from the portrayal of the characters and their seemingly unnecessary small talk or maybe it was the audiobook’s narrator. Either way, it occasionally became distracting.

Beyond the writing itself, the book as a whole mimics common romance tropes. This is absolutely fine if you have very specific romance tropes that you wish to see in a book, but that also means that the storyline itself can be stereotypical. For example, the tropes included make it clear that this book is written by a woman, for women, even though half of the book is technically written in a man’s perspective.

I initially liked Emma’s character and motivations. She was reasonable and practical, yet realistic in desiring her own long-term happiness. The date where she pretends to blow her nose into a table cloth is ironically what made me begin to appreciate her. Although I knew she would fall head over heels because of the nature of this book, she somehow changed so drastically that she felt out of character, yet was still static in her development. Her actions and willingness to embrace lust became such a strong part of her personality that there is a disconnect from who she initially was. Of course, there was repetitive internal dialogue that conveyed the exact thoughts she had at the beginning of the book:
“They had nothing in common! She’d find her “perfect on paper” man after Michel leaves. She needed to preserve Auntie Sue’s reputation!”
Cognitive dissonance is quite real, but it becomes annoying if that dissonance feels like a side effect of poor character development, rather than the author’s purposeful choice. Emma’s character did come around at the end of the book, and although some people might not have liked how drawn out and dramatic the ending was, I appreciated that Emma’s personality came full circle and we were reminded why we care about her as a character.


Chapter eight (marked on Netgalley as chapter nine) and chapter nine (marked as chapter ten) both cut off before the end of the chapter. For example, chapter nine is only two minutes long and cuts off mid-sentence. I won’t lie, I was a little shocked and disappointed because that included an encounter that I was eager to witness, but I was able to understand enough to keep reading.

Korean culinary instructor Emma reluctantly agrees to a series of dates arranged by her matchmaker godmother. After a string of disastrous encounters, she meets Michel, a charming professor, who challenges her views on love. She doesn’t know he’s the crown prince of a small European country. Though bound by duty, Michel is looking for a wife he can love and trust. Will his fling with Emma turn into something real?

This is a funny, emotional read with a well-paced plot and lovable characters. Emma is guarded with her heart, and Michel with his secrets, but eventually they learn to trust each other. I enjoyed the audiobook narration.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

Thank you Jayci Lee & Netgalley for the ALC. All reviews are my own.

I honestly think the only reason why I finished this book was because I was listening to it. The storyline got to be too long, and moved too slow for my taste.

Narrator was great, however!

That Prince is Mine turned out to be a delightful surprise that I loved listening to. Going into this audiobook completely blind and with little connection to its Korean background, I was initially hesitant. However, Emma Yoon’s story quickly swept me up in a charming tale filled with romance, humor, and unexpected depth.

Emma Yoon, a Korean royal court cuisine instructor in Los Angeles, is determined to achieve her dreams of opening a culinary school. Her encounters with disastrous arranged dates, orchestrated by her God Mother who is a matchmaker, add humor and tension to her journey. Despite her love-averse nature, her eventual meeting with Michel Aubert, a professor and prince in disguise, sets the stage for a heartwarming exploration of love and duty.

The characters in That Prince is Mine are wonderfully fleshed out, each with their own motivations and quirks. Emma’s reluctance towards love and Michel’s struggle with duty versus personal happiness are portrayed with authenticity and empathy. Their chemistry is palpable, making their journey towards understanding and acceptance a joy to follow.

Lee's writing style is engaging and laced with cultural nuances that add depth to the narrative, which I absolutely loved. The audiobook’s narration is excellent, capturing the nuances of the characters’ emotions and enhancing the overall experience.

While initially unsure about the cultural backdrop, I found myself thoroughly enjoying how it enriched the story’s tapestry. The blend of romance and cultural exploration was seamless, offering insights into Korean traditions and values while never overshadowing the universal themes of love and personal growth.

Overall, That Prince is Mine is a captivating audiobook that blends romance and cultural exploration with finesse. Jayci Lee has crafted a tale that is both heartwarming and entertaining, perfect for anyone looking to get lost in a modern fairy tale with a delightful twist. I highly recommend it, especially if you’re in the mood for a charming escape into the world of love, duty, and happily ever afters.

That Prince is Mine tells the story of a Korean culinary instructor, Emma, and Michel, a real-life prince (it's a secret) and professor at USC who quickly fall in love. A bit too quick in my opinion to be believable. That Prince is Mine was a fine, lighthearted romance, but not very noteworthy for me. I do think many people will enjoy it. I have nothing substantial to knock.

The narrator did a good job of narrating both characters. Open-door romance scenes should be listened with headphones when around small children. Take it from me. Lol

Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, and Jayci Lee for this audioARC in exchange for my honest review. That Prince is Mine hits shelves on July 30, 2024.

As of today, many Korean-inspired novels in a contemporary setting revolve around k-pop, so in that regard, That Prince Is Mine is a divergent breath of fresh air. Despite the following critique, I hope publishers will take note that more books of this representation are needed.

Because I received this ARC as an audiobook, the narrator is factored into this review. A NOTE TO THE AUDIOBOOK PUBLISHER MACMILLAN AUDIO: If you have a book centered around Korean themes, please be mindful of casting a narrator who can pronounce Korean words accurately. To a listener who is familiar with native Korean speaking, it is very clear that the narrator speaks Korean words with a significant non-native accent. It is not everyday you have a novel incorporating Korean culture into a book, so there is no room to have the words pronounced inaccurately to a wide audience of listeners. Moreover — as other reviewers have pointed out — the narrator did not pronounce the main male protagonist’s name, Michel, completely accurately either.

The writing itself has an interesting premise but could go further with gradual, more convincing buildups of emotions. As early as the main characters’ first encounter in the cafe, the lines describing their sensual tension come off sudden and random, rather than gradual and natural. Most disappointingly, in the end (no spoilers), the female main character’s choice for her dreams can be described as shallow if not further explored.

⟡ ⟡ ⟡

Thank you to Macmillan Audio who provided this ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I’m still up in the air on how much I liked this book. While I liked the characters and the premise of the book, it kind of fell short. It seemed like it just went on and on with nothing really happening.
If it wasn’t an advance copy I’m not sure I would of finished it. Just seemed like such a long book for nothing going on.