I loved this childhood friends to enemies to lovers, sleeping beauty retelling by Parker Huntington and LJ Shen. This entire series has been wonderful, but Briar and Oliver were particularly fun to read. I enjoyed Briars rise to awesomeness, I enjoyed Oliver and the way he would throw himself off a bridge for the people he loves, and I loved their chemistry to much. The audiobook voice actors were super pleasant to listen to, they brought life to the characters and really leaned into Briar and Olivers banter and emotions. Great book, probably my favorite in the series so far! Now Frankie and Sebastian need their own books, maybe together?

Andi and Christian completely stole my heart in this love story. I laughed, I cried, I swooned, and I totally fell in love with Briar and Ollie (and Seb). This was such a beautiful story of unconditional love, both familial and romantic, and moving forward after tragedy. I loved how it was a mix of beauty and the beast AND sleeping beauty. I really hope we get a Seb story next!

I thought I was really going to enjoy this, as I am a huge fan of accidental marriages, amnesia, billionaire romances, etc. I am also a HUGE fan of LJ Shen. This just wasn't it for me. I did not like the main character, at all, and she came off as almost dumb when she did not realize they were not together like she thought. I know the author intimates that she realizes something is up and that their fight is bigger than she thinks, but come on! I also did not like the conversation on the private jet when she realizes she is an environmentalist and then basically says marriage is a prison. I'm all for saving the environment and feminism - RA RA - but I am reading a romance... powerful women are one thing, slamming marriage is quite another. It exhausted me, and I gave up on it. DNF.

This man will go above and beyond for his first love and I am here for it !

Throughout the story there’s lots and lots of miscommunication. The MCs have misunderstandings from the past and the present which would frustrate me sometimes but made the story so interesting.

I would highly recommend this book if you want to cry, laugh,swoon, and heat up with all the pent up sexual frustration these two characters have for each other oh and did I mention the mmc is a billionaire 👀

I have a hate love relationship with second chance romance. It often hurts so sweet and I prefer not to know a book will be hurting. I thought this one had a fun twist to it with the amnesia and couldn’t resist reading it.
So, what did I think? Honestly I loved it. I didn’t want to stop listening and I flew through this book. I loved the forced proximity and the found family. There was no dreaded third act breakup (which I hate) and the FMC and MMC was just so fun and cute!

As a mentioned briefly I listened to this on audio and I just want to add that I loved the narrators. They did an amazing job.

That audio was so HOT, steamy,

First book by L.J. Shen and it won't be my last.

Ny narrator made me wet and the caracters and story was so hot.

Oh Christian Fox and Andi Arndt....this was narrated so well! I could not stop listening and listened and tandem read this in a day! Along with the story and writing being superb, the narration was spot on. There was never a point where I felt like I need to take a break from the voices. These authors are already auto buy authors for me but I will now be listening to anything that these narrators narrate!

My Dark Prince is a dark, steamy Sleeping Beauty retelling from L.J. Shen and Parker S. Huntington. When Briar wakes up with amnesia, Oliver—her ruthless, billionaire ex—convinces her they’re in love. But as she pieces things together, she realizes he’s hiding dangerous secrets. Twisted, addictive, and full of tension, this enemies-to-lovers romance is perfect for fans of intense second-chance love stories!

Yes. I can't even give you more, just yes. This was what they are talking about when they say women like men written by women. Chefs kiss. No notes.

5 ⭐ 3 🌶️ 5 🎧

I really enjoyed this series and Ollie's story was such a cherry on top finale. I absolutely loved him and Briar. Their chemistry was insane and so much fun. I was so concerned for the blowback on Ollie once she found out the truth, but Briar truly is as much of a spitfire as she seems.

The audio was great. I really loved Christian Fox and Andi Arndt, they did an incredible job of bringing these characters to life.

These books are my guilty pleasure, they are so unserious tbh even though this handled a few very dark topics. I liked to see Ollie vb from another perspective and that he wasn’t the asshole the first two books made him out to be. Briar was cute! Loved that she stood her ground and was there for her friends. I enjoy their friend group and the messages ad a nice touch to the story. Im excited to see if we‘ll get another book in this series because of some of the things that happened in this book. I would love to see more of frankie or seb. Also the narrators of the audiobook did a great job & the covers of these books were gorgeous!

Thanks to netgalley & the publisher for this audio arc

I totally read this out of order and started with this book. Though, I was not confused by the characters at all, I will for sure go back and read their stories.

We have Ollie and Briar who were each other's first love. Something happens and Ollie ghosts Briar. 15 years later, a chance encounter and amnesia brings them back together. Briar thinks she is engaged to Ollie and he plays along.

We get to see younger Ollie and Briar and what led to their heartbreak. I really enjoyed the friendships and text exchanges between Ollie and his friends.

I also enjoyed the complex relationship between Ollie and his brother Seb. I am hoping we get Seb's story next.

Christian Fox and Andi Arndt did a great job with narration and bringing all the emotions to life.

Thank you @dreamscape_media @netgalley for a copy of the audiobook.

Quick Summary: A dark romance/Sleeping Beauty retelling

My Review: My Dark Prince written by Parker S. Huntington and L.J. Shen is book #3 in the Dark Prince Road series. It is a 2025 release.

About the Book: "This Sleeping Beauty woke up... In a nightmare."

This novel is "a twisted second-chance romance between a prince haunted by a dark secret and his reluctant Sleeping Beauty.

In My Own Words: Best friends and lovers. Hurts and betrayals. Abandonment and isolation. Scars and pain. Twisted fascination and bitter secrets. Unexpected reunions and mad chemistry. Emotions and all that comes next.

About the Characters:

Briar - >

Briar Rose is all grown up, and she no longer holds on to girlish thoughts about being with her true love. She has been hardened by life, experiences, and the betraying choices of others. Although 15 years have passed between the time of her innocence and her unexpected reunion with Oliver, this time around, she will choose herself and her wants.

Oliver - >

Oliver is a man on a mission. He has made so many mistakes in his life. Choosing Briar was not one of those mistakes. When a chance encounter leads to a horrible injury and a fake situationship, it takes all he has to be honorable to the only woman he has ever truly loved. Then again, maybe their special circumstance will finally give him the chance to come clean and move past the very thing that haunts him.

About the Narration: This novel was narrated by Christian Fox and Andi Arndt. This duo did the thing! They were sensational. I was thoroughly entertained.

My Final Say: Oh my darn! I loved this retelling. It was so fresh, it was totally contemporary, and it was entirely creative. This will certainly be on my read on repeat list. It is a golden gem. Although I have not read the preceding books, I was able to follow the story easily.

Reasons I enjoyed this book:

Dark
Twisted
Tragic
Original
Romantic
Page-turner
Easy-to-read
Entertaining
Steamy
Lovely

This book was so good that I plan to go back and read the other books in the series.

Other: Readers who love dark and twisted retellings of fairy tales will eat this one up.

Rating: 5/5
Recommend: Yes
Audience: A
Re-read: Yes
Keeper: Yes
Favorites Shelf: Yes
Besties Shelf: Yes
Status/Level: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Audiobook: Yes
Narration: +

Sincere appreciation is extended to the author, to the publisher (Dreamscape Media), and to NetGalley. Thank you so much for providing access to an ALC of this title in exchange for an honest critique. It was an absolute pleasure to review this work. I am extremely grateful to have been given the opportunity. I look forward to continuing with this series.