Johanna Ketrell is a young woman who enjoys a life in the country. However, in just a few short years, she will succumb to a deteriorating illness that has plagued her since birth. One fateful day, she is summoned by the King and finds out she must marry the Prince or be put to the sword. Can Johanna be the perfect Princess she is expected to be or will her condition take her life before the King can?
Prince Lucian Istmara is the son of the formidable King Augustus. As his only heir, Lucian has spend his life studying the secrets of sorcery and preparing to take the throne. However, his father refuses to give the throne up and continued to enact his cruel expectations on his children. Lucian, feeling trapped in his life, meets a beautiful young woman in the country, one who might just be the light in his dark life he has been looking for.
Lucian and Johanna must navigate their new life together, a life filled with powerful magic and dangerous secrets, all while coming to terms that their feelings for each other may be more than they expected.
Includes sexual imagery and trigger warnings.
Johanna Ketrell is a young woman who enjoys a life in the country. However, in just a few short years, she will succumb to a deteriorating illness that has plagued her since birth. One fateful day, she is summoned by the King and finds out she must marry the Prince or be put to the sword. Can Johanna be the perfect Princess she is expected to be or will her condition take her life before the King can?
Prince Lucian Istmara is the son of the formidable King Augustus. As his only heir, Lucian has spend his life studying the secrets of sorcery and preparing to take the throne. However, his father refuses to give the throne up and continued to enact his cruel expectations on his children. Lucian, feeling trapped in his life, meets a beautiful young woman in the country, one who might just be the light in his dark life he has been looking for.
Lucian and Johanna must navigate their new life together, a life filled with powerful magic and dangerous secrets, all while coming to terms that their feelings for each other may be more than they expected.
Includes sexual imagery and trigger warnings.
The table snapped against the man’s weight, the wood splintering and glasses shattering upon the floor. Screams rang out as he rose to his feet with surprising speed, although his stance swayed. A single right hook was all it took to lay him out on his back again.
I stared at the mug in front of me, still filled with cheap ale.
Not even a bar fight was exciting enough to take me out of my thoughts.
I ran my fingers through my hair as the tavern owner threw the two unruly men out, their slurred cries of disapproval silencing as soon as the door closed behind them.
My father’s voice still rang in my ears. Words of disappointment and incompetence repeated themselves in my mind, well after the days since I last saw him. My body still ached but I couldn’t care less. All I cared about right now was that I was far away from him, yet he still invaded my life at every second.
“Lucian, relax. You look like a man who just came back from a funeral.” Callum sipped on his ale, his blond hair falling lazily in front of his face. I glared at him, a look that would make a lesser man fall to his knees and apologize, but my friend only smirked. “Tell me I’m wrong. Here we are, in the middle of nowhere, and you’re the only one who is spending time at a tavern with a permanent pinch on your face.”
“Can’t stop thinking about my father.” I sighed. “I had hoped finally getting away from him would’ve helped, but…” I shook my head, desperate to get the image of his beet-red face out of my mind.
“I know.” Callum’s voice grew serious, but only for a moment as he looked into his mug. “Maybe if we had proper drinks, it would be possible to actually forget something.”
I made no reply, the dull noise of the place filling the silence. The bard in the corner started playing a jovial song, making everyone clap and sing along. A knot in my chest twisted, frustration rising. Here, people danced and sung as if in celebration, but a black cloud persisted over my head, taunting and prodding me.
I massaged an aching kink in my neck.
“Still hurts?” Callum asked.
I nodded, rolling my shoulder.
“Think they have a healer here?”
“Highly doubtful.” I relaxed back into my seat. “It’s fine. I’ll live.”
“Well, if not a healer, a brothel at least.”
A spark of a smile flashed on the side of my lips, then vanished as quickly as it came. “No.”
Callum chuckled. “I would if I were you. How many places can you go where people don’t know who you are? It could be exactly what you need.”
I took in a deep breath, the heavy weight in my chest settling with a thud. Maybe he was right. If a drink couldn’t take my mind off my father, maybe a good fuck would.
“Here you are.” A young woman’s voice, light and sweet, accompanied a soft smile as she approached our table, setting down a plated dessert.
“We didn’t order this,” I stated bluntly.
“It’s on us.” The woman intertwined her fingers with each other, her honey brown eyes almost pleading that I accept it.
A part of me—the regal part of me—wanted to tell her off, to command her to take it away, and not to bother me for the rest of the night.
Yet, there was something about her that gave me pause. She didn’t seem like anyone someone would look twice at. Her long, dark brown hair was pulled into a messy bun with a few loose strands falling in front of her face. They clung to her skin as sweat pooled on her forehead and cheeks. While her simple dress was quite bland, there was a softness in her face, her expression, even the way she carried herself, that made me stop.
“Why?” I asked.
She shrugged casually. “It looked like you’d been having a bad day. Just wanted to do something to help. I hope all is well. Enjoy your night, gentlemen.”
With a polite smile and a small curtsy at the knees, she began to turn from the table, but something in me snapped into action. My hand flew, finding the woman’s wrist and gripping it with unusual might.
A flash of fear flickered across her face, her eyes widening slightly, and I instantly let go.
“What is your name?” I asked, my voice low.
She cleared her throat, unsure of whether or not she wanted to answer. “Johanna.”
“Johanna what?” I followed.
“Ketrell.”
A commoner’s name. Was she trying to curry favor? Steal from me? While I was more dressed down than usual, I still presented far nicer than anyone around here. Even if she didn’t know who I was, I could still be an easy target for money.
And yet, I didn’t sense any malice from her. No sly fingers or shifty eyes, no fidgeting or urgency in her at all. Could it really be so simple as a gesture of goodwill? No. How could it?
“If you’ll excuse me.” With a tentative smile on her lips, Johanna turned from the table and returned to the bar.
I blinked at the dish in front of me. It was a rather plain-looking dessert of white spongecake decorated with a few red berries. Two dented spoons rested on the chipped plate alongside the cake. However, it all looked divine.
A strange sensation grew in my chest. A feeling I could not describe. I was certain I had never experienced it before. That weight, the dark heaviness that cemented itself deep within my very being…lifted. If only for a moment.
My eyes followed the woman as she rounded the bar, talking to the gruff owner, their likeness palpable. She rolled her eyes at something he said, but the smile remained, a sparkle in her expression, and the very air in my lungs left me.
“Lucian?” Callum asked. My focus refused to turn to him. “You okay?”
No.
No, I wasn’t.
I froze in body and mind. I’d experienced a lifetime of torment and malevolence at the hands of my own father. I never knew what it was like not to have someone at my beck and call. Yet this woman, who had never met me, had no idea who I was, who couldn’t even fathom the power I held at my fingertips, gave me a simple gesture of kindness of her own will.
The scent of red berries and vanilla encased me, and in that moment, an idea came to life.
“Lucian! What’s going on with you?” Callum called out before looking behind him to the bar. The woman disappeared into the back, but my gaze remained fixed.
I turned back to the dish, slowly taking a spoon and scooping a piece of cake. While the cake was slightly stale and the berry bitter, I nearly melted to the floor. Not even all the food at home tasted so sweet.
“We need to go back.”
Callum’s mouth hung open as his eyes squinted in confusion. “What, already? Why?”
I set the spoon down, a newfound resolve rising in me as my eyes still lingered on where she was.
Johanna.
I would remember that name.
I would ensure never to forget it.
“That girl is going to be my wife.”
His Eternal Princess by Elizabeth Holbrook is a heartfelt fantasy romance that proves genuine love can be just as compelling as magic and political intrigue. While the novel contains sorcery, royal conflict, and fascinating worldbuilding, its greatest strength lies in the deeply emotional relationship between its two main characters.
Joanna is the daughter of a tavern owner whose simple act of kindness changes the course of her life. When she offers compassion to a weary patron, she has no idea she is speaking to Prince Lucian. Convinced that Joanna is the woman he is meant to marry, Lucian pursues her despite the expectations of the crown, and the two begin a romance that feels sincere, tender, and earned.
What elevates this story is the authenticity of their relationship. The declarations of love never feel forced. Instead, the reader watches two people genuinely devoted to one another through joy, hardship, and unimaginable loss. Joanna's illness, which gradually consumes her, is particularly moving. Fantasy novels rarely explore the emotional reality of living with a terminal illness, and Holbrook handles it with sensitivity. Lucian's fear of discussing her condition makes their love story all the more heartbreaking.
The novel also features one of its strongest supporting characters in the king. His cruelty knows no limits. He is abusive toward Lucian, manipulative toward his family, and willing to sacrifice anyone to maintain power. His presence creates constant tension and raises the emotional stakes throughout the story.
The fantasy elements are equally intriguing. Sorcery is concentrated in the capital, where women are forbidden from studying or even questioning magic. The religious traditions surrounding the gods and goddesses, particularly the Silent One, add another fascinating layer to the world. I only wish these aspects had been explored in greater depth, as they hinted at an even richer mythology waiting beneath the surface.
I also found myself wanting more of Lucian's sisters. Their individual stories, especially the sister who escapes to become a queen in another kingdom, were compelling enough to deserve novels of their own.
His Eternal Princess is a touching fantasy romance filled with memorable characters, heartfelt emotion, and a satisfying conclusion. The beautiful epilogue was the perfect ending and left me closing the book with a full heart, eager to return to this world again.