{first in Dobrenica trilogy; fantasy, Zenda, Ruritanian romance, adventure}(2010)

I like Smith’s Sartorias-deles series (starting with the Inda tetralogy) and was recommended this series. I recently re-read Prisoner of Zenda 💔and I really enjoyed Smith’s Crown & Court. I was in the mood for a fantasy with a (clean) romance so this is my first pick for the year.

Aurelia (named after her grandmother) Kim Murray - known as Kim - from Los Angeles has made a trip to Europe on a tight budget to try to solve the family mystery of where her mum and grandmother originally came from. While there she is kidnapped, having been mistaken for a missing duchess (also named Aurelia, though she prefers to be called Ruli) and consequently finds answers to her questions - which just lead to more questions. So she travels to the tiny, oft-overlooked kingdom of Dobrenica (where the missing Ruli hails from) to look for more answers and inadvertently becomes embroiled in their politics which leads to more adventures.

This is a modern day Ruritanian romance, but with a touch of fantasy, very much based on Prisoner of Zenda which book Smith mentions several times in her story, down to the nickname of the missing royalty: Ruli instead of Rudy. There were a couple of spots where I thought Kim jumped to a conclusion too fast, or maybe we just weren’t on the same wavelength, but that was a passing niggle.

While it may not be quite as rollicking as Prisoner of Zenda it still has plenty of swash and buckle, especially for a contemporary novel; Kim is an accomplished dancer and fencer (she has had to abandon her university team's fencing competition for her trip). The ending felt a bit abrupt but it is the first in trilogy and - because I had read the synopsises of the next two books - I was anticipating the twist.

So, if you haven’t read the synopses for the other books yet, then don’t.

I am looking forward to reading the sequels. (I just hope there's no Rupert of Hentzau plot waiting for me, though Tony (the character based on Rupert) is still lurking in the wings.)

(January 2024)
4.5 stars ( )

Lovely Ruritanian story set in Europe. Aurelia Kim Murray does genealogical research in Paris and Vienna, trying to discover her grandmother’s mysterious past, and finds more than she bargains for, a la Prisoner of Zenda (the plot resemblances are lampshaded here). ( )

Magical. Incredible. I loved every word, every sentence. The concept of doubles and mistaken identity may have been a little cliched, but I don't care. The characters are so real I wept and laughed along with them.

Kim is an engaging narrator/POV character/protagonist. I love a strong female lead, and she is definitely that. A ballerina/fencer who loves old movies and Beatles music, she appeals to me in so many ways. She never allows anyone to rule her, even the handsome Prince she meets in her travels. :)

Alec is a fascinating mystery; Tony is a handsome dangerous contradiction; Ruli is more than she seems; and Sisi... well, I don't want to say too much.

Is it fantasy? Sort of. Not really. But it will appeal to fans of fantasy. Highly recommended. ( )

See my review at http://www.myshelf.com/scifi_fantasy/11/coronetsandsteel.htm ( )

Aurelia Kim Murray hunts for her grandmother's past, hoping to find some clue to breaking her grandmother's depression. While searching Europe for clues, she feels like she's being watched. A strange encounter at the ballet proves to her that in fact, she is. And thus Kim gets swept up into an adventure of mistaken identity, supernatural happenings, and all the balls and swashbuckling her romantic heart could desire.

Although I liked the twists on the Ruritania tale, this story didn't do it for me. First off, it was hard to shake the feeling that Kim was constantly missing or forgetting to follow up on obvious clues. She took an absurdly long time to investigate the monk who married her grandmother, even though many of plots hinge on her mother's legitimacy. She continued to trust her Aunt Sisi long after I would have (from their very first meeting Sisi proves herself a snake), and long after everyone very obviously tries to warn her about her aunt's motives. She casually asks questions about ghosts and vampires, but never digs any deeper, even though everyone is afraid of vampires and ghosts are constantly giving her clues. In the end, it requires two chapters of Nat and Alex infodumping every single thing to Kim before she gets what's been going on. Secondly, Kim's romantic life frustrated me. I have no idea why Alex OR Tony is attractive to her, since neither of them tell her anything personal about themselves, and they kidnap, threaten, withhold information, etc. I particularly hated the scene where Tony is in the midst of kidnapping Kim (AGAIN) and Kim is like, oooh, his rock hard body and his kisses are so sexy! No. Plus, I really disliked Kim deciding to take Alex's choice out of his hands and fleeing Dobrenica. If she actually cared about and respected him, she would have talked it out. I am sick to death of characters making high-handed decisions for their love interest and calling it an honorable sacrifice. She is otherwise a fairly sensible girl, so in addition to being annoyingly silly her stubborn attraction to these two secretive men just seemed weird. And third of all, Dobrenica seems like a weirdly unproblematized version of Ruritania. The lower classes worship and respect the worthies in the upper classes, have all sorts of superstitions, basic technology doesn't work there, etc. I expected more from an author who usually deconstructs so many fantasy tropes. ( )