Of Princes and Promises

by Sandhya Menon

Overview

From the New York Times bestselling author of When Dimple Met Rishi comes the second installment in a series set an elite boarding school that’s a contemporary spin on fairy tales, this one a delightful, romantic twist on The Frog Prince.

Caterina LaValle is determined to show she’s still the queen of St. Rosetta’s Academy. Sure, her crown may be slightly askew after her ex-boyfriend, Alaric, cheated on her, but she’s a LaValle. She’ll find a way to march right back in there, her hands clutching the strings to the whole puppet show. This time, she’s going to be untouchable.

Rahul Chopra knows that moment he shared with Caterina LaValle at the winter formal meant something. Surely she feels it, too. He’s a little uncertain how someone like him (socially inept to a point way past “adorkable”) could fit into her world, but he’s loved Caterina for years. He knows they’ll find a way.

When Caterina finds out Alaric is taking a supermodel to the upcoming gala, she knows she cannot arrive without the perfect date. But the thought of taking another superficial St. R’s boy exhausts her. The solution? Sweet-but-clueless Rahul Chopra and a mysterious pot of hair gel with the power to alter the wearer into whatever his heart desires.

When Rahul tries it, he transforms instantly into RC—debonair, handsome, and charming. But transformation comes with a price: As Rahul enjoys his new social standing, the line between his two personas begins to blur. Will he give up everything, including Caterina, to remain RC? Or will this unlikely pair find their way back to each other?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781534417571
Publisher:	Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers
Publication date:	06/08/2021
Series:	Rosetta Academy
Pages:	320
Product dimensions:	5.60(w) x 8.40(h) x 1.20(d)
Lexile:	HL740L (what's this?)
Age Range:	12 - 18 Years

About the Author

Sandhya Menon is the New York Times bestselling author of When Dimple Met Rishi, Of Curses and Kisses, and many other novels that also feature lots of kissing, girl power, and swoony boys. Her books have been included in several cool places, including Today, Teen Vogue, NPR, BuzzFeed, and Seventeen. A full-time dog servant and part-time writer, she makes her home in the foggy mountains of Colorado. Visit her online at SandhyaMenon.com.

Read an Excerpt

Chapter 1 CHAPTER 1
Rosetta Academy wasn’t just her school, it was her palace. It was the place where Caterina LaValle ruled supreme, the queen of all she saw and surveyed. Nothing dimmed the shine on her crown, not fighting with her friends, not a bad picture in the New York Times lifestyle section (she’d gotten that photographer fired), not even a breakup with an inconsequential boy.

Not usually.

Winter break was the rest her soul had needed after the breakup with Alaric last year. She’d mistaken him for a prince, but he’d turned out to be decidedly amphibian. Still. It was nothing more than a setback, a minor inconvenience. She was back now, ready to rule with even more of a platinum fist—iron was such a plebeian metal—than before. She was going to walk into that brick-and-ivy structure with a sense of ownership, a sense of power, a sense of indestructability, as she never had. Her crown wasn’t askew anymore.

Queen Cat was back. Rosetta Academy better watch out.

Editorial Reviews

2021-04-08
Caterina LaValle seeks to reclaim her social status by turning an awkward frog into a prince.

Caterina, Italian daughter of a millionaire, is the reigning queen of Rosetta Academy, an elite international boarding school. After a messy breakup, she is determined to prove she still has power over everything and everyone. When her ex-boyfriend brags that he’s bringing a supermodel to an upcoming gala, she knows she has to do better. Cue the sweet, socially inept Rahul Chopra, a boy from India who wants nothing more than to fit in and spend time with Caterina. When she proposes he be her escort to the gala, Rahul immediately says yes. With the help of a makeover, coaching in social interactions, and magical hair gel, Rahul transforms into RC, a smooth-talking, likable, supposed crown prince fit to be seen with someone of his date’s standing. As his two personas begin to collide, Rahul loses sight of what’s important—including his relationship with Caterina. This modern twist on “The Frog Prince,” told from the alternating third-person perspectives of Caterina and Rahul, has the classic appeal of a makeover story, focusing as it does on having confidence in your true self and being honest and vulnerable. Readers who enjoyed the first series entry, Of Curses and Kisses (2020), will enjoy this sequel, which features cameo appearances by characters they’ve met before.

A fun read for fans of modern fairy-tale retellings. (Romance. 12-16)

Kirkus Reviews