I love fairytale re-tellings and even with this book taking liberties, it was very good and beautifully written. This is my second book by EJ, and I like her style. She hasn't reached the pinnacle of genius like writers Lisa Kleypas and Sherry Thomas in HR, but I enjoy her stuff and may very well need to read more of her work.
Gabriel was quite the sensual man, his characterization was so sexy, with his dark, long hair and sexy seductive accent. I adored his responsibility to his family in the midst of trying to live his own dreams. As a prince, he was more limited in doing what he wanted but he definitely knew WHO he wanted. And it wasn't his chosen princess from Russia, Tatiana. Kate Daltry captured his affections early on and watching him slowly realize she was the ONLY woman for him was sweet. I loved Kate, a great heroine who was quite similar to Gabriel in familial obligations. Together they were electric and the last third was very difficult to put down. This of course ended on a very sweet and fantastical note. The short letter Gabriel sent to Kate towards the end was disarming. He only wrote two sentences but the sheer power behind them was incredible. The epilogue wasn't even needed but was a cute insertion.
I heard the rest of the series is great and I'm looking forward to continuing, especially with the re-telling of Beauty And The Beast theme. Anyways, a great story with a lovely cast, I really liked it.