A Princess in Theory by Alyssa Cole

Naledi, the heroine of A Princess In Theory, is a grad student in epidemiology who lives in New York City and works part-time as a waitress to help pay the bills. When she starts getting emails telling her that she’s betrothed to an African prince, naturally she assumes they’re from a scammer and deletes them. But there is a real prince on the other end of the emails: Prince Thabiso of Thesolo. Frustrated at Naledi’s lack of reply, Thabiso shows up unannounced at her workplace, where she mistakes him for a new waiter. He decides to play along so that he can get a taste of life as a commoner and get to know Naledi without royal expectations getting in the way. Thabiso and Naledi are instantly drawn to one another, but will their romance survive when she finds out he’s been lying to her?

I picked up this book–the first in Alyssa Cole’s Reluctant Royals series–because the scam email premise sounded like a lot of fun, and I was not disappointed. I especially loved the intricate plot (on top of the romance, there’s also political intrigue and a mysterious epidemic), clever dialogue, and quirky characters.