The Bibliophile's Bookshelf

Title: A Touch of Tiaras and Treachery

Series: Enchanted Confections #6 (standalone within the series)

Author: Ashley Evercott

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Romance, Retelling

Rating: 5 stars

Review:

A teaspoon of borrowed identities
A cup of courtly deception
And a serving of peril hidden in plain sight

For Nin, the dream was never a tiara—only survival. But when a desperate bargain promises her brother’s safety in exchange for taking a princess’s place, she can’t refuse. Thrust into a world of luxury and suspicion, Nin must master courtly etiquette to keep the true princess hidden. One mistake could cost more than her secret, it could cost lives.

Captain Cedric Duval lives by a strict code of order, discipline, and restraint. Training a street-smart pauper to impersonate a princess, however, proves far more difficult than any security drill. As he teaches Nin curtsies and royal customs, he begins to question the wisdom of his plan… and his growing feelings for the girl beneath the disguise.

With a royal wedding drawing near, Nin and Cedric must survive a court where danger lurks in the shadows and every dance could reveal hidden truths. Each step closer to uncovering the plot puts their deception—and their hearts—at risk. If they fail, it won’t be a princess the assassin strikes, it will be the girl wearing her tiara. – summary from Goodreads

*I received an ARC from the author, and all opinions are my own.

A Touch of Tiaras and Treachery was a wonderful gender-swapped retelling of the Prince and the Pauper with hidden identities, court politics, and romance!

I loved Barbie Princess and the Pauper growing up, and this book was everything I needed for this story. If you grew up loving that movie, go read this book! It was absolutely amazing!

Nin was a phenomenal character! I went into this book expecting her to be gruff and stoic, but she was the opposite. She wasn’t afraid to stand up and tell people she was capable, but she also had such a love for life. Her enthusiasm was contagious, and nicely balanced with her understanding of the realities of the world she lived in. Seeing the royal court through her eyes was also a lot of fun, especially compared to Cedric’s perspective. She had a unique viewpoint of the court, and I liked seeing it from her perspective. I also loved how seriously she took her job. I kind of expected her to go into pretending to be the princess and not really care that much, but she was genuinely concerned with messing up the princess’s life.

I really enjoyed Cedric, too! He was super protective and I loved seeing that expand to Nin. I also really liked his backstory. Both of our main characters had strong backstories that the author did a wonderful job of weaving into the story. I loved how his backstory was hinted at and effected the way he viewed events happening around him. Cedric also took his job so seriously and I loved all the scenes when he was training Nin to be the princess- they were adorable!

The relationship between Nin and Cedric was amazing! They had such a wonderful relationship and they contrasted each other nicely. There was also the issue of their stations that affected their relationship, and I always love those storylines! Nin was always trying to get Cedric to smile and be less serious, and those moments were amazing! Again, I loved Cedric’s protectiveness over Nin and seeing that grow as they got to know each other was such a lovely part of the story.

The plot itself was so much fun. I am curious as to what the princess was doing while in hiding. The author did a wonderful job of weaving in the reality that Nin was in this position, and she may end up hurt, or worse, with the fun parts of the story. The investigation into who was threatening the royal family was engrossing and I was shocked by the twist!

The court politics in this book was very engaging for me. I love court politics, so I really enjoyed this book. All the scenes with the Queen were especially intriguing. You could tell that maybe she knew something, but you weren’t quite sure. I also enjoyed that Nin had to deal with affections from the princess’s fiancé. It added an interesting facet to the story that I enjoyed. One of my favorite parts of the story was Nin’s obsession with sweets! I loved that she really just wanted a nice dessert but couldn’t have one because the princess liked savory treats. It was a little part of the story, but very well thought out and made the story that much more realistic.

The ending was everything! I love happy endings and I adored this one so much!

A Touch of Tiaras and Treachery was a fun gender-swapped Prince and the Pauper retelling with romance, protective MMCs, court politics, and determined FMCs.

A Touch of Tiaras and Treachery releases on June 12, 2026.

Quotes:

“‘The world can be cruel. It can take and take without remorse and still come back for more. But it also gives. The people we love are what keep us standing when everything else can break us.’”

“‘You are my undoing.’”