This book was sent to me as a gift. I am not a romance novel reader — neither a fan nor a hater. My preference for books tends toward science fiction, business philosophy, biographies of fiction writers/business leaders/military figures, and science. Therefore, opening “How to Pursue a Princess” was opening a new world of fiction to me.

My exposure to tales of heroines and damsels in distress comes from Disney movies, my sister telling me about the books she read as a child (“Anna Karenina” and “Nancy Drew” series), and my wife watching books-adapted-to-cinema such as “Sense and Sensibility.”

I suppose in some of the science fiction and fantasy books I’ve read, there were the heroines as damsels in distress, although, for the most part, the women in the stories were just as strong and technically proficient as their male counterparts.

Working my way into the storyline of “How to Pursue a Princess,” learning about a matchmaking duchess intent on pairing a woman in financial straits with a man of financial means, I made it to page 69 of the 383 pages in the paperback edition, having in my thoughts a clear picture of 18th 19th century Scottish upper-class society — to that, I credit the author with painting sufficient pen strokes to describe the countryside, mannerisms, architecture, fashion and food of the times that I need not have worried about how much she researched 18th 19th century Scotland and the accuracy of her portrayal of the times that I might accidentally remember as history I would mention in casual conversation (but the written dialogue made me wonder if Scottish aristocracy spoke with an English accent or with a bit of Scottish brogue [e.g., http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Khrpy4V0-U4%5D).

Page 69 is as far as I got.

I tried to imagine this story being told on Mars in the 24th century, in 20th century wartime Europe, or in another galaxy far, far away (a la “Star Wars,” substituting Princess Leia for Lily Balfour, for example) to see if I would have read this story in the science fiction or military history genre.

But I could not.

I cannot say whether the author’s writing style influenced my decision to stop reading.

I can say that the plot was not of interest to me — a woman, manipulated by another, having to decide between two men to marry, who would then be expected to support her and her family financially — it’s like having to sit through a marathon viewing of the television reality show “Say Yes to the Dress” with my wife…zzzz…getting sleepy…think I’ll go outside, trim the hedges and earn my mancard points for the day.

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[Disclosure: Karen Hawkins was in the same high school together with me. We were not close friends but were acquainted with each other so this review is biased even if I want to pretend it wouldn’t be.]

Karen, I wish you continued success in your writing career. My wife has asked to read this book and provide her own review from an unbiased woman’s viewpoint. I’ll then pass it on to my mother, who enjoys romance novels, and get her opinion for you.