Waking up at 5 a.m. on April 29, 2011, Rachel
Hauck watched Kate Middleton marry Prince
William—and a story idea was born.
“Kate Middleton captured my heart and imagination,”
explains Rachel. “A ‘commoner’ married
a prince. A real prince! I loved watching the
wedding and as I did, I imagined how it might
feel to be invited to the wedding. What if an
American girl received an invitation, out of the
blue? What if she met a boy, a prince, but didn’t
realize he was a prince?”
In her new romance Once Upon A Prince
(Zondervan), Rachel explores the fascination
we have with royalty, especially when a royal
falls in love with a regular girl. “It’s the chance
of rising from our ‘station’ in life and winning
the heart of a royal. We must imagine that a
prince’s heart is more difficult to win. He has
his pick of women! So the girl who steals his
heart must be extra special.”
In the novel, a woman named
Susanna meets and falls in love
with Prince Nathaniel, a man of
duty and honor. “He’s also very
practical,” says Rachel. “Very
calm and steady, but of course
handsome and manly-man,
kind and fun. He goes sledding
with the staff’s children! While
he loves Susanna, he realizes he
must put his country’s welfare
and his great heritage before
his own heart and desires.”
While a romance novel,
Rachel intertwines significant
spiritual themes. “Firstly,
the power of love to change a
nation. As we love like Jesus
loves, we change our own
heart, our family’s, community’s,
even our nation’s. It’s also
a reflection of how Jesus left
the opulence and splendor of
heaven for love, to win our lives
and hearts. The other theme is
surrender. When all else fails,
surrender to Jesus. He’s got a
great plan for you!