# Once Upon a Broken Heart by Stephanie Garber

### Once Upon a Broken Heart

**Stephanie Garber** · Once Upon a Broken Heart, book 1 of 3 (complete) · [https://houseofareader.com/books/once-upon-a-broken-heart](https://houseofareader.com/books/once-upon-a-broken-heart)

A girl who believes in true love strikes three bargains with the Prince of Hearts, an immortal who deals in exactly that kind of belief. Fairytale-styled, deliberately artificial, and very good at making a bargain feel dangerous.

- Spice: 1/5 — A door, closed. Kissing and longing. Closed door throughout.
- Romance prominence: 5/5
- Plot: 3/5
- Worldbuilding: 4/5
- Darkness: 3/5
- Writing craft: 4/5
- Burn: slow
- Tropes: forbidden-romance, morally-grey-mmc, slow-burn, villain-gets-the-girl, he-falls-first
- Creatures: fae, humans
- Setting: The Magnificent North, a kingdom that runs on stories
- POV: third person
- Ending: happy ever after, ends on a cliffhanger
- Audience: ya
- Content warnings: manipulation, violence, memory loss
- Best for: Readers who want a villainous love interest with no spice and maximum yearning.
- Last verified: 2026-08-28

## Sources

- https://openlibrary.org/search?q=Once+Upon+a+Broken+Heart+Stephanie+Garber

## What to read next

- [The Cruel Prince](https://houseofareader.com/books/the-cruel-prince) by Holly Black — spice 1/5. ACOTAR readers who want the fae court politics without the explicit content.
- [The Night Circus](https://houseofareader.com/books/the-night-circus) by Erin Morgenstern — spice 1/5. Readers who want atmosphere above everything and do not need the plot to arrive.
- [Belladonna](https://houseofareader.com/books/belladonna) by Adalyn Grace — spice 1/5. Readers who want gothic romance with Death as the love interest and no spice.
- [These Hollow Vows](https://houseofareader.com/books/these-hollow-vows) by Lexi Ryan — spice 2/5. ACOTAR readers who want the fae courts at a much lower spice level.

---

Ratings are editorial judgements applied against a published scale at
https://houseofareader.com/lessons/spice, not aggregated reader scores. Editorial policy:
https://houseofareader.com/lessons/how-we-choose. No affiliate links, no sponsored placements.