Series: A Royal Wedding #1
Published by HQN Books on November 19, 2019
Genres: Fiction, General, Historical, Romance, Victorian
Pages: 384
Format: eBook
Source: ARC
Princes have pomp and glory—not crushes on commoners
Nothing gets the tongues of London’s high society wagging like a good scandal. And when the personal secretary of the visiting Prince Sebastian of Alucia is found murdered, it’s all anyone can talk about, including Eliza Tricklebank. Her unapologetic gossip gazette has benefited from an anonymous tip about the crime, prompting Sebastian to take an interest in playing detective—and an even greater interest in Eliza.
With a trade deal on the line and mounting pressure to secure a noble bride, there’s nothing more salacious than a prince dallying with a commoner. Sebastian finds Eliza’s contrary manner as frustrating as it is seductive, but they’ll have to work together if they’re going to catch the culprit. And when things heat up behind closed doors, it’s the prince who’ll have to decide what comes first—his country or his heart.
Typically, I expect the historical romance that I read to be primarily grounded with accurate, or mostly accurate, historical facts. As a result, I seriously struggled with the fictional nation angle in this story. I enjoyed Eliza’s carefree enjoyment of the masquerade. I could imagine how dazzling the venue could be! And then came the rum punch. There was some serious second-hand embarrassment during the initial meeting between Eliza and Sebastian. I had a strong urge to slap the rum punch out of her hands. I had no problem suspending belief for the meet cute, though there was a small part of me thinking “There is no way his security would allow some rando to roam about random passages.”
I thoroughly enjoyed the descriptions of the story. From the dresses, the gossip and little pro-tips in the gazette had me equal parts fascinated and laughing hysterically followed by a little bit of googling to find other funny Victorian-isms. I was totally in love with the hobbies referenced in this story. Eliza’s penchant for clock repair was clever and I wish it had a bigger role in the story as it added some much needed dimension to her character. My highlight for the story though was the Judge and his knitting. It is no surprise to those of you that follow DCR to hear me say I have a weakness for loving, if gruff, parental figures and my adoration of the Judge was well earned. I loved his gruff love, his devotion to his daughters and of course his knitting hobby! As a fellow knitter, I’m always happy to see my hobby represented.
As much as I enjoyed some aspects of the story, I found myself frustrated with Eliza for much of the story. Her side of the chemistry seemed flat and her extreme waffling between miss-ish and worldly spinster was whiplash inducing. It didn’t seem as though she was truly interested in Seb aside from his being a Prince and her reason for spinster life felt a little flimsy. Now, Sebastian’s side of the romance seemed to be fleshed out more, probably because he was a more complicated character, but overall the romance fell mostly flat. Everything just seemed to conveniently fall in their laps and the murder mystery was lackluster. It was a good vehicle to ensure the hero and heroine continued to meet with each other at the beginning but beyond that it was a miss for me.
Overall, I enjoyed London’s introduction to her new historical romance series. It did take me about half the book to settle in, but overall I enjoyed Sebastian’s story and Eliza had some positive things to add. What individual hasn’t occasionally daydreamed about meeting a royal and being swept off their feet, even if it is just for decadent food instead of romance! Definitely recommended for fans of London and rags-to-riches romance.
*I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
About Julia London
Julia London is the New York Times and USA Today best selling author of more than two dozen romantic fiction novels. She is the author of the popular historical romance series, the Cabot Sisters, including The Trouble with Honor, The Devil Takes a Bride, and The Scoundrel and the Debutante. She is also the author of several contemporary romances, including Homecoming Ranch, Return to Homecoming Ranch, and The Perfect Homecoming.
Julia is the recipient of the RT Bookclub Award for Best Historical Romance and a six-time finalist for the prestigious RITA award for excellence in romantic fiction.
