On Your Radar: Truly Madly Royally (26)

Title: Truly Madly Royally 

Author: Debbie Rigaud

Publisher: Scholastic

Release Date: July 30, 2019

Why It Should Be On Your Radar:
* Summer Romance
* A Prince
* Zora's after school program
* The kids in the after school program
* Taking college classes in high school
* Taco Tuesdays
* Banter between Zora and the Prince
* Men in Black
* Being True to Yourself
* Interracial Couple
* Stolen Moments on Campus
* Meghan Markle inspired


** I adore royal romances, so this was a must read for me. And it was everything I wanted it to be.

Cover Thoughts: Amazing. Captured the feel of the book completely

Library Recommendation: A must have for school and public libraries.

Mini Review: The Heir and the Spare

A royal romance based on the love story of Kate Middleton and Prince William.

How it's similar to other royal romances:
* It takes places during college
* She's not sure who he is when they first meet
* She becomes part of his circle of friends effortlessly
* They have undeniable chemistry
* His parents have someone else in mind
* That girl is horrible (And of course titled)
* Paparazzi follow them

How it's Different from other royal romances:
* She's American
* She's on a quest to learn more about her mother
* He's the second Prince

Final Thoughts: If you read royal romances, don't miss this one! There's a enough of a twist that you'll want to keep reading even though you know how the story will end. 

Review: The Heir

Twenty years after her parents met during The Selection, the kingdom changed. Now the caste system is obsolete, but the problems haven't gone away.

Princess Eadlyn has been preparing to take her father's place on the trone her whole life. With the political unrest, the people could use a distraction. So, she agrees to her own Selection.

A group of young men comes to the palace all vying for her hand in marriage. Princess Eadlyn is convinced she'll never fall in love.  She doesn't need the grand love that her parents have, but it would be nice to have a partner she can respect who will support and respect her. Will she find herself a prince consort among the contestants?

My Thoughts: I loved the Section trilogy, so I was SO happy to hear about the spin-off trilogy. And it didn't disappoint!

I loved the princess. I liked how Princess Eadlyn was torn between her duty of finding a mate and understanding her heart. I loved how she enjoyed politics and helping to run the country, even though at times it can seem like a burden. She's smart, determined, and blunt at times. I love how she began to understand her people and not see them only as a duty. She started to question  the idea of perfection and finding her self-worth outside her primary role. 

I loved learning more about the characters from the previous series and how their lives turned out. I really liked the blossoming friendship between the princess and Kile. I enjoyed her twin brother and his quirks. 

My only concern is why didn't the guys in the selection have to jump through hoops like the girls did? They didn't seem to have to plan or create anything to prove their worth.

I can't wait to see what happens next, especially after that ending!

Cover Thoughts: This one might be my favorite yet.
Source: My Library

Final Thoughts: If you haven't read this one yet, what are you waiting for? It's got everything: friendship, family drama, romance, kissing, political unrest, and a smart heroine you want to root for. 

Adult Review: Royal We

When Bex decides to spend a semester abroad in Oxford, she has no ideas that her life is about to change forever. She meets Nick on the first night she arrives in the rain, but she doesn't realize he's the crown prince.

Living on the same floor, Bex gets to know the real Nick - not the one everyone thinks they know. They bond over late nights and TV shows.

Time goes by and their feeling grow. Bex decides that she can no longer keep her feelings to herself. She's stunned to learn that Nick fell for her too.

Now they date in secret, hiding away from the public eye and all that drama that goes with it. But how long can Bex keep pretending it doesn't bother her. The fairy tale romance comes with a high price. Will Bex have a happily ever after of her own?

My Thoughts;  I LOVED this book, which make sense because I love learning about the royal family. I devoured this book in one day, loving the modern day fairy tale aspect of the book. 

I loved watching Bex and Nick's relationship grow from the moment they met. The dealt with a lot of issues, misunderstandings, and family members who were not on their side.

The royal family (except for the charming younger brother) isn't impressed with Bex. They're not welcoming and have no intention of seeing her become part of the family. The drama and secrets pile up, shaking things up for the two lovebirds.

I wasn't a big fan of Bex's twin either. She seemed lost in Bex's new world and while I understood that loss, her actions were not sisterly. 

I loved the moments between the friends from University - they were entertaining, quick witted, and sweet. I liked watching how those relationships changed over the years.

This book is all about relationships - between family, between friends, and most importantly between yourself and the person who understands you the best. 

Cover Thoughts: Sweet
Source: From the Library

Final Thoughts: If you're interested in the lives of Royal families, don't let this book pass you by. It's one of my favorites books I've read this year. 

Books Fit for a Princess

If I was close to the Royal family (or the Royal Librarian), I would gift these books on the new Princess!

For Now:

A few of My Childhood Favorites:

For Older Years:

What books would YOU give a Princess?

Adult Review: Once Upon a Prince

Susanna had her life all planned out - until her boyfriend returned from his latest tour and breaks up with her. After twelve years, Susanna never expected this.

She meets a man soon after who seems to make a habit of rescuing her. He's never told her the entire truth about him - that he's a prince.

When the truth comes out, Susanna's not quite sure what to expect. She never thought about marriage to Nate and it's impossible because of his country's laws.  Could her heart still get bruised?

My Thoughts: I love reading about Royals and found this book while browsing at a different town library. I don't usually read Christian fiction, but I saw the blurb from Debbie Macomber and thought I'd try it. I really enjoyed it! I liked Susanna and her nosy noisy close family. I liked how she met Nate and the slow build of their relationship. I liked learning about Nate's country and the history behind it. A fun royal read.

Cover Thoughts: Love it
Source: the Library

On My Hold List (25)

My Librarian friend Jess from I Read to Relax came up with a great idea.  It's to highlight the books on hold at the library. I usually have 20-40 items checked out at the library and another 20 items on hold.

Runaway Princess: I loved this author's Little Lady Agency series. I had no idea she had a new book out until I heard it from Sarah on Twitter-  plus it's about a PRINCESS!

Royal Pain: Not about a princess, but with connections to the royal family. Bronte meets Max and learns he's a Duke.

Working Mummies - just a little Halloween fun!

Ten Things: YA Princess Books

With the Royal Wedding date now upon us, here are 1o awesome books about royals. I must say the wedding was beautiful. Catherine's dress was amazing. She looked GORGEOUS and so happy. I loved all the looks and smiles between Prince William and Catherine. I also adored the moments I saw of Prince Harry and also Pippa. I loved the kisses on the balcony, but I do think they could have been a bit longer.

As I'm addicted to Princess stories, two years ago for Nanowrimo, I started a Princess story of my own. It contains a royal quest, a very important book, and dragons.

Here's the prologue: (Sorry about the formatting, I've struggled with it all morning, and this seems to be the default setting)

My parents were sure I was going to be a boy. They were completely dumbfounded when the midwife uttered those fateful words, “It’s a girl!” My father paled, “Are you sure?” “Yes, Sir, I’m sure.” She handed me to the Queen and stepped back, unsure of what to do in this situation. She didn’t want anyone blaming the messenger for bad news. The Queen cuddled me to her, whispering in my ear lovingly. “A girl….what will we call her?” my father sputtered. “Raphaela,” whispered my mother. She reached out and grabbed my father’s arm. “We’ll just add an A to the name. Look at our daughter, isn’t she beautiful?” He looked at me for the first time. “She’s so tiny, but beautiful, just like her mother.” “Then she’ll have you wrapped around her finger in no time.” He leaned forward to kiss her head musing, “I wonder what the people will think.” He sighed, the tender moment gone, the King in charge. “Let the councilor in.” The midwife dropped a curtsy and opened the door. Councilman Emrick rushed in, “Well?” “Councilman Emrick meet the new heir, my daughter Raphaela.” Councilman Emrick looked shaken. “A girl! Are you crazy? Sir, there hasn’t been a female heir in our history since…well you know.” “Councilman Emrick, I know, but look at her. She’ll make an excellent queen one day.” Councilman Emrick couldn’t help thinking that the King was wrong, the people would revolt. He bowed out of the room murmuring that he’d make sure everything was ready for the celebration of the new heir. The queen frowned, “Was that wise dear?” "What?” “Telling Councilman Emrick that your daughter will rule?” “Why ever not?” “You know as well as I do, darling, that she’s forbidden to rule.” “Clearly that law will have to be changed.”

Now for the books:

Princess Diaries: One of the reasons I became a teen librarian - what a fun entertaining series. I love Mia and Michael.



Graceling: I loved this book for the strength of Katsa, her courage, her determination, and her honor. Plus it's an amazing love story.


Forgive My Fins: I LOVED this tale (and the sequel, which is also amazing is due out in June!) Lily's a mermaid princess in the water, but on land, she's just another girl in high school. Read my review and book trailer


Princess for Hire: A super fun read! I Love how Desi goes against policy and accidentally changes the lives of the real Princesses. Can't wait to read the next book - Royal Treatment. Read my review


Nobody's Princess: A great historical fiction about Helen of Troy. I love how Helen would rather learn how to fight than sew - my kind of heroine.


Seer and the Sword: I loved the magical turn of this book and the deadly plots and double crossings.


Princess of the Midnight Ball: A fairy tale retelling of the Twelve Dancing Princesses. A beautiful story and a Fantastic cover!!
Read my review:

Aurelia: I loved this book about a Princess with a deadly enemy. Her life is in danger and a young spy comes to flush out the person responsible for the attacks. The sequel Exile is just out now.
Read my review

Dragonfly: I LOVED this book - it was simply beautiful. Princess Taoshira and Prince Ramil become betrothed for the purposes of an alliance. Neither are interested in the marriage. However, before the ceremony takes place, they are both kidnapped.


Dealing with Dragons: I loved how different Cimorene is and how she refuses to be proper and runs away out of sheer boredom to live with a dragon.
View my Book Trailer


What books do you love involving royals?