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nalia_danger's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia
Moderate: Death of parent and Grief
morethanmylupus's review against another edition
lighthearted
medium-paced
2.5
I really expected to like this one, because it sounded like a fun romance. The problem was, we've already got the American Reign series and Red, White, and Royal Blue... and as a result, this one didn't feel like it was breaking any ground and it paled in comparison. In addition, so many of the characters seemed like actual members of the Britis royalty with such minor tweaks that there was no real character building done by the author for them. Imagining a royalty that never existed is fine, but in this case it didn't feel well fleshed out and the world building was full of plot holes that could have been better thought of. Overall, it was cute but it doesn't stand out and I think there are better options for this kind of story. Also, we know the book is set in Canada, we don't need the word maple every other page to remind us of this, that was a pet peeve that became more and more annoying as the book went on.
A huge thank you to the author and the publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia
_lish_'s review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Homophobia
wrendezvoused's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Grief, and Homophobia
Moderate: Cancer, Transphobia, and Sexism
Minor: Deadnaming, Colonisation, Child death, and Abandonment
eloise648's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Death of parent, Homophobia, and Stalking
Moderate: Medical content, Child death, Classism, Cancer, and Terminal illness
Minor: Toxic relationship and Toxic friendship
thewellreadlabrador's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Minor: Homophobia and Death of parent
melissamarie's review against another edition
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Homophobia and Death of parent
pey333's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Classism and Homophobia
Moderate: Cursing and Death of parent
Minor: Transphobia and Child death
thebookpaiges's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Death of parent, and Colonisation
Moderate: Cursing, Panic attacks/disorders, and Child death
betweentheshelves's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I think I'm really going to give this 2.5 stars because that was...a book. Lol. At the beginning, I could suspend disbelief for the Canadian monarchy thing. Sure, maybe it's something that could happen. However, it doesn't seem like the author did a lot of reserach into what it actually takes to establish a monarchy. Most of the details of the monarchy didn't feel remotely realistic, and they acted like it was something that had a long standing tradition. Which, it does in England (where the King and Queen came from. Well, kind of. The Queen was American which is why they left the English monarchy). But not in Canada. Seemed like they could have done things to make it better.
But I digress! Aside from the very bizarre details of the Canadian monarchy, the rest of the book didn't really seem to redeem it. We get two points of view, one from Edward and one from Billy, and it was difficult to tell who was speaking. I had to flip back multiple times to figure out whose chapter I was in. The side characters honestly weren't all that much better, minus Pax who I loved. Pax was one of the only redeeming qualities of this book, honestly. They were great.
Also, I had a problem with the timeline of this book. You're telling me if the monarchy suddenly found out that their long lost son was alive, they would just immediately re-instate him as Crown prince? Like, all of this stuff happens in about two months time, and everyone is surprised that Billy doesn't know the expectations of being a royal?? That's a lot to learn!! Not to mention, Edward's plan to sabotage him also seemed kind of out of left field. Couldn't he have, like, talked to his parents first? His parents who just suddenly have this new son, and seem to prioritize the new son over the one they've raised from birth?? It was just an overall weird dynamic, and I didn't understand it.
I don't know, guys, this is just a bizarre book. It doesn't fit any of the comp titles (Princess Diaries, Parent Trap, Red, White & Royal Blue) in my opinion. I can't say I would recommend it unless you're ready to exclaim "WTF??!?" every few chapters.
But I digress! Aside from the very bizarre details of the Canadian monarchy, the rest of the book didn't really seem to redeem it. We get two points of view, one from Edward and one from Billy, and it was difficult to tell who was speaking. I had to flip back multiple times to figure out whose chapter I was in. The side characters honestly weren't all that much better, minus Pax who I loved. Pax was one of the only redeeming qualities of this book, honestly. They were great.
Also, I had a problem with the timeline of this book. You're telling me if the monarchy suddenly found out that their long lost son was alive, they would just immediately re-instate him as Crown prince? Like, all of this stuff happens in about two months time, and everyone is surprised that Billy doesn't know the expectations of being a royal?? That's a lot to learn!! Not to mention, Edward's plan to sabotage him also seemed kind of out of left field. Couldn't he have, like, talked to his parents first? His parents who just suddenly have this new son, and seem to prioritize the new son over the one they've raised from birth?? It was just an overall weird dynamic, and I didn't understand it.
I don't know, guys, this is just a bizarre book. It doesn't fit any of the comp titles (Princess Diaries, Parent Trap, Red, White & Royal Blue) in my opinion. I can't say I would recommend it unless you're ready to exclaim "WTF??!?" every few chapters.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Colonisation, Classism, and Homophobia
Moderate: Death of parent