Reviews with content warning for Death of parent - How to Catch a Queen

The book was cute, but I didn't love that so much of the plot was revealed in the synopsis. The last quarter of the book was very confusing and didn't outline Njaza's history clearly for me. In fact, the persistent mystery of what happened to the queens felt very low stakes and not engaging.

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bisexualwentworth's review against another edition

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Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

I hate it when fiction glorifies monarchies, especially in modern contexts, but this book, with its focus on decolonization and progress, really pulled it off.

This is a romance book, and the romance was fine. I wasn’t totally invested in their love or whatever, but I was VERY invested in their partnership and their growth, and I did like them together.

I found the rest of the plot more compelling than the romance, but luckily for me, there was a great mix of both. Shanti, with her laser-sharp focus on her goal of becoming a queen, and Sanyu, with his insecurities and anxieties about being king, were both interesting and compelling.

I thought the handling of abuse and power and patriarchy in this book was pretty good, though the nature of it being a romance means that things got resolved a little too neatly.

The Njazan politics were super interesting and maybe my favorite part of the book, though some of the religious stuff got wrapped up too quickly as well.

I would absolutely read another book set in Njaza. I’d love to see the traditional triad marriage play out in a polyamorous romance novel if the author ever decides to write something like that!

I probably should have started with the Reluctant Royals series since this book has a lot of references to those ones, but I’m planning to read the second Runaway Royals one next because that one is sapphic. Alyssa Cole has done a really impressive job of creating a whole network of fictional countries with fictional monarchies. I think it’s the most worldbuilding I’ve ever seen in a romance series, and I’m definitely here for it!

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lulyslibrary's review

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emotional hopeful inspiring medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

When Shanti finally gets her dream of becoming a queen, she doesn't expect her husband and his kingdom to see her as an outsider and a temporary figure. King Sanyu is in the struggle between grief and fear. He is grieving his father's death while simultaneously having to take over ruling a country on its last leg. During the day Sanyu and Shanti don't engage but at night Shanti wears her crown while Sanyu opens up about his need for direction. When things don't go according to plan, Shanti is on the run away from her husband and his kingdom. Sanyu must risk the unknown and figure out how to lead while also catching his queen.

This is the first book in the Runaway Royals series by Alyssa Cole. This is also my first experience reading an Alyssa Cole novel. While I loved Shanti and Sanyu's relationship when the book started progressing, the beginning was a bit awkward in the sense that I didn't feel as though the characters felt real. Shanti's want to be a queen and Sanyu's want to not be a ruler at all was an odd dynamic to get used to. However, once I got past the first 100 pages I felt as though the characters came to life. The writing was great and I really enjoyed the different layered conversations about masculinity and power that were woven into the story. The sex scenes were good but not anything especially exciting (this is coming from an avid romance/erotica reader so if this is not your main genre of choice I think you'll find the sex scenes detailed and well written). Overall Cole wrote a terrific romance that had levels of fluff, sex, and multi-layered conversations of current societal issues.

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aqtbenz's review

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emotional lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

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honeybeatslibrary's review

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful lighthearted mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

I was super late to this book but I'm so glad I read it. I loved the concept of a young lady deciding she was going to be a literal queen and making it happen, and while there were cheesy predictable moments in the story it was really a story that outlined how family pressure, grief and trauma not only impacts an individual but an entire nation. I'm a royal watcher outside of books and I can't help but notice the ties to how a monarch's personal trauma informs the way he governs his people (*stares in Prince Charles and William gotta deal with a whole lotta personal trauma before they have any opportunity to be any kind of decent monarchs and also must address the harm colonization has on countries especially countries that have large POC populations...but I digress). this was a really fun read and I can't wait for the next one :)

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caseythereader's review

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emotional funny hopeful reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

- Cole is the queen (ha) of meaty romance novels. Political jockeying! International relations! Unpacking toxic masculinity! Library archive maintenance! It's all here in HOW TO CATCH A QUEEN.
- I was so pleasantly surprised at how big a role characters from the Reluctant Royals series played in this book! So nice to see them all on the page again.
- I feel like it took a little too long for Sanyu to catch on to what Shanti was asking for, but at the same time I was happy to watch him unlearn so much.

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keatynbergsten's review

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hopeful inspiring lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I enjoyed this well enough but didn't love it the way I expected to based on the recommendations I had gotten. Overall a fun read but I just couldn't get super invested in the love story and felt like it was lacking something.

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paolina's review against another edition

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funny lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I didn't enjoy this book as much as Alyssa Cole's other books, but still a solid novel. If you like your romances with a hearty dose of social critique, her books are for you!

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