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lauracadcock 's review for:
Codename Charming
by Lucy Parker
I was really looking forward to this book after loving the first one. After a slow start, it picked up and was just as great as I was hoping. Lucy Parker is a gem!
Pet, sister to Dominic from Parker's previous book Battle Royal, is the heroine here. She is a PA to Johnny, the new spouse of the princess. After an innocent picture sparks rumors about there being something scandalous going on between the two of them, a plan is hatched for Pet to fake date Matthias, the palace bodyguard. Of course, we all know how these things go!
Matthias was probably the best overprotective grump I've read. This trope can quickly feel gross to me, but he only wanted to keep her safe and happy, and I'm happy to say it was portrayed in the most non-toxic way. Pet was a perfect sunshine compliment to his grump, but she was also layered and had a tough backstory. Did the book have a flimsy fake dating scenario? Absolutely, but it ended up being a cute excuse for these two to show intimacy that would have taken them years to get to. I loved them as a couple and how they championed each other. I loved the side characters and how much they added to the story. I also thought Parker did a much better job in this book at narrowing down those side stories. Battle Royal (which I adored) had soooo much going on, but this book focused more on Pet and Matthias as a couple.
I love Lucy Parker. I'll definitely read whatever she writes. She's a great under the radar, but super solid romance author.
Pet, sister to Dominic from Parker's previous book Battle Royal, is the heroine here. She is a PA to Johnny, the new spouse of the princess. After an innocent picture sparks rumors about there being something scandalous going on between the two of them, a plan is hatched for Pet to fake date Matthias, the palace bodyguard. Of course, we all know how these things go!
Matthias was probably the best overprotective grump I've read. This trope can quickly feel gross to me, but he only wanted to keep her safe and happy, and I'm happy to say it was portrayed in the most non-toxic way. Pet was a perfect sunshine compliment to his grump, but she was also layered and had a tough backstory. Did the book have a flimsy fake dating scenario? Absolutely, but it ended up being a cute excuse for these two to show intimacy that would have taken them years to get to. I loved them as a couple and how they championed each other. I loved the side characters and how much they added to the story. I also thought Parker did a much better job in this book at narrowing down those side stories. Battle Royal (which I adored) had soooo much going on, but this book focused more on Pet and Matthias as a couple.
I love Lucy Parker. I'll definitely read whatever she writes. She's a great under the radar, but super solid romance author.