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Not about Kate and Wills, but just as intriguing

By Staff | Mar 26, 2015

Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan, the bloggers behind the fashion website, Go Fug Yourself, and authors of two young adult novels, “Spoiled” and “Messy” tell the not-so-fairy-tale story of a college student who meets a prince in “The Royal We.”

American Bex Porter is lucky to have gotten a chance to go to Oxford for a semester. A twin, she has always done everything with her sister, Lacey, but now it’s Bex’s turn to do something completely on her own in a far away country while Lacey goes to medical school. The first student she meets from her dorm room is a handsome man named Nick. She soon learns that Nick isn’t just a college student, he’s actually the royal heir to the throne. Bex is friendly but not smitten with Nick, and she and the others from her dorm section, her new friend Cilla, the funny Gaz, the snooty Bea, the handsome Clive and the oddball Joss, all of whom have some sort of friend of the family ties with Nick, look out for him and try to keep overzealous students and the papparazzi away. Bex soon starts dating Clive, but when she and Nick begin bonding over late night marathon TV sessions, she begins to wonder if there is something else there between them. She and Clive are soon over, and when she finally decides to tell Nick how she feels, he feels the same! Fairy tale romance, right?

Except as the future heir to the throne, Nick can’t just date anyone. When the royal family won’t let Nick go public with their relationship, they must pretend to be “just friends” in the public eye or even just a casual relationship, while Nick can be seen with the “proper” young women. Will the strain prove to be too much for their relationship? How long will Bex be Nick’s dirty secret? And even if they are allowed to go public, will the public, the Queen, or anyone ever truly approve? As time progresses and their relationship has some major ups and downs, can Bex come to terms with Nick the prince as well as Nick the man?

Bex is a sympathetic character that readers will love and want to see get her happily ever after. The supporting characters are all lively and well-developed, and the central romance is well done. The story, while about the romance between Bex and Nick, also delves deeply into the darker side of fame and the toll it takes on all of their characters’ relationships when their every move is scrutinized. It’s a great page-turner.