I received this book for free from Loveswept in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Royal Scandal by Marquita ValentineAlso in this series: Royal Affair
Series: Royals In Exile #1
Published by Loveswept on January 24th 2017
Genres: Contemporary Romance, Royalty
Pages: 176
Format: eARC
Source: Loveswept
Fairy tales do come true—and so do tabloid scandals! Bestselling author Marquita Valentine kicks off a juicy contemporary romance series with a novel about a prince whose best-laid plans go deliciously awry when he marries the maid next door.
Forced to flee to the United States with his siblings after their parents’ assassination, Crown Prince Colin Sinclair takes it upon himself to become the caretaker of his family while hiding out near Charlotte, North Carolina. But after a decade in hiding, the secret’s out and Parliament demands that Colin wed a princess of their choosing. Unwilling to play their game, Colin decides to marry an American instead, and he has the perfect candidate in mind.
As a home-service professional, Della Hughes doesn’t believe in storybook endings. But when her best friend and secret crush reveals that he’s a flesh-and-blood prince, she doesn’t know what to think. Still, she’ll do anything for Colin, including becoming his wife—in name only, of course. But when their plans to stay purely platonic go by the wayside, their fake honeymoon turns all too real. After a week of white-hot nights, Della can no longer deny her feelings—not with a happily ever after so tantalizingly close.
Summary
When crown Prince Colin Sinclair’s parents were assassinated, both he and his siblings were placed into exile and had to take care of each other in American while trying to figure out a way to get back in the good graces of Parliament, so that his sister can rule. Colin knows that it won’t be easy but will do everything he can to see that his family are placed in their rightful place as they were meant to be. With two infant brothers to take care of, he hires on a local, to help be a caretaker for them. Delia Hughes is a home service maid, and even though she has always had feelings for Colin, she will do anything for him and his two boys. And when the secret is out, and he is in need of a wife out of convenience, she accepts not knowing what will happen in the future or what Colin expects of her. The last thing she ever imagined would be falling in love with a prince.
Plot and Story Line
This is a classic maid falls in love with royalty scenario but I enjoyed certain details that this author shows in this one. This royal family was fun, their bantering with each other pretty lively and you quickly fall in love with each of them, especially the youngest two boys. This royal family rules by the female, which I found to be very interesting. Even though Colin is the Crown Prince, it is his sister who is the true future Queen. In the beginning of the story, we see Colin and our heroine meet and not under the best of “circumstances” but you sense the chemistry flare between them. And then we skip ahead ten years later. Colin and Delia are still working together, but Colin is very close to having his family return to their home. Now Colin and Delia have had ten years of working together closely, so we sense that they already care for each other. But then Colin has a idea, and at first its a platonic agreement, but both of them soon realize they have too much chemistry to keep it that way. Now I found this story to be quite charming at times, the characters were easy to love but the actual romance fell a bit flat for me. I couldn’t quite feel anything from their romance, which was a bit disappointing however I was fascinated with every other aspect of the story. So guaranteed I will be picking up book 2 because I can’t wait to see how this family gets back their kingdom.
The Cover
Interesting…I like the yellow and her shoes are gorgeous!!
Overall View
Royal Scandal is a lively and charming romance that will leave you wanting more from this delectable family and their antics!!
This sounds really cute. I’ll have to add it to my ever growing list.
I’m glad you liked the family-that holds a lot of promise for the rest of the series, even if this one wasn’t perfect! I tend to enjoy Valentine’s writing overall so i am looking forward to starting this one!
Sometimes a maid falls in love with a prince story is just what is needed. I am glad that this one worked out for you. Great review!
There seems to be a lot of princes around lately
This looks like so much fun! I read The Bachelor Auction which was Cinderella Inspired and really disliked it. This seems more like me.
It is too bad the romance fell flat since the other elements worked so well for you. Hopefully the next installment works better. You do have a “thing” for royal romances! 😉
No matter how classic or formulaic a royal romance is, I really enjoy them occasionally because I love my fairytale romances. 🙂