Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. As you know, I have read several books about British royalty and namely Queen Elizabeth II. This is one story I haven’t read. An account of the relationship Elizabeth had with Phillip starting the first time they met and ending at their wedding. I think a lot of the personal conversations the author took a lot of liberties with but the story was good just the same. #beforethecrown #floraharding #june2020

Thanks to netgalley for an early copy in return for an honest review.
What a fabulously beautiful book.
Giving the insight to the young queen to be very interesting and interesting read highly enjoyable.

This is a fun book where you would hope that this is how Price Phillip and the Queen's relationship played out - of course, we will never truly know.
The author richly describes the love story between two young royals and all of their ups and downs at the beginning of their long relationship.
It was a nice and easy read and I was a little bit sad when the story ended at the beginning of their marriage.

I hope Flora Harding goes on to write a sequel.

In December 1943, at Windsor Castle, the Royal Family gathered for a performance of Aladdin, starring Princess Elizabeth, heir to the throne, in the eponymous role. Despite her nerves, and natural shyness, Elizabeth’s primary concern is not forgetting her lines but whether the audience includes Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark. The dashing naval officer had much impressed the 13-year-old Elizabeth. As the war rages on, the now 17-year-old Elizabeth’s thoughts turn to the future, and one that she desires includes Philip. But there are both obstacles and massive opposition to such a plan.

Before the Crown is Flora Harding’s fictional account of the courtship between Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.

Was it a love match or a marriage of state? Harding’s story considers both of these scenarios and others. The focus switches between Elizabeth and Philip’s perspectives, as they reflect not just on their motivations for marriage, but their thoughts on each other’s motives for marrying.

One of the more interesting contrasts is each others’ perspectives on the opposition the proponents of the match. The novel progresses smoothly through the courtship, considerations and reconsiderations, and the cliched realisation in the final chapters.

I enjoyed Before the Crown as an uncomplicated and easy read. My main criticism is that Harding delves deep into the reflections of the protagonists, but we seldom become part of the events. It’s more tell than show. But it works overall and I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys period romance more so than historical fiction.

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced reader copy to review. Before the Crown by Flora Harding was a fun and cozy read for me the first couple days of my staycation. I’m not usually a fan of historical fiction where the main characters are real people (I like it better when fictional main characters are set in a historical setting). But in this case while the author takes liberty describing specific events, conversations, and what is going on in their heads -- the overarching story is true. I also like it when a book makes me curious to read or learn more about something. In this case Queen Elizabeth’s 21st birthday is one of the events in the novel and is included in a way that stays true to what really happened so I could go find and listen to her actual speech. This is a great book for those who enjoy reading about the Royals and would like an easy and entertaining story covering the time during and just after the war leading up to the royal wedding. This book is really better than 3 stars for me but not up to 4.

such a beautiful story. feels like a behind the scenes of royalty's favorite couple. mesmerizing and compelling.

I felt that there was a lot I knew from watching The Crown but some things surprised me. The King seemed a bit more cranky and not the loving Papa I knew from The Crown but in the book he was really a background character as was the Queen and Margaret. I thought the story of Elizabeth's and Phillip's love story was sweet. She first noticed him when she was 13. She comes across as very kind and that was mentioned often in the book. She took her duty to the country very seriously even though this wasn't the life that she planned or wanted. Falling for someone like Phillip seemed out of character. He was brash, arrogant and didn't want to conform to the rules that Royals needed to follow. At first I didn't care for him. At times I felt like he was throwing tantrums but in the end I grew to like him more.

Thank you to Netgalley and Harper Collins UK for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I love most anything about the royal family and this book did not disappoint. This is a respectfully written book about the courtship between Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip of Greece. He easily won her heart, but he had to fight the monarchy for their approval to marry her. I enjoyed learning a little about what their relationship might have been like before the events of the show The Crown, which begins with their wedding. I read it very quickly because I just couldn’t put it down. I will definitely be reading it again!
Thank you, NetGalley for the advanced copy.

I am not a big follower of all things Royal. That being said, it is a sweet fictional love story. So how much is fiction and how much is true? With both of these people still being alive, it’s hard to say. I thought that parts of the story drug along and then parts were just given a quick thought. The first third was hard for me to get through,the second third was a little better and by the final third, it was better. I admire the authors tenacity to tackle this subject and I would read another by Ms. Harding. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read an advance copy for my honest review.

Before the Crown by Flora Harding is the fascinating story of the unusual courtship of Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip in the wake of the Second World War. Fans of The Crown will be particularly enchanted by this intimate look at history in the making, and one of the most enduring relationships that the monarchy has ever known.

Philip is a dashing young lieutenant in the British Navy when he catches the eye of a young Elizabeth. When they meet again years later, the young princess is pleased to find that she is just as intrigued by the handsome prince as she once was, and a tentative friendship is formed, encouraged by the urging of Philip's uncle, Lord Mountbatten. But as the friendship begins to evolve into something more, Elizabeth must temper her own feelings with the duties of the crown, and she wonders if Philip will ever accept marriage as more than an arrangement of convenience.

This is an engaging, thoroughly researched novel that had me utterly charmed and enthralled from the very start. Highly recommended.

Many thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter for this ARC.

Before the Crown by Flora Harding receives 4 out of 5 stars from me! This books tell the story of Elizabeth as a princess falling in love with Philip, getting engaged and ultimately marrying him (I hope that's not a spoiler alert! 😉). I really enjoyed the viewpoints switching between Elizabeth and Philip to see what led to their marriage and get a view of how WWII and its aftermath impacted both of them. There were some slow moments and Elizabeth was a character I found difficult to relate to... but I guess that's not surprising since she's royalty! I appreciated the depth the author gave to Elizabeth and Philip's perspective on their romance and would definitely recommend fans of The Crown and British royalty pick up this book in September!

This was a wonderful historical novel. It was fascinating and entertaining from start to finish. I would definitely recommend this book!

This book has been written on the coat tails of The Crown series on Netflix. I’ve read better Mills and Boon!! Also our Queen reigns over the whole country, she is not the Queen of England. I wonder if you really want me to put this review on Amazon?

Thank you to HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter and Netgalley for this ARC in return for my honest review. To say that I adored this book is an absolute understatement. Beautifully written, well crafted and researched. A must read for fans of The Crown.

Thank you to HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter and net galley for this ARC.

Any fans of The Crown will adore this read, set from 1943 sees the love story of Princess Elizabeth and Phillip which is a great insight before she became our Queen. I would love to know how close to fact this is. I felt a real connection with the characters and could almost feel myself at Windsor Castle, a place I've spent many Sunday afternoons wandering around.

The story is well researched and written so beautifully I didn't want it to end. I could read about the Royal Family all day.

I hope there is a second installment.

I do enjoy a solid royal story and this one did not disappoint. The author leads us through the romance of Elizabeth II and Phillip, and the complications they faced once they announced their intent to marry. Of course, this is historical fiction – who knows what really happened between the two of them, especially from Phillip’s perspective. He was clearly pushed into the marriage by his uncle, so this story might be a bit of fantasy, although an enjoyable one.
As the title indicates, this story occurs before Elizabeth becomes queen, and really only goes up until the wedding. I would have liked to see a bit more after the wedding, since the couple was married for several years before Elizabeth inherited the crown, but that is a small criticism. This is well written and something fun for royal fans and historical fiction buffs. I recommend.

Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book! It tells the factionalized story of Prince Phillip and Queen Elizabeth’s courtship and engagement.

Stars: More like 3.5 but I rounded up. This was a very quick read. A pleasant diversion. Very chaste.

Wishes: I wish there would have been a little more romance actually! I personally have a difficult time reconciling what might have been with characters who are still alive and kicking.

What a pleasure it was to read this charming and heartfelt historical romance, based on the life of Princess Elizabeth, before she wore the crown as Queen. The story is as pure as the lavender soap that the Princess loved, yet never have I felt so romantically moved.

By telling the story in the present tense, we become Elizabeth’s shadow as she lives through the devastation of the WWII years, harboring her love for an ambitious navy officer, Prince Phillip of Greece. (We also get to peer in to Phillip’s heart as well.) Princess Elizabeth takes a deep breath before she begins the long walk down the aisle at Westminster on her wedding day, amid the roll of drums and trumpet voluntary. But, she has all ready faced a long journey to her wedding day and she has grown stronger for it.

Learning the everyday details of life at Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle and Balmoral was a pleasure. And we travel with the Princess and the royal family on the White Train during their visit to South Africa. I highly recommend this beautiful story. Thanks to NetGalley and One More Chapter for an advance digital review copy. This is my honest review.

It’s no secret that I love a royal themed book - this one is basically a prequel to The Crown. Set from 1943-1947, it follows Queen Elizabeth and Prince Phillip as they begin their courtship. A fun fictional tale set across real events, people and places but it did feel a little slow at times. While watching The Crown, I felt the show focused too much on Phillip and he seemed so whiny - reading this it helped me understand that he didn’t fully know what he was signing up for and actually made me more sympathetic towards him

This is a story of Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip of Greece, perhaps better known as Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh. It brings a time when Philip is courting Elizabeth and fighting an uphill battle of monarchy’s disapproval of him.

Windsor Castle, 1943. Seventeen-year-old Princess Elizabeth is eager to see Prince Philip. They’ve met a few years earlier in London and she’s been smitten with him ever since. Philip is a handsome lieutenant in the Royal Navy.

Elizabeth is ready for a change in her life. Philip has that rough-edged charm which is very attractive to her. She doesn’t want safe. It’s too stagnant. To Philip’s surprise, there is something about Elizabeth that he likes. His restless spirit actually enjoys her serious side and being reserved.

His cousin, David, objects to his current love interest, announcing that Philip would “rub everyone up the wrong way.”

Elizabeth is patient, dutiful, “careful not to rock the boat,” but now she is ready to act, to change her life.

I enjoyed very much those two young characters of royal bloodline, who are different, but they align on their understanding and finding balance between what is expected of them and what they wish for in life.

Elizabeth is stoic. A good mediator between her father and Philip. Skillful in being calmly persistent: listens, nods and asks again – wearing another person down. She likes to do something, instead of just talking about it. She wants to make a difference.

Despite being penniless, without proper wardrobe, no skill in shooting, having German relatives, Philip is very comfortable in his own skin. When needed he is capable of eloquent conversation. But I enjoyed his “rougher” side, his honest thoughts without a need of polished talk.

I especially relished Philip’s character, but I think it’s because more thoughts were given to him and we get to know him a bit more than Elizabeth. I delighted in the layers revealing Philip's childhood and how it made him a very self-reliant child. Her restful restrain “only makes him want to tell her more about his unsettled childhood. (…) It is as if some quality in her absorbs some of his restlessness and smooths down his rough edges.”

The historical background in respect to WWII and post-war is very light. There are some details in regards to royal protocols and traditions, which are interesting. But above-all, this story is character driven, which is magnificent. It carries so much depth and warmness, and closeness to the characters that you do not want to part from them.

The prose is beautiful with engaging dialogue and interestingly believable characters, making it a page-turner.