Those who enjoy historical, women’s fiction should definitely mark their calendars for this title’s release date. It was a fun and absorbing read set in both Australia and England.

Protagoras Blase Hill grew up poor in Sydney. She has promise and wants a career. With the help of one of her teachers she secures a newspaper job. Blaise’s career will take her far, all the way to being the Royal Correspondent of the title.

Blaise’s early jobs taught her a lot about fashion so names like Yves St. Laurent, Mary Quant and Cecil Beaton make appearances in the novel. Her later career puts her in the midst of mid-century history; readers follow her as she covers Princess Margaret and Antony Armstrong-Jones. Readers also meet John Profumo and Christine Keeler, and learn about spies including Kim Philby. It makes for a fascinating background.

This novel also has a romantic story line, family and friendships. Will Blaise find love with Charlie who seems to have it all; this includes a high government position, a family seat, charm and more. But…there is also the mysterious Adam Rule. He knows a dark secret from Blaise’s past; will he use this against her? Readers also get to know Blaise’s sister Ivy who contracted polio and the close friends with whom Blaise lives in England. Readers will be turning the pages as they await the resolution of the novel’s several strands.

Ms. Joel writes an interesting note at the end of the novel sharing her inspiration and resources. This background places the book in context.

The Royal Correspondent reads easily and I always looked forward to picking it up. Here is a good escapist read.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this title. All opinions are my own.

What a pleasure! Extensive research by the author sets this book apart from other historical fiction. A Sydney girl from the rough side of town gets a job with a Sydney newspaper, the Clarion. Through hard work and a nose for the news, Blaise Hill becomes a cadet reporter in a field reserved for men. She also gets mixed up in a murder, covering up for an old childhood friend from the streets who kills a drug dealer in self-defense.

Blaise hides the murder weapon in her handbag and is wondering how to get rid of it when a handsome and sexy stranger, Adam, appears out of nowhere and, claiming to be a friend of her old pal, takes the bloody knife off Blaise's hands. Blaise is very attractive to Adam but knows almost nothing about him.

To Blaise's disappointment, she is reassigned to the Women's Pages at the Clarion and given a Devil-Wears-Prada style makeover. The newly glamorous Blaise falls into an exciting gig covering the royal family for the Advocate in London, beginning with the royal ball celebrating the impending royal wedding of Princess Margaret. When scandal threatens to envelop Margaret's new husband, Blaise is determined to protect her, and earns the queen's gratitude.

Even with this plum assignment, Blaise dreams of covering "hard news" just like a male reporter, but life among the London elite definitely has its pleasures. She befriends a rich baronet, Charles, who wants her to marry him and become a lady one day (complete with large country house). Charles tells her that Adam is a very bad sort. Who should she believe, and how can she keep either man from getting in the way of her ambitions in journalism? The solution at the end of the novel is surprising and eminently satisfying.

This book is a natural for lovers of the TV series "The Crown" and an ideal choice for book clubs. Wonderfully plotted and paced, the novel only lags in a couple of places when Blaise is between assignments and feeling indecisive; otherwise The Royal Correspondent provides nonstop enjoyment for the reader.

So this book has my favourite fictitious character- Blaise. Such a determined and relatable person. I would though like to say that the narrative was more like a YA fiction. That was the sore point as per me. The journalism angle impressed me and the way everything worked out in the plot. There were various creative elements in the book that I liked a lot. The talent of the writer is clearly visible,Immersive and evocative, worth a read. Like feminism, journalism and a dash of history? Then pick this up!

Blaise Hil is determined to be a journalist. Hailing from the wrong side of the tracks and dealing with a sister who has polio, she throws herself into her first job at an Australian newspaper. Working her way up and battling sexism, Blaise finds herself in new situations, sometimes in the wrong place at the right time. Like the scene of a murder. But this has her crossing paths with a man to whom she found herself magnetically drawn. Adam Rule is a bit of a black sheep, a bad boy who is a mystery, making him all the more intriguing. But he helps Blaise when he can, feeding Blaise the stories that get her noticed and promoted at the paper until the opportunity to go to London and cover the royal wedding of Princess Margaret and Tony Armstrong-Jones. What's meant to be a two-week stay turns into a permanent post. And the romance begins - thus turning from a feminist tale to your typical who will she end up with page-turner. If you don't question anything and just read The Royal Correspondent for the royal engagements, you'll get caught up in the pageantry and enjoy the romance. If the word "frock" throws you and you have no time for damsels in distress, choose a different book.

Anything that mentions ROYAL and I must know what is going on! I am sad to report this is my first Joel novel but it most certainly not be my last! Women continue to be faced with difficulties and I am such a champion of Blaise and her struggle to be taken seriously. She was such a well developed character and this book obviously took a lot of time to research, Joel is a master story teller and this book was evidence of her cleverness!

I really enjoyed reading about Blaise and her personal fight to become a real news reporter in London in the 50s. She is a young woman from a poor family in Sydney, Australia whose hard work lands her reporting on the royals in London England. While pursuing her dreams of reporting on real news and challenging normal roles for women her hard work ethic, good morals, sweet disposition and gumption get her in the middle of news action. The story has romance and a hint of Pride and Prejudice esque misjudgments with lots of fashion, a little royal history and a few mysteries. It was an easy read, well written, a great story with a few unexpected twists and was nice and long so I could savor the enjoyment of it. At one point I had to stop reading (life has a way of getting in the way) and thought I was much farther along, then realized that I was only about a third of the way through the book and was so excited that there was so much more to come. It sure didn't disappoint!!
Thank you Alexandra Joel and Harper Perennial Publishing for allowing me the chance to read and review this book.

This fun novel captures the beginnings of the Swinging Sixties in Sydney and especially London. Blaise Hill is a very young, poor woman trying to become a newspaper journalist in late 1950's and early 1960's where she encounters barriers and ultimately opportunities. Her path sends her to mod London where she encounters success, intrigue and the fashion of London of that era. It's a good story, marred slightly by the unbelievable romance but that is not really a problem. I hope Alexandra Joel sets more books in this era, maybe extending some of the characters in this one. Highly recommended.

I was pleasantly surprised by The Royal Correspondent. Typically I’m not attracted to period pieces but there was something about Blaise’s story that attracted me, and the cover was so simple and elegant I had to give it a read! Thanks to NetGalley I was able to read this beauty!
Blaise is a very strong, interesting, and overall wonderful female lead with dreams of becoming a respected journalist. When presented the opportunity that could make her career she takes it, but not all is sunshine and rainbows in London.
What I love most is how real this novel feels. Blaise makes mistakes, overcomes adversity, deals with heartache, just as any person would and it’s awesome to see such an authentic representation of that in literature.
I’ve already recommended this book to several people, and I’m recommending it officially here! I hope everyone loves this story and the world Joel builds. While it is of course historical fiction, the references to real world people makes the novel fun and engaging for the reader. I had a lot of fun reading this and I’m thinking about starting Joel’s other work, The Paris Model next!

ROYAL CORRESPONDENT is a mostly breezy mix of historical fiction and romance. It’s the 1950s, and Blaise is desperate to become a serious journalist and leave her backwater Australian town, but she has to pay her dues first. She starts as the first female copy boy ( girl) at The Clarion. On her way home from work, she witnesses a childhood friend kill someone in self-defense and helps him cover his tracks. As a result of this rash action, she both meets the mysterious Adam Rule AND proves her worth at the paper. She’s promoted to reporter, but only for the women’s section of the paper. Initially, Blaise is disappointed in this assignment, but eventually becomes both a keen observer of fashion, and quite a fashion plate herself. She even gets assigned to cover Princess Margaret’s wedding in England, where she again crosses path with the dashing Mr.Rule, the famous costume designer Cecil Beaton, as well as MP Charles Ashton, who is seemingly besotted with Blaise. Intrigue, romance and danger all ensue.
I really enjoyed this book, even if some parts of it seemed entirely implausible. Blaise is a very richIy drawn character, and you can’t help but root for her success in the “boy’s club” environment of journalism. I am a sucker for a good love story, and ROYAL CORRESPONDENT doesn’t disappoint. I also enjoyed Blaise’s relationships with her sister and girlfriends, which come across as very authentic.

Part romance, mystery and murder whodunit. Blaise Hill lives in Australia and dreams of becoming a journalist which being the 60's is a hard job for a woman to have. She lands a job as a copy boy for her local newspaper sure at any minute she is going to be assigned a hard hitting news article to write. She does a good job and gets to do some reporting. She is then assigned to the Women's Pages on the fifth floor which is where all the female reporters work. She then is sent to London to fill in as the Royal Correspondent due to an accident with the regular reporter. She is does such a good job that she is offered the position permanently and accepts. Once in London her life goes off the rails in spectacular fashion. I really enjoyed the story and the author's notes at the end to give insight into her characters.

Blaise wants nothing more than to break into the world of hard-hitting journalism, but that is not easy in the 1960’s world of gruff newspaper men. But Blaise is up to the task. As long as being witness to a crime boss’s murder and handsome and mysterious Adam Rule don’t get in the way. When she gets the chance to be the royal correspondent in London, Blaise feels like she might just get her dream.
With an interesting look into the world of print journalism during the 1960’s, this book shows a woman’s fight to be more than what society dictates of women. Blaise is a strong woman who consistently shows the men that she can do more than they expect out of her. Although the book was slow at times in the middle, it makes up for it during the rest of the time when you are sucked into the love interest for Adam, the excitement of the newsroom and pursuing stories, and the scandals that are breaking in the royal circles. The themes of perseverance, identity and loyalty all make this a relatable story.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. I really enjoyed this book, it was nice to read about this time period. All of the characters are pretty dynamic and relatable. The only real problem I had with it was that all of the plot twists I was able to figure out before I was 60% of the way through this book.

Blaise, ayoung woman from the bad side of Sydney, Australia, decides she isn't going to rely on a man, and must have a career of her own. Deciding on journalism, she works her way through the ranks at the local newspaper, starting out as the only female copy "boy", and eventually works her way up to the womens' pages. Happy to be working, but wanting more than writing up fashion shows, she jumps when she's offered the chance to travel to London and report on Princess Margaret's wedding. Landing in London at the very start of the swinging sixties, Blaise not only covers the wedding and becomes a permanent royal correspondent, she also befriends Christine Keeler and helps to break some of the biggest news stories in Britain. There's a Mr. Darcy/Mr. Wickham type love triangle with two men she meets, and enough inside scoop on the fashion industry and the royal family to keep any anglophile happy. I highly recommend this book!