<b>2 stars</b>
<i>Thank you NetGalley and Avon Books UK for a copy of this ARC. All thoughts are my own.</i>
TW; mentioning of a toxic past relationship, workplace bullying

Prefacing this with I don't think I was the right reader for this book. I found the characters and storyline unlikeable, which is a shame because I had seen some reviews before signing up for this that sounded like a fun romance set in the Tower of London. And whilst the setting is correct, I don't think I laughed once.

Maggie as a main character was really unlikeable to me. She's in her mid-twenties and works in a ticket booth at the Tower of London. She also lives there with her beefeater Dad after her very toxic seven-year relationship ends. Maggie doesn't get to separate her home and work life all that well because everything happens in this one location. Whilst the author did this to create tension (through everyone knowing everyone's business, as one example) and a tight-knit community, I felt like it was all a bit foolish. Maggie has horrible workmates and a horrid boss, who if I worked for would be someone I reported to HR immediately as the workplace bullying is downright disrespectful. Equally though, Maggie is an awful employee, who despite being a grown adult, has no real understanding of responsibilities or boundaries. She goes around acting like the world hates her, and in the next breath, it owes her a favour. She's woe-is-me and then easily led off to drink the night away. If this was a once-off, perhaps it wouldn't be such a glaring personality flaw, but this is a rinse-and-repeat plot device and she sometimes doesn't even go to work at all depending on her emotions. I have no idea why she hasn't been fired yet. Because I don't understand drinking culture, perhaps I'm missing the point here a little. All the same, Maggie doesn't grow a backbone despite having several learnable opportunities to do so until the very end where of course everything works out for her. There's also the fact that she's rather immature, and acts more like a teen than a grown adult. This could be understood a little from how manipulative her ex was and how small her overall world is, along with the grief she still holds dearly over the loss of her mother, but I struggled to find anything charming about her. No one ever holds her accountable for her actions, and she had little character growth or relatability to me, so I lost interest in her very early into the book.

Freddie, the main love interest feels very two-dimensional. Sure, he has a hidden side to his identity for some time that gives him some intrigue (the revelation was okay), but he feels very robotic. This isn't because he's a royal guard with rigorous training to not react or slip out of his role, but because he's been created to react to Maggie's every whim. I didn't find him endearing or someone I wanted to get to know. Thus, the romance between the pair doesn't feel natural or paced well. It's long-winded and dramatic; "I wish Freddie would just love me!" - to confessions that feel very bold and reckless for someone so closed off and easily hurt. Watching Maggie allowing her ex to touch her even if it makes her uncomfortable, and then being so needy and impressionable with other men in the book (and having very poor female relationships) really felt ick to me. I don't think Maggie was equipped enough to be a functional person within a relationship and I would have found this all a bit more realistic and enjoyable had she worked on herself through therapy or a dedicated support network (that doesn't involve drinking with a bunch of men every time) throughout the novel. The ending, of course, gives her and Freddie a happily ever after, but it isn't one that felt satisfying to me.

Overall the storyline didn't make a lot of sense, because Maggie's character was all over the place. Humour was placed weirdly, and suddenly we're having a history lesson in the middle of a scene that had otherwise been lighthearted? I couldn't grasp the author's intention with this and admit to skimming some of the book. For full transparency, I would have DNF'd this book quite early on if I didn't sign up for it as an ARC to read. Two stars, because I finished it.

I didn't know how much I needed this book until I started reading it. A romance based in the Tower of London, yes please!

It is such a lighthearted and easy read that I would recommend to anyone wanting something to read on the beach or the side of the pool. Whilst it it foremost a rom com the author still brings in some history of the Tower of London. It is a place I have visited several times so can easily imagine the location perfectly.

This is a great debut novel from this author and I look forward to what will be coming in the future.

Thanks to Avon and NetGalley for the Arc in exchange for a honest review

This book drew me in with its funny premise and cute cover - and while I did somewhat enjoy reading it, I eventually chose to give it 2/5 stars.

If you're after an easy read with funny moments, a klutzy heroine and a Prince William dupe, then this is the book for you. Honestly, I think the main reason I didn't enjoy it as much is because I'm such a mood reader and this didn't deliver what I was looking for in a romcom. The cliches of the book became too much at times, and I kept inwardly cringing. Sometimes, things weren't really explained in much depth in order to keep the pace quick and light, but I really wanted to know more about our characters. Once we learn more about Freddie, we still don't get much of an insight into him as a person - what's his flaws, his favourite things, his embarrassing moments etc, which only feels so out of place because we are given access to so many of Maggie's inner thoughts and actions.

The writing itself was good, Clawson did keep me engaged until the end of the book even with the cliches, and I liked the insight into living in the Tower of London, and the history behind this; at those points of the book where we got to see what internal life living around so many military forces, I was definitely intrigued!

Overall, this is a cute, wholesome book that I think many people will enjoy for its humour, lightheartedness and quick pace - I just wasn't one of them!

Thanks to Avon Books and NetGalley for giving me early access to this ARC!

Cute, fun and entertaining. But Maggies constant clumsiness did wear thin a bit. I think this is for a much younger audience than myself.

I really enjoyed the idea and story line of this story from reading the cover. It had all of the makings of a great rom com fun story. But unfortunately for me this one fell flat. I felt as though the protagonist Maggie was a bit unrelatable. There were moments when I liked her and moments where I did not. In the authors defense, the history of the tower parts although a good lesson did not help me want to keep reading. I had to force myself to finish this story. Thank you netgalley and publisher for the advanced copy. I give this book 2 out of 5 stars.

Oh, boy. First, I should say that this was an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This might be a bit harsh, but it's honestly how I feel.

I first saw this book on TikTok and it looked so cute! It's completely different to what I usually read (okay, I actually can't remember the last time I read a contemporary romance), but the plot seemed lighthearted and fun and I had just been to the Tower of London in October.

Unfortunately, the book was cliche and over exaggerated.

It was hard to find Maggie likeable. She has to be the clumsiest person in the history of the world - to the point it's cringe-worthy. She can't even get into a car without bumping her head. (It's kind of a shock that she didn't choke every time she tried to breath) It got to the point that whenever she did anything, I was expecting it to go wrong.

I couldn't really see the appeal of Freddie other than he's hot. He's the king of Irish goodbyes, constantly just disappearing and then not contacting Maggie for months.

Maggie doesn't end up growing a backbone until 90% into the book. She finally stands up to her ex, telling him to shove off (the ex that she only left because her father pretty much forced her to after he cheated on her for the third time).

The coworkers are high school mean girl catty as are the rich people that she meets at a party. And Maggie is always the butt of their jokes. But I mean, with how she's always late for work or slacking off, I wouldn't like her as a coworker either.

Maggie is someone who doesn't like how her body looks yet she casts rude observations about others' weight. Here's a direct quote from the book:

'One particularly angular young woman steps forward, and I realise I can see each of her bones as if she were a skeleton wrapped up tightly in a sheet. She outstretches an arm that is so thin it looks as if holding up the weight of her hand for too long would make it snap in two.'

That's just rude!

Anyways, yeah. It might be a harsh review, but it's honest.

I tried , so hard to get into this one, but it just could not catch my intrest. I will try again later to read it and give it a more in depth review

I am completely split on this one. I enjoyed it, and that has to be uppermost in my review. It was a fun novel and it was engaging and romantic. I will say now that the many passages about the Tower of London, the building, the people, the everyday life there, the history (it is Gruffydd not Griffin!!) are stunning, warm, human and enlightening and I lapped all that up and loved every word. For that alone, it is clear, this romance exists. Thank you, Megan, for shedding light on this amazing place and what life really is like living there. I could read these little details all day and never tire of them.

I read some of the authors concerns for the reviews left for her via social media and I read the novel on that basis alone - what was everyone talking about and what upset Ms Clawson about these reviews? I'm nosy.

Maggie, the main protagonist, is plagued with anxiety and that seems to have made some readers get frustrated and see her as a very childish version of a late twenty-something female in the modern world. That wasn't an issue for me. Maggie has issues, and she has anxiety and she reacts appropriately - no issue for me there. Her antics are hilarious and one wants to give her a big hug and stern talking to. If Megan and Maggie are at all similar, I'd like to be her friend.. She's likeable, she's sweet, she means no harm - what's not to like?

So, the point of my indecision. Easy to read and engaging characters. It's the plot. It gets a little lost between a 'I have to complete x number of dates and the last one will be memorable' and a pure romance. It gets a bit lost in something more Austen towards the end and I think it needed to decide what it was. Maybe I'm old but I was a little uncomfortable with the 'loads of half-dressed men and Maggie in the officers mess' aspect of the story. It wasn't well enough explained why someone with anxiety in society would be at all able to stay in such a position. It seemed out of place however much fun I'm sure it would have been. It grated.

That being said, returning to my first point - I liked it. I wanted to read to the end. I wanted to know what happened. I think some of the description was unexpected and fresh, the fine detail of the romance was a delight and the knowledge that only Ms Clawson could have gained herself of living in the Tower of London and the sense of who the Beefeaters are and the family life they have led, is, for me, worth the whole experience. I'll read it again and wish there was more. And that is what this romance is about. Whatever you think about Royal Guards, you will fall hard for the royal palace, and if you are not searching for 'casemates' on maps, you have no heart.

I want to start by saying thank you to NetGalley , the publisher and author for the opportunity. Sadly I dnf’d this book I just couldn’t get into the writing style and couldn’t get myself to keep reading . But I do want to say just because I didn’t finish it that it doesn’t mean you won’t like it so if it sounds like you might enjoy I would give
It a shot and see how you like it.

Maggie’s dad is a Beefeater and after breaking up with her douchebag of an ex, she had moved in with him into the Tower of London. Unfortunately for Maggie, her ex won’t leave her alone and keeps showing up at the ticket office of the Tower, where she works. Despite living only a few minutes from her workplace, Maggie isn’t always on time, which means she has to take the money to the safe at the end of the day, which she hates doing as it is supposedly haunted. As she’s leaving, Maggie bumps into one of the royal guards, who doesn’t respond in the kindest way. The next day on her way to work, Maggie sees the guard, Freddie, at his post and knowing he can’t respond to her, she decides to say a few things to him about his manners.

What follows is such a cute slow burn relationship that had me gripped to the pages. I loved each of their interactions as they spend more time together and Maggie was introduced to Freddie’s troop. These two had a lot of chemistry and it was such a unique story with an amazing setting. As they get closer, Maggie realises Freddie is keeping something from her, but she can’t figure out why he won’t be honest with her when he seems to want the same things she does. I couldn’t put this down and definitely recommend it if you want a fun romance!

Thank you for the opportunity to review this new novel.

I'll be upfront right away and say that I dnf:ed it...

No, it's not charming with a "quirky" protagonist, it's exhausting and irritating. I'm really tired "quirky and messy" characters that the author is unfortunately no alone to write about.

I thought the premise was exciting but it fell kind of flat. It's not a romance when the ex-boyfriend get so much space in the story, instead of the couple to be.

Falling Hard for the Royal Guard by Megan Clawson follows Maggie as she navigates her life post-breakup. Can love be found with a guy whose whole job is to ignore distractions and stay on guard all the time?

I have a few issues with this book. First, the opening scene. I think it's weird how normalized taking photos of people in vulnerable states, (especially women). It's not okay to cross these lines & I was not vibing with the book from the first page because of that scene. Second, this book felt like a history book on the White Tower/Tower of London. I did google the tower and read a bit about it but to me, the Tower and Maggie felt like the main relationship and Freddie felt like a third wheel.

Next, the slow burn was so slow the light went out. Both characters felt flat & their first interaction was not a favorite. I couldn't connect to any of the characters.

I wish I could give this a higher rating but this book simply did not work for me. Hopefully whoever reads it gets to fall in love with it & enjoy it.

2.5/5 (rounding down because of the opening scene)
Thank you Netgalley and Avon Books UK for the eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

I was really disappointed that this book started with a scene where teenage boys took a photo of a woman as she was sleeping and the author deemed it comical. Given the rise in violence against women and girls, and concerns around crimes such as upskirting, it is worrying that this is being used as a humour point to begin a book.

Falling Hard for the Royal Guard is Megan Clawson's debut novel coming out on April 27. I loved the backdrop of this book. Who doesn't love a heroine that lives in the Tower of London and a guy who guards the place. Having read that premise, I knew I had to read this book!

This book is a slow burn. Sadly, the slow burn was more of a fizzle for me. I found Maggie to be a little to chaotic. She seemed like an exaggeration or a character to me, rather than a real relatable person. I mean, how many times can a person be late for work before they get fired? To me she acted more like an older teen or young twenty something rather than 28 or 29 years old. I found Freddie to be an interesting enough character, but a lot of his story line just didn't make sense to me either.

I did enjoy the history in this book, but that wasn't enough for me. Thank you to NetGalley and Avon Books for a copy of this book. All opinions are 100% mine.

The premise was so promising. However, this heroine was very difficult to connect to. A lot of the narrative occurs in her internal monologue and that became distracting to me.
Also the hero’s hot & cold demeanor as well as him lying about his relationship situation didn’t work for me.

I really enjoyed this book, it was funny and cheesy. The main male character was a little annoying at times but overall i loved the romance and the setting of this book. An easy, fun and quick read!

I somehow ended up with two review copies of Falling Hard for the Royal Guard. I believe what happened is that I requested the Avon UK pub version, not realizing that the book was an Avon book. I am auto-approved by Avon US (thank you!), so when I found the book there, I immediately clicked "read now", and was completely surprised when Avon UK sent me permission to read the UK edition, while I was reading the US edition! Below is my review for the Avon US edition. Thank you!


Falling Hard for the Royal Guard was a funny read, for the most part. Like other romance novels, it handled deep and emotional things with a veneer of humor or romance, like the ghost and Maggie's mother. It was also well on its way to being one of my favorite new romance novels reads of the year, when it blew it completely in the last 15-20%.

The book was very informative about the Tower of London, with history and culture woven into the story in a way that really worked. The detail about the Guards and their uniforms was a nice touch.

I knocked the first half star off when I realize that it was hard to tell if the story was set with the current royalty - King Charles III, etc - or with a faked monarchy, a la that Hallmark movie I watched last year, where the structure was there, but the author changed around the members of the BRF to suit their novel needs. Either would have worked, but making it clear from the get go would have been better. Especially when several chapters were spent hinting at an identity that Freddie could not have, with the current monarchy.

Freddie did not turn out to be who I was expecting him, since I kept expecting him to the Prince of Wales or maybe the Spare, to quote Harry. I liked how and when we learn his true title, and that scene added a lot of depth to their relationship. It's pretty clear pretty early on that we have what is considered <spoiler>mutually unrequited, where both of them think that the other would not be interested in going any further than friendship</spoiler> and that, when done well, can add to the story. It was done very well here. Mix that in with the ghosts in the Tower, the famed Ravens, the men in uniform, the clear love the Beefeaters have for Maggie, and you've got a wonderful story.

Then the ending. It was a good one, but it felt rushed, like the author had to cram 100 pages worth of content into 30 to keep the book from being too long. This story would have benefited greatly from those extra 100 pages, and I think the relationship between Freddie and Maggie would have been all the stronger for that.

Maggie's coworkers were evil, and something should have been done about that a while ago.

All in all, a good story, full of history. 3.5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon for the eARC!

I picked up Falling Hard for the Royal Guard primarily for the interesting plot. It came through. I pictured this playing out kind of like a Disney movie. I'm sure you can picture it, a girl who has recently lost her mom lives with her father in a famous tower where he works. She also works on the grounds and falls for a guard after a rough breakup.

I was fascinated to read that the author, Megan Clawson, was inspired by her own life to write this book! I would 100% read her memoir.

However, when it came to the writing, the characters, and the drama, this book fell short. I didn't feel a connection to the characters and the love and drama that unfolded between them was unconvincing and overexplained. There were many times when things felt repetitive, like with multiple appearances from our main character, Maggie's, ex. I couldn't expect much of a deep, realistic love as our Maggie seemed extremely immature and confused.

I would recommend this book if you appreciate a light, clean romance with some British history!

2.5 ⭐️ Thank you to NetGalley and Avon Books for an ARC of Falling Hard for the Royal Guard in exchange for my honest review.

From her bedroom in the Tower of London, twenty-six-year-old Maggie has always dreamed of her own fairy-tale ending.

Yet this is twenty-first century London, so instead of knights, she has Tinder, and instead of white horses, she has catfish. And with her last relationship ending in spectacular fashion, she swears off men for good.

And then a chance encounter with Royal Guard Freddie forces Maggie to admit that she isn’t ready to give up on love just yet… But how do you catch the attention of someone who is trained to ignore all distractions?

Can she snare that true love’s first kiss… or is she royally screwed?

This was a very cute read and a unique spin on a "royal" love story. I would read this author again, but it didn't stand out to me in any meaningful way. Though I feel like a lot of readers do the same thing, I walked away after finishing this one and I didn't really ever think about it again until I realized I needed to review it. A great palette cleanser between denser books!