I wanted to enjoy this, but at 7% in, I realized the only thing that had happened was Johnny (the boss) bumbled his speech. Again. Like he always does. I don’t particularly feel connected to any of the characters, and I’m not finding myself particularly hooked by the story. The writing is witty and easy to read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon for the ARC.

Thank you to NetGalley and publisher for an eARC copy to review.

I enjoy a good bodyguard romance. Matthias is a large and scared hero who is trying to overcome the grief of losing someone on the job. Pet is a sunshiny assistant to the husband of a royal family member and she has some wounds in her past with family and not being cared for like she should have been.

They end up having to fake date to save the husband's reputation when the tabloids start to accuse him of having an affair with Pet.

I really enjoyed the story and build to them as a couple. This is a slow burn. I do feel like the pacing of the story is a bit off and it was slower in the middle and I had to push myself to finish the book.

Codename Charming is the second book in the Palace Insiders Series. I am a big fan of the author and was happy to receive this advanced copy of the book. Petunia (Pet) De Vere and Matthias Vaughn were both in the first book, Battle Royal, and I ended up going back and rereading before Codename Charming and it reminded me about some of the backstory of the characters.

Pet is Dominic’s little sister from Battle Royal and she works as a personal assistant for loveable, bumbling Johnny, who is Princess Rose’s husband. Matthias is head of Johnny’s security. Johnny is clumsy and after he stumbles and falls against Pet a tabloid photo of them starts false rumors that they are having an affair. The royal team decides Pet and Matthias should fake date to stop the rumors. They make a cute couple, with tiny, outgoing Pet and large, stoic Matthias, who is trying to keep everyone safe.

Pet and Matthias were so sweet. Pet liked to cut silhouette portraits out of paper and Matthias whittled wood and gave Pet a little wooden mouse he carved. He also had a cat named Miriam. There was a funny parrot, Ailsa, that was involved in a side story and it made me laugh. It was also nice to see Dominic and Sylvie, bakers from Battle Royal back in this story.

This was a slow burn romance and there were a lot of characters to keep track of. There were subplots related to the royals and family secrets and I wasn’t as interested in those story lines as I was in Pet and Matthias romance. I felt a little lost in the beginning but after I went back and reread Battle Royal it was more fun and I was hooked into the story. The excitement really picked up in the last 20% of the book.

I hope we get to see Allegra and Charlie Ford-Griffin’s book from the London Celebrities series some day. Thank you to NetGalley, the author and Avon and Harper Voyager for the ARC of this book.

The ARC gods have really been shining BRIGHT on me lately. While I really enjoyed Battle Royals, the moment we were introduced to Pet and Matthias, I knew I’d LOVE their story.

🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺
Blurb: Petunia De Vere enjoys being the personal assistant to lovable, bumbling Johnny Marchmont. But the job has its share of challenges, including the royal’s giant, intimidating bodyguard, Matthias. Pet and Matthias are polar opposites—she’s spontaneous and enthusiastic, he’s rigid and stoic—but she can sense there’s something softer underneath that tough exterior…

For Matthias Vaughn, protecting others is the name of the game. But keeping his royal charge out of trouble is more difficult than he imagined because everywhere Johnny goes, calamity ensues, and his petite, bubbly assistant is often caught in the fray. Matthias hates the idea of Pet getting hurt and he’s determined to keep everyone safe, even if it means clashing with his adorable new coworker.

When a clumsy moment leads to a questionable tabloid photo, the press begins to speculate that Pet is romantically involved with Johnny. To put an end to the rumors, the royal PR team asks Pet and Matthias to stage a fake relationship and the two reluctantly agree. But as they spend more time together outside of work, they begin to wonder what real emotions this pretend connection might uncover.

🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺

One of the things that really get to me in romance, is the traditionally “handsome” hero. I feel like we’ve made leaps and bounds when it comes to inclusion in heroines and I want that same grace extended to hero’s.

That being said, this book did NOT disappoint, as we met Matthias in all his scarred, dad bod glory. Besides that, this felt like two adults who knew how to communicate, and build a last, long relationship based on something they both wanted. A few personal favorite moments for me (don’t worry I won’t give anything away)

🌺 A man bear hero, who’s only soft for our heroine
🌺Fake relationship
🌺Hero who’s love language is thoughtful gift giving

PS: Hoping we get a back story for the princess.

Heat Level: 🔥🔥🔥

Could there be anything cuter than seeing fictional characters being protective about their friends/love interests? So, this came to my mind because I just finished reading an ARC of Codename Charming by Lucy Parker and I just can't get over how cute both Pet and Matthias were in this one 😍🥺 - stinkin' cute and equally protective about each other. Battle Royal was one of my 2021 faves so it'd be an understatement to say that I was very excited about this one too! And the character dynamics reminded me of the ones from Artistic License(my first and favorite LP book) - talk about expectations! Anyway, I'm happy to report that it had all the delightfully cute things a Lucy Parker book has, along with unique characters that I loved!🥰

Petunia De Vere is the personal assistant of Johnny - the husband of Princess Rose and the newest addition to the royal family, and her taciturn co-worker Matthias is Johnny's bodyguard who takes his job very seriously. This means that he's not a fan of ideas(especially ones from Pet) that go against protocol 🤣 But he's the one that keeps coming to her aid when Johnny accidentally does something. So, when a tabloid photo blows things out of proportion by linking Pet with her boss, the royal PR team proposes to counter it by showing that Pet is already in a relationship. And Matthias seems like the perfect candidate for this fake relationship as many others on social media seem to ship him and Pet together. Both of them reluctantly agree to this at first and as they spend more time together the boundaries between acting and reality start blurring quickly.

Both Pet and Matthias have a lot more to their characters than just their outward personas.(I feel like sometimes while marketing romance books it's easy to focus on the tropes and call it a grumpy sunshine pairing, etc but that doesn't exactly describe everything that they have to offer you know?). They might look like they're opposites but they have a lot in common - especially the way they're protective of those they love and how they blame themselves for some things that are out of their control. They're both confident and mature when it comes to many things but also hesitant at times about opening up. But as they spend more time with each other those walls come down quickly.

While there are some instances where other characters respond to Matthias' looks, it's not a focal point here like in Artistic License and Matthias doesn't have any self esteem issues either. But there are some delightful moments where Pet defends him and I loved it so much!😍 Pet is lively and hardworking but that doesn't mean she's had an easy time growing up. Similarly Matthias is still grieving the loss of his best friend. And when they start fake-dating it quickly turns into something real, when they find themselves not only enjoying each other's company but also genuinely wanting the other person to be happier and safer. I loved how they comforted and protected each other!🥺

In addition to the romance and humor, we also have many subplots featuring the royal family and Pet's quest to find a woman who might be a paternal relative of hers. All of this along with the characters made it a very enjoyable read! I also loved seeing Sylvie and Dom here again! Anyway, I don't think I have a single thing to criticize about this one and I really want more people to read Lucy Parker's books(I honestly wish I could read them for the first time again) so I might keep talking about this one for the next few months till it releases!😆

It has never taken me three days to get past the first 20% of a Lucy Parker novel before. It might be my brain, it might be the book. Regardless, by the end, I was enjoying it very much. Much like Pet and Matthias, Codename Charming and I had a rough start, but we worked it out.

Pet De Vere endeared herself to Princess Rose when she stepped between an assailant and Rose’s fiancee, Johnny at the end of Battle Royal. Johnny’s personal protection officer, Matthias, held her hand and later brought her a teddy bear at the hospital. Experienced romance readers knew that Pet and Matthias would get their own book. Pet is now Johnny’s personal assistant and Matthias is still his bodyguard. They live in the palace staff quarters and work together frequently. Pet thinks Matthias finds her irritating. The reader knows he is pining in his silent, stoic way.

When tabloids decide to hype a rumor that Johnny is cheating on Rose (4th in line to the throne) with Pet, Rose and Johnny propose that Pet and Matthias fake date until the rumors die. Matthias agrees because he knows that the rumors will hurt Pet personally and professionally if they aren’t killed beyond a doubt.

Codename Charming is best for lovers of the slow burn romance. It has elements of Beauty and the Beast, not as a retelling, but in the fairy-tale that people who see their relationship through tabloids and social media build around them. Matthias is large and, according to other people, scary. Like Battle Royal, it’s also a romance steeped in grief and as with it’s predecessor, the knowledge of loss makes the vulnerability of romance sweeter.

There is an awful lot of cute and sweet in Codename Charming. Matthias loves cuddling, but only with Pet and there is a rather funny and sweet “are you happy to see me or do you have something in your pocket” scene. Matthias’ cat and a murder bird provide some non-human charm and levity. We get some time with familiar characters and I am hoping Melinda in security gets her own book.

I will note that I wish author’s would stop making characters who were raised in foster care emotionally unavailable. I see it so often that I assume the author doesn’t want to have to explain why their character is wary of relationships, so makes them a former foster kid.

CW: both main characters parents die before the book starts, parental neglect and abuse in the past, grief, wounds from violence in past, mild on page violence, harassment by press on and off page, mugging, discussion of a loved one’s death by violence in past, reference to animal abuse in past (cat survived), infidelity by side characters

I received this as an advance reader copy from Avon and Harper Voyager and NetGalley. My opinions are my own, freely and honestly given.

It moved a bit slow and kind of dragged at the 70% mark. I wish I had gotten to see more of their established relationship
But I really liked the themes of found family and rejecting the concept of beauty standards
I like that these were two very different people on the surface who turned out to have so much in common at the soul level

The sweetest, swooniest story I've read in a long time!

If you like:
🤫Fake Dating
⛅️Grumpy/Sunshine
👑Sovereigns and Shenanigans
🥵Size Difference
🧸Bodyguard who is secretly a teddy bear of a person
🔥Five Alarm Fire Desire

This is definitely the story for you! I haven't read the first installment of this series, so I went in totally blind, but this book had me hooked from the first mishap all the way through. I was rooting for this couple SO HARD and they are the absolute cutest. The tension was immaculate. Such a fun read, highly recommend!

(3.5) This book is a little bit grumpy + sunshine, a little bit fake dating, a little bit “Beauty and the Beast” retelling, a little bit workplace romance — and a whole lot adorable.

Petunia “Pet” de Vere is the personal assistant to the accident-prone husband, Johnny, of the slightly Goth princess third in line to the throne. And Pet, sweet, lovely, whimsical, tiny Pet, is very, very good at her job, even as she’s often bearing the brunt of Johnny’s adorable clumsiness and is getting launched all over the place thanks to his flailing limbs. Life, for the most part, is good! But her sunshine-y personality takes a bit of a hit when the tabloids unfairly claim she’s having an extramarital affair with Johnny and start to hound them both. Enter Matthias, Johnny’s hulking, ex-soldier, by-the-book, very large bodyguard, who the palace communications team decides is the perfect person to enter into a fake relationship with Pet to take the heat off Pet, Johnny, and his lovely wife, Rosie.

Lucy Parker renders both Pet and Matthias with wonderful care. They’re fully formed, complex individuals who recognize the trauma from their pasts and work to not let that hinder their futures. Parker gives Pet and Matthias a relatable connection and makes their bond the kind of relationship goals everyone dreams of. They show up for each other, they understand each other, they help each other. They’re great on their own, but they make each other better. Parker’s writing is easy to get into, and she manages to do a great job writing both madcap hijinks and sensitive emotional topics to make a well-rounded book.

The storyline sometimes got weighed down by superfluous side plots, much like I thought was the case with the first book in this series. There are tons of side characters, an obnoxious paparazzo, family secrets, and heavy emotional revelations, all of which took up too much space within the pages and detracted from Pet and Matthias’ relationship. It also made an already slow-burn romance happen even more slowly. Instead, I wish there had been a few more palace hijinks, because the book is at its most fun when it’s a little bit farcical and doesn’t take itself too seriously (like with the aforementioned parrot).

Regardless, I still enjoyed reading this. The characters and their journey are lovely, and Parker’s writing had me flying through the pages. Pet and Matthias are the epitome of opposites attract, and I happily was their biggest cheerleader. (Side note: his nickname for her? *chef’s kiss*) I laughed, I cooed, and I got right right in the feels. Like the title suggests, this is a charming book.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Avon for providing me with an e-ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

emotional funny lighthearted medium-paced
Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0

It was a delight to come back into this story! I loved Battle Royal and was so excited to read Pet's story.

I will say, this started really slow. It took me a few weeks to actually get past the first 20% of the book. I am docking a star for that because I think the story really picks up where the fake dating assignment, Codename Charming, actually starts. I understand the context and history and think it could've worked in flashbacks better.

Once I got into the book, I genuinely enjoyed it!! The connection and romance was so strong, though. I absolutely loved the natural development of Pet and Matthias's relationship. I love a guy who pays attention to the details, so that was really strong here.

The side plots were interesting and kept the general pace moving forward.

ALSO CAN WE TALK ABOUT THE WALL AT THE COTTAGE. BECAUSE DAMN.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC!

The tension between Pet & Matthias LITERALLY almost killed me. Who knew hand-holding and soul-searching looks could be so sexy *fans self*

This is a slooooow burn but such a good second installment to the Palace Insiders series. After falling in love with rival cake makers Sylvie & Dominic and book one, we pick up where we left off with Dom’s younger sister Pet — who works for the notoriously clumsy royal husband. After another unsurprising event mishap has the paps speculating there is something between Pet and her boss, the royal PR team asks head security agent Matthias to fake date Pet to create new headlines.

Neither one hates this assignment — but both need to be brave to admit they really want the real thing.

Pet De Vere works as a personal assistant to the kind but occasionally clumsy Johnny Marchmont, new husband of Princess Rose. The royals are thoroughly in love, but a few public mishaps and badly-angled paparazzi photos have given rise to rumors that Johnny is having an affair with Pet. To combat those rumors, their royal household has come up with a plan: Codename Charming, a fake-dating act between perpetually perky Pet and the big, gruff bodyguard, Matthias Vaughn. After all, Matthias has been spotted rescuing Pet more than once, and their online shippers could lead a new round of rumors. And if Pet and Matthias get the opportunity to give in to their unspoken attraction? Bonus.

Balancing the lighthearted humor of their banter with the more sober discussions of their family traumas, this romance pairs grumpy and sunshine to appealing effect. Pet has developed more depth since her appearances in Battle Royal (her brother Dominic's story), proving her skills at managing Johnny's schedule, even with the mishaps they both encounter. Matthias gives serious "strong and silent" vibes from page 1, but the story gradually reveals the soft marshmallow inside his gruff exterior -- and shows how much he and Pet care about each other.

The pacing is a little uneven in spots, and there are a few instances of awkward wording that I hope will get cleared up in final edits, but overall this is an enjoyable romance between two people who have grown up too lonely. 4 stars.

Thank you, Avon/HarperCollins and NetGalley, for providing an eARC of this book. Opinions expressed here are solely my own.

4 stars! So enjoyed reading about my other two favorites from the first book. Their love story is so well done and well written. There was so much hilarious bizarre stuff happening, with the parrot especially, which lent the book a lot of whimsy. Another score for Lucy Parker!

Aw, I really liked this sequel to Battle Royal, in which Pet de Vere, PA to the accident-prone husband (Johnny) of a princess (Rosie), agrees to a fake relationship with Johnny's bodyguard, Matthias Vaughan, to protect Johnny's reputation. Matthias is a big, hulking guy--exactly who you'd expect to be in a bodyguard position--and Pet is a tiny whirlwind of energy. They seem a mismatch in physicality and personality, and yet they are perfect together.

It's a sweet story that involves a whole lot of overprotective growling, palace hijinks, nosy paps, and surprisingly affecting scenes where both Pet and Matthias confront their troubling pasts. It's funny, gentle, and sexy--all great things for a romance.

To me, Lucy Parker's books are a must-buy. While I don't give them all 5 stars, I've given all of them at least 4 stars. I liked seeing the characters from Battle Royal again (I love the princess and her husband.) I will be purchasing this for my library's collection.

I really really enjoyed this! It was cool to see more of the royal family from Battle Royale, and Pet and Matthias were adorable. A big gruff overprotective bodyguard and the tiny ray of sunshine PA who just wants to befriend him fake dating for paparazzi reasons hits all the right notes.

I was worried starting this book that I would feel like I was missing something by not reading book one but I feel like I easily fell into this world and accepted the setting of Pet and Mattias (although the nickname Pet really threw me off the entire way through the book and I did not care for that at all).
Overall, I really enjoyed this book. This setting being kind of an upstairs/downstairs story was interesting to see some behind the scenes of royal life, and I really enjoyed the fact that there was not, for the most part, an entirely disfunctional family. I like that the people working for Rosie and Johnny really loved them and wanted to help them.
Mattias and Pet have an interesting dynamic and I honestly spent most of the book trying to decide if I liked it or if I thought it was weird, I settled on: it's a bit of both. There are times when they seem immediately like partners who've been together for years and are so at ease telling their stories to each other and other times they fumble around each other and can't seem to string together a sentence. Mostly, I found this believable and found both Pet and Mattias' backstories to be compelling and interesting and they seemed like fully formed adults and not trying to run or hide from their trauma or past.

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Readaholic Book Reviews's reviewMar 21, 2023 · edit
liked it

After absolutely falling in love with Lucy's writing in Battle Royalt I was so excited when I heard there was going to be a sequel featuring Pet and Matthias! I could sense the tension between them at the end of Battle Royal and was excited to read more about them. If you're a fan of slow burn, grumpy/sunshine + fake dating then Codename Charming is the book for you!

This book is definitely a sloooooow burn romance. Pet and Matthias both work for Johnny Marchmont (he's married to royalty from the last book). Pet is Johnny's personal assistant and Matthias is his bodyguard. Johnny is prone to accidents and mishaps and when the tabloids think that Pet is involved romantically with an extramarital relationship with Johnny his PR team comes up with a solution. Pet will pretend to date someone and make it look real so that they will get off of her back and leave her alone. That someone just happens to be Matthias.

I really did enjoy the relationship with Pet and Matthias. Their chemistry was sweet and there were a lot of actual funny and tender moments between them. But, Codename Charming was often times filled with a lot of other side plots that made the book a bit messy and not as cohesive as I would have liked. I found myself putting the book down for long stretches of time and then remembering that I was reading it. It didn't have the same pull that Battle Royal had for me.

Lucy Parker’s books are always a joy, for me. I loved Pet and Matthias so much! It was a warm, cozy book and sent me into a reread of all of Lucy Parker’s books. I am really excited to see more in this world.

In Codename Charming, Lucy Parker pens another unputdownable witty and deeply romantic modern fairy tale.

Battle Royal (Palace Insiders #1), introduced Pet DeVere just as she disrupted her long estranged brother’s life. Though Pet was a secondary character, she proved an integral part of her brother’s emotional journey from closed off ice prince to the man ready to fall hopelessly in love and form emotional attachments again.

There were clues throughout that first series installment that Pet was a complex woman, not just a quirky little sister nipping at her famous brother’s heels. In Codename Charming, Pet has almost come into her own career-wise, but still is missing a partner who sees the heart of her and adores her for it.

Enter Matthius Vaughn.

Matthius is a bodyguard to the royal adorable mess Johnny. Pet is Johnny’s Personal Assistant and works closely with his protection detail…often to disastrous ends. The grumpy sunshine vibe is strong at the start, but it becomes clear quickly that Matthius is not a cranky cardboard cutout meathead. Under his suits, muscles, inexorable vibe, and scars he is a gentle giant with huge feelings. He just has no idea what to do with those feelings or knows a safe place to let them out.

Where many stories like these take a darker turn and the hero is cruel or dismissive toward the heroine, punishing her for his hangups, Matthius works hard to open himself up to Pet. In turn, Pet sees very quickly that she cannot let her abandonment issues rule the day. She returns Matthius’ kindness and fumbled attempts at connection with more of the same.

In a scene in Battle Royal, Matthius gave a little clue to his inner world in the form of a gift to Pet. When that talisman returns in Codename Charming it turns what could have been a very basic scene into something truly moving. The “beast” of a man on the outside is a beautiful soul inside.

Also, it doesn’t hurt that these two characters are so hot for each other it practically melts the page. Perhaps the most romantic part of their connection isn’t the physical scenes though. When Pet refuses to let anyone speak poorly about Matthius she demonstrates that their love goes far beyond the external and their happily ever after is soul deep.

Codename Charming has plenty of humor and swoon worthy scenes for readers of Tessa Bailey, Christina Lauren, and Kate Clayborn
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Tropes: Grumpy Sunshine, Celebrity Romance, Fake Relationship, Royal Romance (adjacent), Modern Fairy Tale, Brits in Love

Spice Level: 2/5, open door
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Thank you to NetGalley and Avon/Harper Voyager for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. Expected publication date Aug 15th, 2023.