love romance books that dive into the “what happens after” and The Duchess Effect gives us that! Now that Prince Jameson and American rapper Duchess are officially a couple, what reaction will they get from the world, the Queen, and the Company? And how could it potentially impact their lives, when privacy seems to be all but a distant memory?

This is another steamy royal romance from Tracey Livesay. The couple has to contend with conniving royals, threats to business, and tabloids. Strong main characters, solid friendships, humor, and drama further make this a worthwhile read. I enjoyed the dual POV and this series!

Behind the Palace Walls: The World of Duchess Dani and Prince Jameson

Hold on to your tiaras, folks, because we have a sizzling new romance novel to breaks all the rules, bends all the traditions, and turns the world of royalty upside.
"The Duchess Effect" by Tracey Livesay is the love story of American rapper extraordinaire, Danielle "Duchess" Nelson, and the dashing Prince Jameson.
First things first, this book throws the typical romance novel formula out the castle window.
You won't find any nail-biting courtship scenes here, my dear readers. Nope, the author skips all that heart-pounding stuff and catapults us right into the juicy heart of the story.
Picture this: You open the book, and BAM! Our beloved couple is already head over heels in love. It's like starting a movie with the grand finale and then rewinding to see how it all came together. Talk about a plot twist that leaves you scratching your head in a delightful daze.
Instead of watching the characters nervously stumble through the initial stages of their romance, we witness what comes after the fairy dust settles.
Jameson and Dani soar as the nation's beloved power couple.
Dani, our fierce and independent Duchess, isn't just your average rapper—she's a force of nature with a skincare line to boot! She can spit fire on the mic and make your skin glow like a disco ball at the same time.
A major cosmetics company wants to ride the fame train as their love story takes center stage, linking Jameson to her marketing campaign. But Dani won't let her empire be overshadowed by love.
Prince Jameson enters the picture, bringing a calm and protective energy Dani didn't realize she needed. He quickly learns that a quiet life and royalty don't mix.
Together, they face a test that threatens to shatter their love, leaving Dani and Jameson to realize the gravity of what's at stake.
While some readers might miss the heart-pounding thrill of the initial courtship, "The Duchess Effect" offers something different—an intimate glimpse into the aftermath of the whirlwind romance.
So grab your cup of tea (or perhaps something a little stronger), find a cozy spot, and curl up with "The Duchess Effect." It's a page-turner.

I probably should of reread American Royalty before picking up The Duchess Effect but *shrugs*. The story flows right from the end of the previous book and we are reunited with Jameson and Dani as they struggle to balance their relationship with life in the spotlight and other obligations. As someone who follows the royals, this book is right up my alley and definitely does shine a light on the issues with especially the British monarchy. While the Harry and Meghan parallels are there, Dani and Jameson are not Harry and Meghan and that's important for this book. While both make mistakes throughout the book, the secret that Dani keeps from Jay is really want drove this from 5 star to a 4 star read. I just wanted her to be honest with Jameson even though I sort of understood her unwillingness to give up control. There was just the right about of drama to move the storyline along and certainly ton of steamy scenes. I think I wanted the ending flushed out a little more. I hit 80% and I started to wonder if this was going to be a trilogy (I don't believe so). I wanted more time for Dani and Jameson to work out their issues and to see more of how their live played out. That said, this was a lovely story and I really enjoyed revisiting Dani and Jameson. I hope Tracey Livesay continues with some of the minor characters in the book!

Thank you NetGalley! Enjoyed the sequel to American Royalty and the parallel story currently playing out in real life with Meghan Markle and Prince Harry. Hoping the next story focuses on Nyla and Rhys!

This was my first book by Tracey Livesay and I'd be interested in reading another novel by this author. The plot content honestly was not what I normally gravitate towards but the writing was delightful and I think the target audience will be attracted to this book!!

Rating: ★★★¼☆ (3.25/5)

"The Duchess Effect" by Tracey Livesay is a captivating sequel that delves into the challenges faced by Dani aka "Duchess", an American rapper, and Prince Jameson, a reclusive royal, as they strive to transform their romance into a lasting relationship amidst the relentless glare of the spotlight. Did I also mention that this book IS SPICY - it is filled with smut. Tracey did that.

I'm not sure if we needed a sequel to further explore the fast paced love of Dani and Jameson. Since this was giving insta-love vibes, some of the romance between Dani and Jameson seemed more like lust than love. Additionally, some of the slang used by Dani was slightly cringe and had me feeling like it was the early 2000s.

Overall, this was a quick read that was just okay to me.

Huge thanks to NetGalley and Avon books for an e-arc in exchange for my honest review!

American Royalty was my first book by the author and I really liked it! I knew I had to get my hands on the second one as well! These books were giving Prince Harry and Megan vibes and I was here for it!

We meet Dani “Duchess” who is a fierce American rapper who has worked hard to get to where she is at today! She knows her worth! Then we have Jameson “Jay” who is an uptight British Royal. The tension between these two was insane! They both antagonized each other only to feel remorse later. You just knew something good was going to go down between them!

When they finally broke and admitted the sexual tension it was HOT! It was so sweet to see how protective they were of each other. They truly were a team and wanted what the other wanted.

In the Duchess Effect it focused more on their relationship and how they were going to navigate it since they both come from completely different backgrounds.

I enjoyed the second book just as much as the first! You could feel the love these two had for one another and you could tell they were doing whatever it takes to make their relationship work despite their backgrounds! I can’t wait to read more by Tracey!

When I read American Royalty earlier this year I immediately knew I wanted more of Duchess and Jameson, and The Duchess Effect by Tracey Livesay delivered! It’s still a whirlwind romance for the American rapper and His Royal Highness and this time they have to decide what pieces of their relationship are worth risking when her company and the monarchy are in jeopardy.

Dani “Duchess” Nelson is thisclose to getting an investor for her skincare line but they suggest more good press is needed before they’ll sign a contract. Jameson thought he could host the tribute event for his grandfather, leave his royal duties behind and go back to being a professor. Wrong! Turns out Dani and Jameson did too good of a job and with their relationship now public, they’ve become the face of a “progressive” new monarchy, one the Queen is desperate to preserve.

Enter the miscommunication trope - where Dani and Jameson try to protect each other to show how much they care instead of just talking it out and finding a solution together. I wanted to shake both of them! And even when I got to the epilogue, I still wanted more. They’ve been a couple for a few months, and I’m glad I got to see more of them as they navigate a relationship that everyone is trying to manipulate. Plus I got more of Jameson’s dirty talk and WHEW! the steam was even better in this book.

I’m hoping this is a trilogy OR we get more insight about Dani and Jameson through their royal adjacent friends Rhys and Nyla. There were too many hints for their story to be left unexplored.

I requested an ARC of this book after reading book 1. I can say that I did enjoy book 2 but not as much as book 1. It was nice to see their relationship after the HEA but I didn’t feel like I gained much from the second story. I do recommend still reading it.

I enjoyed American Royalty, but I can't say I was desperate for a sequel. When I saw this cover though I couldn't wait to read it because isn't that the most gorgeous cover you've ever seen?

This is a very different romance from the first book because Prince Jameson and Duchess are already together, this time battling all the various royal and corporate forces that are trying to keep them apart. A lot of this book I found so interesting - particularly Duchess' battle with trying to retain her individuality while also joining this huge, traditional thing that stands for a lot of things that she stands against.

Because Jameson and Duchess are already together, a lot of my favorite romance elements are missing. I will say though that the big climactic scene was really harrowing and I really didn't see how they would move forward. There was an interesting twist with Duchess' makeup and skincare line that made the conflict really intense and had me biting my nails waiting for it to come to fruition.

Overall this was fun and had a lot of the charm of the first book while also being something really different. If you enjoyed the first part of this royal love story then I definitely recommend picking up the sequel.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an early copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Duchess Effect starts off a month after the events of Book 1, American Royalty. Overall, all I really enjoyed this book. I love Dani and Jameson and they are probably one of my favorite Rom Com couples. It was clear that they both deeply love each other. I gave this book 4/5 stars, my only criticism was that the conflict that was created in the story created a miscommunication trope that could have been resolved with one conversation early in the book. I think that the other conflicts in the book could have held the story without having the miscommunication trope and would have shown that Dani and Jameson have grown as a couple, however I had to keep remembering and reminding myself that they have only been dating for about 2 months and are still learning and growing as a couple.

What I absolutely loved about the story is that Jameson is 100% committed to Dani and protecting her. He loves everything about her and doesn’t want her to change as his family actively tries to change her. Also the spice was immaculate in this book. Jameson has one of the dirtiest mouths and you get to see it in action in this book. I give the spice rating in the book a 2.75/5 chili peppers (my spice rating is for how much spice is in the book not for the quality of the spice) as there are multiple spicy scenes that were written very well.
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But overall I was entertained while reading this book!

I like some American's have a slight obsession with the British Royal family. I have always wanted to be a princess so I love reading books that have that somewhere in the story line. But somehow I never knew about these novels until I got this ARC, and I have been missing out. I binged both this and American Royalty in the course of a week. I can't even tell you how much I wanted there to be a sequel for me to read immediately when I was done.

Aside from that, this book touch on real life issues. Like what is like to be the only woman of color in a room and having people look up to you because of that. I can 100% relate to that and I was very happy to see that someone was able to document that so clearly in book form so that the rest of the world can understand what that is like.

I'm really hoping that there is a book #3 in the works as it is going to be on the list of books that I am most looking forward to reading when it is released.

OK, I struggled with this. I REALLY liked the first book, American Royalty, so I requested this on Net Galley. I was sadly disappointed, and DNF'd around 44%. I really tried to stick with it.
I think Livesay writes really great spicy scenes, but the rest of this book was just the main characters droning on and on about their precarious political/social/celebrity situation. It just didn't move fast enough. If there had been more forward progress, I might have stuck with it. I wish we'd only gotten the first book because it ended happily and optimistically and felt complete.
If you're invested in these characters and good as skimming (I'm not), then maybe you'll make it through.
While I'm done with these characters, I am willing to pick up a new book by Livesay in the future.

Unfortunately I don’t think a sequel was necessary. Dani and Jameson’s story should have ended with the first book where the ending perfectly fit the story. The Duchess Effect didn’t do much to develop their relationship and instead had Dani making hurtful decisions, keeping information from him and being selfish. She uses him for her own purposes throughout the majority of the plot and it just didn’t sit well with me.

I would have much preferred a story about Nyla or Yolanda with minor cameos or updates on Dani and Jameson.

I loved Tracey Livesay‘s first book in this series, American Royalty, so I was very excited to continue Duchess and Jamison’s story in The Duchess Effect.

It’s so refreshing to read romance books that follow a couple after their initial “falling in love stage.” Unfortunately, a few things early on didn’t sit well and kept me from loving this story.

The first issue was Duchess’ total flip-flop in her initial proclamation to keep their work life separate from their personal life. I love that she is a strong, independent woman, and yet her decision to start using their public outings for her benefit without even talking to him first really went against what I came to know as her character.

So, it was really hard to see her acting that way time and time again knowing that it was wrong and that there would be some major fallout.

I’m also all about steamy romance books and yet the scenes between Duchess and Jamison seemed a bit much. They were constantly going at it, which is fine, but their scenes were hot and heavy for like two minutes, which seemed kind of jarring to how they fit in with the rest of the story. It was like, let’s have a chat and now let’s get down with some intense dirty talk and now we are done – next scene.

I’ll definitely continue reading in Tracey Livesay’s books, however, this one just had a few things that didn’t quite hit the mark for me.

*Thank you to a Netgalley for the advanced reader copy all opinions on my own.

I loved American Royalty.
And loved reading the second book in this highly anticipated sequel.

The Duchess Effect is the sequel to American Royalty by Tracey Livesay.

This book kept me intrigued and engaged the entire time.
Dani and Jamesons personality just shined on each and every page.
I love the chemistry between Dani and Jameson.
These characters are extremely lovable and highly entertaining, each in their own unique way.
I had so much fun reading this charming book.
A cute, fun and highly entertaining modern love story with royalty elements.
This is the type of royal romance I live for!
Tracey Livesay writes the best romantic stories that are enjoyable to read and easily read in one sitting. They are unique but equally well written and enjoyable.

"I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

Thank You NetGalley and Avon for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

The Royal Treatment: A Review of Tracey Livesay’s “The Duchess Effect”
By Valencia Turner

**SPOILER warning just in case**

Danielle “Duchess” Nelson and Prince Jameson Alastair Richard Lloyd are back, and this time – things get even more complicated, both in front of the camera flashes and behind palace walls.
And I’m here for it!
I read “American Royalty” this past year and I was excited to read and review its sequel: “The Duchess Effect.” While “American Royalty” focused on the love story between Dani and Jameson, this second book delves deeper into the challenges they face as a couple in the spotlight of celebrity and under the microscope of the Royal Family and the British press. One cannot deny the similarities between Dani/Jameson, and Prince Harry/Princess Meghan (She’s a princess. I will only refer to her as such.)
I must confess, I haven’t watched the Netflix docuseries produced by Harry and Meghan. (Please don’t come for me.)
I didn’t’ really want to watch it for fear it would upset me to watch their struggles just to love one another when it feels like there is an entire multimedia complex trying to tear them down. My heart breaks for them – to an extent. They have the money and resources to disappear. They shouldn’t have to disappear, but I digress.
“The Duchess Effect” centers its story on the next part of the “Happily Ever After” story that ended “American Royalty.” This time, readers will get a glimpse of what happens after declarations of love have been shared and the romantic leads ride off into the sunset together. This novel depicts the unique challenges they face now that their romance is official. As they face additional public scrutiny, how will they move forward? Is love enough?
“The Duchess Effect” begins in the euphoria that is Dani and Jay. They are trying to lead their lives as far away from the public eye as possible, while still reaching personal and professional goals.
But when you add celebrity and royalty, you end up with a bit of chaos.
The monarchy is coming under intense scrutiny when it is learned that Prince Julian, next in the line of succession, is embroiled in another huge scandal. The Crown Prince is going to be a father again, and … um, again. Apparently, the Prince has impregnated both his wife, and his mistress. That mistress being one Duchess Hater/Imitator Samantha Banks.
The Royal Family must stay relevant and ideal, otherwise the monarchy is no longer needed. The Queen realizes she must sway the country toward a more respectable, handsome member of the royal family: Jameson. She knows Jameson doesn’t want an active role in the family business, so she decides to use blackmail to secure his cooperation. Prince Jameson will take over his uncle’s work schedule, and the Queen won’t kick the prince’s mother out of royal life and its protections.
Jameson thought he could retreat into private life and spend more time with Dani, but he gets stuck filling in for his uncle. Dani thinks she’s about to ink a deal for her skincare business, but now the deal hinges on her compromising her ethics.
After the couple agreed to keep their personal and public lives separate, they must merge the two, resulting in even more press coverage and personal conflicts.
I don’t want to spoil it the rest of it. Let’s just say that the issue of trust is a huge theme throughout this book. While it’s not a “sexy” topic, it’s an important which must be explored as their relationship grows.
One would think that palace intrigue would be boring. Ok. Me. I thought palace intrigue was boring, but this book makes it interesting. Since I have ADD, it’s no small feat to keep me engaged in royal and familial politics, but Tracey Livesay manages to do it quite skillfully.
We learn more about the inner workings of royal life, press coverage, challenges to their existence, etc. It gives the reader a sense of why these characters behave the way they do. One doesn’t necessarily feel sorry for these people, but it gives us a look into their point of view. They don’t have the luxury of looking anything less than perfect or speaking out on topics that might make them seem controversial.
It gives it a human face to a fictional world.
Dani and Jay don’t get as much of a chance to let their live develop naturally before they are shoved back out there for the entertainment and pleasure of others. Their lives aren’t their own, and they must live with the reality of that.
Livesay is able to take two people, whose positions are normally way out of our league, and relay their struggles in a way that is completely relatable.
We have a young woman who has been raised to be independent because she can’t count on anyone else. She’s also a black woman navigating a business environment run by people who don’t look like her. Jameson is forced to confront old demons, the complications of being a devoted son and reluctant royal, as well as navigate a new relationship with another public figure.
Livesay gives us a fresh look at the characters we love, as well as a deeper insight into some of the supporting characters who make their lives full. It’s definitely a wild ride, but it’s worth taking.
My only critique, and I hesitate to include it, is the fact that – for the better part of the novel – there are several references to how attractive they look to one another. Duchess and Jay are frequently referencing the other’s beauty, physical attributes, and other traits; additionally mentioning all the fun things they can do with those hot bodies.
I think the reason for such frequent references in the first half of the book, is to make up for the lack of sexy scenes. Instead, the author uses references to steamy times to sate the reader’s lust until they reach the actual sex scenes.
In a romance, readers expect to be pulled along from one sexy or romantic scene to another. We hunger for the angst, stolen kisses, heated glances, and every passionate love scene. We also understand that there is a larger story in which the romance takes place. We know something will threaten their love story and happy ending.
“American Royalty” is the love story. “The Duchess Effect” shows us what happens after the epic declaration of love in the first book. It demonstrates what happens when the real world clashes with love.
(Also, I want to see more of Rhys and Naya’s love story.)

I was eagerly awaiting this sequel, but unfortunately the plot just fell a little flat for me. The constant unnecessary obstacles placed within the relationship annoyed me and it didn't make sense why The Mela skin deal came with those limitations to include the Jamison? Overall the author did deliver on some good spicy scenes. If a third book is to come, I'd read it!

So often we get HEAs at the end of novels that really read like HFNs and we are supposed to accept them as they are. We might believe them but really it’s about us using our imagination. With The Duchess Effect we got to see the HFN grow into a HEA. It’s fairly unique to get a book 2 with a couple when their feelings towards each other are already out in the open and together.

At the same time, this book isn’t a fluffy bit about them skipping through fields of flowers and sipping champagnes on yachts. They’re so more than enough angst to go around and keep you wondering “what’s next?”

The angst in this book actually had me regularly screaming “Dani. What the hell are you doing?!” I think I wanted her to trust Jay more than he did. He was so far gone for her he didn’t see any problems until they were right on top of them. I LOVE how he loved Dani and I’m grateful I got another few hundred pages to see it happen.

I’m not sure if we’ll end back in this world with Dani and Jameson but I’m not ready to leave their universe yet. Please don’t make me!

In case it’s not clear, I love this and think you should add it immediately to your summer reading list!

I received this title as an ARC on Net-galley in exchange for a honest review. Thank you HarperCollins for the copy!

I was so excited to be given my first ever ARC, and having it be the sequel to American Royalty (Which I loved) made it even better! I always get super nervous I'm not going to love a 2nd or even 3rd book in a series but Tracy did not disappoint! I was so glad to have Dani and Jameson back in my life!

I loved seeing more of a domestic side to them both and getting to read that the honeymoon phase has definitely not worn off ;).

I think I related to Dani a lot more in this book than the first one. As someone who is super independent and has the worst time asking anyone for help, I know I have felt exactly as she has when it comes to doing things on my own and the anxiety it brings when it starts to fall apart. Jameson continues to be one of my favorite book boyfriends as he is charming, supportive and loves my girl Dani so so much!

I will always be a sucker for black girls in a royal romance, and I did not want this one to end!!!