I am so glad this book is no longer being marketed to teens. I read it when it was first published and loved it then but finding it in the teen section felt gross. Honestly all these kids being under age still feels gross, which is why we are taking a star off.
Anyway, cute story over all. both times I have read this I can't seem to put it down. The ending still upsets me. Can't wait for the next one.

Trigger warnings of trauma, assault, suicide, date rape, drugs, and a lot of other things. I didn’t feel like some of these aspects were handled well or represented authentically, more like they were there for shock value.

I think I liked it??? It held my attention and kept me reading. The brother/sibling love triangle aspect is awkward.

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley for the ARC.

Paper Princess is the first book of The Royals series and cannot be read as a standalone…it ends on a cliffhanger! This book sucked me in from the first chapter and I didn’t stop reading until I finished it! It was that addicting! You get a little bit of everything with this one…angst, drama, heartbreak, spice, betrayal, bullying, banter, and a little bit of mystery.

Ella Harper hasn’t has an easy life. At the age of 17 she finds herself without parents and is having to fend for herself as a stripper. She has to do what she can to survive. In comes Callum Royal saying he is her new guardian and she isn’t having it. He doesn’t like the situation she is in and literally takes her (against her will) back to live in his mansion with him and his five sons. Not gonna lie, the boys are all jerks to her! I wanted to smack them up side of their heads several times!

I won’t say anymore and give anything away. Just know if you start, you won’t be able to stop reading! I am so invested in Ella’s story along with the Royal family!

Was this book entirely predictable? Yes. Do I have objections to how sex as a whole is treated in this book? Yes. Do I defintley have issues with this very clearly being an adult book targeted towards teens? Yes.

Did I eat it up anyway? Yes. This book is almost compulsivley readable and I couldn't put it down. I just wish our characters were in their early twenties rather than definetly still minors.

Ella is alone in the world. Her mother recently passed and she never knew her birth father. She's doing her best to make ends meet. If that means stripping after high school so she can pay the bills, then so be it. At least she has a way to make ends meet.

When the mysterious Callum Royal declares Ella his ward she's not quite sure what to make of it. Ella doesn't trust easily and she has a hard time believing that Callum who states he was best friends with Ella's now deceased father wants whats best for her. His sons certainly don't want anything to do with her - especially Reed. Will Ella finally come to a truce with Reed or will he make her life a living hell while she figures out how to survive in the Royal household?

I started reading Paper Princess without knowing anything about it. This book sucks you in from the moment you start reading it. The writing is great, but it's the non-stop drama that you just can't look away from! And how I loved this cast of characters. Everyone has their flaws and is morally gray! I especially loved Ella and Reed.

And that ending...

Be prepared and have book 2 ready!

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley for supplying me with an egalley of this book to read and give an honest review. The opinions expressed here are my own.
I love me some Elle Kennedy...I mean Erin Watt. Either way, it's like an addiction. And, of course, I need to shout out Jen Fredrick as without her this pseudonym would not exist. I have to read everything Elle Kennedy writes; on her own or with others. Though I feel she should stick to NA rather than YA because even her YAs tend towards NA. I'll say the same thing I did all those years ago when I read this the first time, definitely reads more like an NA. But this author loves her crazy rich kid stories, so I just went with it.
As I finished this book, I realized it was then I got the title. Paper princess, on paper, money, a will, whatever you want to call it. It's all paper. And what does paper do easily? Why, it burns, of course!
What drew me in? You mean besides the author? That would be this cover. It's so pretty. It almost looks like a fantasy cover. But, believe me, this is as far from fantasy as you can get. YA, well, if you count the ages of the main characters, yes. But the actual plot is a little more mature than that. It's all good though because I love a romance, with some steam, and some twists. Especially a big twist that acts almost as a cliffhanger.
You know that saying, "Money changes everything"? Well this book will show you it sure does. And not always in any kind of positive sense.
Ella, 17, alone, eeking out her life just so she can graduate and somehow get a degree that will help her survive. Working whatever job will make her the most money and trying to pretend she's not alone in this world. Enter Callum, older, mysterious, and offering Ella a life that will easily help her get to her goals after she's spent the last few years trying to fend for herself. But bringing her into his world may just break her even more.
One thing this author always does is make me empathetic for her characters. It's what always keeps me reading. Were these her most fleshed out characters? Not by a long shot. I need more about who they all are. I am expecting future books to follow their stories, but at the same time I'd love a little glimpse of what that might be. While I loved Ella, I think Easton is my favorite character in this book, Obviously broken and in need of someone who can reign him in, I thought perhaps Ella might be that person. And not in a romantic way, but in a sisterly way. After all, she pretty much slid into that roll when Callum brought her home. But we only get a small glimpse of that and the, poof, it's gone. I hope there's more in the future!
Pacing wise, this one read fast. I read it in just 24 hours. The mark of a book is one that keeps me wanting to pick it up. I honestly could not wait to finish work so I could finish the book and find out what all the big secrets were. Guess what, this one didn't wrap that up. Which is why I'm itching to dive into the next Royal book.
Was a sad when it was done? Yes. Do I want to run and start book 2? Also yes because the ending leaves so much unanswered. Is this my new guilty pleasure? Well, yes, yes it is.
Where will Ella go? What has Reed done? What is really Callum's ultimate goal? Will Easton change his wicked ways? Will we get more of the twins, Sawyer and Sebastian, and what they are like or are they just background fodder? Do we get to see Brooke take a nose dive off a cliff? Is Dinah with her? All things I need answered.
So I will dive into the next book and anticipate another fast paced, romantic, plot twisting ride. And I'll enjoy every moment of it.

This was an absolutely riveting read that had me on the edge of my seat and swooning at every page! The angst, drama, and heart-pounding moments throughout the book will keep you invested in the lives of this complicated family no matter what. The writing style flows well and is easy enough that you can completely immerse yourself in the story. There’s so much more I want to gush about, but that would spoil the journey for you. And I don’t want that. However, if you liked the film Culpa Mia or even the book itself, then I highly recommend reading this one. It’s so, so good!! Trust me!

Holy craziness Batman! This was diabolically awesome! Such a wickedly entertaining read! Every person who told me it was addicting was right. I freaking inhaled this!

The world of The Royals that the author has created is beyond fascinating. The characters are so intriguing and complicated. There are so many different layers and things happening. I hung on to every detail. The drama (oh the drama!), the tension, and the angst were all fantastic. The Royals have totally ruined me. I loved the writing, the descriptions, the build, I was on the edge of my seat the entire time. It's all so exciting!

Ella and Reed. Oh, man. The push and pull these two have going on with their love-hate relationship was so awesome. I loved all their interactions. This is very much Mature YA, if I would have read this as a teen I would have seriously thought I was getting away with something.

Throughout the story, the Royals family totally grew on me as I learned more about their history. They have this crazy family dynamic happening. It's like I wanted to slap them all and hug them all at the same time… and I mean that in a good way!

From the fighting to the privileged, the scheming, and mean girls I could not wait to see what was going to happen next. I had a gazillion questions when it ended and cannot wait to read the next book. And that ending, freaking killer cliffhanger. I totally yelled at my Kindle.

I'm honestly surprised I remembered to feed my family. I'm not even kidding. Time just stopped and I'd look up and two hours would have passed and I didn't pay attention to my Kindle percentage at all. This was an all-consuming, fascinating world I couldn't get enough of.