THE ROYAL GAME by Linda Keir was such a fun "real-life" fairytale/royalty reimagining...I absolutely adore books in this subgenre! I can't wait to read more from this author.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publishing Company for providing me this Digital Advanced Readers Copy of the book!

3-ish stars for me. I really loved the idea of this book, but it started very abruptly, and the whole story just seemed disjointed and too fast. Just not my favorite.

I made a decent effort into completing this book but sadly didn’t fully finish before publication. However, what I had read of it, I enjoyed, enough so that I’ve since purchased the Kindle version and it is on my Kindle TBR

Jennie's meet-cute with Prince Hugh of Wales led to a whirlwind courtship and engagement. As an American, Jennie struggles with the sudden press attention and all the rules attached to becoming royalty. As she melds with the Royal Family, she starts making connections that all may not be what it seemed with Hugh's mother's tragic death, and she fears someone is plotting her death as well.

This book obviously follows the storyline of the current royal UK family, including the death of a divorced princess and an American catching the eye of a Royal. This book will appeal to fans of "The Crown" and those who are intrigued with the interworkings of the a lifestyle of a real princess. I liked Jennie's character and how she was still a very "real" person through her notoriety on her own merits, not an entitled celebrity from the States. I don't feel the plot line of the story was fleshed out because there were really no clues leading to the "whodunit," but at the same time it seemed fairly obvious in its attempt to not be obvious.

If you're missing "The Crown" and want more of that, this will be a great pick for you.

Unfortunately this was a DNF for me. I selected the book based on the vibes the cover gave off (a bad choice I know), so when I began reading, it felt too juvenile for me. My fault not the book’s!

This book, unfortunately, wasn’t for me. I was hoping for a thrilling mystery with a swoon-worthy romance at its center, but both of the story’s main elements fell flat. I didn’t connect to Jennie as a main character, and I didn’t feel the chemistry between her and Hugh, so I was struggling to get invested in the story.

As I did not enjoy this book, I will not be sharing a review on any platform.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I'm a massive fan of the British Royals. I love how this book includes aspects of Will and Kate, but mostly Meghan and Harry. I don't typically read mysteries, but I really enjoyed this one. I mainly listened to the audiobook, which was narrated brilliantly.

Jennie, an American popstar, and Hugh, the future king of England, have a whirlwind courtship, fall in love, and get engaged. While Jennie is living at the Kensington palace, mysterious things keep happening that make her feel like her life is being threatened. This book also has flashbacks to Hugh's mum, Princess Penelope, and her life before it was tragically ended prematurely in a plane crash.

The parallels between the current British royal family and the book are a treasure trove full of easter eggs for fans of the British monarchy. I would highly recommend this to any Meghan and Harry fans or people who love the inner workings of the British monarchy.

I honestly expected more from this book, There wasn't enough character development, parts felt rushed (especially the ending), and we needed more of the MC love story.

This book had such a cute plot idea! Romance, some mystery - with royalty - yes!

I appreciate the publisher and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for a review.

This book was a mix of good and bad, I loved how fast they fell in love and come a pop star and a prince love love! definitely adore a fun fairytale elements. We found this book to be more of a mystery than a romance novel but is still an entertaining read. If you love anything and everything Royal then go and read this!

This is my first Linda Keir book and unforunately will probably be my last. The Royal Game is basically a retelling of Meghan and Harry's story with Princess Diana flashbacks thrown in for good measure. The authors don't do a very good job of telling the romance story...it felt forced. Additionally, they were unable to tell the story in a way that gave me sympathy for Jennie, Penelope, or Hugh.

I am such a big fan of royal inspired books and I absolutely loved this! It takes heavy inspiration from both Princess Diana and Meghan Markle’s experiences and I really enjoyed how it all played out!

Jennie is a singer who, during a gig, is asked by a latecomer to play a song she’d already performed. The schmuck who asked her to do that? Only Prince Hugh, heir to the throne of England! No biggie! The pair fall in love and plan to be married. But Jennie starts receiving disturbing messages and, as she begins learning about the fate of the late Princess Penelope, she begins to become seriously concerned for her own well being.

The book is well crafted and the plot is definitely interesting! My only real critique is that Prince Hugh is kinda boring. There isn’t extremely amazing chemistry between him and Jennie. But, I felt that the plot was definitely enough to keep me interested and that this was an enjoyable read!

This novel is essentially a reimagination of Meghan Markle's story with Princess Diana's tragedy thrown in.

Jennie is a popstar in America who falls in love with Prince Hugh. (Following me?)
She flies to England to marry him, but the world does not rejoice.
Jennie begins to get many threatening letters that she'll wind up like the Prince's mother. (dead)

It's an interesting take, a good read, and has a great mix of romance/mystery.

This book was a delightful journey into a world that skillfully blends reality with fiction, crafting a compelling and mysterious plot that kept me engaged throughout. While I appreciated the nods to real events, I found the dramatic twists and turns added by the author to be particularly thrilling.

However, I couldn't help but wish for a bit more gradual development in the romance department. It felt like the story leaped into romantic entanglements rather abruptly, leaving me yearning for a deeper buildup. Despite this, the sporadic cute moments provided a charming respite from the main narrative.

What truly captivated me was the fact that the romance, while present, didn't overshadow the central storyline. As someone who typically prefers narratives driven by plot rather than romance, I found this refreshing. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed the book and found it to be a captivating read.

Hello!

I am back from my short vacation! It was much needed and I was able to accomplish a bunch of reading while away (in the next week or so I am hoping to pick up a book that I have been waiting to release for a long time). Today though, we are here to talk about a book released in the past few months that I absolutely loved (and I really hope for more of but I know at this point there is not anything in the works). I love reading royalty books and I saw this one and knew I had to read it.

SPOILERS AHEAD

Jennie is a singer, she is semi-famous in America and she has a pretty good life. Singing is her passion and she is just happy to get to follow that passion but all that changes when she is at a show one evening and guards come in. Jennie just assumes this is some VIP coming in and it turns out she is correct. After the show, she is asked to come and meet the VIP and it turns out to be none other than the prince of England. After their meeting, Jennie and the prince slowly develop a relationship and now they are ready to get married. But before the royal announcement of the wedding, they have both kind of been keeping things on the down low but now they will be public and she will have to be involved in the royal family. This is about to be a whole new world for Jennie, but can the relationship and Jennie stay in this world and be happy?

I absolutely loved this story, so much so that I reached out to the author after. It was an absolutely amazing book. When I reached out to the author, I asked if there is a possibility of a second book, as I would absolutely love another book with Jennie and the group. I listened to this book on audio (and that was amazing) but I ended up ordering a copy of this book because I just absolutely loved it so much (and will definitely be reading it again). I do want to give a shoutout to the publisher, who granted me an audiobook E-ARC in exchange for my honest opinions. This book is great please make more! I definitely recommend picking up this one and giving it a try! It was so fun!

Goodreads Rating: 5 Stars (deserves many more)

***Thank you so much to the publisher for the audiobook ARC in exchange for my honest opinions.

I found this royal romance book somewhat refreshing given the extra layer that jenny is a popstar and could add that fun little tidbit to the otherwise slightly repetitive trope. All in all, i really enjoyed the secondary characters specifically jenny’s royal assistant and her mom Karen. Her mom Karen reminded me a lot of my mom, the way she acted about everything was so endearing, i really liked her!
It was reminiscent of harry and meghan & lady di, minus the brother part as there weren’t siblings if i remember correctly.
The tension created throughout the book and suspense in the story was enjoyable and a nice little extra degree of depth to the story.
Overall it was an easy read, enjoyable, and i managed to finish it in one long flight, so would definitely recommend it!

Note: thanksNetGalley and publishers for allowing me to read an ARC.

A new take on the royalty/celebrity sub-genre. While there were some expected portions, it was an easy, quick read for fans of this sub-genre.

I love reading books that are about the royal family and this book definitely gave me all the royal vibes. I felt a little Harry & Meg, mixed with Princess Diana and it hit all the right spots! The book switches between current day and 1996, when Princess Penelope was still alive and facing the realistic life of living as a royal. An amazing book that features all too similar situations, yet told it’s own story!

this book was INSANE!!! i absolutely adored it but WHAT!!!! i cannot wait for what else we get from linda keir. so far so good!! i’m a fan!