The Royals Upstairs tells the story of a quiet Swedish Nanny and the loud Scottish royal bodyguard with commitment issues. I'm beginning to think that Nanny romances just aren't for me. Maybe its the stage I'm at with my own children? IDK, The Royals Upstairs was fine, but it wasn't a book I'll remember.

3.5 stars overall.

When James starts a new job as a PPO for the Prince of Norway's family, he is startled to find Laila working for the royal family as well. Things with Laila didn't end well two years ago, and neither are sure how to navigate their situation. Is she willing to forgive his poor behavior? Or will the Norway winter compete with Laila as the coldest thing in his life?

This was a fun second-chances romance, with the added interest of forced togetherness and working for royalty as secondary tropes. Laila and James have great chemistry, and the secondary characters were easy to distinguish from each other and had their own part to play in the overall story. I wasn't a huge fan of the sudden change of heart for James, but overall it worked out to balance the emotional baggage both characters have from their youth and ultimately gives the two their HEA.

Recommended for fans of second-chance romances with plenty of spice.

This is a companion novel to Karina Halle's "The Royals Next Door" as MCs James and Laila used to work for the same royal family as Harrison. "The Royals Upstairs" takes place afterward and there is a brief post-HEA glimpse of Harrison and Piper. But, that being said, "The Royals Upstairs" can stand on its own. Halle's new novel is well-written, naturally, and was a cute second-chance, dual POV romance. It was fine. I didn't totally vibe with it, but that could be my mood at the moment. It's fine, not a book I need to reread but that could also just be me.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE Karina Halle. And The Royals Next Door was one of my favorite reads. The Royals Upstairs...I don't know why but I struggled with this one for a few reasons. I still love it because it's Karina Halle...but I think I had a hard time reconciling the two MC's and their relationship after how they behaved toward one another.

First off, thank you NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for granting me access to this book in exchange for an honest review.

Okay, so I have such mixed feelings about this book. On one hand, I didn't love it but it wasn't horrible either. When I saw this adorable cover and read the synopsis about a royal bodyguard for the Norwegian family who unexpectedly encounters his old fling, offering them a possible second chance, I knew I had to read it! The Royals Upstairs is the next book in a series, which I didn't realize before reading it. However, it can be read as a standalone, although I feel like reading the previous books would have enhanced my experience. The story started off really strong but soon began to drag, causing me to lose interest quickly. Additionally, the characters lacked depth and the chemistry between them was basically non-existent. Despite having a lot of potential, the storyline ultimately fell short in its execution. While I enjoyed it taking place in Norway and the second chance romance trope, I was unfortunately left feeling underwhelmed. ⭐️⭐️.💫

✨2.5 stars rounded up to 3 stars!✨

3.75 stars rounded up

I love Karina's writing style and humor! This book was a little heavier than some of her other rom-com type novels, but I still really enjoyed it.

I am a sucker for a second chance romance and I really loved Leila and James' story. I do think Leila is a little more forgiving and understanding then I would be.

The royals Upstairs is a second chance romance between a bodyguard and a nanny for a royal family. It was very heart warming and I loved there romance, but I do wish there would have been a little bit more going on plot wise outside of the relationship.

Overall this was a very solid read.

Ok, I'm going to be honest here. I am not a fan of angst. Especially second chance angst, so the first part of this book was hard to get through. HOWEVER, when the characters started softening towards each other, I loved it! The setting was a whole character on its own and the royal family was hilarious and enjoyable! The steam and pinning were great and the third act conflict was very well done! Overall, I enjoyed this story!

Thanks to Berkeley for the opportunity to read and review this book via Netgalley

At first glance, I thought this cover was more about the royals than the book was actually about.

This is a story for sure about second chances, enemies to lovers, with some self growth and facing fears mixed in.

I breezed through the book, but to me, the spice was starting to become a bit redundant. It was pretty similar in most of the spice scenes and most could have been dropped and the plot would continue just fine. by later scenes, I was starting to scan quickly because I could tell it was super similar to the scene before it.

However, I did like the plot in seeing them both come from hard backgrounds and get to a place of allowing someone else into their hearts.

I plan to share my spoiler free review on 9/8/24 on my instagram.

When I first read The Royals Next Door - I immediately fell in love with the story and the writing style. Unfortunately, I had a really hard time connecting with the characters and the storyline in The Royals Upstairs.

This was ok. I’ve definitely read better. I didn’t hate it but I just wish it was a book I couldn’t stop thinking about. Instead I instantly forgot everything I read.

Unfortunately did not like this one and it was mostly due to James and his characterization. He was pretty terrible to Laila in the past, never really apologizes, and when she says she doesn't want to get involved again, very aggressively pressures her to do just that.

Kinda cute, kinda underwhelming. Maybe I expected too much. The first time I tried to get into it I made it about 30% and couldn't even tell you what had happened. I figured maybe it was me and the headspace I was in so I put it down, read something else and came back to it when I was looking for something fun and fluffy. Sadly, I was just kind of bored. I found myself spacing out and having to reread lines multiple times.

Ultimately, if you're a fan of the series/author, read it and make your own opinion.However, if you're new to this author's work, you might want to start with one of their more acclaimed titles, like The Royals Next Door to get a better sense of their style and storytelling strengths. Sometimes a particular book just doesn't resonate, and that's perfectly okay. Everyone has different tastes, and what falls flat for one person might be a perfect escape for another.

A steamy romcom about a royal bodyguard and royal nanny, say less! A quick, easy read that is cute and just made me smile. I loved the relationship between the staff and royals, it was very endearing and made me want to read the book about the prince and princess. I do wish that there had been more focus on the development of the relationship, especially with a second chance romance we need to see why a second chance is even worth it besides just being near each other. It jumped from hate to lust to love pretty fast.
3.5⭐️ rounded up

I enjoyed the previous Royals book, but found this one to be lackluster and low on chemistry between the main characters. Had a hard time getting into it.

This one was very fun! I've had some good luck with Halle's contemporary romance, and this is no different. I adored Laila! And I really could almost feel the cold and the snow with the great descriptions! I really enjoyed this, and I will add it to my recommends list!

I love Karina Halle’s books! They are so fun. I love royals + Americans. Always makes for a fun story. I liked this one and her other royals book!

The Royals Upstairs by Karina Halle is a captivating romance filled with tension and excitement, all while delicately exploring themes of mental health and trauma recovery. I am eagerly anticipating delving into more works by this talented author.

I've been looking forward to this book's release since I first read The Royals Next Door a few years ago, and I was thrilled to receive an ARC from Netgalley!

While I did enjoy this book, I didn't connect with it in the same way that I did with its predecessor. I reread The Royals Next Door before diving into The Royals Upstairs, and I found the characters in the first book to be more likeable and easier to root for. Their romance felt more real to me and they had interesting, compelling personal lives in addition to their romance.

Unfortunately, The Royals Upstairs lacked some of those components that made the first book so compelling. First, our protagonists, Laila and James, didn't have much personality or plot outside of their romance. James had somewhat of a backstory in his divorce, but we didn't delve into that as much as I would've liked, and it was hinted at that there was more going on there with his mental health, but we never explored it. With Laila, she had her grandmother's health, but that felt like a detail that easily could've been lifted out and not affected the story, which means it wasn't integrated enough.

The way Halle writes about grief makes it evident that it's something she has a deep connection with--something made even clearer if you read the acknowledgments of this book--but I know how difficult it can be to write about a topic that's too close to your heart, and this may have unfortunately been one of those cases where because you know the topic so well, there are some details that fall through the cracks.

I also thought the way James's character in particular evolved by the end of the book wasn't particularly believable. The entire reason he left Canada was because he couldn't stand small-town life and the loneliness of it all, but he adjusts to being in this similarly secluded area rather quickly and, once he falls for Laila, changes from being city-oriented to being happy to settle down in a small town. I'm not saying that is completely unrealistic, but it happened so quickly and conveniently that it didn't feel very believable.

Also, both Laila and James express explicitly how they don't want children--something I actually found refreshing--but by the end, James was talking about wanting to "be the father of Laila's children." It's okay for characters, and people, to not want kids, and for once, I wish characters would stick to their choices instead of changing their mind as soon as they fall in love.

I also don't think we got to spend enough time with the supporting cast of characters to become invested in them, with the exception of Lady Jane. Because I know what Halle is capable of, and because I just finished reading it in the previous book, I couldn't help but want more.

Overall, I felt pretty disconnected from the characters and the emotions they were supposed to be feeling, which wasn't what I expected at all from this book. Especially given some of the heavier topics discussed in it.

I do want to end this review by saying that I did enjoy this book overall. It was a fun, sweet story that was quick to read and shut my brain off for a few hours. Unfortunately, I just couldn't help myself from comparing it to the previous book, which was to this book's detriment.

Thank you to Netgalley and Berkley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 STARS!
~~~
This book seems to be a spin-off from a book previously published, but I had no difficulty getting into the flow. The only thing is the two main characters knew each other prior, and I’m not sure how much they appeared in the other book.

The story has a great setting as we are treated to the Nordic freeze. We also meet those they serve with the Prince of Norway and staff. Not to mention his bratty-well, one of them-children.

Halle spent a lot of time on the development of the main characters separately but I was a little sad. She really didn’t have a lot of time with them one-on-one.

We get snippets of the past where they had a relationship in the prior book and we understand that they both cared for each other. But a lot of their conversation is through a wall and interactions during their day while working.

Both are stubborn and in some ways, very closed off from letting anybody in, including each other. That is a bit frustrating for the reader because this whole story is a build-up, yet they’re not building in a true connection between each other until the very end.

The Royals Upstairs is sweet, but it’s also sad in many ways. We do get quite a bit of steam, but there is a lot of crazy and super messy stuff to go through as well.

Overall, it’s an enjoyable story with some laughs, some spice, some working through to the second chance, and a lovely HEA that was a long time coming.

I so wanted to love this one, but it unfortunately just fell a bit flat for me. I am new to the author, so I went into this one not knowing her writing style or how she typically characterizes her worlds.

I was excited about a royal-adjacent romance (our main couple are not royals themselves - but work for a royal family) and for the Norwegian representation - as someone who is Norwegian it is typically very hard to see the culture represented in any books or mainstream art.

However, this book just seemed to drag for me; it felt very slow-paced and yet, I feel all that time was not used well for the sake of the story. This is a second chance romance and I feel the current romance wasn't well fleshed out - instead it relied on the previous feelings to pick up on the will-they-won't-they, tortured relationship vibes. I wish there was a bit more development in the current storytelling - particularly on our MMC's side.

The steamy scenes are definitely steamy and, this might seem like an odd complaint, but they tend to go on for PAGES - to the point where I found myself skimming. Almost like too much of a good thing, if that makes any sense.

I did find the ending to be satisfying - yes, we got steam, but we also got a thoughtful, romantic confession and apology.