I have adored every minute of this Skymarian journey that the Edgewood family has been on! From Authentically, Izzy to Positively, Penelope and now onto Loyally, Luke, these cousins have brought so much delight into my literary world.

Handyman Luke returns to Skymar to work on a remodeling project for one of the countryside orphanages. While there, he meets "Ellie," a beautiful and somewhat uptight young woman—who he has no idea is actually Princess Elliana. Luke sees someone who needs a friend, and is especially happy to meet a woman who has never watched a Hallmark movie.

Princess Elliana is about to reenter royal life after taking a lengthy sabbatical to recover from a string of poor choices. She's determined to do better and serve her country with single-minded determination. Luke is a breath of fresh air—not only because he doesn't know her past, but also because of his straightforward view of the world.

Luke and Ellie's friendship and attraction grows, but the day comes when her identity is revealed. Is there a way they could be together? Luke has a business and loved ones in North Carolina. Ellie is a princess of a European country. How could things ever work out?

If you like Hallmark movies or have an appreciation for warm and rugged heroes, this book is for you! I hope you'll check out this series and come to love Izzy, Penelope, Luke, and company as much as I do. The audiobook is tons of fun as well.

I received a copy of the book from the author and the audiobook from NetGalley. All thoughts in this review are my own.

Oh, what a sweet and heartwarming romance. I haven't read any of the previous books in Pepper Basham's Skymar series, but Loyally, Luke stands alone just fine. Listening to this story did make me want to dig up the previous two books in the series though lol.

These characters are totally adorable, and I enjoyed the way Basham incorporates all the romance movie references into the story, that was very clever.

Opposites attract, royal / commoner, humor, family drama, and a quirky meet-cute, all adds up to Loyally, Luke being quite a charming listen.

And speaking of listening, I do highly recommend doing the audio version of Loyally, Luke because it's beautfully performed by quite the cast! Christopher Ashman, K.C. Sheridan, Kathleen McInerney, Natalie Duke, Gary Furlong, Caitlin Davies, and Mhairi Morrison do a marvelous job narrating this novel.

"Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage."

Loyally, Luke is one of my most anticipated books of 2024 and it did not disappoint! It gave me ALL the feels!!! This series (comprised of Authentically, Izzy, Positively, Penelope, and Loyally,Luke) is truly something special. It's the literary equivalent of curling up by a warm fire on a rainy day with your softest blanket and favorite warm beverage. It literally warms your soul.

While I would love to see this series continue...Luke's book was the absolute perfect way to end it. I will be re-reading this series for years to come.

The audiobook for this novel is one of the best I've heard. The voices were well matched to the characters and the cadence and speed of the performance was well done. Christopher Ashman, who narrated all three books in this series, was excellent as Luke. His nuanced performance perfectly captured Luke's gruff exterior while also exposing his heart of gold.

*While you could read this book as a stand alone, I would highly recommend reading the books in order.

Thanks to Net galley and the publisher for the arc of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I can't listen to this audiobook because the accents are too overdone and distracting. Thanks for the opportunity to listen. It's just not for me.

Nice and refreshing.
Luke is totally against romance and princesses and happily ever afters until he meets all of those at once.
There were nice and laughable moments in the book, which I enjoyed, but there were shallow moments, like falling for a woman only because she has watched rambo or star wars, which actually made me cringe inside.

Loyally, Luke is a fun, clean, royal romance. The story is fun and engaging, "making fun" of itself on the way as Luke wants nothing to do with romance and often gets annoyed at the Hallmarkish scenes that keep happening to him. The story involves a lot of fun tropes including secret identity, enemies to lovers, and forced proximity. The audio version is a lot of fun with multiple narrators for different characters. It took a bit to get used to some of the accents and the changing voices, but after a bit it made it more engaging and interesting. This is my first book by Pepper Basham, and I was excited to find another clean go-to romance author! This audio book ARC was provided by Netgalley, all opinions are my own.

I did enjoy listening to this book and I thought the narrators did a fantastic job. It gave me hallmark vibes. It was also clean and sweet.
I guess my only complaint is it was SO long. I think some of the scenes could have been eliminated to make the story slightly shorter.

Thank you Netgalley for this audiobook in exchange for my honest opinion. If you guys love a sweet romance as much as as the next Hallmark movie fan (i.e., me) but like your love stories with a tad less cheesiness, then this is THE book for you. It riffs off of common tropes to both romances and Hallmark movies, opposites attract, urbane city girl Vs. small town guy, princess vs. commoner, grumpy vs. sunshine with a sprinkle of adorable meet cutes and iconic scenes. This kind of reminded me of Nora Goes Off Script in its constant reference to and twist on Hallmark tropes. The characters were adorable, while the narration was top-notch. I especially loved the way they set apart the audio messages, it truly made them stand out and conveyed the tongue in cheek tone. A perfect confection ! ❤️

4 stars

Loyally, Luke was such a lovable book! It had a bit of a slow start for me, but once it picked up, I ended up enjoying it lots. I loved the royalty/commoner trope and the hero was dreamy and sweet. I definitely want to check out the two before this about Luke’s cousin and sister. Their text threads cracked me up. My first Pepper Basham book, and I’m looking forward to reading more!

Audio book source: Netgalley
Story Rating: 4 stars
Narrators: Full Cast
Narration Rating: 4 stars
Genre: Romance
Length: 12h 3m

Loyally, Luke is the third book by Pepper Basham centered around the Edgewood siblings. This story is about their brother Luke and his adventures in the island country of Skymar, somewhere near Scotland. Luke is a master carpenter and stone mason who has been brought in by wealthy Lewis Gray to restore and renovate an old castle which now houses an orphanage and school. Unbeknownst to Luke, the person overseeing the project, Ms. St. Clare, is actually the youngest royal, Princess Eliana.

Having first encountered each other in an airport coffee shop mix up, first impressions were not so good. Eliana needs a big win on this restoration project. Having been a very reckless and naive youth that set the tabloids on fire, Eliana has spent three years on the down low working on her issues and trying to prove herself through her good works in the North Country. If Luke is the best person to lead this reno, then Ellie will do her best to assist and support him. As they work together and Eliana sees many sides to Luke’s personality from his leadership working with young teens to teach them some of his skills to the two young girls he interacts with so kindly and the way Luke works with community members to get the job completed on schedule, that initial impression is flipped and now there is a story of Hallmark proportions.

This is a well told tale addressing first impressions, second chances, and how sometimes when the will is strong enough then the way will be revealed. I did enjoy this book and I do recommend it.

This was like Princess Diaries meets Sweet Home Alabama, with a male narrator who reminded me of Ted Lasso. Loyally, Luke is a really sweet, royal+normal romance that incorporates different text message threads and gossip rag articles to supplement the story. It made for a fun listen, which I had no problem enjoying despite not having read the prior books in the series. I look forward to checking out the other books now and recommend this for a fun and light summer read!

Thank you to Thomas Nelson and Zondervan Fiction Audio for gifting me with an ALC to review! All opinions are my own.

This one is squeaky clean & takes an interesting approach with the removal of the fourth wall, so to speak. I find that approach distracting, but I am sure some readers will appreciate the immediate intimacy that it can create with readers. The narrators were good, but as one living in the foothills of the Blue Ridge, I struggled with the lack of authenticity. I don’t suppose that will be a problem for 99% of the readers & that this book will be a hit with many!

This is the third book in this series and I have loved every single one. I love the development of the characters and their love stories. I have laughed through each story and enjoyed the hater between the siblings.
Can’t wait to read another book by this author.
Thanks for the advanced copy.

This was such a cute story! It did read a little juvenile like they were maybe 18-19 just out of high school instead of adults. I hadn’t realized it was a Christian book but it was pretty light in the religion thankfully and they didn’t go too heavy on praying and God. It was mentioned but not often. The story of Luke, a carpenter, helping a princess under cover renovate an orphanage in her home country (made up Skymar) felt similar to Do Your Worst and it was a fun little enemies to lovers story at the beginning. It felt like they fell for each other quite quickly but they were very sweet and cute going through her ‘list’. I still felt unclear on why Luke was so against royals? But it worked out in the end. The constant references to action and Hallmark movies was a little much. The insistence that their story sounded so similar to a romcom was a little too meta and mentioned too often. Same with the Notting Hill quote in the end. It’s just…cmon. The full cast of this ALC was incredible and I loved hearing all the different characters acted out. It made the story a lot of fun and makes me want to listen to the other audiobooks in the series. While this book was a little too twee for me it was still a cute love story about love being a choice and making compromises.

Thank you NetGalley and
HarperCollins Christian Publishing for access to the ALC in exchange for an honest review.

My favorite Pepper Basham book to date!! Good guy Luke is a totally swoon worthy main character!!! Luke knows a thing or two about girly movies, but also likes a good adventure movie like Rambo, Mission Impossible, and others.

This is a lighthearted and humorous story with laugh out loud moments and with many sweet and romantic ones as Luke works on an orphanage with and develops a friendship with Ellie, a real princess. There is an attraction but how can a country boy from the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina have more with a real princess? Sweet romance with a foundation of faith.

“Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage.”

Dear Reader,
My name is Luke Edgewood, and there are few things in life that I require. Mainly black coffee. And flannel. And lots of solitude. And my dogs, Chewy and Indie. What I don’t need is romance, so I have no plans to change my thirty-year-old bachelor status anytime soon. Nope. Bah humbug. The End.

Or maybe not. Because I’ve met a Grace Kelly look-alike who is annoying . . . until she isn’t. But she is impossible. As in, nothing can happen between us because she is a literal princess. Basically, the whole situation has turned into an ooey gooey magical snow globe of romantic tropes complete with cute kids and an actual ball. Now, even my sentences are starting to sound like mush. Ugh. Send high levels of testosterone my way—I’m going to need it.
Loyally, Luke

“‘What’s a Hallmark movie?’ She 𝘸𝘢𝘴 perfect. ‘You don’t need to know. Ever.’” 👏🏻 🤣🤣

Five stars! Presh. Absolutely precious. This is like a Hallmark movie on the written page. It’s a sweet, hopeful, grumpy-meets-sunshine story that will grab your heart.

I read the first book in this series, Authentically, Izzy, and just reread my review. And I was BEGGING for a book about Luke anddd here it is! I loved the banter between the siblings and the real life tropes mentioned throughout. It’s like a story within a story. Although this is Skymar #3 it works just fine as a stand alone.

The audiobook is narrated by a full cast and is utterly fantastic!! This book. This series. Ahh juat so enchanting and lovely.

Thank you to Netgalley, Harper Collins Christian Publishing, Thomas Nelson, and the author for the ALC in exchange for my honest thoughts.

A fairytale love story that is sure to make you smile! I loved listening to this one as an audiobook because it was set in a different country, so the characters had great accents that lended a sense of authenticity to the story. Secret royalty and flannel wearing carpenters that touched on so many romantic tropes, but not in a cheesy or over done way complemented the deeper story lines of forgiveness, redemption, and hope. The religious nuances were perfect and gave the reader a deeper sense of connection to the characters. Highly recommend if you like a feel good, Christian, closed door rom-com.

This book was straight out of a Hallmark movie! Luke and Ellie bring out the best in each other; watching Ellie's journey and seeing how she came out of her shell with Luke warmed my heart! Being in the public eye wasn't easy on the princess, but she realized that she had to do what was best for her and that her growth outnumbered anything the press might have to say.

The writing style was fun and easy to listen along to, however, I think that some of the dialogue sounded too scripted and not natural enough, but I am not sure if this was just because I listened to the audiobook or if it would have also come across that way in the physical copy.

I recommend this book to anyone looking for a feel-good romance full of bright, loving characters, and for a little Hallmark-y cheer!

Review posted to Goodreads 5/24, review posted to @evelynlainebooks TBD.

The description of this book sounded really interesting! But I sadly didn't find the characters very interesting...So then, I DNF'd.

I was also really excited for the # of narrators but it didn't do the book any favors. Perhaps this would've been better physically or ebook.

I also didn't realize it was a Christian romance, LOL. oops.

“Sometimes love means embracing the good, the bad. . . and even the impossible.”

Be still my hallmark loving heart! 😍 The Hallmark Chime! 🫠 This book! Gah! I don’t have words, and what I have to say has probably been said and better too! But my friends if you want to laugh, and swoon, and feel a sugary rush of sweetness then pick up this book by Pepper Basham, in any format because it’s all wonderful! I have read it, I have listened to it! I love love love the audiobook!!! Grab your favorite socks to knit on and just sit back and enjoy this delightful narration. It’s read by multiple narrators give the main characters Luke and Ellie fantastic voices, but we also get to hear Luke’s sisters voice come in when text and emails are read. It’s a lot of fun!

Here is the gist. Luke is a no nonsense, honest guy, who doesn’t need much. Give him rich strong black coffee, quiet cabin in the woods, and flannel and he is happy. Till he isn’t. And he is happy with his bachelorhood. Till he isn’t. And he can do without an uppity high class Grace Kelly princess in the flesh in his life. Till he can’t. And he most definitely is not living a Hallmark Movie life. Till he is! ✨ Chime ✨ Luke is a knight in shining flannel and he will make you melt like hot butter in a skillet!

Ellie may be a princess in real life but that hasn’t kept her from some real world consequences of poor choices in her youth. She’s been working hard to repair her reputation but it’s hard to build back up than to tear something down. Ellie is very relatable despite her royal status and I love her for that. I love her and Luke and the whole Edgewood family.

If you are looking for a good arm chair travel itinerary then definitely add the whole Edgewood family books to your TBR list.

Read this if you love:
💕 Handsome men in flannels
💕 Scottish flare
💕 Hallmark movies (or don’t then you can sympathize with Luke 😉)
💕 Off limits or forbidden love
💕 Fun movie and pop culture references
💕 Sibling banter
💕 Royal Romance
💕 Kissing book

Thank you to the author and publisher for sending me a copy of the book and audiobook to read and review. All thoughts are mine.