Stevie‘s review of Royal Rebel (A Royal Romance, Book 2) by Jenny Frame
Contemporary Lesbian Romance published by Bold Strokes Books 16 May 17
I’ve mentioned elsewhere that while I’m not a great fan of mainstream category romance’s ‘royal’ titles, I have quite a lot of affection for their lesbian romance counterparts. I only got around to reading the first book in this series very recently, right in time for this, the second book, to come up for review. Although the novels are set almost thirty years into our future (presumably to avoid too many comparisons with the current British Royal Family), they pretty much read as contemporary stories, with only a few pieces of extra technology, most notably in the field of medicine, thereby enabling our heroines to more easily have babies together, as well as some offshoots from medical applications perking up the sex toys industry. Generally, however, the plots and characters are very familiar to even the most casual of royal watchers, right down to the idea that the Royal Family (Buckinghams, not Windsors) were beset by scandals and divorces in the late twentieth century, but have been enjoying much less turbulent relationships in the twenty-first century. Not so the Royal Family of the small state of Denbourg (which I’m assuming is supposed to be somewhere in Northern Europe), and especially not the second in line to the throne, Princess Rozala.
Roza has rebelled against her father’s strict rules all her life and is convinced that she is unwanted by her entire family, ever since her mother died shortly after giving birth to her. No stranger to making headlines, Roza finally exhausts her father’s patience, when her latest – and much older – girlfriend, turns out to be an international drugs and arms dealer. Having been unceremoniously dumped by said girlfriend, Roza is angry and dismayed when she is ordered to leave the country and spend some time visiting quietly with her cousin Queen Georgina and the new Queen Consort Beatrice.
George has always been fond of Roza, and so she and Bea hatch a plan to teach the princess to embrace responsibility by finding her a job at the charity where Bea used to work. The charity’s new director, Lennox King, is not one to put up with spoiled rich girl histrionics, as she quite capably proves on Roza’s first day. Sent home for turning up late and hung over mortifies Roza, but she perseveres, and soon becomes an enthusiastic, if sometimes misguided, charity worker.
Meanwhile, Lennox is impressed at the change in Roza and cautiously begins to court her. Just as the two seem to be settling into a far more adult relationship than Roza has enjoyed before, political upheavals back home thrust the princess back into the limelight for very different reasons, and she fears that Lennox will not adapt well to the changes.
I enjoyed this book, although not so much as I did the previous one in the series. It isn’t really a standalone novel since the relationship between George and Bea takes up nearly as much page-time as does that between Roza and Lennox. I’d have liked to see a little less of the former pair and learn a little more about Roza’s discoveries about her mother’s background. I also felt we never completely got a handle on what Lennox looked like, which felt as if it could have been a missed opportunity to throw a little more diversity into the mix. Then again, my imagined Lennox might look nothing like the author’s idea of the character, and further description might have come as a disappointment to this reader. I’m keen to explore the author’s other books, but less sure if there’s any more mileage in this series.
Grade: B
Summary:
Princess Rozala of Denbourg enjoys her reputation as a wild child, especially when it annoys her father, the King. When Roza’s latest girlfriend brings scandal to the palace doors, her father sends her to Britain, in the hopes that time with her cousin Queen George and the new Queen Consort will finally make her face her responsibilities.
After overcoming personal demons and quitting the high-stakes world of finance, Lennox King is content to keep her life simple. As the new director of a hospice charity, she uses a strict business approach to help the charity grow and prosper.
When Roza comes to work at the charity under orders from the Queen Consort, babysitting a spoiled princess is definitely not on Lennox’s agenda. But when passion flares between them, will Lennox’s past stop their relationship in its tracks, or will a twist of fate bring a new future that neither was expecting?
Read an excerpt.
Other books in this series:
