Like most little girls who had a diet of Disney princess movies when little, I used to daydream and play pretend about being a princess. As I grew older, I grew out of that. But every now and then, a book comes along and feeds that childhood fantasy. Below are a few of my favorites.
Royals by Rachel Hawkins now known as Prince Charming
Meet Daisy Winters. She's an offbeat sixteen-year-old Floridian with mermaid-red hair, a part time job at a bootleg Walmart, and a perfect older sister who's nearly engaged to the Crown Prince of Scotland. Daisy has no desire to live in the spotlight, but relentless tabloid attention forces her join Ellie at the relative seclusion of the castle across the pond.
While the dashing young Miles has been appointed to teach Daisy the ropes of being regal, the prince's roguish younger brother kicks up scandal wherever he goes, and tries his best to take Daisy along for the ride. The crown--and the intriguing Miles--might be trying to make Daisy into a lady . . . but Daisy may just rewrite the royal rulebook to suit herself.
That totally awkward moment when your older sister throws your whole family into the limelight by getting engaged to a crown prince. You just wanted to forget about prom, now you have to navigate the complex world of royalty. Not how you imagined your summer going. There is a sequel I haven't read.
The Royals Next Door by Karina Halle
An ordinary summer goes royally awry when a prince and princess move next door, bringing their handsome bodyguard with them, from New York Times bestselling author Karina Halle.
Piper Evans: elementary school teacher by day--avid romance reader and anonymous podcaster by night. She has a quiet, reclusive life, taking care of her mother, who lives with mental illness, avoiding her regrettable ex, who bartends in town, and trying to make inroads in the tight-knit island community that still sees her, five years in, as an outsider.
And she's happy with how things are--really--until British royals rent the property next to hers and their brooding bodyguard decides she's a security threat. Piper quickly realizes that one person's fairy tale is an ordinary woman's nightmare as a media frenzy takes over the island and each run-in with Harrison Cole is hotter and more confusing than the last. But beneath Harrison's no-nonsense exterior lies a soft heart, one that could tempt a woman who's sworn off attachments into believing in white knights.
But when Piper finds herself smack in the middle of a royal scandal that rocks the island she'll need more than Harrison's strong arms to shield her--she'll have to do a little rescuing herself. With careers, hearts, and friendships on the line, Piper and Harrison will have to decide what they're willing to give up for a chance at their own happily ever after.
Can you imagine what it'd be like if, out of nowhere, Prince Harry and Princess Meghan moved next door to you in your sleepy little town? That would be totally bonkers, right? Especially if they had a super handsome and distracting guard....... Let's be honest, who wants a prince when a guard is available? Just me? Okay............
Good enough for a Princess by Carol Moncado
Crown Princess Adeline of Montevaro has her life planned out for her: get her Master's in international relations, marry nobility, produce an heir, inherit the throne. There's no room for romance with the single father she meets when their cars collide on an icy winter night. Parliament - and her father - would never approve. Charlie Brewer grew up without roots. The son of an archaeologist father and anthropologist mother, he either traveled along or lived with his aunt and uncle in the States. He's determined to give his daughter the stability he never had. He also wants to give her a mom, but the beautiful European he's falling for refuses to move to Serenity Landing, Missouri permanently. He won't move. She can't stay. What will happen when they try to forget each other by dating someone "acceptable"? They find themselves drawn together by one of the girls in the after school program Addie supports - a girl who happens to be Charlie's daughter. How will Charlie, and his daughter, feel when they find out the woman they've both fallen for is a... princess? A trip halfway around the world shows Charlie and Addie how much they long to be together - and how impossible it is. Is there any way he can prove he is Good Enough for a Princess? Single Dad meets Princess in this lovely Christian story. It's honestly screams "Hallmark, come make me into a film". Well, until that happens, I will just have to re-read this for the umpteenth time. Book 1 of a series.
Dating the Prince by Lindzee Armstrong
He's a prince with a PR problem. She's a free spirit desperate for money. Can a fake engagement solve both their problems?
His royal highness Prince Alexander of Durham has a serious PR problem. His cheating celebrity ex-girlfriend destroyed his heart and spread lies about the breakup in the press. With a new crisis manifesting daily, Alex will do anything to get back in his country's good graces.
Libby needs a new beginning, and Durham seems like the perfect choice. Her ex was a cheater, and bankruptcy has brought her parents to the brink of divorce. At least her new job as a nanny will help ease her family's financial burdens while offering her a fresh start.
When a lucky penny nearly gets Libby arrested, Alex is her unexpected hero - she just doesn't know he's also a prince. After their first disastrous date is caught on camera, the public swoons over the possibility of a new relationship. A fake engagement could solve both their problems. Can these two opposites commit to a lie, or will the sparks between them burn down the entire charade?
Nanny meets Crown Prince. Only she doesn't know he's a prince, much less Crown Prince. Until she does. Which leads to some super tense moments that are full of tasty dialogue. This one will leave you grinning like the Cheshire Cat. It is part of a series.
The Engagement with the Prince aka Marrying a Prince by Anne Marie Meyer
Marianna Hedley is finally getting her life back together after she walked in on her boyfriend of three years in the arms of another woman. Now she’s pretty much sure that the emergency room where she’s a nurse and he’s a doctor is the very last place she wants to be. So when she gets wrapped up in helping out a handsome man with a head injury—at the beckoning of his mother—she reluctantly agrees. Once she’s sure this foreign stranger is safe, she leaves the ER and swears to never come back. Prince Leonardo DeLuca is in America with one mission—propose to the woman he doesn’t love because his parents think it will be the best thing for their country. When he is out for a run and hits his head, he takes this opportunity to fake amnesia with the hopes that his parents can’t force him to marry someone he doesn’t remember. Right? Wrong. His parents don’t care and try to convince him that he will grow to love the woman he hates. Desperate to get away, Leo “accidentally” proposes to Marianna as part of a plan they’ve concocted. She’ll get away from her ex and his parents will have to go along with the proposal because if not, then they would have to admit to the press that the soon-to-be king is not of sound mind. Everything was going according to plan, until Leo and Marianna soon discover how kind and generous the other person is and their feelings blossom from friendship to something more.
Another Hallmark ready novel. If fake relationships that become real ones are your fave trope, here's a recommendation. It is book 4 of a series but each can be read as a standalone.
Hope you found your next read. As always, feel free to leave me a message below.
