Review: Royally Yours by Emma Chase (Royally #4)

October 31, 2018

Note: An advanced reader copy (ARC) was provided by the author.

“Hello, I'm Edward Langdon Richard Dorian Rourke. I've been to every continent on the glove. I've touched the bottom of oceans and the tops of mountains, and in my expert opinion the very best place in the whole wide world...is right here.”

“I'm Lenora Celeste Beatrice Arabella Pembrook. But you can call me Lenny...as long as no one is around to hear you say it. I'm a queen, so, you know, most days...I rule.”

I've read my fair share of prequel novellas before; Royally Yours was a prequel novel, but regardless of length and placement in a series or as a standalone, it was downright one of the best royal romances that I've had the privilege of reading in all my years of reading--and those are A LOT of years. Allow me to reiterate that this fourth full-length novel--but fifth installment--in bestselling author Emma Chase's Royally series can be read as a standalone, but I am recommending the series as a whole because it really is some mighty fine writing on the author's part which basically equates to some truly fabulous romance reading on the part of fans and readers alike.

From as far as she can be remember Lenora knew the destiny that lay before her--she was meant to become the first Queen of Wessco and her father prepared her for the life--the responsibility--that awaited her. She was a Pembrook after all and duty would always prevail. At nineteen, the burden to lead from the throne was a heavy one, and many of those around her felt it best she have someone by her side--a husband. But if they thought that whoever she would wed could rein her in, they were sadly mistaken. Lenora was born to reign, but she also knew that having a consort was necessary. She would have preferred to marry for love, but she would fall in line as duty dictated. What she didn't expect was to fall in love with her intended--Edward Rourke, the new Duke of Anthorp.

Ah, this book... It had a distinctly different feel compared to its predecessors. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that Lenny and Edward's story does take place decades before those in the first three novels, giving it an almost nostalgic, old-school, classic romance air to it only with far more heat compared to the historic romances I read as in my twenties. There's some levity to this tale, but there's also a fair amount of angst in it. The evolution of Edward and Lenny's tale is a mix of sweet and steamy and flirty and feisty. They are not your run-of-the-mill royals and their love story follows suit. I loved that Lenora was a monarch that ruled with her heart and her head, and I fell for Edward right alongside his queen. Whether you're a fan of royal romances or romance in general, I cannot recommend this book enough! Not only does Royally get five-plus stars, it's one of my best reads for 2018.

PS: Any positive mention of the Philippines always earns a smile from me, but the fact that Emma Chase had Edward have something from there (well, here!) as keepsake and what it would symbolize for both him and Lenny later on in the story seriously made me tear up. So, that alone earned this book bonus points in my Filipino heart. ♥

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Read my reviews for the Royally series: