Review: Royal Marriage Market by Heather Lyons
Note: This ARC was provided by InkSlinger PR in exchange for an honest review.
My hands curl around her waist. "Let's run amuck and cavort together from here on out."
Her eyes widen significantly as she takes in my meaning. "You really are bloody Prince Charming, aren't you?"
"No," I tell her. "I'm just Chris, a guy who happens to be ridiculously in love with a girl named Els."
At twenty-eight, Her Royal Highness, the Hereditary Princess Elsa of Vattenguldia--that title doesn't even include all her given names--has no immediate plans of marrying. Her parents, on the other hand, think that it's time and leave her and her younger sister no choice but to agree to attend the Decennial Summit, which for unattached royals like Elsa, becomes a marketplace of sorts that have royal parents searching about and brokering deals in order to marry off their children to fellow single royals. Elsa refuses to give in easily to what her parents want, hoping to marry out of love, not out of duty or necessity. She doubts that she'll find her own version of Prince Charming at the Royal Marriage Market, tired of the usual princes who bore her to tears. Then she meets Christian...the prince chosen to marry her sister, Isabelle.
At thirty, His Royal Highness, the Hereditary Grand Duke Christian of Aioboland--who prefers to be called Chris by those closest to him--has enjoyed being away from his country for a good portion of his life. Having his mother nearby, not so lovingly nicknamed She-Wolf by Christian and his younger brother, leads to her thinking she has a right to meddle in the lives of her adult sons. But as much as Christian wishes she would just leave him be, he's given no other option but to take part in the Royal Marriage Market, aka the RMM. His mother already has an idea who he should marry, but he isn't the least bit interested in the princess she's chosen. Instead, it's the princess's older sister, Elsa, who happens to the heir to the throne, that captures his attention. But two crown heirs are not allowed to be together. Right?
Countless little girls grew up to tales of princesses and the princes who charm them on their way to happily-ever-after, and even as adults, many of us are still drawn to movies that depict this familiar story line, albeit the princesses are more self-sufficient and aren't desperately waiting to be saved. Now, when it comes to books, I've read my fair share of modern-day fairy tales, but these were stories that had a similar theme to classic fairy tales and given a modern twist with non-royal characters. Not so with Heather Lyons's Royal Marriage Market, a standalone contemporary romance with a royal twist and my very first read from the author. She's weaved a tale of modern-day royals who are forced to adhere to archaic traditions, manipulated to capitulate for love of crown and country, sacrificing their own wants and needs.
Princess Elsa of Vattenguldia is every bit the royal princess that you expect her to be, but she's also independent and no-nonsense and fights tooth and nail when she believes she's being made to do something against her better judgment. She's seemingly poised and perfect, but meeting and being with someone like Prince Christian of Aioboland brings out the more carefree side of her and together they experience several "firsts" as a way to escape the demands of the RMM and everything it entails. They're more similar than either one would have originally thought, and they're the epitome of the royal couple that deserves to have their own happy ending. Except they're both heirs to their respective thrones and the council composed of monarchs has always maintained that two crown heirs may not marry each other.
This was a beautiful story of love, and you don't have to be tiara-toting reader to empathize with what Elsa and Christian have to endure in order to be together. Theirs isn't a case of instantly falling in love, because they get to know one another while they're at the Summit, and though they notice each other from the beginning, Elsa and Christian forge a friendship first before they find themselves falling for one another. There's a lightheartedness to this story that belies the weight that's been placed upon the shoulders of the heirs and spares, and it's something I believe we can relate to. Love brings with it challenges and it's how far you're willing to go to be with the one you love most that makes finally being together much sweeter in the end. Royal Marriage Market is one of my 2015 top reads and I highly recommend it. Five-plus stars. ♥
Date Read: 16 December 2015
Learn more about Heather Lyons.
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