Once Upon a Princess: A Lesbian Royal Romance
Co-Authors: Clare Lydon & Harper Bliss
Here’s the Deal:
Olivia Charlton is a princess with responsibilities. Her family, namely her mother, Queen Cordelia, is pressuring her to get married. She thought that coming out as a lesbian would be one of the hardest things she would ever have to do, but it would seem that trying to bring herself to go through with a sham of a marriage to her ex, turned current fiance Jemima, would be much more difficult on both Olivia and her heart. Olivia decides that she needs to get away and clear her head before she signs over the rest of her life to Jemima and her royal responsibilities. With that, she begs for a few weeks away from it all. Something to get her mind right before the big day.
Rosie Perkins, lives in the small town of Otter Bay, away from the hustle and bustle of London. While Otter Bay is a decent tourist destination, it is definitely a much quieter life. One that Rosie had resigned herself to when her parents died, and Rosie was tasked with the responsibility of raising her younger sister Paige. Eight years have passed, and although their Aunt Hillary often helps them, Rosie and Paige often have to take care of each other. Rosie took over her parent’s cafe Mark & Maude’s, but the cafe is beginning to fail, and there are buyers breathing down Rosie’s neck, namely Rosie’s ex Amy, whose family has purchased nearly every other establishment in Otter Bay. But what is Rosie to do? Paige has to go to college, and she’s not sure how else to save the sinking ship that was her parents dream.
When a chance meeting brings Olivia and Rosie together, they strike up a bond that they find begins to benefit them both more than they ever thought was possible. Olivia left London knowing that she had to somehow clear her heart out and give in to this “arrangement”, but in a twist of fate, she feels the most elusive feelings rising up in her whenever she’s with Rosie. Rosie put her life on hold years ago, and never looked back. She put her dreams and desires on the back-burner, understanding that her sister needed her more than anything else. But now, Paige is growing up. She doesn’t need her quite as much, and Rosie begins to feel a resurgence of those old hopes and dreams with every passing moment that she spends with Olivia.
The question is, when all else is stripped away, can their feelings work? Can Olivia even confide in Rosie enough to tell her who she really is? And if she does, can Rosie accept her and all that comes with her high profile life? Their feelings make sense when they live in their own little bubble, but once they step foot into the “real world”, will their love work? Can they even call what they feel love? With more questions than answers, the one thing that neither can ignore is what they feel. But are feelings enough?
Real Talk:
There was genuine, real excitement for this book from me. I love a good royal romance and I adore Harper Bliss, often taking note as an author, trying to learn as much as I can from anything of hers that I read. This book was a veritable buffet of beautiful lesbian romance, and I am so happy to say that I found a new favorite author in Clare Lydon. I foresee myself going on a binge very soon, so be prepared for more reviews very soon. But I digress.
This book really was like the perfect meal. Characters that drew me in and made me empathize with them and made me want to get know more about them and their backstories, and a story that actually moved and did things. There was an appetizer of banter and moments between Olivia and Rosie that had me tapping away at pages on my kindle as fast as I could, and an entree of gorgeous writing that had me highlighting my favorite lines and reflecting on them when I was forced by the outside world to put the book down for survival purposes only. There were some salty savories in the form of exes who just continued to make appearances and couldn’t seem to let go once the love was gone. There were side dishes of family drama and just enough angst to keep me glued to this story. And then of course, there was sweet sweet desert, the romantic moments were just perfect. There were hot and steamy love scenes, lines that had me teary eyed, and anguish that even had me feeling sleepless.
All in all, it was like this was the perfect formula for a royal romance. Women in love, hurdles to overcome, and such beautiful emotions that I often found myself clutching my device to my chest and taking a moment to just sigh. All the hallmarks of the perfect book. The only thing I would say was that I wanted more, more, more. I could live with Olivia and Rosie for so much longer, Clare and Harper crafted characters that became more like friends and I am so happy that I was able to read this book. My guess is that it’s going to become a book that I read at least once yearly. It was that good.
Do yourself a favor and go read this sweet romance.
There are so many layers to it, I don’t even want to give anything away by talking about it too much. This isn’t even a book that you have to take a chance on. You absolutely will love this book. Especially if you have a soul, and at least one romantic bone in your body.
I am guaranteeing you Romance and Whimsy with this one.
And Karaoke! There’s karaoke!
I’m off to go and get my hands on the next romance,
Let me know what you think!
As always
Reading is a romance
Reviews are a love language.
Make sure you read and review!
Until Next time,
~Ava
Roses and Whimsy 