This is a contemporary romance but reads like a cross between a historical (thanks to the whole royalty aspect) and futuristic (where important heads of state are women and out British royalty are totally acceptable) tale. Nevertheless, it is highly engaging and entertaining.

Captain Quincy is a Royal Marines Officer decorated with the Victoria Cross for gallantry. However, when she catches a fellow officer sexually assaulting a young lady her anger overcomes her restraint and beats him to what is considered ‘excessive’. Instead of being court-martialled for this, she is assigned to protection-of-the-royal-family duty. Holly Weaver is a part of the royal entourage. She is the Queen Consort’s best friend and the royal dresser.

The author creates two very relatable characters. Quincy is introverted, haunted by self-recrimination for what she sees as a failure and a product of very tough upbringing. She feels so much and so deeply that she actively doesn’t allow herself to feel. Holly is physically bisexual, but emotionally gay. A past relationship with a woman has scarred her so badly that she choose to have only men in her life because she knows they cannot reach or hurt her more emotionally.

Quincey’s quietude and mental torture are offset by Holly’s openness and lust for life. Holly’s determination and tenacity in trying to reach Quincy are total wish-fulfilment of a person like that.

The chemistry and attraction is excellently built. However, after they get together for the first time, Quincy’s running-away act to add to the drama was unnecessary and excessive. If this wasn’t a romance, Holly would’ve just abandoned the relationship then and there. But this is a romance, so she hangs around and pursues Quincy despite unjustified jerkface behaviour.

Apart from that one glitch, this is a thoroughly enjoyable romance. And yes, there are a few utterly satisfying sex scenes too.

I was excited to read the 3rd installment of Jenny Frame's popular "A Royal Romance" series, "Royal Court." The story was especially intriguing to me because Holly Weaver, one of Bea's (Queen Consort) besties and her Royal Dresser, finally had her story told! I always wondered what her story was going to be about (obviously hoping, at that time, that Frame would write it! Little did I know....) since her introduction in Book #1, "A Royal Romance." I was intrigued by her fiery character and always wondered if she was truly what she professed to be - a hetero man-eater. You know, a person who feels the need to clarify their sexuality or self-profess their sexual lifestyle for everyone to hear, always gives me this "a lady doth protest too much" feeling, if you catch me drift! So, I put Holly in that "slippery slope" category since Book 1 especially when Captain Quincy was briefly mentioned in Book 2, "Royal Rebel," and Holly's "Adonis" remark about her in that scene! I had me wishful thinking about their pairing, then, mind! And VOILA, what d'ya know!!! I got me wish!! Holly has her own story to tell! And goodness, did Frame give her a brilliantly crafted story, indeed, matching her with, yes, the "Adonis" she referred to in Book 2, a highly decorated Royal Marine-turned-Queen Consort's Protection Officer, Captain Quincy, no less! YAY!! Wish came true! Imagine me joy! Needless to say, "Royal Court" is now me favourite installment in the series, yet! Yes, because of Frame's brilliant creation and portrayal of the ever-tantalising characters, Quincy and Holly, and their utterly mesmerising journey.

The fact that Holly and Quincy were polar opposites in every way possible instantly hooked me in from the start because, hey, it's always the "opposites attract" trope (if written brilliantly) that creates this undeniably intoxicating chemistry that just sizzles with scorching heat, feelings and emotions screaming to get out until they finally explode, innit? And Frame weaved the story superbly, one step, one layer, at the time, to say the least! I was holding me breath the entire time! Which brings me to another trope, a favourite of mine - Quincy and Holly's love story was a delicious slow-burn romance, fanning its flames ever so slowly and deliberately at each juncture of their encounter, turning their initially contentious relationship into a trepidatious friendship, adagio style, before deepening their indisputable attraction toward each other into a level that neither one could deny their desire for each other any longer.

I absolutely loved the Quincy character! She was a career military professional. Steadfastly loyal, a rules and regs follower, a conscientious planner who would (or rather, could) never show any sign of human emotions or feelings. Basically a machine, really. Always on professionally with no exception. But underneath the hard, steely exterior, Frame deftly portrayed her to be an enigmatically quiet, heartbreakingly troubled soul. Her harrowing, tragic past would make you cry for her pain.

I was utterly drawn to her history, her daily struggle to keep up with appearances (no thanks to her mum, which you'll have to read it to find out the underlying reason), maintaining the reputation of her family name despite hurting her own humanity, her life as a living, breathing, feeling person. Frame's vivid description of every nuance that Quincy experienced within her innermost psyche was absolutely poignant and realistic. My heart broke every time she had to fight against all the emotions that had built up for so long and were desperate to unleash, much to her chagrin! Frame delved heartily into Quincy's PTSD as she struggled to transition into civilian service as the Queen Consort's Royal Protection officer. Her constant guilt, her physical and psychological trauma left a deep mark in her psyche that affected her state of mind, which eventually burst at the seams as her feelings for Holly became stronger and more unavoidable.

Because of Quincy's conditioned loner character, she basically had no one to confide in to share her deepest thoughts and feelings with, not that she dared to ever reveal anything of herself that wasn't related to her work. Her only mates, Queen Georgina and Cammy, were more her comrades than anything who didn't share or talk about their feelings because heaven forbid! Her closest friend was out of commission, who was also a cause of her guilt which subsequently played a role in her being transferred from the military to the Royal courts. I won't divulge the details here, which Frame brilliantly crafted, btw, because it's tied to the plot. So you need to read it to experience the meaning of it all.

Meanwhile, the subject of Quincy's ever-increasing dilemma and struggle about staying emotionless or venturing into the world of expressing one's feelings and emotions, Holly, was a force to be reckoned with - at least as far as Quincy was concerned. Imagine Holly, a very outgoing, fun-loving, happy, jolly person who wore her feelings on her sleeve with her signature feistiness trying to melt the iceberg that was Quincy! It was like pulling teeth, much to poor Holly's utter frustration! It made for some amusing scenarios between her and Quincy! Oh, those awkward exchanges, some even bent toward flirtation, were so fun to read! But knowing Holly, she wasn't easily dissuaded and I tell ya, Frame flawlessly depicted Holly's inner psyche, her own doubts about Quincy even though Quincy's body language betrayed her repeated rejection of Holly. Holly herself was also going through a painful past that effectively changed her perspective about falling in love with a woman. Until serendipity struck and entered Quincy, shaking up her once-uncomplicated love life! So as much as Holly was trying to break down Quincy's conditioned wall of silence and emotional absence, Quincy was unwittingly tearing down Holly's defensive wall as well. Only in Holly's case, the wall was her fear of another heartbreak in her love life.

I just loved how Frame depicted their relationship - from their rocky beginning that was laced with heated arguments and misunderstandings that sometimes turned humorous but always had this flame slowly simmering beneath, giving out this inevitably sensual, erotic chemistry between these two polar opposites, right down to their eventual reveal about how they really felt for each other, which I thought Frame nailed every tone, every nuance in their actions marvellously, verbally and non-verbally. I was utterly captivated. Me heart was in me throat the whole time because of the intensity of Quincy's desperate chokehold of her own feelings, her ultimate fear of failure if she'd set herself free mentally and emotionally (the underlying reasoning behind this sad affair was utterly compelling as Quincy's life was slowly revealed), thanks to Frame's utterly affecting writing. In the end, the powerful magnetic pull of Holly and everything that represented this woman which she yearned for, ever-so deeply in her soul, proved a catalyst to her eventual unravelling. The same went for Holly and her outlook in what it meant to fall in love with a woman again. And what an absolutely enlightening, nevermind satiating, read it was! Well worth all the push-pulls, the endless doubts and fears, the inner struggles that both were enduring throughout their journey of longing, passion and desire, believe me! Well done, Frame!

One of me favourite quotes from the book that described Quincy to a T:

"Sometimes the most quiet, unassuming people are the ones who will love you the fiercest."

-- Just wait until you read her harrowing, heartrending journey, our resident hero, the utterly demure, obliviously charming and handsome butch with a depth of emotions hidden and locked away, waiting for someone worthwhile to unlock them! And when they did, whoa! Passion, desire, the all-consuming love came out and ravished Holly with intensity like no other! Sensuous. Erotic. Phew!

Of course, since this is a series, the presence of Georgina and Bea (from Books 1 & 2) was felt throughout Holly and Quincy's journey. Frame crafted another brilliant storyline for this always-alluring couple, this time about their travels to the US and Teddy, their little daughter and future Queen!!! Oh, Teddy! She was so cute as Frame soundly described the little one and her adorable persona! Teddy and Holly's scenes were also quite enchanting! You'll know when you read it. Heartwarming! I loved how Frame depicted this royal couple's relationship, their love and affection for each other only ever compounded to another level of intimacy as we uncovered more about their life together. Frame skilfully structured Georgina and Bea's story around Quincy and Holly's at strategic intervals to play off of all the angst and drama with uplifting and sensual scenarios. It enhanced the depth of what Quincy and Holly were going through, imo, and I was utterly gratified by the opportunity to observe the contrast AND the hidden similarities about these 2 couples. With this in mind, I implore you to read Book 1, "A Royal Romance," if you haven't already, so you'll get so much more out of Georgina and Bea's storyline in this installment. Enriching and totes satisfying, if you ask me!

The secondary characters were interesting especially Quincy's young subordinate, Clay. The other one who immediately piqued me interest, despite only appearing ever so briefly throughout the story, was Quincy's old mate from the military intelligence, Blade,  who was a hacker (yes!). Hmm...me mind kept wondering if Frame would put Clay and Blade together if there's another installment in this series. If so, that'd be wicked!! Or just wishful thinking on me part, eh? What d'ya think, Ms. Frame?

Anyway....

The action plot (which, if you know about this series, you'll know there's always action going on besides the romance because of obvious reasons) was quite compelling especially as it related to Quincy's history and her representation. Frame deftly described all the relevant stages of the plot development inline with Quincy's own personal and professional journey so when the plot finally reached fever pitch, everything fell into place, where Quincy and Holly were no longer at the crossroads as far as what they wanted out of each other was concerned. In effect, everything happened for a reason.

When fate meets destiny, there's no escaping it, is there?

The icing on the cake was the epilogue! Oh....all the pomp and circumstance involving the Royals and our protagonists! Frame's vivid description of the colours, the surroundings, the attires, the Royal traditions gave a clear visual effect as I read every detail. I could picture the entire scene in me mind and it was glorious - just like if I'd watched it on the telly! Reminded me of Harry and Meghan's wedding ceremony, especially when St. George's chapel and Windsor Castle made an appearance to celebrate our hero, Quincy, alongside Holly, Lila, Cammy, Georgina and Bea! Oh, how I love these characters who have graced the series, thusfar! Cheers, Ms. Frame!

All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed reading this installment, from start to finish. I absolutely love the "opposites attract" trope because I get to discover the opposing characteristics of either protagonist, and when the author spends equal amount of time delving into both characters' psychology with heart and fervour, the reader then is able to get a fuller picture and understanding of where these characters come from mentally and emotionally as they find their way toward each other. This always makes for self-discovery in the protagonists' part, me reckons, and it makes for a thrilling drama to read and experience! Frame effectively crafted that in Quincy and Holly's characters with aplomb!

In other words, "Royal Court" was a thrill to read and I highly recommend it. I also recommend that you read Book 1 & 2 if you haven't already! Absolutely satisfying!

I was given an ARC from Netgalley & BSB in return for an honest review.

I was not very impressed with this novel. Although Holly was portrayed as full of life she often came off as pushy and bossy in her interactions with Quincy. Quincy was mostly stand-offish and boring throughout most of the novel. There were several ackward moments between them where Holly pushed Quincy to express emotion. There was barely anything sexy about their connection. Pretty disappointed.

Thank you Netgalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.