Such a lovely sequel to The Royal We! It felt a bit slow at times, but I was very invested in finding out what would happen with Bex, Nick, and Freddie. I love the closure that this book provided from its predecessor!

In case you need a break from REAL politics, I recommend this fun royal romcom as the perfect light, escape read!

The Heir Affair is the sequel to The Royal We (which was basically Will and Kate fan fiction - and I loved it!) This picks up where that one left off with Nick and Bex right after their fiasco of a wedding. It’s a little long, but it packs a lot in (including some major Harry and Megan vibes), and I thought it was so cute!

I enjoyed The Heir Affair more than The Royal We overall. It picks up where everything left off, but then allows readers to experience life inside the castle. Fair warning, it is really long. It took me over two weeks to read. However, it was interesting throughout and had some surprises and game changers. While the authors explained what happened in the previous novel, it's still a good idea to read that one first, just to get to know the characters and how they fit into the story. And although it started off a bit slow, it soon took off with lots of drama, balanced out by some funny moments and lines that made me laugh out loud. I liked that Bex was a Cubs fan, as I am one too, even though I don't live in Chicago anymore either. I also liked her relationship with Eleanor, as more of Eleanor's layers got pulled away.

Given my only issue with this novel was the length, I wish that the material had been spread across two books, making it a three-part series. However, the length didn't deter from my overall enjoyment. I am not into the British royal family in real life, but that is not a requirement for liking this novel, or its predecessor.

Movie casting ideas:
Bex/Lacey: Annie Clark (I was watching Degrassi at the same time as reading this novel and I just pictured "Fiona" in this role.)
Nick: William Moseley
Freddie: George MacKay
(I changed my mind on the two princes from my review of the first book)
Eleanor: Julie Andrews (she already has experience playing a queen, so why not?)
Cilla: Bel Powley
Bea: Jessica Barden
Gaz: Douglas Booth
Richard: Colin Firth

This is a really fun book. It picks up where *The Royal We* left off with Bex and Nick fleeing the royal family and the public because of the rumor that Bex had an affair with Nick's brother Harry. Bex's strong narrative voice is (mostly) pretty self aware, and she narrates what happens next with empathy and wry humor. The drama around the royal family is fraught, and everything takes on heightened importance because they have to weigh how the public will respond. While the middle drags just a little bit, this is overall an enjoyable read that is perfect for escaping the reality of the COVID present.

First off, I actually squealed with excitement when I received an eARC of this book. I fell in love with the first book and couldn’t put it down. I had a lot of feelings at the end of the first book and I was curious to see where things went. When Bex and Prince Nicholas go into self-exile following their wedding, they contemplate what it would mean to give up their royal status permanently. However, a royal crisis forces them back to London. It doesn’t take long before the various family issues seep back into their relationship.

This book deals with the fallout from the royal love triangle that overshadowed Bex and Nick’s wedding. All three of them are put under pressure to show that they are getting along to keep the rumors of family discord at bay. However, Nick isn’t convinced that Bex and Freddy are just friends. This leads to Nick becoming a jealous monster that takes all of his frustrations out on Bex and Freddy. Honestly, I wanted to drop kick Nick so that Bex could make a break for it. On the other hand, I can understand how hard it must have been for Nick to work through his feelings about Bex’s relationship with Freddy. It was a little difficult to read how their marriage reached such a low point, not to mention what happened with Freddy’s story line. I was a huge Freddy fan after book 1, but especially once I saw his personal growth in this book. In a weird way, I hope his fictional character is happy with his choices at the end of this book. I wish that their group of friends were a larger part of this book like in the first. When their friends are included, I found myself chuckling at their dialogue. I ultimately enjoyed this book and loved seeing where everyone ended up after the first book! Thanks to Grand Central Publishing for the free eARC in exchange for an honest review!

This was a decent read. I wasn’t aware that this was the second book of a series, so it took me a bit to become familiar with the couple and what happened in the first book. Overall, I did enjoy it. I liked the characters. It was a quick read. I recommend.
**I voluntarily read and reviewed this book

Sigh. I had higher hopes for the second book in this series. The story starts with Nick and Bex trying to navigate marriage and royal duties at the same time. And really, that's the story. There's also a love triangle of sorts that kind of ruined all of it for me (book one I felt the same) and really didn't give Freddie a fair chance. Daphne is a great addition to the group but overall, the drama, the miscommunication, the lack of communication and the just childishness of the characters ruined things for me. Also, the parallels with Freddie and Prince Harry really kind of annoyed me but I can't tell you why.

I did love the queen in this one though. See the spoiler tag for some content warnings. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy.

1.5/5 stars

I wasn’t the biggest fan of The Royal We, but it still had an addictive quality that made me excited to read the sequel. Unfortunately, The Heir Affair amplified everything I didn’t like about the first one and eliminated whatever it was that made me want to read more.

I still find Bex SO unlikeable. She’s Mary Sue-ish enough for me that it just really turns me off. None of the characters are that likeable, to be honest. Something about the way these authors write people just really grates on my nerves. And the dialogue is all so ridiculously unrealistic.

It also has a lot of pacing issues. Like the first book, it’s divided into four “acts,” but these divisions seem to be pretty random. I honestly couldn’t tell you how much time this book is supposed to cover. At one point there’s a New Year’s Eve party, but then 30 pages after that there’s an almost throwaway reference to Christmas Eve, the only indication that an entire year has passed. And then 40 pages after that, it’s Christmas again. What?? Hello, whiplash. I think part of the reason both of these books span so much time is that they’re intended to feel epic and grand, but it actually just makes them feel rushed and empty. Not enough happens to justify all the time passing.

The authors have also adopted a way of storytelling where almost every chapter jumps a bit in time from the previous one and then there are little mini-flashbacks to explain what’s happened. I hated this. I can see where it would work in certain situations (and when used sparingly), but it’s like they didn’t know how to string their plot together chronologically and decided this was easier. It felt lazy and annoying.

Aside from all this, this book just wasn’t fun. It’s all pain and angst and unhappiness, and while not every book needs to be light and fluffy, this is clearly meant to fall into the “guilty pleasure” category so it should definitely have some element of “fun”. But it was such a drag to read. I had this issue with The Royal We too, but it was even more over the top in this one. And I truly hated so much of what happened. No spoilers, but the love triangle from the first one (which I already hated – Bex isn’t even interesting and both princes can’t help but fall in love with her?? PLEASE) is dragged out soooo excruciatingly in this one and has the most messed up and unsatisfying conclusion ever.

Honestly I should have probably not read this, given my feelings for The Royal We, but I was really hoping that it would lean more into the fun and good things about that one. Sadly, that was not the case and I ended up struggling to finish it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This sequel was just as fun as the the first installment. It's always fun to be swept away into a contemporary romance, especially one as royal as these books.

Not sure that I liked it as much as the first. It's been a long time in between. A fine romantic read if you don't mind baby plotlines

Another soapy fun/dramatic royal romp! Not quite as much light fun aa the first, but with reason, and te relationship with Queen Eleanor (and baseball!) is fab.

If you loved The Royal We, you will be obsessed with The Heir Affair. These books are a bit lengthy, but you have no choice but to fly through them. There is so much royal family drama that just when you think it couldn't get messier, something fun and unexpected happens. You end up living and hating each character, and being able to connect with them is something that is huge for me as a reader. I would highly recommend this one (as well as The Royal We) for fans of romances or stories following royals.

I don’t know what it is about these books but I love them. I liked this one even more than The Royal We. The book had a juicy feel that made you want to keep going. It was like an inside look on what it might be like to become a royal and discover the inevitable long hidden secrets of the family. I highly recommend this one!

This week marks the release of one of my most-anticipated releases – and a book that you'll definitely find on my Top Ten of 2020 list at the end of the year. The Heir Affair by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan is the sequel to The Royal We, a book I first read when it came out back in 2015. I've re-read it twice since then, and I love it more each time. These characters feel like my friends, and it's such a comforting read for me. The Royal We is set in a world that's familiar but with a twist. You can read my review for more details about that story. But the fun nods to William and Kate's love story story, the insightful way it explores personal privacy vs. life in the public eye, and the descriptions of England (especially Oxford!) have earned it a spot on my all-time favorites list.

And do you know what I wrote in my 2015 review? “I'm dying for a sequel so I can spend more time with Nick and Bex – and get an update on Freddie, too, of course.” 2020 hasn't been the year I'd wish for, by any stretch of the imagination, but my dreams have come true! I couldn't wait to read The Heir Affair, and it did not disappoint. I read the book back in May and adored every minute of it! Picking up right after the end of the first book, it gives you an up-close look at the fallout from Nick and Rebecca's fateful wedding day. Marrying a prince doesn't guarantee a happily ever after, especially when you're in the midst of a very public scandal.

In this sequel, Queen Eleanor says it best, “But what is it you Americans say? You break it, you buy it? Well, you broke it, and you've bought it, so it must be you who mends it.” But will Bex… ahem, Rebecca… be able to fix it? You're going to have to buy the book to find out, but I can still tell you a little bit of what to expect from it (with no spoilers, of course). Clocking in at 464 pages, The Heir Affair will take you on a Journey. Yes, with a capital J. The newlywed period – living together, combining your lives, joining a new family and creating one of your own – can be hard for mere mortals. When your in-laws are monarchs, there's even more pressure added to the mix.

Even if Rebeca's impropriety from the previous book hadn't come to light, she was still in for a rude awakening once she became an official member of the royal family. I truly believe that no amount of etiquette training beforehand can truly prepare someone for the world she was about to enter. With the first book, I loved how it explored the idea of what someone has to sacrifice as a sovereign. The idea of giving up your privacy because you fell in love with a public figure wasn't something I'd thought deeply about before that book. And now, it's always on my mind when I read articles + see photos of the British Royal Family. I certainly don't envy Kate Middleton.

What I love most about this sequel, on the other hand, is how it explores your entire life being judged in the court of public opinion, having the weight of centuries of history upon your shoulders, and what a monarch must sacrifice for the throne. You see all this private pain – things like tension in a marriage, distance between brothers, business interfering with a friendship, and heartbreaking medical complications – that has a significant impact on your emotional and mental health. And yet, it's got to stay behind closed doors. The public wants you to be personable, sure, but in a polished way. Don't be too ambitious, too scandalous... too much of anything.

How can you be a PERSON when you're also a POSITION? That was the question that I couldn't stop asking while I was reading. There's a lot happening in this book: a marriage in crisis, a blossoming friendship between two unexpected people, a palace renovation, a quest to discover secrets from the past, and a prescient storyline for one character that echoes of real-life changes that have taken place in the British Royal Family in recent months. And that's certainly not all you'll find inside! There's a ton packed in these pages, and I couldn't get enough of it.

If your biggest issue with The Royal We was the length and/or pace, you'll probably feel similarly about this sequel. However, I had no complaints. I loved all the details – the witty dialogue, the emotional developments, and the major drama. Because these characters feel like friends, I was thrilled to spend as much time as possible with them. Could some of it have been cut? Probably. But I wouldn't lose a page personally. Did I like every decision these characters made? Nope. But I understood their motivation. Are these characters occasionally suffering from Privileged People Problems? Sure. Yet, I still wouldn't trade places with them. I'd rather be a "nobody" in Georgia than join the monarchy. Knowing history has its eyes on you (thanks, Hamilton) is an incredible amount of pressure.

And while I may have made this sound like it's all Deep Thoughts and Complicated Scenarios, it's also a ton of dishy, dramatic fun. It was thought-provoking read for me, but it was also entertaining and exactly what I needed in the midst of COVID-19. The drama is cranked all the way up, and it's messy, y'all. But so are The Real Housewives. Why would I expect anything less from the royal family? Give someone money and power, and shit's gonna start hitting the fan. If you've read The Royal We, I can't wait for you to find out what happens next. And if you haven't, what are you waiting for? I love the Fug Girls and these characters they've created! Long may they reign.

I've waited and waited for a sequel to The Royal We, so I was pysched to get a copy. It was exactly what I needed during quarantine, although not at all what I expected. I guess I assumed that the sequel would pick up Freddie's story or maybe the story of Bex's sister. Instead, it starts basically right where The Royal We left off with Bex struggling through being one half of the most famous royal couple in the world as they start their marriage and Bex learns to live with her new role. And there's definitely storylines for Freddie and Bex's sister, too. Not quite as good as The Royal We, but I really enjoyed it, and my library definitely purchased a copy for our collection.

Thank you NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for a free galley in exchange for my honest review. The Royal We is one of my favorite guilty pleasures and the second book in the series did not disappoint. It’s the literary equivalent of a Netflix binge-worthy series and the perfect read for those American fans of the Royal family. The Heir Affair continues as the newly minted American princess Bex and Prince Nick deal with both the public and familial fallout of their disastrous wedding while navigating their newlywed days and new Royal duties. Chock-full of drama, this is an addicting saga that will leave you anxious for the third installment.

I loved this book! I also loved their second book. I loved the different storylines throughout this book. The different characters introduced more thoroughly in this book were so enjoyable.

** spoiler alert ** Though I ended up liking Royal We thanks to the awesome audiobook performance, I didn't love it as much as a lot of readers did, and I was definitely on the fence about reading The Heir Affair. For one thing, sequels to something heavily romantic are a tricky prospect, and "the heir" implies babies, which are not a plot I'm into. But, actually, I liked this for the most part.

What The Heir Affair pulled off well imo was the relationship between Nick and Bex, and Bex's voice, which I again enjoyed through the audiobook. Nick and Bex are still very much themselves, and they maintain their occasionally silly (in a good way) banter. There's some repetition of the fights from the first book, which I will allow only because they actually work through this time and because Nick begins therapy.

Though I'm not a fan of babies or books about babies, I actually liked the way the baby plot played out. Bex is one of those people who wants kids but somewhere off in the *handwave* future. After a surprise pregnancy leads to a miscarriage, she wants kids desperately for herself. Some did not find her change of heart convincing but I did. It's also wonderful to read a book that openly discusses a miscarriage, fertility treatments, and those fertility treatments not working. Nick and Bex do not get a baby made of them, and it's due largely to Nick's sperm count where I feel usually the blame is put on the woman in infertility plots with the hero. It's nice. Of course, that spells more love triangle drama (if it can be called a love triangle when it's already long been decided and I never believed in it?) as Freddie is tapped to provide sperm for the baby.

The true highlight of the book for me, though, was the relationship that develops between Eleanor and Bex. Eleanor really develops into a nuanced, complex, and lovable character, while maintaining her bitchiness and spine of steel. Eleanor's mother Marta is also a true delight, stealing any scene she's in with her intense devotion to her phone and Idris Elba. The relationships take time to build, but it's nice to feel Bex really becoming part of the family. Even Richard defrosts a bit by the end, while still being quite himself. It's great to see.

However, I do agree with many readers that Freddie got shafted, though I may not entirely agree in precisely how I feel that way. I never ever felt like Freddie was genuinely in love with Bex, and I didn't like that plot line in Royal We for that reason, even though I'm generally trash for the brothers trope. The accidental kiss worked, but his declaration of love towards the end I just didn't buy. I can sort of see it as a guilt response: convincing himself it must be love to try to explain the way he betrayed his brother. But I just do not see those feelings as remotely real.

For the first half to three-quarters of this book, it seems like maybe the authors are going to go that route. Freddie doesn't say anything and everything's uncomfortable, but he's dating a lot. There was space for him to realize the truth and apologize. Instead, he ends up marrying a woman he likes but doesn't love, because he cannot bare to be near his true love as she bears his bio babies that she will parent with his brother. I just cannot with that. Bex repeatedly judges Freddie and Daphne's relationship, comparing it unfavorably to how Freddie felt about her, and then going, all superior, "ah, well, love looks different for different people." The way this book treated Daphne was serious garbage. I thought the trope where the loser of the love triangle suddenly, conveniently falls in love with someone else at the end was the worst love triangle resolution, but jk it's this.

I genuinely do not understand why Freddie had to be in deep, true love with Bex. Why is this a thing that happened? And, also, I still don't believe it but whatever. The whole thing just makes the book feel like self insert fan fic because Bex just has to be the most special at all times, and if Freddie stopped loving her then maybe she wouldn't be the most special OH NO.

It's weird when you like a book for all the reasons you expected not to like it, and you don't like it for the reasons you thought you would. Anyway, the audiobook performance is great (minus a few weird pronunciations).

I adored The Royal We and didn't feel like it needed a follow up, especially after the real life drama with Harry and Megan played out. (I'm not sure I would even feel the same if I hadn't read The Royal We before that.) I understand that the author's intentions were to keep this book completely separate from what played out in real life since they had started it beforehand, but it didn't work for me because of how well researched and heavily inspired by the real British monarchy it is.

Thanks to Grand Central for my copy to review.

I have been looking forward to this book for so long!!! Great that it picks up where he last book ended (as the royal we had a very abrupt ending...and as I write this....this one kinda did too- just wrap it up neat and then end scene). I did enjoy reading about Bex and Nick’s life. Can’t wait to find out what is next for the royal couple