I have to say I do not like Meghan AT ALL. I knew from the start she would be trouble. But sorry, I didn't care for this book at all. A third of the way though I realized I hadn't even cracked a smile. Suppose to be funny. I wasn't offended, I just didn't think it was funny.
#KeepingUpWithTheKensingtons #NetGalley

A short, snarky "satire" on the modern day royal family. Focused on Meaghan Markel's alter ego the book appears to be written by mostly people from the royal families side. Quick read.

Reviewed through Netgalley - thank you

Firstly, this is a very quick and easy read, perfect for lighthearted reading. This book covers the relationship of MM and PH, it’s very current and up to date. I found certain aspects witty but there were other parts of the story that were a little repetitive. Told from various angles, it neatly expands on what has been discussed in the press - after all - readers will never know the full one and outs of the Royal Family.
Perhaps my favourite point was where the author surmises - you don’t join the royal family to be progressive - you become a traditional.

Thank you for allowing me a preview. I knew this was a satire going in but it's a little too "on the nose" for me. I cringed...a lot. Just not my cup of tea, so to speak. Thanks and best wishes.

#KeepingUpWithTheKensingtons is a satire covering the entry of Madsy Mountebank/Meghan Markle to the British royal family and the events following.

The events are the same as published in the tabloid press, and the author writes as if the rumours of Meghan being difficult, entitled & the ruin of a Prince Harry are fact. Which obviously we cannot know for sure, and therefore it seems cruel to write this ‘account’.

I cannot say I enjoyed this book. It’s an easy read, but I didn’t find it funny. Now, if the rest of the royal family were expanded on I think it could have been better. I have enjoyed satire before, but this just seems vindictive. I wonder if the author works for the Daily Mail. The same insults over and over, get a new joke! Not for me. Maybe I’m just not of the correct generation for this book (I’m 34) but if it sounds like something you’d enjoy I hope you do and this book is better for you than it was me!

Thanks to #NetGalley and the publisher for my free advance copy in return for an unbiased review.

With the addition of a certain new family member the last 2 and a bit years has seen plenty of drama from the house of Windsor. All of which has played out rather publicly and no doubt there’s enough content to fill several books, some of which are already in the pipeline.

Keeping up with the Kensington’s is a light, easy to read, sartorical take on the whole saga. This isn’t an in depth look and makes no attempts to uncover the truth or to provide an unknown side to the story. Instead, it focuses on what the public might already have heard, which is, yes, largely driven by the reports seen in the media.

This isn’t the most well written or even necessarily a fantastic example of the genre but for a quick, entertaining look back at how everything unfolded, and it takes you right up to date, it’s a pretty good read.

Lady Colin Campbell's book has not been released in the United States yet, so while you are waiting, Keeping Up With The Kensingtons is a delicious satirical snack. It is a quick read, detailing the romance of Harry and Madison Mountebank, Her Royal Showbusiness from their meeting in May...oops, I mean June 2016 up to spring 2020, which finds the couple in California.

The story is told from an array of perspectives and starts out with Harry claiming it is his story. Over the course of the book however, and as the story gets more soap opera-ish, we have fewer insights from him, which I think was absolutely done on purpose.

I did receive a copy of this book from Netgalley for my review. I would wholeheartedly recommend this book for a quick, fluff read. Brava to the author for going out on a limb and braving the Sussex Squad's fury.

Very short read, mildly entertaining for me. I think it wasn’t quite as hilarious for me because I’m ambivalent regarding the British Royal Family?

"Keeping Up with the Kensingtons" is, by its own title, meant to be a "modern satire." Satire, according to Merriam-Webster, is "a literary work holding up human vices and follies to ridicule or scorn; trenchant wit, irony, or sarcasm used to expose and discredit vice or folly."

I would say this book is neither.

The book is a brief take, told in short excerpts, about the relationship of Prince Harry and Megan Markle, although Megan is known as Madison Mountebank here. We sometimes describe characters as "thinly veiled" references to their real-life counterpart--there is no veil here. Yes, the family is now called the Kensingtons, the Duke of Edinburgh gets a slightly different title, and Kate Middleton is now Kitty, and we're in "Britannia"--but really, there's almost no point in making a new name for characters because their real identities are crystal-clear.

So does the book hold these characters up to ridicule in a witty fashion? Not really. The story of the book feels like the fantasy of someone writing anti-Megan Markle screeds for the Daily Mail--the so-called Madison Mountebank is an ambitious, bossy, highly pretentious jumpstart. That's not exactly a new take. It would not be a terribly hard job to go back through Twitter, pull a ton of anti-MM tweets, ignore anything that might point to a different picture (or complicate things, like mentioning her biracial background), and slap together this book.

In addition, while the book depicts the Markle figure as a diva bitch from hell, it doesn't really do much with the actual Windsors. Sure, Harry's seen here as desperately attentive to his wife's wishes and possibly not the brightest. But that's about it. Instead, we see snide references again and again to the fact MM wore a white dress on her wedding day, despite having been married before. While this reportedly was a bit of a shock to the Queen and one might expect the court world in a tongue-in-cheek manner to pick it up, it doesn't read in the text as telling us anything about the court world, that *they* are wrong for being sexist hypocrites. It just reads as if this is a valid complaint, which, unless you are the Queen herself or of her age, it really isn't in 2020.

Overall, I don't know what I feel about the real-life Megan Markle and her existence. I do know that this book just feels like the screed of someone who deeply dislikes her and thinks trashing her through pseudonym is somehow amusing and witty. It isn't.

Note: I read an ARC provided to me by Netgalley.

I was looking forward to reading this book due to the contemporary nature of its contents - a satirical, fictional reflection of the current British monarchy and Harry and Meghan's departure from royalty. While I would highly recommend it to readers who enjoy satirical humour, I found this genre was simply not for me. The below review will reflect my personal opinion but is in no way a reflection of the book itself.

Admittedly, I think the difficulty here was that this was my first toe-dip into satirical writing. I could certainly appreciate the humour, sarcasm and wit that oozed from each paragraph, in particular from the newspaper clippings, but I thought this came across at times as slightly disrespectful (such is the nature of satire itself). I also struggled slightly with the over-the-top character development; Harry as a little lost puppy aiming to please, and 'Madi' a spoilt brat who constantly wanted her own way. The only character I felt had any essence of royalty was William. I believe this was done purposefully, and I think that such a short story needs its characters to make a punch as quickly as possible within only a fragment of pages. Again, this is part and parcel of the nature of satire as a genre but not something I felt particularly appealed to me as a reader.

That being said, I finished the book within 24 hours. The split in narrative between the main characters alongside the newspaper reports kept the story moving and allows the reader to gain the perspective and feelings of all parties involved. There are clear links between real life events and their fictional counterparts which meant, although the story didn't have a particularly strong plot line, it was clear from the get-go which commentary referred to which events.

On a personal level, I would rate this book 3 stars as it didn't suit my personal reading tastes or preferred genres, perhaps because I am of the generation where satirical humour has taken a backseat. However, I would definitely recommend this as a work of satirical fiction to those who enjoy this style of writing and therefore it earns a solid 4 stars within this genre.

Keeping Up With The Kensingtons is a fun and easy read, a satire on the modern workings of members of the royal family. It's a laugh out loud read that doesn't take itself seriously but is a great escape from the world for awhile.

This fabulously written tongue-in-cheek book about the English royal family starring Meghan Markle as Madison Mounteback is one of the best reads I have enjoyed in some time now.

We start with Meghan’s introduction as Harry’s older, divorced, American, actress, girlfriend. Whew! What a mouthful. Various members of the royal family have different monikers, but not all. From her entrance scene, to her over-the-top wedding, complete with circus pageantry, to her obvious jealousy of other royals and refusal to blend in, thus starts the roller coaster ride of Meghan and Harry.

For many years, I have loved, admired, and respected the English royal family. I also adored the Queen Mother and found her to be brave, loving, and real. I was up at dawn to watch Diana and Charles wed, and also watched the wedding of William and Kate. I have admired how Kate has worked hard to become a respected part of the Firm. I’ve always liked Harry’s naughty sense of humor and was so hoping he would find the perfect woman to marry that would compliment his personality and give him the true love he desired.

When Meghan came along, I was taken aback at Harry’s gullibility and from then to now, how far the mighty man has fallen.

Putting aside the ‘poor guy mentality,’ you must read this adorably funny book of how Meghan the Hurricane blew into the lives of the Royal family and worked to cause as much havoc as she could. Ah, but the stubborn English have fought off many enemies and so they were not to be overcome by some C-grade American actress. Let’s not forget another has-been American actress who tried to snooker the English royalty, but got firmly squashed.

Meghan and Harry have now left England in a huff because they did not get everyone to play by their rules. Too bad, so sad. Don’t let the door hit you in the butt on the way out. Wonder how long it will be before Meghan figures out a way to worm their way back into the Royal family. Looking forward to Part 2 of this hysterical drama. Congratulations and thanks to the author for writing this fabulous book.

Copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.