3.25
This was exactly what I expected - a shortish, light-hearted read. It wasn't anything remarkable but it was a lot of fun. I'll be honest the beginning of this book sort of dragged on for me but by around 40% I was invested - in the way you are invested in a silly fanfiction. Sometimes you need these light reads to pick your mood up and this was exactly that. To some extent the characters annoyed me, the constant miscommunication between them and just storming off without listening to one another was growing old by the end of the book, although in between those moments I thought these two were really sweet (I especially liked their epilogue). I wish it was more explored how it was done with the public of them being together. While in places largely unrealistic, I'm a sucker for hurt/comfort tropes and this delivered. What I was not a fan of is the vast popculture references. Yes, the plot was messy, yes this was messy but it was just fun!

Overall, just a fun read but not anything life-changing in terms of plot or writing.

Unfortunately I had to DNF this book and my three star rating is a placeholder, I am the biggest fan of queer modern royalty books so I was incredibly excited to read this. I’m very sad I did not end up liking it. The writing was my biggest issue. I wasn’t a fan of the pop culture references, which were quite jarring and started from the first page. The main character’s inner dialogue felt unnatural. I’m sure others will love this book but the writing was really not for me,

⭐️⭐️💫 (2.5 stars)
Thank you to Hayden Stone for the ARC of How to Date a Prince, releasing July 15th.
This book had some standout moments, but it was a bit of a mixed bag for me. There were times I considered not finishing, but I’m glad I stuck with it to the end.
The story follows Prince Auggie of England, who finds himself as a contestant on Renaissance Man, a reality competition show. One of his rivals is Thomas—a half-British, half-American contestant whose father is vocally anti-monarchy. What begins as tension and sharp words on-screen slowly shifts into something tender off-camera, as Auggie and Thomas navigate an unexpected connection that defies their family legacies and public roles.
What worked:
-The reality show setting added a fun and unique twist to a royal romance.
-I appreciated the thoughtful representation of queer identity and how different family reactions can shape a person’s journey.
-Auggie’s growth as a character was compelling, particularly as he struggled with identity, pressure, and vulnerability.
-I also want to note the realistic treatment of injuries and trauma, which was handled with care and detail.

What didn’t work as well for me:
-The emotional whiplash. The back-and-forth tension between Auggie and Thomas felt more frustrating than romantic at times. Their constant hot-and-cold dynamic leaned more toward stubbornness than tension, and often crossed the line into miscommunication overload.

If you're a fan of royal romances with a twist and enjoy the slow burn of reality TV drama, this one might hit the mark for you. For me, it was a 2.5-star read—some lovely moments, but a bit too turbulent to fully enjoy.

I had so many problems with this book.
The first and biggest issue is the chemistry, namely that there was none. Auggie is so incredibly rude to Thomas when they first meet and then after basically no time together Thomas is just over it and flirting with him? And then they're constantly getting mad at each other to degrees that are honestly not very believable and then just going back to things like they've had three years invested into this relationship instead of three weeks. I don't even believe they LIKE each other let alone that they fell in love.
The second is the politics, which are skin deep at best. When I saw this compared to Red White and Royal Blue I expected to have a royal far more critical of the monarchy like Henry, but Auggie did not deliver there. You can't get to me care about a monarch who supports the current British monarchy. But ignoring that, the book isn't discussing the politics it's using to put the boys against each other at all. Thomas is anti-monarchy because it's "outdated" with no expanding on that and Auggie is pro monarchy only because he's part of it. This divide exists only to cause unnecessary tension and nothing else. And I don't think the author knows how to create natural tension either. Every disagreement they have feels so forced.
The third major thing is how Auggie's gender identity is basically ignored. He brings up dealing with his gender multiple times in the beginning in parallel to his sexuality, which would have been so amazing to explore in tandem, but then we just drop the gender thing. He mentions being genderqueer exactly once to Thomas and then we never discuss it again. That mixed with Jax mentioning their pronouns are he/they and then their gender never being discussed again (on a show called Renaissance MAN) feels like it was thrown in just to say the book deals with GNC characters without putting in any effort to actually write GNC characters.
It ended up being overall a bust for me, but there were some parts I enjoyed. I thought the concept of the Renaissance man show was interesting, and I liked how Katie dealt with Auggie using her when she had made her feelings clear, and not just giving him a pass on that. I think this author has potential but I wouldn't read one of their books again anytime soon.

This angsty new-adult rom-com has more pop-culture references than plot. I’m sure others will enjoy it, but it’s not for me.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC.

I really wanted to love How To Date A Prince- I find fictional royalty dating/romance stories to be very fun, and I absolutely loved Red White and Royal Blue. Unfortunately, this book missed the mark for me in a lot of ways.

Everything in this book felt very surface level, from the main characters, the side characters, to the reality show that was supposed to be at the center of this story. There were a lot of very interesting concepts that were brought up, but the execution left a lot to be desired. I wanted to learn more about many of the side characters, but we were never given the space to do so. The reality show could have been an interesting space for plot and tension, but it was also barely explored. In the beginning of the book we are given a glimpse into Auggie struggling with his gender identity- or at least struggling with supressing it- but that is only brought up one other time in, again, a very shallow way.

If the relationship between Auggie and Thomas had been interesting or filled with romantic tension I could have still enjoyed this book, but unfortunately I did not believe that they ever loved each other, much less liked each other as more than a hook up. It seemed like every other chapter one of them would call off the relationship, only to go straight back to it in the next. Plus, Thomas being anti-monarchy and Auggie being a prince of England is brought up quite often and never really resolved. As are many things in this book.

Overall this book was a miss for me, sad to say.

It’s hard to be a royal. Yes there are perks, but there are definite downsides too. In Hayden Stone’s “How to Date a Prince” Crown Prince Augustus has his life all mapped out. Unfortunately he has had little input into it and is required to follow that path, even is he doesn’t really want to. On top of everything else Prince Auggie is entered into a reality tv show without his prior knowledge, where he meets Thomas Golden, an anti-monarchist. Sparks fly, competition flares, and rivalries are created. But who will win? Readers who like romance, royalty tropes, and LGBTQIAP+ themes will enjoy this book.

Once I started reading this book, I didn’t want to put it down! The storyline is well paced and plausible, though it touches the limits of believability. I liked the interactions of the different characters throughout the book. The concussion effects are quite accurate and I’m glad to see that they aren’t minimized, as I’ve had personal experiences with family members who have been affected by severe concussions. This is definitely a book that I will read more than once!

I wish to thank Xpresso Book Tours for providing this book and selecting me to review it on NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

#HowToDateAPrince
#XpressoBookTours
#NetGalley

The book's premise is very similar to Red, White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuinston (which I loved back when I read it) and so I had high hopes for this one as well. It follows the crown prince to the throne of England and an American influencer/business heir as they fall in love on a reality TV show.

The show aspect intrigued me, but unfortunately I found it to be entirely unreasonable. The concept of a prince being forced on a reality TV show was unrealistic enough but I was able to look past it, but then the show started, and it made no sense at all. The challenges were boring, and I found myself skipping through large parts of them. None of the other characters had any personality at all, and it was difficult to even care about knowing their names.

It followed the similar structure of "gay prince that can't be gay" and "sexually liberated, openly gay American guy" which was basically the same characteristics as in Red, White, and Royal Blue - to the point where I couldn't remember if I was reading a book about Prince Auggie or Prince Henry.

Their love story was alright, although at so many points I had wished that there would have been chapters from Thomas' perspective. Also a reality TV show blackmailing the crown? Yes. Of course. Because that happens.

I tried so hard to enjoy this, but in the end it just wasn't a fit. Just because I didn't like it, doesn't mean other people won't like it either.

“How To Date a Prince” is a one POV based around Prince Auggie who’s father (aka the king) forces him to be on a reality tv show in order to make him more appealing in hopes of finding a woman. Auggie struggles being his true self and constantly fights it because of his duties to the throne. That is until he meets Thomas, a big influencer who despises the throne, lives his life to the fullest, and also a contestant on the show. Their relationship starts as a secret during filming, but becomes messy once their bubble pops. Thomas knows what he wants, but Auggie has a heck of a time choosing between true love or his duties to the throne and his father.

I so wanted to love this book because the blurb sounded like the perfect summer read. Plus the characters and story seemed like it’d be different from a lot of current books out there. However, it just wasn’t there.

For one, the story was very spacey. There are a lot of holes and times when a character is doing something one page and then completely different the next. For example, Auggie is holding a flashlight to get to a shack at night, but once in asks Thomas for his phone to turn the flashlight on. There were quite a few editing errors I picked up whole reading.

The book started off pretty slow and made Auggie into a pretty terrible and annoying person. It picked up a touch when him and Thomas started filming the show, but I truly didn’t feel like there was much of a connection between the two. Plus the amount of times either Auggie or Thomas threw a tantrum and said “we’re done,” just to be talking or pretty much back together like nothing happened made zero sense. I also didn’t feel like Auggie really had much character development. Even when he came to his senses, it was a quick change of character and now everyone’s happy.

When it comes to the side characters, I felt like they were just there. There were some issues between Auggie and his sister, as well as his best friend, Katie. But they were resolved pretty quickly and I felt like we needed more background on them. Same with some contestants on the show who I thought would become friends. They chatted for a hot second, then weren't mentioned much.

Like I mentioned earlier, I really wanted to love this book, but unfortunately it was a struggle for me to get through it. Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read it in advance.

This was a fun concept. I liked the idea of the reality tv show, with a mix of enemies to lovers and a hot prince sign me up. The parts i enjoyed were Thomas' character. He is a cinnamon roll and a sweetheart. The way he treats Auggie was great and so fun! I also enjoyed the challenges and the setup of the show. My issues were with Auggie. His personality suffered from being just a royal and not much else. This felt very one note. I also was not a fan of the way he treated thomas or his best friend Katie.

How to Date a Prince by Hayden Stone is an enemies-to-lovers, forced proximity, forbidden romance. Prince Auggie has been forced to hide his sexuality his entire life while doing his duty as the heir to the crown. Thomas, a dual American English heir to a hotel empire, is charismatic and opposed to the monarchy. They end up on a reality TV show where sparks fly and drama ensues. I was really excited for this book, but unfortunately, I just did not love it. I just felt like the flow of the book was not there and the development of the characters and storyline lacking. The story itself had a lot of promise, however it was just not executed well.

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you kindly to NetGalley and Hayden Stone for the ARC of How to Date a Prince in return for an honest review!

Closeted Prince Auggie isn’t thrilled when his father enters him into the Renaissance Man reality tv series, which stands as an opportunity for him to show off his talents and gain the attention of an eligible bride. Enter fellow contestant Thomas Golden, an influencer who’s not a huge fan of the monarchy. He’s not a huge fan of Auggie either, being that the two of them met previously and it ended badly. And thus begins a competition, and the greatest challenge seems to be Auggie’s budding attraction and chemistry with Thomas. Now he has to survive being a Renaissance Man, manage forbidden love, and tackle the big talk with his father. Easy breezy.

This one was super cute! I do think I’m learning I’m not a huge fan of romance set during a competition/reality show, but that’s on me. I am, however, a sucker for romance with royalty having to defy the mandated expectations for love, and we’ve got that here in spades. This was a pretty fast read and lighthearted. It was something nice to read between my heavier thrillers, and I’d recommend it.

4.5 stars!!! suchhhh a good book! i loved thomas and auggie so much and the whole idea of this book is just amazing!!! read this when it comes out!!

How to Date a Prince is a cute queer royal romance. With a reality tv backdrop, Hayden Stone takes a delightful premise and turns it into a fun summer read.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Prince Auggie has some issues. Sure, he’s rich, famous, and in line to be King. But he’s shy, hates the spotlight, and is hiding the fact that he’s gay. So when his dad the King signs him up to be part of a reality TV show, he’s livid. Then he meets hot influencer Thomas Golden on set and sparks fly. Thomas is out and proud, and an anti monarchist too. Soon, though, the two are sneaking around and having a secret showmance. But Auggie is simply supposed to be making the monarchy more relatable, so what happens when he goes back to his royal duties?

As soon as I saw royals and reality tv, I put this book on my TBR. This story is in Auggie’s single POV, and as a result he’s the most developed character in the book. It’s interesting to see his perspective as a closeted prince. There are definitely moments where the reader feels uncomfortable on Auggie’s behalf; aside from being socially awkward, he struggles with depression, and there are hints at disordered eating as well.

I like Auggie’s journey, but there are times I agree with Thomas and think Auggie runs too hot and cold. The fact that he clearly does it out of fear is what keeps Auggie from being an unsympathetic character. Thomas is great, and it would have been fun to get a few chapters in his POV.

If you are a royal watcher or just enjoy a good celebrity romance, you’ll have a good time with How to Date a Prince. I always love a reality tv backdrop, since it sets up such wonderful forced proximity moments. Thomas and Auggie’s story is perfect poolside reading this summer.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

While this book was fun to read, it wasn't really anything new. As I went through it I was just thinking, oh this is so much like this book or that book, which in a way did make it quite predictable. I enjoyed myself reading it, read it in one sitting in fact, because it wasn't really something I had to think that deeply about. It did seem to jump around a bit, with some characters decisions being really sudden and almost contradictory at times, like one major thing would happen, but the next chapter all is forgiven like it never happened in a full one-eighty, but overall it was okay, it entertained me for a couple hours and that's all I really ask for.

Prima di tutto, un enorme grazie a Xpresso Book Tours per avermi concesso l’opportunità di leggere in anteprima questo libro! È sempre emozionante tuffarsi in una nuova storia prima che arrivi sugli scaffali.

Tropes:
Enemies to Lovers
Forbidden Relationship
Forced Proximity
M/M Romance
Reality TV Show Setting
Royal Romance
Grumpy x Sunshine
Prince x Influencer

Il Principe Auggie, erede al trono britannico e segretamente gay, si ritrova catapultato dal padre ossessionato dai reality show in un programma televisivo chiamato “Renaissance Man” con l’obiettivo di trovare una moglie e dare lustro alla monarchia. Il problema? Auggie non ha alcuna intenzione di sposarsi con una donna. Le cose si complicano quando scopre che il suo co-protagonista è Thomas Golden, l’affascinante e irritante erede di una fortuna alberghiera americana, la cui famiglia è notoriamente anti-monarchica. Ulteriore problema è il fatto che in realtà i due si conoscono perché si erano già incontrati durante una serata disastrosa in un club londinese, da cui è nata una profonda antipatia.
Confinati per un’intera estate nella campagna inglese, quello che inizia come puro odio si trasforma in qualcosa di molto più pericoloso e appassionato. Tra sfide del reality, segreti e sabotaggi, Auggie dovrà scegliere tra i doveri reali e la possibilità di vivere finalmente la sua vera identità.

Il Principe Auggie è intelligente e spiritoso ma anche intrappolato tra ciò che deve essere e ciò che vuole essere. La sua lotta con l’omofobia interiorizzata e la pressione reale lo rendono incredibilmente umano, anche se a volte vorreste scuoterlo per farlo ragionare.

Thomas Golden è carismatico, paziente e con i piedi per terra nonostante la sua ricchezza. Ho adorato che fosse così premuroso, anche quando Auggie gli rende le cose difficili.

La chimica tra Auggie e Thomas è innegabile, le battute taglienti e i momenti di vulnerabilità vi faranno sciogliere il cuore. Tuttavia, preparatevi a una montagna russa emotiva perché la loro dinamica “ora sì, ora no” può essere frustrante quanto appassionante. In alcuni punti avrei voluto dare una svegliata a entrambi perché si parlassero invece di allontanarsi continuamente.

Detto questo, se amate i royal romance queer e non vi dispiace un po’ di caos televisivo, questo libro fa decisamente per voi.

🇬🇧
First of all, a huge thank you to Xpresso Book Tours for giving me the opportunity to read this book in advance! It’s always exciting to dive into a new story before it hits the shelves.

Tropes:
Enemies to Lovers
Forbidden Relationship
Forced Proximity
M/M Romance
Reality TV Show Setting
Royal Romance
Grumpy x Sunshine
Prince x Influencer

Prince Auggie, heir to the British throne and secretly gay, finds himself pushed by his reality TV obsessed father into a show called Renaissance Man, with the goal of finding a wife and bringing prestige to the monarchy. The problem? Auggie has no intention of marrying a woman. Things get even messier when he discovers that his co-star is Thomas Golden, the charming and infuriating heir to an American hotel fortune, whose family is famously anti-monarchist. To make things worse the two already know each other from a disastrous night at a London club that sparked a deep mutual dislike. Confined together for an entire summer in the English countryside, what starts as pure hatred slowly shifts into something far more dangerous and passionate. Between reality show challenges, hidden secrets and sabotage Auggie has to choose between royal duty and the chance to finally live his truth.

Prince Auggie is smart and witty but he’s also caught between who he’s supposed to be and who he really is. His struggle with internalized homophobia and the weight of royal expectations makes him incredibly relatable, even if you’ll sometimes want to shake him and make him see reason.

Thomas Golden is charismatic, patient and down-to-earth despite his wealth. I loved how thoughtful he was, even when Auggie made things really hard for him.

The chemistry between Auggie and Thomas is undeniable. Their sharp banter and moments of vulnerability will melt your heart. But be warned, this is an emotional rollercoaster and their dynamic is as frustrating as it is addictive. More than once I wanted to yell at both of them to just talk instead of constantly pulling away.

That said, if you love queer royal romance and don’t mind a bit of reality TV drama this book is absolutely for you.

This book sounds like an absolute riot in the best way possible. It’s giving classic royal rom-com with a modern, queer twist—and I’m so here for it. Prince Auggie isn’t your typical fairytale prince; he’s private, dreamy, and very much not into the royal spotlight (or marrying for duty). Enter: reality TV chaos, a meddling king with a flair for drama, and an influencer who literally wants to abolish the monarchy.
The setup alone is pure gold—especially when Auggie’s forced into close quarters with Thomas Golden, the infuriatingly attractive heir to a hotel empire and a guy with whom Auggie already has a messy history. There's tension, there’s forced proximity, there’s “we’re filming a show but secretly falling for each other”… all the tropes that make this genre addictive.
But what really sells it is the emotional core. Behind all the witty banter and scandalous flirting is a story about identity, duty, and the terrifying prospect of choosing love over legacy. Auggie has a crown waiting for him, but what if he wants something else?
If you're into enemies-to-lovers, slow-burns with high stakes, or royal love stories with a twist, this one sounds like it’s going to be a fun, heartfelt ride.

Goodreads review posted on: 07/07/2025

Auggie and Thomas’s story was a cute romcom that was a lighthearted read. Auggie is a prince whose father signed him up for a reality tv show while Thomas comes from a family that is anti-monarchy and against any and all royals. While it seemed like this would be an enemies-to-lovers, it resembled more of a coming of age book with Auggie struggling to find out who he is and where he fits in in his world.

I did struggle a bit with the back and forth between Auggie and Thomas on the breaking up or staying together. There was some rapid whiplash between the two on what they wanted which was hard to follow at times. Overall, the banter between these two was funny, especially once Auggie and Thomas realized they did in fact have feelings for one another. Overall, 3.5/5 ⭐️ for this book!

This was a very enjoyable book! Fantastic writing too.
I loved these two, I felt like Auggie and Thomas had great chemistry, they were so cute.
The premise of this book is fantastic, it was a nice surprise for me.

Modern day Romeo and Julius with a fair bit of heavy petting!

I want to start this by saying I really enjoyed it! The premise was a clear enemies to lovers trope, but that wasn't hidden of course, and it was brilliant!

On occasion, especially towards the middle of the book, conversations were a little jarring, feeling like they could have done with being fleshed out a little bit. A couple of times I spotted some grammatical issues, but nothing major and it didn't put me off reading.

Honestly I was really into it, and, towards the last half especially, I couldn't put it down.

I feel really privileged to have received an ARC of this book, and I look forward to reading more of this authors work in future!