The Heir Affair by Heather Cocks, Jessica Morgan

The Heir Affair (The Royal We, #2)

by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan

Making it up the aisle was the easy part: Rebecca "Bex" Porter must survive her own scandals and adjust to royal British life in this "timely and positively delicious" follow-up to The Royal We that's "just as fun, charming, and delightful as the first" (Taylor Jenkins Reid)
 

After a scandalous secret turns their fairy-tale wedding into a nightmare, Rebecca "Bex" Porter and her husband Prince Nicholas are in self-imposed exile. The public is angry. The Queen is even angrier. And the press is salivating. Cutting themselves off from friends and family, and escaping the world's judgmental eyes, feels like the best way to protect their fragile, all-consuming romance.

But when a crisis forces the new Duke and Duchess back to London, the Band-Aid they'd placed over their problems starts to peel at the edges. Now, as old family secrets and new ones threaten to derail her new royal life, Bex has to face the emotional wreckage she and Nick left behind: with the Queen, with the world, and with Nick's brother Freddie, whose sins may not be so easily forgotten -- nor forgiven.

Reviewed by girlinthepages on

5 of 5 stars

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I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.I've been waiting years for a sequel to The Royal We, so I was ECSTATIC when I found out The Heir Affair was being released. I am a fan of anything royalty related and this series definitely scratches that itch by feeling like an alternate universe version of today's modern day UK royals. Readers left Bex and Co. in such a pickle at the end of The Royal We that I couldn't wait to see how things picked up in the sequel, and I was not disappointed, as I ended up enjoying this book even more than the first!

The Heir Affair picks up shortly after The Royal We left off, with the threat of a scandal hanging over Bex and Nick's head. True to his word, slimy Clive released his story which turned their dream royal wedding into a nightmare, and has led to some serious PR damage for both Bex and the royal family. After returning from their secret honeymoon, Bex and Nick must face the disaster they left behind for Freddie and the rest of the family to clean up, and begin the task of repairing their image as a couple.

Like it's predecessor, The Heir Affair is a lengthy novel that spans the course of several years, and I loved every minute of it. From initially focusing on Bex having to lean into the role of a Dutchess and clean up her act (which to be honest, was needed) to years passing and priorities changing to focus on producing an heir and the reality that Nick will be king one day feeling ever closer with each passing day, it was nice to see all of the characters mature and focus on more serious troubles than they had in the first book (in which they all were a bit of a hot mess). I loved seeing Bex and Nick move into their own royal apartments and unearth the secrets of Eleanor's sister Georgina, loved seeing Bex finally make inroads with the Lyons, loved Freddie coming into his own and stepping out of Nick's shadow. With the exception of Clive, the crew was able to put a lot of their past behind them and truly become their best selves while still maintaining their friendships and I feel like I really got to see them grow up (and don't get me started on how much I ADORED Gaz and his obsession with getting into the reality tv baking show world, SUCH a fun touch!)

As in the first book, there are a ton of key players in the story and relationships to navigate, but I found the most important to be Bex + Nick and Bex + Eleanor. I'll be honest, after reading a few chapters I remembered that I had some misgivings about Bex and Nick as a couple- when they're good, they're great, but I worried about their ability to be truly resilient in the face of marital troubles when they'd fallen apart over so much less before. Much to my delight, this WAS addressed, and the authors took care to show over the course of the years the imperfections and insecurities in their marriage, from Nick's jealousy of Freddie (especially after the Clive scandal) to Bex's lack of really buying into her new role as a royal. While frustrating at times, it was realistic and refreshing to see behind the curtain, knowing that They Royal We didn't end with a "happily ever after." I was also impressed to see the authors deftly navigate how Bex and Nick's relationship continued to evolve over the years, especially once the topic of children came into play, as I think you become a new version of yourself when you become a parent.

While I figured that readers would get a lot of Bex and Nick exposure in this novel, what I didn't anticipate (and was thrilled to see) was the amount of time that was dedicated to Bex and Eleanor's relationship evolving. Eleanor was intimidating and cruel for much of The Royal We, the stoic family matriarch with the weight of the monarchy on her shoulders who DID NOT approve of Bex. I don't want to spoil anything, but over the course of this novel Eleanor becomes much more humanized (for both better and for worse) and her and Bex develop a relationship that is all their own, independent of Nick. I was dubious at first, but was ultimately convinced that the unlikely duo could forge an alliance and it was one of the highlights of the story for me (especially because it's not without it's manipulations- Eleanor IS the queen, after all).

Some other tidbits I greatly enjoyed:

-Martha's anonymous Twitter fueds

-Daphne, Hax and Lax

-Bea taking over as their personal secretary

-Secret movie theaters in the palace

-Georgina's journals

-Can I mention Gaz and his baking again?

Overall: If you're a lover of the British Royal Family this is a dishy, fun story that taps into some heavier themes as well. It was the perfect read to transport me elsewhere during this time of shelter in place. I can't wait for more by these authors!

*Thank you so much to Grand Central Publishing and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!*

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Reading updates

  • Started reading
  • 6 May, 2020: Finished reading
  • 6 May, 2020: Reviewed