Royally Screwed by Emma Chase (Royally #1)
Contemporary Romance
Released: October 18, 2016
Self Published

Reviewed by Mandi

I have a good history with Emma Chase. Her last series I enjoyed so much – especially Sustained and the novella follow-up, Sidebarred. That family holds a very special place in  my heart. Then I heard she was starting a new series featuring royals. And honestly – I wasn’t that excited. I’m not sure why, I guess I thought reading about royals wouldn’t be fun (what is wrong with me???)

But I read it and absolutely fell in love with this book. It’s adorable, funny, super sexy and one of my favorite reads this year. Our hero is Nicholas Arthur Frederick Edward Pembrook, Crowned Prince of Wessco. Wessco is a fictional European country – but similar to England or Scotland. When you think of Nicholas, think of Prince Harry (except dark hair). He is a playboy. He is known as His Royal Hotness. His forearms have a twitter account. He loves the ladies, and the ladies love him. He hates interviews but knows how to work a room:

“What do you do in your spare time? What are your hobbies?”

[…] I grin, flashing a hint of dimple – women fall all over themselves for dimples.

“Well, most nights I like to read.”

I like to fuck.

[…] “I enjoy horseback riding, polo, an afternoon of clay pigeon shooting with the Queen.”

I enjoy rock climbing, driving as fast as I can without crashing, flying, good scotch, B-movies, and a scathingly passive-aggressive verbal exchange with the Queen.

His parents died in a plane crash when he was young, and he is extremely close with his younger brother Henry, who is even a bigger playboy than himself. Henry recently finished his mandatory stint in the army, but came back troubled. Henry has been acting out, drinking to extremes and causing the Queen, the boys’ grandmother, a big headache. The Queen asks Nicholas to go to New York to find his brother and make him come home. She also gives him another ultimatum – Nicholas has five months to find someone to marry. The country needs a royal wedding to gain support and unity as parliament and the citizens are having trouble. Nicholas does not want to get married, but he also wants to do his duty to his country. His grandmother gives him a list of royal virgins (by law he must marry a royal virgin) for him to choose from. Nicholas decides for the next four months and 29 days, he will live his life to the fullest, and then he will grudgingly pick a woman.

In New York lives our heroine, Olivia. She runs a fabulous pie shop that is barely making any money. Her father became an alcoholic after her mother died and Olivia is trying to get her seventeen year old sister through school and to pay the bills – they are very close to foreclosing on everything. One night two men stroll into her pie store. She can hear them before she sees them and she notices that one has a very sexy voice. The one man (it’s Nicholas but she doesn’t recognize him as anyone special) is very enamored with her and very drunk, and he offers her ten thousand dollars to sleep with her. Olivia responds by throwing a pie in his face and demanding he leave. I fell in love with her then.

The next day, Nicholas is ashamed of his drunken behavior and seeks out Olivia to apologize.

“I…don’t…date.”

“Good God, why not?” I ask, horrified. “That’s a bloody sin.”

“A sin?”

“You’re stunning, obviously clever – you should date often, and preferably with a man who knows how it’s done.” I rest my palm on my chest. “Coincidentally, I happen to be fantastic at it. What are the odds?”

They eventually hit it off, Olivia discovers through her sister’s squeeing that Nicholas is THE Nicholas, prince of Wessco, and fun things start to happen.

Nicholas falls for Olivia HARD. I loved it. He is not only very attracted to her, but he just loves everything about her. Her spirit, and her charm.

I giggle again – feeling silly and light-headed. Possibly delusional.

“All right. Your place, tomorrow.”

Then he’s kissing me again. Sucking at my lips in a way that I’ll feel in my dreams tonight.

“This is crazy,” I whisper against him. “It’s crazy, right? It’s not just me?”

Nicholas shakes his head. “Bloody insane,” His hands are on my ass again – a final quick grab. “And fucking fantastic.”

The way she meets his cold (yet witty) grandmother and other people in castle life. Emma Chase writes very smart banter and VERY sexy books. This one doesn’t disappoint.

Beyond Nicholas and Olivia’s relationship I actually felt like Nicholas, and his brother and the Queen were true royals. Not just a title the author slaps on her characters and hopes the reader believes. It felt very realistic. The way Nicholas acts and is treated by others. The antics Henry gets away with. The bodyguards. The butlers. The overall lifestyle – I could picture Prince Harry and Wills and Kate living it (I’m of course an expert on this. #nope – but I do stalk Prince Harry online)

There are grand gestures, and fights with amazing make up scenes. One of the most romantic lines in the book is, “You had me at horse’s ass.” – you will understand once you read it. You will smile and swoon. I promise.

The next book is Henry’s and we briefly meet his heroine and I just need the book right now!

Absolutely fun and sexy book.

Grade: A

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