Codename Charming by Lucy Parker
Palace Insiders #2
Contemporary Romance
August 15, 2023- Avon
ARC

Review by Angela

This was one of my most anticipated reads for 2023. I LOVED the first book in the Palace Insiders series and was all in for this beauty and the beast-inspired, fake dating, workplace romance.

Codename Charming is Pet and Matthias’s story, you’ll remember them from Battle Royal as Dominic’s sister, and the royal bodyguard who held her hand after the assassination attempt. Now they are working together as part of Johnny and Rosie’s team. Unfortunately, Johnny is still the klutzy, accident-prone prince from the first book and it takes everything Pet has to keep him in line. Turns out that keeping him in line has also piqued the gossip magazine’s interest and there is a rumor going around of an affair between them. This leads to implementing Codename Charming… the PR team’s idea to focus the media’s attention on another couple. That couple is Matthias and Pet.

This was such a lovely romance- big, scarred, protective Matthias and short, quirky, sunshiney Pet. I guess you could say this also features the opposites attract trope. Since the events in the first book Matthias has been trying to keep his emotional distance, but Pet is determined to be his friend. The sexual tension is real y’all, but they are trying desperately to ignore it. Then comes the fake dating scheme and all that sexual tension comes roaring to the surface. They are forced to spend alone time together and it quickly becomes something that doesn’t really seem so forced.

There is a lot of backstory with both of these characters. Pet’s family history and Matthias’s time spent in the foster care system, as well as the loss of his best friend during an assignment, play a big part in their hesitancy to believe that a committed romantic relationship between them would even work. Their journey from co-workers to friends to lovers was charming. This is definitely a slow-burn romance, with a lot of heavy petting leading up to the open-door love scene toward the end. There is a really sweet declaration of love that gave me happy goosebumps and left me with a big smile on my face.

The secondary characters bring a bit of levity and brightness to the story, especially when Pet and Matthias are engaging in castle shenanigans to protect their employers. There is just so much to love about this series, and now I’m wondering who the third book will feature. Maybe a certain friend and co-bodyguard who I think needs some love in his life?

Grade- B+