The Heir Affair (Royal We #2)
By: Heather Cocks & Jessica Morgan
Published Year: 2020
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Pages: 464
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This in no way shape or form influenced my opinion of this book.
Summary (Provided by Goodreads): Making it up the aisle was the easy part: After marrying the heir to the throne, Rebecca “Bex” Porter must survive her own scandals as she adjusts to life in the glamorous British royal family, in this “highly anticipated” follow-up to The Royal We, the “fun and dishy” bestseller and NYT Summer Reading List pick inspired by Will and Kate’s romance (People).
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.
First Impressions
When I found out that The Royal We was going to have a sequel, I got excited. I had enjoyed the first one, though maybe not as much as my friends had, and looked forward to revisiting the characters.
What I thought
This book picks up right where the last one left off. Bex and Nick are hiding out after the drama of their wedding until they get called back to their duties. When back in London, they have to address the mess they left behind as well as what this means for their future with their familial relationships and with their country.
Prior to reading this book, I did re-read The Royal We so that I could start The Heir Affair knowing exactly what happened. I initially read The Royal We 5 years ago, so when I re-read it there was a lot that I had completely forgotten about. I remembered a lot of what happened vaguely, but there were some bigger plot points I forgot. Since this is a sequel, I will warn about spoilers because I will be talking about things that happen in the first book that pertain to the second.
The Royal We ended with Nick finding out that his brother Freddie had kissed his fiancé Bex and asked her to leave Nick and run away. Nick and Bex get married anyway and as they are getting married, news about the “affair” breaks. When Bex and Nick come back from running away, Nick and Bex continue to struggle with their relationship as well as how to handle Freddie.
What I love about these stories is how they are coincidentally similar to events that have happened in real life. For example, an American marrying a prince prior to Meghan Markel marrying Prince Harry. However, because of these similarities, it can be hard to remember that this is a book of complete fiction in a made up universe and not a historical fiction type of novel. I appreciated that Nick, Bex, and Freddie had to deal with their issues and they didn’t just disappear.
As with the first novel, there is a lot going on in this book. They tackle some serious issues but in relatable ways that make it enjoyable to read. I wish that there had been more of the side relationships in this book, but I understand why that wasn’t possible. This book focused a lot more on Bex, Nick, and their responsibilities to their family and country as opposed to their friendships. As a result, Bex’s sister Lacey who featured so heavily in the first novel is barely existent in this one.
If you enjoy royal romance fiction, you will greatly enjoy these two books. As sequels go, this one is strong. The characters felt familiar and I loved seeing where they went. With the way the first book left off, I was very happy to get some closure and see what happened next. I would highly recommend reading both of these books.