Daisy is 17. Her sister is the future princess of Scotland. Narrating our story for us, Daisy gives us a light-hearted and amusing take on what life with royals might look like from the inside out.
Daisy is witty and fun, with not much of a filter–just like her Dad. Ellie, on the other hand, has been the perfect princess since birth. Ellie and Alex, the crowned prince of Scotland, are engaged and so in love that it makes all the paparazzi, the stress, and the royal “games” worthwhile. Daisy isn’t afraid of the limelight but for her sister’s sake, she’s doing her best to play the part of a good sister. Speaking her mind every now and again gets her in more trouble than she bargains for (even though those people really did deserve a piece of her mind). With several “royals” involved, the author, Rachel Hawkins, does a great job developing the main characters and helping the reader feel like they are part of the inner circle and getting to know them all. Being uniquely flawed, it’s the characters who truly make this a fun book. The reader may find themselves asking the question, “Is true love worth all of this drama?” But in the end, Daisy and Ellie help the reader to understand the answer to this significant question.
As this is Rachel Hawkins’ tenth book, she has certainly perfected the art of writing an entertaining story. Around page 70, the book took off and it was hard to put down. Crafted with care, the pacing is perky and full of action and royal drama. The author is gifted with the art of description and knows what makes a good story. Complete with a great ending, I look forward to reading the sequel to this story to see what becomes of Daisy and Ellie.
Review of an Advance Reading Copy
This book was sent to Compass Book Ratings for review by G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers
Content Analysis:
Profanity/Language: 24 religious exclamations; 3 mild obscenities; 3 derogatory names; 2 scatological words; 13 anatomical terms; 1 offensive hand gesture.
Violence/Gore: An incident with 2 swords, no blood; man punches a 17-year-old teen boy.
Sex/Nudity: Reference to two songs that reference sex; man tells a story about being drunk and kissing another man; 2 teen girls talk about making out with a teen boy; teen girl marvels at all the really cute teen boys; teen girls thinks to herself that she wouldn’t mind being alone with a specific teen boy; teen boy kisses a teen girl, a little descriptive; teen boy suggests he and a teen girl jump in bed and have sex; several references to the theory that a teen boy and a teen girl should have sex because it’s expected of them; mention of people probably off having an orgy; 2 teen girls are kissing; mention of one teen girl dating another teen girl; mention of 2 teen girls having had sex, no description.
Mature Subject Matter:
Underage drinking, homosexuality.
Alcohol / Drug Use:
Man tells a story about being drunk on Champagne; man mentions previous excessive alcohol consumption and drug use; excessive amounts of alcohol are consumed by 17-year-olds with multiple mentions of them getting drunk; alcohol is consumed by many people throughout the book, adults and 17-year-olds; implied that several 17-yr-olds have been consuming alcohol for several years.
