There are a lot of good reviews for this book and I can certainly see the appeal, but it didn't work for me all that well. Might also be because I didn't read the previous books so it was not a happy reconnecting with couple from the previous book, but more a whole lot of other names that I had to keep straight,
The romance is called slowburn by some, yet Clay immediately gets a crush of Kat the first time she sees her. I generally dislike that type of stuff. Attraction, hittting it off, sure, but crushing when you see someone for the first while you are very distrustfull of them?
Apart from that I actually did like Clay and Kat as a couple, but some other pairings rubbed me the wrong way and I would have liked the book to be more centered about them. Now the supporting characters were also main characters and it prevented me from becoming real invested in the developing romance.

Yet, if you have read Jenny Frames previous books and liked them, then this will most likely be a feast of recognition and catching up. You will probably like Royal Family just as much as you did the others.

***An ARC was provided by Netgalley in exchange for a honest review. ***

This is the fourth book in the series so there are a lot of characters and a lot of nicknames. Oddly I didn’t get too mixed up and had a good idea of who everyone was even though I hadn’t read the previous books. 

Okay. This review is going to include a lot of spoilers, but if your didn’t like the series and want to know what happens you would be here right? Here we go!


One of the returning couples is George and Bea, queen and queen consort who I like but was blindsided by a very intimate scene using *ahem* a smart toy that had me feeling like I should have knocked first before entering the bedroom. The other couples are also lesbian royalty and the first half of the book is babies babies babies, domestic bliss, wholesome daily life in the middle of Royal trappings,
and waking up in a stranger’s bed after an alcohol and cocaine-fueled bender.

Record scratch

That brings us to the new couple of this book: Clay (or Veronica Clayton or Ronnie) and Kat (or Katya or Olga or Ollie). Both of them have history, not all good. Clay is grieving her mother’s recent passing and Katya is running from her past. 

At about the halfway point, things start getting interesting. We have the sexual tension which lasts for a couple pages, we meet the dastardly bad guy and there is even a token hetero couple (don’t worry, they don’t flaunt their lifestyle and any male-female grappling is done offscreen). Frame is great at writing butch-femme and the butches have very masculine names so I just assumed people like Jack and Theo were butch lesbians.

Oh well, fun headcanon where males don’t exist and everyone is gay. I should mention this is set in a “near future” so things like homophobia don’t exist but dildos that have their own brain do.

Our new couple gets together and breaks up for the first time that same day (I believe it is around noon). They proceed to break up two more times with a lot of angst for a day-old relationship that is solved extremely simply after the 90% mark. The bad guy issue is also resolved super quickly, giving the end of the book a rushed feel. 

Overall I enjoyed this book, Frame has a way of spinning an interesting tale, but some technical issues really bothered me. There is a lot of head-hopping and telling not showing that brought down the overall quality of this read. 

I really enjoyed Frame’s novel The Duchess and the Dreamer and I feel her writing in that is much higher in technical execution and pacing than this story. 

So I can only give it...

My rating: three stars

The Royal Romance Series by Jenny Frame is one of my all time favorite series and I’m so glad for this addition.
I was happy to see that the characters/couples from the previous Royal Romance books made an appearance in this book. I have read some of the feedbacks regarding Royal Family, and some particular comments stand out to me. They said a lot of things were going on and that did not add much to the story.
First, the documentary on royal life that’s been going on around. It is of significance since the documentary was to celebrate the Year of the Family, and Kat/Olga is part of that said royal family. Also, a conflict has been made since Kat wanted to remain in the background but having cameras all over them was in contrast for her being anonymous.
Second, having majority of the characters being lesbians. Well, we don’t ask authors of straight novels why all their characters were all straight, right? And they don’t have one gay friend in sight. 🙄 At least we have Azi on this one.
Third, George and Roza had to have major appearances in this book since 1.) they’re both related to Kat; 2.) George’s father was the one who made sure that Kat’s identity be kept secret and who helped Kat settle in Britain; 3.) Roza was one of Kat’s playmate and friend before everything blew up in her life; 4.) And of course Bea and Lennox will always be with their spouses. Also, Cam& Lali and Quinn & Holly will be present since the setting was in the royal court where they play an important part of the household.
Did I miss anything else? 🤔
Right! So, in my opinion, this book has a strong storyline. There was no lull in the flow of the story, the plot was interesting and engaging. The MCs were amazingly written and their chemistry was palpable. The romance, although it was not much emphasized compared to the previous books from the series, was subtly felt in every chapter of the book.
Overall, it was a very good read and would definitely recommend it to others.

I received an ARC from the publishers through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

3.25 stars. I was happy to see a new release in this series, as I always seem to enjoy them. I know what I will get and I can just go with the flow. That’s what this book was for me, easy and sweet, with a good dose of royalty.    

Clay is the head of the protection detail of the children of Queen George and Queen Bea (see their story in ‘A Royal Romance’) and Katya is the new nanny of the Royal children. When Katya hears the description of Clay as an easygoing and happy person she can’t believe it. Clay appears anything but happy, she seems distrustful and is plain rude. However, they appear to have more in common than they thought.

Like in the previous books George and Bea have a prominent role, but in this book also the couples from the second and third book have large roles. I always enjoy this, it’s good to see how they are doing. Because of this I think you’ll best enjoy this book if you’ve read the others, but it can be read as a stand-alone. One thing I have to mention is that by now the amount of gay people in the royal households of multiple countries is so high that you should not read this for its believability;) 

There is a lot of attention on the other couples, a documentary of the royal family is being made, and there is a lot of focus on the political situation in Vospya (a dictatorship with little regard for civil rights), as Katya is a refugee from Vospya. This latter storyline is interesting and of importance for a better understanding of Katya. However, with all these additional storylines, I felt that the romance was a bit underrepresented at times. To me, the documentary storyline, as well as some other small storylines, did not really add much to the story and I wish there would have been more focus on the romance and character development. 

In short, a sweet butch-femme romance in line with the other books in this series. It’s not my favorite book of the series, but I had a good time reading it.

NetGalley ARC Educator 550974

A lost princess. A stately chief of guards. Their tale, is one for the ages. Later and Clay's story is told. You will fall in love with their love. Themes of friendship,  love, family and mystery exist throughout. 

Ms. Frame has done it again. A welcome addition to the series.  It is a standalone.

I received this book as an ARC in exchange for an honest review. 

I really enjoy this series, a lot it is a princess story but not in th typical way it is also set in the future which is something you don't see a lot where the future o normal and not some out apocalyptic wasteland or everyone lives on mars. 

This book was about Royal Family and not just the queens new child Ana and the older one Teddy, but how all of the guards and servants and everyone is a part of the queens family, which is ridiculous cause these people work for you and you can never truly be that close to someone you pay. But the book focuses around Clay who I had no idea was Black until this book, sp good job with representation and not making it weird, and Katya who is a nanny with a lot of secrets. I will not give away the plot because its a good one, but the overall story was great. The Loe story happened at an appropriate pace and the two lovers seemed like they fit well together. Having other issues pop up at the end of the book seemed unnecessary and jarring, but I guess they had to prove a point and make some the hero.

Things I liked were the that although this was a book that included the royal family it did not focus on them anti was nice to see some else story.

I did not like that the story and the fact that everyone in the queens inner circle is a lesbian that seems super unrealistic and kind of took me out of the story. I can understand if a few of the people you work with are gay but three leaders of major European countries their spouses, and friends are all gay seems unlikely unless the queen specifically asked to have lesbians on her staff. I also didn't like how in the last book When Holly fell for Quinn she was straight for the first half of the book and because that did not fit the narrative the author made her a lesbian for the second half of the book. It just irked me that they couldn't have one straight friend. Talk about having no diversity in the friend group. Other then that the book was a fine read. It was funny in places, and sad in others I enjoyed it very much.

This is slow burn, story between Queens police and Hidden Princess. 
The growing love between those two, after what they went trough is uplifting. 
You experience bit push and pull, but in the end story has happy ending. 
Kat had to hide who she was, which almost cost her Clay. But I'm glad they figure their stuff together. 
I can see more from their point of view.

I am not a royalist but perhaps if the monarchy was really as depicted in Jenny Frame's books I might be. An enjoyable story of a "lost" princess and a protection agent.

Jenny Frame is one of the best story writers around. I buy her books without even reading the sample because the romance, dialogue, depth of character, depth of secondary characters, and her research is phenomenal. Honestly, it is! Jenny continued on with the Royal series and I love seeing Bea and George. I fell in love with their story when it first came out, I had never heard of Jenny Frame before, and took a chance on buying one of her books. And I loved it! I have been faithful ever since! Buy this book! You won’t be sorry

Very cute but angsty, hidden identity romance novel. Fourth book in the "Royals" series. Could be stand alone, but all the other characters are in previous books. This book has lots with Bea/George (leads in 1st novel), which I really liked as they are my favorite pairing! 

Protection Officer Veronica Clayton (Clay) is charged with watching over the royal children. She loves her job and the girls, but something is missing especially after her mum dies leaving her with no family. Katya Kovach also has no family as a refugee who fled her dictatorial home country after the murder of her entire family. Katya has found comfort, though, in her job as a professional nanny. 

When Katya is hired by the royal family to nanny the two girls under Clay's protection, the two women begin to wonder if they may have found more than just good jobs. However, Katya is keeping a secret that may make a relationship impossible. 

**I received this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I did not read the other books of the series, so I can only speak based on this reading.
I enjoyed that the book is set in a progressive society and one of the best parts for me is Clay trying to find out who Katya really is.
I do have to say that I find two problems with the plot. The documentary was kind of unnecessary to this plot. I thought that Katya would be unmasked through that, when what brings things up is a a mere tabloid print, and so the film doesn't really add to the story.
The other thing is a bit of a spoiler, but I need to write it.  Katya heard her MI6 agent over the phone for many years and never recognized her voice as someone who she personally knew? I did not buy that.
If you like royal subjects and all, you might enjoy this book.

I truly adore the dynamic between characters and I found that this novel encapsulated such perfection. Each character, though internally flawed, were so strong and seemed so lovely to be around. It was playful yet enticing and overall allowed me to fall into a world I would love to enter once more.

I was endlessly fascinated by the plot and without spoiling, would like to note that the relationships were impeccable! I’m so excited to read more from this author and endlessly thrilled at the pacing and progression this held.

An interesting book. I can see its merits but, unfortunately I haven’t read the previous ones and even though it stands alone, I have to admit it wasn’t my cup of tea. Still, I recognize that “Royal family” is a pretty decent book and I’m sure it will succeed. The author is really gifted and certainly knows how to write. Well done!
Thank you Netgalley, publisher and author for giving me the opportunity to read the ARC in exchange of my honest review.

This book was a surprise for me.  I requested it based on its cover and blurb.  I didn't know this was a fourth in "A Royal Romance Story" series.  The book stood alone but the people introduced quickly at the beginning would be more meaningful as they were probably the main characters and romances from previous books.  So to avoid spoilers read in order. 

This is slightly futuristic, speculative fiction.  When the Queen of England and her wife need a new nanny the perfect candidate arrives.  Katya has been training at the best schools and more importantly has an aristocratic background.  She understands the pressures her young charges will face.  Katya came to Britain as a refugee when she was ten years old.  In her native county of Vaspya she and her uncle were the only members of the ruling family to escape with their lives after an uprising.  As a royal nanny Katya meets sargent Clay (Veronica Clayton) who is in charge of the protection unit for the young princesses.  Katya is content to live in secret but her home country is once again embroiled in an uprising this time inspired by her uncle.

This genre of book is not what I usually read.  But I was delighted at the idea of ruling queens and such a progressive society.  The romance was sweet and the political intrigue well written.  I've already downloaded the previous books so I can catch up to the story I read.  Thank you to NetGalley and Bold Strokes Books for an ARC ebook in exchange for an honest review.

I’m so happy that The Royal Romance series is still continue and you get glimpses of previous characters lives. 

Veronica Clayton has always been happy and sees the joy in the world but since the sudden death of her mother she hasn’t been seeing the happiness in the world. While she grieves her mother she loves having a purpose being the protection detail for the Queen’s children. 

Katya  knows what grief feels like since she her family was killed right in front of her. Although she can’t shake those memories and because of it she keeps people at arm lengths fear of losing them. She proud that she the nanny of the Queen’s children. 

Clay and Katya aren’t thrilled that the Royal family are going be on camera and so will them but they just want to go day by day without having their loss consume them but will they realize guarding their from heartbreak is actually breaking their hearts regardless. I enjoy this read I read some great lgbtq book series and this is one of them it’s a shame with tv networks or streaming services putting books into series it’s crazy that they don’t reach out to lgbtq writers books series because their are great ones that be great on screen. 

I received an ARC copy of this book from the Publisher via Netgalley and voluntarily leaving my review.

I loved reading many of Jenny Frame books and loved one after the other. So imagine my surprise to learn that A Royal Romance Story series continued with a fourth book! I loved being introduced and following each character journey especially George and Bea so it was lovely so see the progress of their relationship in Royal Family as they are still my favorite couple of the series!

Back to our main characters in Royal Family, Clay finally gets a love interest! We also see another side to our usually cheery Clay and all the emotions and processing she goes through. We then meet Katya who has secrets of her own and keeps everyone at an arms length. 

My hearts strings kept being pulled following these two. There were tears of joys and sadness, laughter and even a combination of it all at some point. Jenny Frame did such an amazing job portraying their emotions as I felt it with them. I was so intrigued by how their relationship would wreck then build me back up that in one sitting, I read it all! 

But really, did it have to make me cry so much that I had to pause for a few to calm down before continuing? Yes, yes it did and it was all worth it! I highly recommend checking out Jenny’s other books if you enjoyed this series! Be prepared for some tears though!

A big thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.