This brings us back to the love story of James, Prince of Wales, and reporter Ben Dahan. I was pleasantly surprised that in the beginning, the author brought us an important scene that I felt was left out of the first book, His Royal Secret. So we begin with James finally revealing his secret to the royal family and then to the media. 

This story focuses on the aftermath. James and Ben both must face media scrutiny and threat of public backlash while also still dealing with their own new relationship and trying to merge their lives. Neither of them have ever really been in a healthy relationship before so they are learning as they go. 

Not everyone is happy that James decided to finally quit lying about himself, and he already had some working against him before. And Ben is thrust into a whole new world that carries a risk of public rejection. Some will support them. Some will be against them. Everyone is clamoring for some gossip or secrets. They are vulnerable due to their pasts having the potential to come back and haunt them and any small issue can be blown out of proportion. Their lives are inherently different and they come from different backgrounds. James was born and bred for the royal life, while Ben's life has suddenly changed dramatically. There are personal, professional, family, and political issues all affected by James and Ben's relationship. 

I still love the premise of this duet, but I will admit that I was not completely pleased with the execution. I have been enamored of the royal family for a long time so the story and plot were appealing. But unfortunately I still had some of the same disconnect I had with the first book. It felt like the story was narrated to me more like a documentary versus me feeling it along with the characters, despite getting both of their points of view. 

I was hoping that this would improve for me in this installment since by the end of the first book, I was finally starting to get more attached to the characters. They were likable enough, but for some reason they still  just fell a bit flat for me. They had so much potential and I can say that they both showed growth, but I wanted to actually be pulled in to experience the romance and emotions along with them and get all the feels. I did like that they were more mature and actually communicated and that they did have unique challenges that they faced. This one was more intimate and relationship-focused instead of relying on the sex scenes to show their chemistry or connection. They did have difficult struggles to overcome and there were no easy or definite answers.  I enjoyed how the side characters and their dynamics affected the story, and how there were some surprises. The chapters were long and it seemed to slow down the pace of the story even though there were plenty of issues and drama to deal with.

I did find all of the ramifications interesting. The theme of him being trapped between duty and love. It showed the importance of being true to oneself, trust, and sacrifice.  Can Ben ever truly fit into the royal life? Would James have to choose between Ben and the throne? Is love enough to withstand all the pressures bearing down on them?

Many reviewers did not have the issues I did with the writing style and pacing so if you enjoy M/M romances with a little forbidden element with the potential for significant repercussions, it would be worth giving this duet a try. It is clear that the author did her research and the situations that occurred could easily happen if a monarch was faced with these decisions. People who enjoyed the first book should be pleased that the author really explores their relationship, ties up all of the loose ends, and gives us plenty of interesting epilogue material.

I was gifted a copy in exchange for an honest review.