First sentence: The morning had dawned dreary and gray, with a mist that hung over the streets of the capital. It was, the media correspondents all agreed, appropriate weather for a funeral. They stood behind a velvet rope to one side of the palace doors, swapping cigarettes and breath mints, hurriedly checking their lipstick in their phone screens. Then the palace’s main gates swung open to admit the first guests.
Premise/plot: Majesty is the second book in the series. (The first one is American Royals). The series has a unique-ish premise: what if George Washington had been crowned King after the war ended? And what if he had actually you know had biological descendants to inherit the crown? And what if America still had a Monarchy?
So Beatrice has just inherited the throne and become America's first QUEEN. But some--many? few?--can't imagine her ruling America on her own. Could a woman possibly handle the task of ruling a country on her own?!?! Beatrice must marry Teddy practically immediately so there will at least be a king-consort by her side. But is this what Beatrice wants? What Teddy wants?
So Beatrice has two siblings--twins--Samantha and Jefferson. And this soap opera wouldn't really be soapy if they didn't have tangled love lives. Samantha is still bitter over losing Teddy to her older sister...will she find a new man in this second book? Perhaps even finding one that is a better fit for her?!
Jefferson and Nina have broken up. But will Nina be ready to move on before Jeff? Perhaps. Regardless Daphne can't keep her interfering hands from playing puppet-master. Ethan, Nina, Jeff--she wants to control them all. And that's leaving off her supposed, supposed best-ever friend who spent the whole first book in a COMA. (She's not in a coma in book two).
Life goes on.
My thoughts: I didn't love the first book. Perhaps I'm just a little too old to get giddy about a book founded on such a silly premise. George Washington had no children. George Washington had NO children. But there is something breezy about both books. Even if it was ridiculous, I raced through the first book...and now the second. Not because I found it intelligent or well-written or super-clever or thought-provoking. But because it was almost the exact opposite.
I will say this, I definitely found the second book better than the first. I repeat I found it way more enjoyable than the first book in the series. I found it satisfying in the end.
The series definitely reminds me of Anna Godbersen's series: Luxe and its sequels. Which I believe Luxe is a copycat Gossip Girl. Which I suppose makes this a copycat of a copycat Gossip Girl? But one scene in particular appears to have been largely inspired wink-wink-wink from Gone With The Wind. The whole confrontation between Rhett and Scarlett is almost duplicated between two characters...I won't tell you WHO. Now that I've seen this character speaking Rhett's lines I'm not sure I'll be able to look at him the same way again. And that's not necessarily a bad thing! Perhaps it makes me like him even more?
© 2020 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
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