Being a Princess can have it's advantages but it can also have it's downfalls. Like being in love with your bodyguard whilst being engaged to another man. Scandal !!
In this new short read from the Royal Baby Collection written by various authors Maisey Yates took me as reader on the journey of the courage it takes to stand up and take what you want when you simply cannot have it in the eyes of the your royal family or public.
The read is about Princess Alys, about to be engaged to the man her father chose for her years ago, and never having experienced love on a emotional or sexual level, she decides it't time that she for just night takes what she wants. And what she wants is to be in the arms of her long time bodyguard Liam.
She gathers all her courage and finds herself right where she wants to be, experiencing the height of passion in the arms of the only man she has ever truly wanted to be with. One month later however, she discovers she is expecting Liam's baby. She has three choices, one, bring scandal to the family by marrying Liam, who will be seen as nothing more than a commoner and will also let her stand the chance to loose her right to the throne. Two, beg her finance to marry her is haste and claim the child as his, or three seduce her fiancée and hope he does not do the maths when she announces she is expecting.
Of course only option one is the lesser or all evil and the only one she wants, but Liam refuses to marry her. The only thing left for this Princess to do is face it all alone unless she can get Liam to let go and admit the truth.
The character of Alys was a little bit arrogant, but this is due to her royal upbringing. She knows when to stay calm and confident when the timing calls for it, afterall a Princess is to ooze charm and poise at all times, so her arrogance made perfect sense to me. But she is also kind and sensitive and caring for others, so much so that she does not ever really truly conciser her own feelings until she finds herself running out of time. I loved that the author on more than one occasion gives her the courage she needs to take what she wants and to not go down without a fight, even when her adoring public is sure to condemn her, she simply puts herself out there and goes for it. Simply adored her courage.
The character of Liam was everything a woman, Princess or not can ask for. He is calm and collected when needed, he is strong and confident and always makes sure he is in charge of his job, knowing when to strike and when to back down. Even when backing down means he has to watch the woman of his dreams on the arms of another man. But he is also afraid of letting his feelings show, he fears when letting go he will lose the Princess for good, putting her in harms way. The only time this man loses it is when he is in the arms of the woman he has loved for as long as he can remember. What made him so perfect as a hero was that he is a protector yet he is afraid, giving him the perfect balance of being a bodyguard first and a man in love second.
The backdrop settings were creative and matched the story line and the dialogue was hot, passionate and fierce yet also sweet and caring when the time called for it.
Because this is a short read coming in at only eight chapters the author did not go into detail on the full background of the characters or the history of the families royal line, or the full personalities of Liam or Alys. Yet she was able to give me as reader just enough to bring me into the loop and be able to appreciate the reading experience, in just a few short pages. I will also add that the heroine was not the author's normal flare but again with this being a short read I can understand that the author did not have as much time to give it all to the reader as she would in her longer reads so we ended up with the basic details of the characters and not the all that we are use to, but at no stage did I as reader feel cheated or lost.
If you are a fan of short reads you will definitely enjoy this one. It is short and to the point, moves along very rapidly and still lets you walk away with the feeling of happiness any romance read is meant to give you.
And even if you are not a fan of short reads this one I personally think will be one to convince you to take the time to give it a try, if not for the royal scandal or for the happy ever after then for the author's writing style, she was able to take me on a yes short, but also very uplifting journey of love and courage, in less than 30 min she wrapped it all into a very neat bow that will stay with me for a long time. Passionate, classic and uplifting !
The message from this read is loud and clear, no matter who we are or what we face in life, find the courage needed to make the first step towards the future you want, and you will never regret it.
5/5 star review
"He only wants to be protector of her body not her heart"
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Review by MariaMaisey Yates his known for her sexy, contemporary romances as well as for royal romances. She's back with a short, royal romance involving a royal pregnancy here and she does it with flair and style. Is there any other way with Maisey Yates?
Yes, she's not only done the royal romance, she's done it, Princess/Bodyguard way and here she is doing it again. But unlike the insecure, rather immature princess Evangelina Drakos of her previous Princess/Bodyguard work A ROYAL WORLD APART, Alys Bowen, the Crown Princess of Brynland is a woman deeply secure in who she is and what she needs. All she has to do is convince her loyal-to-a-fault bodyguard Liam Ryder that their love is worth fighting for. Even if it costs her her potential role as Queen of Brynland.
Anyone who loves the work of Maisey Yates will love this short read, which will take less than an hour to devour. Maisey Yates' writing is all about the power of true love and how it lifts us above the ordinary. Take this read along with a cup (or three!) of coffee and you'll be set up for the day!
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Review by TashNz
This is the amazing Maisey Yates's contribution to The Royal Baby Collection, 6 short stories written by my favorite authors.
This one explores the forbidden relationship between Princess Alys and her bodyguard Liam Ryder. One night, with the fantastically brave prompting of Alys they succumb to their feelings and spend a blissful night together. This results in a life-long consequence which then forces the two together to nut out how they're going to face this given their prospective status's in life... including other complications like a fiancee.
What will become of Alys's royal baby? What will her father, the Kin say? Does Liam even want to be a father? Will he offer his hand in marriage? How will Aly's fiancee react? Will Alys give up her future for the sake of love? Will Liam offer his hand in marriage instead? What will the royal subjects think?
Find out now in Maisey's sweet but passionate short story!
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Reviewed by Nancy Crocker
His Pregnant Princess
by Maisey Yates
I can't even imagine
what it must be like to have a husband chosen for you out of duty. But that is
what is to happen to Princess Alys Bowen in Maisey Yates novella His Pregnant
Princess.
Knowing she must
marry out of duty is slowly eating away at Princess Alys. She has known the day
would come when an engagement would be announced to Count Damien Rycroft. But
she has secretly been in love with her longtime bodyguard Liam Ryder, and before
she marries for duty she plans to have a night she will not forget.
Liam Ryder has been
protecting the Princess for eight years, he has even taken a bullet or
her. He has been loyal to the Royal family, so loyal in fact it has cost
him a marriage. He struggles with the feelings he has had for Alys for years,
married another because he believed she was never to be his. But when years of
pent up passion ignite, neither are able to walk away.
Soon their night of
passion changes everything. And Princess Alys is left with a difficult choice
she must make. Give up her crown for the love of her life. Marry a man she
does not love and have him raise her child as his. Or seduce her finance and
pass the child she is carrying off as his.
I think every woman
wants to have someone to be there for them, and let’s face it there is
something so very dreamy about a bodyguard and forbidden love.
4.5/5 stars
There are six books
in the "Royal Baby Collection" due out June
1st, and they are:
The Queen's
Nine-Month Scandal by Abby Green
Sheikh's Baby
Bombshell by Melanie Milburne
His Royal Love-Child
by Lynn Raye Harris
The Accidental Heir
by Susan Stephens
Scorsolini Baby
Scandal by Lucy Monroe
His Pregnant Princess
by Maisey Yates
