Scorsolini Baby Scandal by Lucy Monroe - Royal Baby Collection

Reviewed by Desere 


Being loved for who you are is something we all crave. You want your other half to accept you with flaws, faults, good and bad. As the line goes, for better of worse!

But when you have a title to add to the front of your name it is never easy, people tend to think they need to love you because of the power you have, or thinking if they can win you over they will be able to walk away with your fortune.

So understandably if it were me in such a position I would also not be too keen to reveal the true me with the title attached. I would much rather just be me as the person instead of the titleholder so to speak.

In the new Lucy Monroe read this is the case for Kiki and Mich, they both come from powerful, strong families. They meet and instantly fall in love, but neither one reveals their titles. They are wrapped in a bubble of love and even when Kiki drops the pregnancy bombshell it does not blow the whirlwind love out of the works. No they marry and are instantly happier than ever. That is until reality comes knocking on the door. And the truth is revealed, will it shatter their love or make it stronger than before ?

The character of Kiki was great, however I would have liked her to be a little older. She seemed so very young to fall head over heals. I would have said that the author needed her to be just a few years older , it would have given me as reader a more " I have been there done that" character, more grown up. But at the same time I understood that the author was trying to show that Kiki has not truly experienced life due to always being guarded and her every move watched. But I do feel the author could still have pulled it off without letting the Kiki be so young. That aside the character was fun to read and I liked that she is towards the end of the read more determined to stand up and speak her peace than she was before having it all within her grasp.

The character of Mich was one I loved from the start. The man is sex on legs and simply oozes charm and sophistication. I loved that the author lets him have a take it all in stride handle what ever comes along attitude in life even though he knows he has much more to face in the upcoming years of his life. I simply adored the manner in which he protects Kiki against anyone and everything that even so much as dares to speak any unkind words about her, it showed the perfect "I love you and you are my life " hero.

The backdrop setting was romantic, carefree and fun. But the author also very nicely linked in the possible emotional trauma of what could or might go wrong when she brings the characters to the palace, where it is all about authority.

The dialogue was sweet and sensual, pure romance from page one! This read is part of the Royal Baby Short reads collection and therefore only contained six chapters.

But you might be thinking that the characters going from meeting, falling into bed and then getting married during the first four chapters that this is not true romance as the in between getting to really move around the problems that arise when the truth is revealed is not fully explored.

But the author's intensity and passion between her characters more than make up for it all, she shows love at first sight as truly being able to happen and last a lifetime!

I am taking away a message of when someone loves you for you and not for a title you carry with you, it is the best kind of love anyone can ask for. For that person sees the true you beneath all the royal-ness of it all, and your title is simply that, only a title.

I recommend this read for all fans of whirlwind romances that leads to unexpected paths.
4 star review
" Love starts with the first look at your future in the eyes of the one that holds your heart" 

Sheikh's Baby Bombshell by Melanie Milburne -Royal Baby Collection

Reviewed by Desere


Being in love with someone for most of your life and then seeing them marry your best friend just plain sucks! What would you do, go home and sulk, drink yourself into a stupor? Or rather get up, walk out and tell yourself "Tonight I am getting lucky"!

That is exactly what Abby does, she sets out to he bar to find herself a one night stand, and she does not need sweet and slow, she needs hot, hard and fast and she wants it now!

She finds herself in the arms of hotter-than-desert-sand-Talib. He is tall, dark, mysterious and sexier than any man she has seen before, together they have the most incredible night, the man knows how to hit all Abby's buttons and leaves her feeling more complete and satisfied than any other before him.

When morning comes Talib finds himself alone bed with no Abby ! He heads back home to Dharbiri, where he is to make the announcement of his engagement to a woman he has no feelings for what so ever. Yet he has no choice, as Prince he is to marry and ensure the country gets a heir to the throne when he is gone.

Only he cannot get Abby out of his mind, a twist of fate lands her right back into his arms only this time she is no alone, she is caring his future. He will marry her and not care what the country or the laws say, only Abby wants love and he does not see the point, good sex and conversation is all they need for a good marriage and his heir will be secured in the bargain too.

The character of Abby was really great, she is a mess all the time. And I mean a real mess, she says the first thing that comes to her mind when she gets nervous and does not really care who she is saying it to. Just goes from shy and nervous to babbling to the "there I said it , this is me take it or leave it" mode. I found this delightfully refreshing!

I loved that the author lets Abby be strong enough to not go down and sulk but lets her find the courage to go out and let go a little, de-stress. The fact that Abby is going with the flow whilst at the same time doing the right thing, gave the character so much more appeal and I loved it!

The character of Talib, was to the typical arrogant Prince type, commanding and arrogant, straight forward and gets to the point right away. But what I really loved about him is the author also lets him use his authority to ensure that Abby is apart of his life instantly. In so many reads there are hurdles that need to be passed before we get the marriage bells and happy ever after. This man takes control and he does so at lightening fast speed.

The fact that this is a very short read coming in at only nine chapters ensured that the going from this hurdle to that let down and back again was cut out and we the author got to the parts we love to hear at break necking speed.

The backdrop settings were great from cold and gloomy London that showed the troubled feelings of both characters to the hot desert oasis that shows their passion for each other. The dialogue was kept in tune with this being a short read, the author did not take the route of long and stretched out lines before getting to the point, she let her words flow easily and had me entertained at all time!

The message I am taking from this read is short and sweet, when we find ourselves feeling trapped it is a clear cut sign that there is something missing, be it the stability we crave or the love of someone close to you, you need to find the reason and make it work to ensure your happiness.

Even thought this was a short read the author still made sure to deliver her signature passion and flare and I highly recommend this read for all Melanie Milburne fans and for those looking for a story of one night life changing events turning into happy ever after. The perfect thirty minute pick me up read!

5/5 star review
"One night changes everything" 

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Reviewed by Nancy Crocker

In Sheikh’s Baby Bombshell by Melanie Milburne; we find Abby Wright witnessing the marriage of her best friend to the man she has loved for almost 10 years. After the wedding she decides to just throw caution to the wind and have a one night stand. What she doesn’t realize is the man she sleeps with is none other than Crown Prince Talib Muhtadi of Dharbiri.

Talib is use to woman throwing themselves at him, so imagine how refreshing it is when Abby is just what she appears to be upfront and honest. Talib is also not use to a woman walking away from him; usually he has to let them know when they have outstayed their welcome. So he finds it quite confusing and upsetting when he awakes the morning after meeting Abby and she is gone.

With Talib set to inherit a kingdom he is being pressured to take a bride and his father wants him to announce his engagement to Yashira. But Talib has been putting it off for five weeks and he is asking for more time. Then he spots Abby in a crowd and when he meets with her in his private Oasis he finds he is to be a father.

I loved both main characters in this short Novella. Talib is tall dark and handsome, and the only time he seemed to throw his Title around was when he was in fear of losing Abby and decides to fight for Abby anyway he can. Who wouldn’t love this Prince! Then you have Abby “sticks her foot in her mouth any time she is nervous” Wright. I just absolutely loved this character. She is just so in your face “but in an adorable way” with her personal information. She says what she thinks with zero filtering.

One complaint: Too short of a story. I understand it is a novella and it is suppose to be short, but I find that anything that Melanie Milburne writes I love and I just hated for this one to end. This is another page turning book I just loved.

5/5 stars


Reviewed by Maria

It goes without saying that Melanie Milburne is one of the most accomplished contemporary romance novelists around.

Needless to say, this novella, SHEIKH'S BABY BOMBSHELL lives up to expectations.  A poignant romantic tale of lost love, ships that pass in the night and the consequences of a single night of passion resulting in unexpected pregnancy.  The story reaches it's zenith in the romantic desert kingdom of Dharbiri, when the delicate Abby Wright finds true love with her Prince in a tent in the desert.  Lovely.  Just the thing to make you sigh.  Isn't it?  You, I mean. Not me.

Well, that's the freaking problem with me, you see  I know way too much about eastern promise and romance with your dusky skinned, almond eyed prince (well, not a prince maybe, but leave the dusky skin and the almond eyes).  It is nearly impossible for me to suspend my disbelief and enjoy this type of writing for the fantasy that it truly is.  Ladies, life in the desert is decidedly not romantic, even if you are petrodollar wealthy.  You have to live abroad to truly enjoy luxury.  And turning up to knock on the door of the Arab prince  whose nocturnal attention left you in the family way a few weeks earlier is not likely to land you the title of Queen of the Desert either.  Land you in jail more like, with a sentence of flogging for having sex before marriage. And it would be pretty incredible to find a desert prince who had reached the age of maturity without having been married at least once.  These boyos marry quite young and can have several wives at once.  A possible exception would be someone like the present King of Jordan, but that country is practically westernized with a British style monarchy.  Okay, I'll shut up now.

So ladies, luxuriate in Melanie Milburne's lovely writing and fantasize away to glory as you enjoy this romantic novella.  But don't for one moment even think about trying to turn fantasy into reality.  The noble prince of the desert who's been waiting for you all his life is a fantasy.  A pleasant one no doubt, but a fantasy nonetheless.  So don't say you weren't warned.

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

His Pregnant Princess by Maisey Yates -Royal Baby Collection

Reviewed by Desere

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 Maria

Maisey 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