THE HEIR AFFAIR

Cocks and Morgan, the fashion bloggers known as the Fug Girls, return with the highly anticipated sequel to their regal rom-com, The Royal We (2015).

Nick and Bex, more formally known as the Duke and Duchess of Clarence, have escaped from London and taken refuge in Wigtown, Scotland, where they are posing as local booksellers Margot and Steve. The newlyweds are not only running from their disastrous wedding ceremony—during which rumors of an affair between Bex and Prince Freddie, Nick’s brother, were released to the public by a former friend of Nick's who's a tabloid journalist—but from the resultant wrath of Nick’s grandmother, Queen Eleanor. Both Nick and Bex are uncertain about how to move forward in their marriage following Freddie’s declaration of love for Bex, and they're contemplating never returning home. But when Queen Eleanor concocts a scheme to get them back, they return to their public lives, where they must confront the deepening cracks in their relationships with each other as well as with Freddie and the way history seems to be repeating itself in the palace. It’s clear that the authors are experts on all the juicy rumors about the real British royal family, as they deftly inject recognizable scandals and characteristics from real-life people into a world of their own making. A mystery from the past involving Princess Georgina, the queen’s late sister, mirrors one in the present day of the book and adds more intrigue to the plot, though some readers might find the resultant drama a bit over-the-top. The novel takes place over the course of several years and can feel drawn out as multiple illnesses, pregnancies, scandals, and secrets keep cropping up, but the characters are so compelling that most readers won’t mind spending extra time with them.

Royal watchers and tabloid devotees will devour this juicy look behind the gilded curtain of palace life.