It’s one month until the royal wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. Since it starts at 4 AM PT, there’s no way I’m watching it live. But I will read the recap on Go Fug Yourself from royal experts Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan. And their novel The Royal We is perfect for book clubs and if you want to get in the royal wedding ‘spirit.’
Some people don’t understand the fascination with the royals, with plenty pointing to the very accurate point that Americans fought to get out from under the thumb of the monarchy. Yes, this is true but in the end, all of it boils down to: entertainment. Sometimes people just want to look at fancy crowns, pretty clothes and see a love story unfold. You can be an active listener of NPR, reader of the Washington Post and also enjoy coverage of the royals, it’s not all or nothing. (Although I do think the popularity of Netflix’s The Crown has quieted some of that discussion).
Now let’s talk about The Royal We.
It was published in 2015 and it was inspired by the other famous royal couple: William and Kate. It’s a fictionalized account of their love story that goes behind the scenes of being one of the most famous couples in the world. An interesting twist is that Bex (Kate Middleton) is an American who falls in love with Nick (Prince William). So with Prince Harry falling in love with the American Meghan, it’s almost as if the fictional tale is a combination of both stories. Some key differences between Bex and Meghan is that Bex is an average American while as you know, Meghan had a successful run on the show Suits.
Here’s the synopsis:
[blockquote align=”middle” author=””]American Rebecca Porter was never one for fairy-tales. Her twin sister Lacey was always the romantic, the one who daydreamed of being a princess. But it’s adventure-seeking Bex who goes to Oxford and meets dreamy Nick across the hall – and thus Bex who accidentally finds herself in love with the eventual heir to the British throne. Nick is everything she could have imagined, but Prince Nicholas has unimaginable baggage: grasping friends, a thorny family, hysterical tabloids tracking his every move, and a public that expected its future king to marry a native. On the eve of the most talked-about wedding of the century, Bex reflects on what she’s sacrificed for love — and exactly whose heart she may yet have to break.[/blockquote]
The Royal We is one of the most enjoyable books I’ve read in recent years.
It has the fun, glamour side but it doesn’t shy away from addressing the hardships of relationships, especially one that is under so much public scrutiny. The book has plenty of humor, heartbreak as well as self-discovery and personal growth. When I finished it, I immediately wanted to read it over again. Hopefully with another royal wedding on the way, the authors will write a sequel.