Quick Info about Her Royal Highness
| Title | Her Royal Highness |
| Author | Rachel Hawkins |
| Publisher | G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers |
| Release Date | May 7th, 2019 |
| Format | Audiobook |
| Representation | Bisexual main character; Lesbian love interest |
| Content Warnings | |
| Synopsis | Millie Quint is devastated when she discovers that her sort-of-best friend/sort-of-girlfriend has been kissing someone else. And because Millie cannot stand the thought of confronting her ex every day, she decides to apply for scholarships to boarding schools . . . the farther from Houston the better. |
| Millie can’t believe her luck when she’s accepted into one of the world’s most exclusive schools, located in the rolling highlands of Scotland. Everything about Scotland is different: the country is misty and green; the school is gorgeous, and the students think Americans are cute. | |
| The only problem: Mille’s roommate Flora is a total princess. | |
| She’s also an actual princess. Of Scotland. | |
| At first, the girls can barely stand each other–Flora is both high-class and high-key–but before Millie knows it, she has another sort-of-best-friend/sort-of-girlfriend. Even though Princess Flora could be a new chapter in her love life, Millie knows the chances of happily ever afters are slim . . . after all, real life isn’t a fairy tale . . . or is it? |
Why You Should Read Her Royal Highness
1. It’s a queer, royal romance!
I heard y’all like royal romances. I mean, just look at the love and attention Red, White & Royal Blue and The Selection series have gotten. So why not read an f/f story where Whoops, turns out my roommate is a princess and I might be falling in love with her? (Oh, my god. They were roommates.)
2. Enemies to Lovers trope
Who doesn’t love a good enemies-to-lovers romance? So you remember how I said they’re roommates? Yeah, well, they’re not the Oh my gosh, we hit it off right away and were destined to be best friends type of roommates. They’re more like the You absolutely get on my nerves and I’m looking for a way to move out of this room because of you type of roommates. But, of course, that doesn’t last very long…
3. Karissa Vacker narrates the audiobook version perfectly
Okay, so not everyone reading this will choose the audio version, but for those of you that do: I highly recommend it! Listen, Millie is from Texas, her love interest is Scottish, the friends she makes at her new school are British, and she even befriends some Americans from other states. Not once did the shift between accents and voices feel awkward or unnatural. It’s truly amazing how Vacker does it!
4. It’s a companion novel, not a sequel, so it works as a stand-alone
Why is this a bonus? Because if you love it as much as I did, you can jump back into the world with Prince Charming. But if you’re like me and you haven’t read that one first, you can totally pick this book up and not be confused. There were parts that I could tell were references to the first book just because I read the synopsis, but they didn’t take over this narrative and make me feel left out.
5. Millie is a girl going into a STEM field
The main reason Millie picks a high school in Scottland (besides it being far, far away from Texas), is because she absolutely loves rocks and wants to study geology. And Scottland apparently has some pretty cool rocks. (I wouldn’t know, but Millie geeks out about the rocks in this country several times in the book. Yes, it’s as cute as it sounds.)
6. All of the relationships are layered and complicated and messy
Welcome to teen life, where romantic, platonic, and familial relationships are all complicated, and navigating them in a conscious, respectful way is new and messy. Millie is close with her father, step-mother and new younger brother, but now with her living several time zones away, it’s harder to manage time catching up with them. Not to mention keeping in touch with her friends back home in Texas and making new friends abroad. Plus (wait, there’s more!), part of the reason she decides to leave is to get away from the pain of a romantic relationship gone sour. Meanwhile, a new one is blooming between her and Flora.
Tl;dr – Millie navigates a lot of different kinds of relationships in this story and it’s not always easy. But hey! Figuring out the best way to do that is what high school is for, right?
7. Overall, it’s a pretty light read
Don’t get me wrong. There’s tension, and there’s pining, but at the end of the day, it’s a romance. There are tons of cute and fluffy parts to balance it all out, and none of it felt overwhelming. Granted, everyone’s different in their tastes, and it’s not purely a fluffy story, but if you’re looking for a read that’s not emotionally taxing, this one is great.
In conclusion, Her Royal Highness by Rachel Hawkins is the perfect book for all your sapphic, enemies to friends to lovers, royal romance needs.
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4 Responses
Yes!! I loved this book so much.
It was amazing!
I loved this book! So glad to see someone spreading the word about how good it is.
Yessss, it was so good! I’m surprised more people aren’t talking about it