Imagine the Princess Diaries, but gay, with a few more edits and that’s what you get here, and I loved it. I accepted this galley at some point last year and finally got around to it on vacation in March.*
Seriously, imagine on your 17th birthday your adoptive mother is like oh heyyyy remember how I’ve been open with you about your mom. Well your mom actually wanted me to keep all of this LIFE CHANGING INFORMATION FROM YOU. As if you weren’t going through enough issues as a gay teen, throw in that you’re apparently also a crown prince of a small European country, yeah oof.
That’s pretty much how this book kicks off with Jamie being thrown for the biggest loop in his lifetime. And from there it just takes off super fast. Jamie’s dad, the King, connects him with Erik, who just so happens to also be gay and a prince of another small country. He’s got his own issues, his grandma (the current queen) is like you WILL start dating a nice young man that we approve of and that is the end of the discussion.
Well, suffice to say that fate had other ideas. Jamie attends prince tutoring with Erik and of course they start to fall for each other. From the adorably awkwardness that is Jamie trying to be prim and proper to Erik letting his guard down and showing his true self (which involved nerdy video games—swoon) they slowly fall for each other.
There is a pretty decent amount of angst, most of it self inflicted, but ranges from Jamie trying to promote his BFFs music without her approval to a friend-of-a-friend spilling that Jamie is royal when it was still underwraps to Erik learning that he HAS to stand up to his grandmother if he ever wants to find himself and be with Jamie. And OMG that series of scenes where Erik’s older brother and soon to be sister-in-law give him their background and the pep talk he needs was PERFECTION. Legit teared up.
‘You have to fight,’ she says. ‘This world is filled with people who will tell you what they think you should do. But I’ve seen what happens when you simply do what everyone wants you to, and trust me, it is a recipe for misery. If you have something you care about, then you need to fight for it with everything you have. You can’t give in. You simply can’t. (Ch. 42)
There were so many other minor characters that were well written and added depth to the novel and you really wanted to know their stories too. I loved Jamie’s parents, both adoptive and royal and his friends added color to his life. I wish we got a little more of Erik, but I think that was on purpose to show his isolation and we got to see him grow into his own within his family.
The split narrative worked really well for me, and usually does. Having two distinct voices and being able to see what’s happening before and during the story is so important to really round out both characters. You see WHY Erik was as reticent to buck the norms, you see WHY Jamie couldn’t let the homeless shelter fail. It just worked.
If there’s one critique of the novel, honestly, it was Jamie’s kingdom name, Mitonar. For some reason I just COULD NOT say it. I ultimately just called it Minotaur. And that is so minor. It was just annoying AF for me, mostly because it was already so close to minotaur that it’s all I could see.
And to close it out, loved the shout out to bloggers and readers in the acknowledgments/afterward. I always read them and get a little thrill when authors acknowledge the whole wide world that supports them:
To all the bloggers and people who have ever supported me: thank you!! I truly appreciate whenever you take time out of your day to make something related to my writing, whether it be an Instagram post or a review or a piece of art. Your support means I get to keep doing this, and I’m so grateful. (Acknowledgements)
Recommendation: Definitely a read from me. It’s cute and Erik and Jamie were adorable and perfect together. I loved that they were different enough but both grew into their own in the story without having to lose themselves in their families or their royal identities. There were so many minor characters that I loved and wanted to know more about, but Dietrich left us wanting just enough. Dietrich has also evolved as an author, this one has a bit more finesse and polish than his last solo novel I read, The Friend Scheme.
*I received a copy of The Rules of Royalty via NetGalley in return for my honest opinion. No goods or money were exchanged.
Opening Line: “I don’t like birthdays.”
Closing Line: “Would I like that? I can hardly wait.” (Whited out to avoid spoilers, highlight to read.)