A Prince on Paper

Starred review from March 1, 2019
The third and final installment of Cole's Reluctant Royals series (A Duke by Default, 2018, etc.) probes the ways social expectations can diminish a person's autonomy and how the vulnerability of deep romantic love can make people stronger.Nya Jerami, the granddaughter of respected elders of the powerful African nation of Thesolo, returns home for a family wedding with fear and trepidation. Nya had fled to New York after discovering that her father, once a respected government minister, was guilty of blackmail, treason, and, worst of all, the politically motivated poisoning of members of his own family. Nya had always been kind, with a naturally trusting attitude that reflected the goodness in her heart. Her father's betrayal threw her life into a tailspin, shattering her trust. Now, with her father in prison, she is "a woman who'd come to the end of the breadcrumb trail and didn't know where to go next." The wedding puts Nya in close proximity to her crush, Johan von Braustein, the Tabloid Prince of Liechtienbourg, who finds in Nya a potent invader of his carefully constructed defenses. Johan's playboy persona is a cover, designed, so he tells himself, to draw media attention away from his younger brother, the heir to the throne. But having lost his beloved mother at a young age, Johan is terrified of intimacy and its potential to lead to pain and loss. As Johan's radiant energy draws Nya in, her quiet strength entices him "to stop pretending, to stop guarding his emotions like a dragon watching over its hoard." Their road to happiness is compellingly bumpy, with political intrigue on two continents and the interference of friends and family, many of whom will be delightfully familiar to readers of the first two installments of the series. In a book by a less skilled writer, a subplot involving a character's emerging nonbinary gender identity might feel unnecessary, but not here. Nya and Johan's swoony sexual tension evolves into a scorching exploration that recognizes Nya's relative inexperience while rendering the pair's matched desire, fulfillment, and power.A gifted writer at the top of her emotional, sexy, romantic, and inclusive game.

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Starred review from April 8, 2019
Fan favorite Prince Johan von Braustein takes center stage in Cole’s delicious third and final Reluctant Royals contemporary. A vote that could end the Liechtienbourg monarchy is looming, but Johan escapes the political pressure and travels to Thesolo for a royal wedding. Nya Jerami has retreated into virtual dating games after bad romantic experiences deepened her insecurities and feelings of worthlessness. When wedding activities keep putting Nya and Johan together, people—including Nya’s grandparents—take note. To protect Nya’s reputation and avoid negative press, Johan proposes. The fake engagement swiftly becomes intensely real as Johan and Nya share their secrets and lives. But Johan’s overprotective tendencies destroy his relationship with his younger brother, Lukas, and his abandonment issues may drive Nya away for good. Cole explores sexual and gender identities, grief, self-respect, acceptance, and love in this faultless romance. She weaves family drama and emotional growth into a passion-filled story worthy of its irresistibly complicated (and diverse) characters. This affair of the heart is deeply satisfying. Agent: Courtney Miller-Callihan, Handspun Literary. (Apr.) Correction: An earlier version of this review misspelled the last name of the character Nya Jerami.

Starred review from March 15, 2019
In this final installment in Cole's brilliant Reluctant Royals series, we meet Prince Johan Maximillian von Braustein, who acts like a playboy to keep the paparazzi's attention on himself and away from his stepbrother, the heir to the kingdom of Liechtienbourg. That is, if the upcoming referendum to abolish the monarchy does not pass. For now, Jo-jo needs to distract the media, and what better way than with a fake engagement? Always a good girl, Nya Jerami did whatever her father told her to do, until it was discovered (in A Princess in Theory, 2018) that her father was a traitor to his nation. When Nya signals that she's looking for an escape from her sheltered life in Thesolo, Johan eagerly sweeps the shy beauty away and lets the press, and their families, believe that the engagement is real. With zero experience in relationships, Nya leans heavily on a dating-simulation game, but the more time she spends with Johan in real life, the more she discovers her own voice and style. Meanwhile, Johan must let the party-god persona go if he's ever going to win Nya's heart for himself. An impressive ending to a series featuring an international cast of complex, multicultural characters balancing their royal responsibilities with their modern lives and loves.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)