The title of this novel by Rhys Bowen is great foreshadowing for the plot – is the Royal Pain Her Highness, the queen of England and Georgie’s relative? Or is it the Bavarian princess the queen has tasked Georgie with entertaining? Or, is simply being royal a pain, as Georgie isn’t allowed to work for a living because of her heritage (34th in line for the throne), even though she desperately needs the money?
This novel produces a riotous situation for the reader as Lady Georgina Rannoch, 34th heir to the throne and stone-broke, must entertain a Bavarian princess at the behest of her relative, the Queen of England. As Georgina (Georgie) lives on her own and cleans houses to get by, she has her grandfather play Butler, his neighbor play Cook, and, for a brief moment, her friend Belinda plays Maid. All the while, she must suitably entertain the shoplifting princess Hanni and her escort, a grumpy baroness.
As you can imagine, Georgie feels that her life is chaotic enough – until she witnesses a young man fall off a balcony to his death. Then, everything really spins out of control, especially when Darcy, a man she’s quite smitten with, makes a reappearance.
As far as entertainment, this book provides plenty. Georgie’s attitude is bright, cynical, and unapologetically candid. Her account of events is fun to follow along with, and I’m sure you’ll be entertained throughout this novel.
“I made my tea, slathered Cooper’s Oxford marmalade on my toast (yes I know I was supposed to be economising but there are standards below which one just can’t sink) and brushed away the crumbs hastily as I put on my coat.”
Voice
Although it’s entertaining to follow Georgie as a character, I’m sure I’d find her annoying in real life (or are we just too similar?). Her attitude is optimistic, her tenacity relentless, and she just seems to stumble into certain situations. Most of these situations I’d approach pretty differently, so maybe it’s just a thought-process thing.
Georgie is definitely writing to an audience, as she pauses to introduce herself before she gives us the rest of the story. I don’t really mind that style, as I think it’s difficult to do well. However, I don’t like that the book is written almost as if we’re judging Georgie the whole time. Take the above quote, for example: “(yes I know…)” The way she immediately defends herself to us, the readers who a. Don’t know any better and b. Would probably be okay with it doesn’t make me feel like a respected reader. I guess I just don’t like being told how to feel, even by the 34th in line for the British throne (perhaps this is where the attitude comes from?).
“I stared at the table. It looked as if someone had spilled a line of flour across it.”
…
“’My dear, you are a complete innocent, aren’t you?’ Darcy said. ‘They were sniffing cocaine in there.’”
Innocence
Although her name carries a fair amount of weight, Georgie isn’t wise to the ways of the world. In the first book, she became more independent after learning how to light a fire and make toast. She also started her maid’s service after removing the dust covers and sweeping out her London house on her own. She also hasn’t had sex yet, which her friend Belinda sees as a problem, so she’s continuously trying to set her up with a one-night-stand.
I think Georgie’s situation is pretty creative move on Bowen’s part. It’s a nice twist on a highborn lady-as-main-character. It’s entertaining to see Georgie learn to do everyday tasks, especially as a reader who’s used to cooking/cleaning/dressing for herself. Georgie is also kind of awkward socially, as living in Scotland with her brother hasn’t quite opened her up to a robust social life. So, her dating/flirting skills are a little rusty, she doesn’t have a lot of friends to get invited to events with, and she’s not allowed to work – which doesn’t give her a lot of opportunities or life experience. Almost needless to say, watching Georgie experience all these new things is very amusing and will make you glad that you can do your own laundry.
“There was silence in the car while I tried not to think of Darcy, and especially Hanni with Darcy.”
Darcy
Somehow, over the course of the first book, Georgie developed a hearty crush on Darcy O’Mara, another penniless noble. He’s in more dire straits than she, as (we discover at the end of the book [SPOILER]) his father has had to sell the family estate. It’s why he disappeared out of her life so quickly after the previous book. We also learn an interesting fact about him: he appears to be involved with the British government somehow. That’s really all we know! We only find out because he takes a bullet and lets the old “we were tipped off” slip out.
Also in that same time frame, we see Georgie unmask her feelings for him. I think it was a good plot twist as she’d been treating him pretty nonchalantly the whole book because of his sudden disappearance and attention towards Hanni (princess, in case you’ve forgotten). We see how deeply her feelings run, and, although we can’t be sure, we think his are in the same vein. The book abruptly ends, leaving us readers wondering where they will go next.
Despite my dislike of Georgie’s “don’t judge me” attitude, I will certainly be reading the next book, and you should give the first, and then this one, a try!