*Note: There are spoilers in this review. If you haven't read the first three books in the series or Royal Wedding, read at your own risk.
Olivia Grace Clarisse Mignonette Harrison should be having fun. Her
best friend is visiting from America, her sister’s royal coronation is
only three days away (the first coronation of a female ruler in two centuries), and she’s even got a new boyfriend who is actually a very smart and charming prince!
But it’s hard to celebrate when her royal cousins are scheming to take
over the throne. And with everyone running around, Olivia and her
friends have been saddled with royal babysitting duties. Then, to make
matters worse, Olivia's snobby cousin Luisa insists on gossiping about
her, especially about things that should be personal . . . it's none of her business whether Prince Khalil and Olivia have kissed or not!
When did growing up royal get so complicated?!?
I would have to say that my obsession with books by Meg Cabot runs deep. I am not certain just how many times I have re-read The Princess Diaries series (it's September and I have read Royal Wedding
twice this year, but we're not going to talk about that). I've reached a
point in my life where shelf space is becoming precious and as I don't have
as much time to re-read books like I used to, I don't buy nearly as
many physical books as I once did, but Cabot's books tend to find room
within that limited shelf space. So of course I had to read Royal Crown as soon as it came out.
To
get you caught up, Olivia Grace Clarisse Mignonette Harrison Renaldi is
Princess Mia's recently discovered sister. Olivia grew up with her aunt
after her mother passed away and like Mia, she didn't know that she was
a princess. To get the whole story, you'll naturally have to begin at
the beginning with From the Notebooks of a Middle School Princess. In
this particular volume, we meet up with Olivia in the days before
Princess Mia's coronation. A lot has been going between the new royal
twins, Prince René contesting Mia's right to rule, and Olivia's guests; her best friend and her cousin Luisa.
On top of that, Olivia is dealing with having her first "boy that's a
friend" and the fun that comes with being a teenage girl.
If
I'm being honest, I'm not the biggest fan of this series. There's
nothing wrong with it, it just doesn't appeal to me the same way as the
original series. I also find that I am more interested in what is going
on in Mia and Michael's lives instead of Olivia's. As a character, she
is fine and I think she's a great role model for young girls, I just
don't find her plots as compelling. I get the impression that Cabot's
strength is in writing for teens and adults and her crossover to
children's literature is somewhat out of the comfort zone. I didn't really get into the Allie Finkle
series either. However, I am
glad that this series offers a starting place for younger readers and
that it provides them with their own princess to look up to.
Happy Reading!
-Melly
