Review: Erin Watt: Paper Princess
I've been watching this one from afar for a long time (I say that every week, don't I?). But I've only got two eyes and they both work for this one brain, so I have to read one book at the time.
But the time has finally come for me to read Paper Princess, the first novel in The Royals book series and I couldn't be happier about it. There are four novels already published in this series (Paper Princess, Broken Prince, Twisted Palace and Fallen Heir) and the fifth one is expected in 2018 (Cracked Kingdom). They were written by Erin Watt, the pseudonym for two female authors, Elle Kennedy and Jen Frederick.
In her 17 years of life, Ella Harper has been through things no one her age should even know about. Strip clubs and truck stops - she has seen it all, and there isn't much she didn't do.
She is a survivor. She survived the poverty, her mother's illness and her death.
She has been left alone.
Then Callum Royal found her, took her away from her dangerous life and brought her to his home where he and five of his sons lived - the one place more menacing than any other.
Wealth, luxury and influence. Every one of her five "brothers" holds the power to destroy her and they all want to. And Reed Royal is the worst of them.
There's a special kind of hostility and intolerance between Reed and Ella, one based on prejudice, hatred, and skin-deep familiarity. But no one can hide their real self forever, so both of them soon realize there's too much they have in common.
But the Royals are dangerous, and Ella's now one of them.
Will the name protect her? Or will it be the one thing that ruins her?
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| Model: Pietro Boselli |
The first reason why I liked this young adult novel so much is the maturity of its characters. For my 27 years old self it has become very hard to truly understand 16 or 17 years old characters, especially if they act as if they're 13 years old (and that happens a lot!). So it was very refreshing to see young adults act like young adults. This novel is full of humor and sarcasm, the thing Elle Kennedy delivers every single time. So, even if you're a few decades older than 17, you will still be able to enjoy it.
Luxurious, privileged and spoiled - this is how their lives look life - these Royals will ruin you. They own it all, but they still lack more than they have. In life, nothing is given for free. If you let go of willingness to forgive, your inner peace and compassion, all you're left with is regret, remorse, and nightmares.That's a lot of baggage to carry around for the rest of your life.
I still haven't had the chance to reason why I always fall for emotionally damaged male characters (maybe I should take that seriously for once ??) so I won't question why exactly I loved Reed Royal so much. I'll just let myself love him quietly.
With this novel, Erin Watt has painted one helluva picture. Imagine the kids with the entire world at their feet and no freakin' idea what to do with it. Imagine the parents that give their children everything the money can buy, but do not teach them to value each other. Envision them learning the hard way that life takes as much as it gives. What a terrible life to live...
If at any point you get to think about Paper Princess as "yet another novel about rich kids", get that thought out of your head before it gets you to give up on reading it. This novel is funny, sarcastic and even a bit dark - it has everything you need to love it.
Royals are the family that hides all the ugly behind the image of true perfection. And how far are they supposed to go to make us believe that image is indestructible? As far as it takes. They would keep you up all night to prove it. They wouldn't let you sleep until 2 a.m. until you're done reading.
This is the moment you take out your notebooks and write the name of this novel into don't you dare forget! column. Underline it and then put another note right there: share your thoughts on Kljuc za knjigu after reading.
I'll be right here, waiting,
Here you can find this review in Croatian.
Here you can find the reviews of other novels by this author:
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