Book Review: Falling Hard for the Royal Guard
This was super cute and not at all what I was expecting. What I was expecting to read was a fluffy romance novel that had the ‘novel’ setting of the Tower of London. What I got was a super cute, but somewhat infuriating romance story with a shit ton of fabulous history about London and the Tower thrown into the plot line. Oh, and there are men in uniform… and I love a man in uniform. It's fab. Because who doesn't love a story between a shy, introverted girl, Maggie and a Royal Guardsman, Freddie, whose entire job is to stand stock still and to. Not. Move. At. All. Awwww.
I have issues with the female lead, Maggie. I have never met anyone who has such low self-esteem. Her job sucks and is full of toxic people who enjoy gossip and running other people into the ground to distract themselves from their own shit lives. It honestly says more about them than Maggie. But it's infuriating that Maggie doesn't know how to stand up for herself. Oh, and her piece-of-shit-ex isn't helping. But I've also never met a northerner who has such a massive chip on their shoulder about being a Yorkshire lass and thus, different from everyone else, and everyone looks down on her, and she does not fit in at all. Jesus, woman, get over yourself and get your head out of your arse. People are more accepting than you think. Case in point, all the guardsmen who go out of their way to make her feel included.
Our author does use an unorthodox writing structure to tell the story of Freddie and Maggie. For starters, we hardly see Freddie; he isn't always around. I do know that that can be frustrating to some readers. But it's interesting to think about what we do see versus what we don’t see. What we do not see but is alluded to is the internal struggle Freddie goes through of duty vs heart's desire. He is very good at withdrawing himself away from Maggie. Not because he doesn't care, but because he doesn't feel like he can. But do we actually know much about Freddie? Not particularly, no, it is all circumstantial and rather 2 two-dimensional, all information comes from a very emotionally overwrought Maggie. Perhaps that is what added to his allure? The mystery of a man in uniform. Well, it’s certainly worked for BookTok.
I like the ‘high stakes’ that were implemented - whilst you can reject your hereditary birthright, you have to do it either after you're 21 or within a few days if inheriting said title. Also, arranged marriages are not really a thing in Western culture, not since a good few hundred years in the “upper classes”. Times have changed, so I didn't really find that aspect too believable. While I do believe that some of the “upper classes” are horrible people, I don't think it is too kind to generalise based on a few minutes' interaction at a gala. In the same way that we ‘plebians’ are simply ‘not good enough’ or are ‘too different’ in order to fit in anywhere that isn’t in ‘service’. The ‘us vs them’ mentality doesn't look good for anyone; it's so cliché that it makes for lazy writing.
All in all, the book was a fun read. Emphasis on fun. I really enjoyed the history, and I do love a man in uniform, but there are aspects of the writing that need some serious work. But I don’t think people read these types of romance novels for the nuanced writing style and narrative structures. Romance is an escape, which is ironic considering the book is set in the Tower of London, not really a place people escape from.