For as long as I can remember as part of the bookish community, I have heard about Alyssa Cole, her impeccable writing and to-die-for love interests, especially in her Reluctant Royals series. After reading How to Catch a Queen, I definitely see what all the hype is about!
But first things first, How to Catch a Queen is the first instalment in Alyssa Cole’s new Runaway Royals series (a spinoff series to the acclaimed Reluctant Royals series) and follows the newly crowned King Sanyu who is pressured into an arranged marriage shortly before his father’s passing. Sanyu reluctantly agrees, safe in the knowledge that first wives never stick around for long before they are replaced with more suitable candidates. But Sanyu and his royal advisors haven’t met Shanti Mohapi yet. Ever since she was a little girl, Shanti has had one goal – become a queen. She has dedicated her life to learn everything she needs to know, the qualities she needs to possess and how to act to be a queen. And she’s not about to make a quiet exit after three months of marriage, no sir. Instead, Sanyu will have to learn how to deal with his badass and determined queen who rules behind closed doors and convince her that he is worth sticking around for.
Sanyu and Shanti are a deliciously contradictory pairing. Sanyu, who wants nothing more than to run away from his duty as king and has to succumb to the laws of his birthplace and rule with an iron fist opposed to Shanti, who has spent her life trying to become the queen she was meant to be and finds herself not being heard by either her subjects or the royal advisors because queens in this country are usually just arm candy. Though the two of them share an instant attraction, it takes the both of them quite a while to warm up to each other, for very different yet valid reasons. I also loved the twist that even though Shanti is the one who agrees to an arranged marriage, she isn’t the one to be reluctant to rule. Instead, we have Sanyu who was about to jump ship moments before he became the King.
I love these kinds of stories, where you have royals that are reluctant to rule not because they could care less about their subjects but because they care too much and worry for their wellbeing…and don’t think they’re good enough to make sure they are cared for. Sanyu was such an interesting character to read about and Cole takes her time expounding on why Sanyu acts the way he does toward his royal duty and towards Shanti. Shanti, likewise, is such a fierce queen who hasn’t had the easiest life and quickly learns that the dream she had of being a queen is not quite like the reality of ruling a country, especially when you have to earn your subjects’ respect first.
What I liked most about the book is that we got a great balance of two characters who have their own growing to do and simultaneously have to grow together as a couple. Shanti has her own goals and plans for the future of the country but she has to learn to make the people understand that she is in it for the long haul. Sanyu has to grow into being a king with responsibilities that are tough for him to manage with his anxiety and his fear of not being the leader the subjects deserve. On top of that, Sanyu and Shanti have to grow to fit with the other in an equal relationship and I loved how their open communication got better the farther the novel progressed – there’s quite a learning curve to the two of them and a lot of trial and errors but it was such an authentic depiction of growing into a healthy couple that it was really entertaining to read about. It’s almost as if you have to invest your own time into the book to get rewards, that is, seeing Shanti and Sanyu become the powerful rulers they were born to be. I also loved the way everything was weaved together considering tradition and new ways to make a country (and a relationship) work and though the humor in this one wasn’t exactly my cup of tea, I still appreciated it levying the darker moments of the novel.
What I will say is that I did not expect quite that much discussion of politics in this novel. While I absolutely loved how we got to see Shanti shine as a powerful queen who makes things happen, I found myself skimming some passages here and there about the politics because they didn’t quite hold my interest enough – which is totally a me issue, I am more about the escapism than reality when it comes to romance.
Reading other reviews after finishing the book, I also learned that there were quite the few cameos from characters of the aforementioned Reluctant Royals series and though I obviously didn’t know their entire story, I loved the glimpses we got at their narratives that will definitely be the cherry on top of an already great novel for readers who have enjoyed Cole’s other books before this!
With headstrong characters and a new twist on the uneasy lies the head that wears a crown narrative, How to Catch a Queen explores what makes a relationship work and captures the politics of growing into your own all the while with a lovely slow-burn romance as a cherry on top.
How to Catch a Queen is available from Amazon, Book Depository, and other good book retailers, like your local bookstore, as of December 1st 2020.
Will you be picking up How to Catch a Queen? Tell us in the comments below!
Synopsis | Goodreads
An arranged marriage leads to unexpected desire, in the first book of Alyssa Cole’s Runaway Royals series…
When Shanti Mohapi weds the king of Njaza, her dream of becoming a queen finally comes true. But it’s nothing like she imagined. Shanti and her husband may share an immediate and powerful attraction, but her subjects see her as an outsider, and everything she was taught about being the perfect wife goes disastrously wrong.
A king must rule with an iron fist, and newly crowned King Sanyu was born perfectly fitted for the gauntlet, even if he wishes he weren’t. He agrees to take a wife as is required of him, though he doesn’t expect to actually fall in love. Even more vexing? His beguiling new queen seems to have the answers to his country’s problems—except no one will listen to her.
By day, they lead separate lives. By night, she wears the crown, and he bows to her demands in matters of politics and passion. When turmoil erupts in their kingdom and their marriage, Shanti goes on the run, and Sanyu must learn whether he has what it takes both to lead his people and to catch his queen.
