Prince Charming by Rachel Hawkins Book Review

“It’s a wedding, not a squashing,” she finally says, but then Dad scratches his scruffy beard and says, “When you think about it, weddings are just very formal and expensive squashings.” . . . “Can you imagine the invitations? ‘We request and honor your presence as our daughter squashes herself to this man.”

About

Author: Rachel Hawkins

Other Books by Rachel Hawkins: Hex Hall series and the Rebel Belle series

Genre: Young Adult Contemporary

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Synopsis

Meet Daisy Winters. She’s an offbeat sixteen-year-old Floridian with mermaid-red hair, a part time job at a bootleg Walmart, and a perfect older sister who’s nearly engaged to the Crown Prince of Scotland. Daisy has no desire to live in the spotlight, but relentless tabloid attention forces her join Ellie at the relative seclusion of the castle across the pond. 

While the dashing young Miles has been appointed to teach Daisy the ropes of being regal, the prince’s roguish younger brother kicks up scandal wherever he goes, and tries his best to take Daisy along for the ride. The crown–and the intriguing Miles–might be trying to make Daisy into a lady . . . but Daisy may just rewrite the royal rulebook to suit herself.  

New York Times bestselling author Rachel Hawkins brings her signature humor, love of Americana, and flair for romance to this page-turning Princess Diaries turned-upside-down story.

Review

Spoilers Contained Below

To the royal dreamer,

Another day, another romantic book of love. But this time, it’s royal kind of love, and who doesn’t want to get swept off of their feet by a prince from another country? Gosh, would you want to get married from a prince from another country? I think I would, but then at the same time, from this book, I could understand how difficult that might be with the family and the responsibility that comes with it. But maybe, if it was someone like Miles and not Alex or Seb. But I’m getting off topic for a bit.

Daisy is your average high schooler holding down your basic job at the Perdido, Florida at the Sur-n-Sav with her best friend Isabelle or Isa. They work in a hot, stuffy grocery mart where the owner, Mrs. Millers, has a strict no boys policy and where the magazine racks hold scandalous news stories about Daisy’s own sister, Eleanor or Ellie Winters who’s going to marry the Prince of Scotland, Alex. For Daisy, it’s kind of weird to see all these news stories or articles about her sister, trying to chalk up all these interesting facts about her or scandalous things when Daisy knows her sister better than any article. But the whole media and royal side of her sister’s world, wasn’t Daisy’s world, so the only thing she’s looking forward to for the summer was the Key Con in Key West that her and Isa planned. They were going to go to the pool and Isa was going to dress up to meet their favorite author.

But that gets a big C-A-N-C-E-L from Ellie’s publicist, Glynnis, or I think she’s a publicist. Glynnis has other plans for Daisy to go to Scotland to be acclimated in the royal world and to control the press stories that were starting to circulate about her.

This happened after Daisy had a run in with that prick of a boyfriend named Michael who sold their prom pictures so he could buy a guitar for “them.” Like Daisy wanted a guitar rather than your trust? Men 🙄. He also had the audacity to go up to her and say he wrote her a song and there was a paparazzi car in the area who was just eating this whole thing up. Then Michael, sold another story to this man, putting Daisy more into the spotlight. Then throw in Alex and Ellie tying the knot and we have Daisy being jetted off to Scotland. But Daisy doesn’t really want to go to Scotland and meet the family and be part of Ellie’s world because she didn’t like all that attention.

She likes plans and comfort. She likes lounging in her book parenphillia shirts and spending time with Isa practicing for the SAT’s, but really who likes practicing for standardized tests, am I right? I also see how Daisy feels a little bit less than her sister. Daisy is someone who loves to try new things to figure out what she loves or wants to do. She has done art, she has done pottery, and music—-she’s constantly evolving from the tips of her dyed red hair to the soles of her converse. And I feel like she has a strong personality in the best kind of way and the BEST humor I’ve read from a main character in a long time. However, I could sympathize with her in understanding what it’s like to live n the background or glow of an older sibling. Daisy kind of sound jealous or accepting at some times when she talks or thinks about her sister and her natural, glossy blonde hair or how she was born for royalty and the star life. Daisy thinks she’s average and that whatever she wants always gets put on hold for Ellie. When she was younger, Daisy mentioned this story of how her family took a road trip and they were supposed to go to this one place Daisy wanted to visit and also go to the college Ellie wanted to see. Then the family got food poisoning and only had time to go to one of those places, and the college Ellie wanted to see was chosen over Daisy. So I feel like, Daisy just has been instilled to go along with things, and fairly, she’s a go-with-the-flow person, which is good, but I also think Daisy just needs her time to shine and to be acknowledged because as much as Ellie’s life was changing big time, because gosh knows that it was (she was going to be a princess), Daisy never asked to be in the limelight, be a part of royalty, or on the tabloids, but yet she was. And she wasn’t used to that, but still she did it for her sister. As much as Daisy might be on the back burner of things compared to Ellie, she still loves her sister and would do anything for her because she understands how difficult things must be for Ellie, if they’re difficult for her too.

When Daisy gets to Scotland, I found it to be the funniest thing how she arrives to this farmer’s house and outside are like twenty men in kilts playing bagpipes like their lives depend on it. I was CRACKING UP. Just imagine how loud that would be and crazy to see. Like I get that it was Scotland, but what a way to welcome her.

It was a part of Seb’s joke, Alex’s brother. Seb is a very complex character. I think deep down, he’s a honest to good person. He’s funny, he can be charming, and nice when he’s not drunk, but I think because he has so much expectations from his mom and is constantly compared to his brother, that he just feels unloved or feels well, pressured. His mom is trying to set him up with this girl named Tamsin who’s interested in Flora, Seb’s sister, and Seb feels like he has to please his mom when he really wants to date for love. There’s also this whole thing of him “loving” Ellie, which I just thought was such a weird thing. I kind of see that whole Seb loving Ellie thing as unnecessary or uncalled for because I think Seb really doesn’t love her, he just loves the idea or comfort of her like what Daisy pointed out to him. Daisy was like, Ellie can’t be your yoga class or something when he tells her that he’s in love with Ellie. Like he just dropped that on her at a bar one day and I’m like what in the literal heck. Alex is going to marry Ellie, but the queen doesn’t like Ellie, and Seb loves Ellie but feigns liking Tamsin, who’s actually in love with Flora, and Daisy’s fake dating Miles but actually loves him.

Royal mess, if you ask me!!!

Besides all of that chaos, I just liked the moment where Seb was talking to Daisy and he opened up to her like a real brother-and-sister bonding kind of moment. It was a complete 180 compared to how he came into her room that first night and got drunk and planted one on her because that’s what everyone expected from them. And it was such an eye-opener for Daisy because she read the blog about him and how he was golden and perfect, but he wasn’t. Seeing the more vulnerable and flawed side of Seb, really just humanized him to make him seem more real as a person who understands Daisy. They share the sentiment of being the younger sibling and feeling unimportant.

My favorite moment with Seb was when Isa comes and he instantly turns on the charm for her. Daisy’s over here like, “She just got dumped from her boyfriend via email, so I’ll give her this.” And then Seb joins them to go meet the book author they are going to meet at Key con, but who added another tour date in Scotland per Glynnis’s request. I found it kind of cuter how Seb had his geek fanboy moment about how he loved the author and knew the jargon that Daisy and Isa knew. Daisy didn’t want him to come along because it was supposed to be a girls kind of thing and also he would draw attention, so you know what Seb does? He dresses as a FREAKING astronaut with helmet and a cape. I was dying of laughter 😂But what was more hilarious was the fact that he was flirting with the helmet on and was asking Isa things like, “Do you like my eyes,” and I was like, boy you’re wearing a mask. I could feel Daisy’s eye roll. I LOVE DAISY’S humor.

When they get to the bookstore, they don’t get bombarded because people recognize Seb, but because they recognize Daisy, so they ended up not going to the book meet and greet and just hung out together. As the author at that meet and greet, I would be kind of curious as to why Daisy or Isa never showed up, given she added another leg of her tour for them, but you know, that author got a trip to Scotland and more publicity, so she can’t argue with that.

After a long day, the three of them head back to the castle, and Daisy doesn’t want to leave goo-goo-eyed Isa and Seb alone, but she had to go do something real quick, so she left them alone for a second. I knew that when Daisy would get back they would be gone. She had to have seen that coming from a mile away.

So she starts searching for Isa because she knows she’s not going to make good decisions post-breakup and on the run with a prince, so she goes to Miles for help.

Miles.

One of the royal wreckers.

He doesn’t have the highest status, but he is a very chivalrous person. When Daisy first meets him, it’s with a sour note and a sour face. I don’t get why he would look at her as so when he barley knew her, but then again he read the blogs and assumed that she was after Seb, his good mate. But he was very judgmental and closed off towards her, which I thought was very rude. There were moments when Miles demeanor would change like when he goes to Seb’s club to help Daisy find Isa and Seb. In the club, it was the first time Daisy ever saw Miles look “hot” or smile. It stunned her because she was used to his frown and his puckered lips as though he was sucking on a lemon.

There was one part of the book where they have a conversation that goes like this:

“I can’t be responsible for maiming you id you do that thing with your face.”

“What thing with my face?” Miles asks, doing exactly that thing. It’s this chin lifting and tightening of his jaw that makes him look like he’s about to press some peasants, and I point at him.

“That thing.”

Glaring at me, Miles steps a little closer. “This is just what my face looks like.”

“That is unfortunate,” I say. . .”

(Pg 192-193)

Gosh, Daisy gets me all the time.

I need some of her finesse 😆

I didn’t like the part where Miles was presumptuous about Daisy’s parents in thinking they are the ones that called the paparazzi to get a quick photo. He didn’t even know the parents and he was calling them out. You can tease or be rude to Daisy all you want, but you don’t get to just assume such vile things about her parents you haven’t even met. The nerve. It was things like that that made me not really like Miles all that much in the beginning.

But then he actually met the parents and apologized to Daisy for being a RUDE INCONSIDERATE BUTT HAT! Serves you right Miles.

But, again, Miles wasn’t a bad person.

He just had bad moments.

And walls that he built up to protect himself. I think part of him is so closed off because he knows he’s not from high money royalty and that he feels like he owes Seb’s family something for them funding him to go to school and have somewhere to live. So that’s why Miles looks after Seb so much and has his best interest. But I think Miles just needed to realize that he can’t go around treating people badly because people have treated him badly or made him feel badly for his lack of high status.

When he starts to break down those walls around Daisy, I actually enjoyed him as a character. I liked that he tired not to make the whole fake dating thing more awkward than it needed to be. He was actually kind about it despite his usual act.

I liked the whole riding horseback at the crack of dawn and how he rescued Daisy from her horse when the horse started to stir up. The thing about that scene that I couldn’t really imagine realistically was how in the world could Miles have lifted Daisy off her horse with one hand, the other hand on his reigns, and plop her down on his horse behind her?! I don’t know what kind of bionic hand he has to do that, but that was kind of an abnormal act of strength. Romantic, but weird.

Can we also talk about the horse event.

Because gosh that was hilarious!

“Your hat is lovely,” I tell the woman, giving her my sweetest smile. “I’m sure Big Bird’s sacrifice was worth it.”

(Pg 118)

What a roast!!!

I was in HYSTERICS! 🤪

Served that lady right for talking bad about Ellie and how she was a commoner and all that. Daisy could have said something worse to her, but gosh, I detested those people who would talk horrible thing of Ellie just because she wasn’t true royalty and all that. Like it’s the 21st century, get with the times!

But you know what made this scene funnier?

When Daisy goes back to the box to watch the horse race and the lady with the Big Bird hat is there and Ellie’s there. Because the woman Daisy roasted like a marshmallow was Alex’s aunt, aka royalty.

Talk about a royal mix up.

But you know what? Even if she was royalty, that still didn’t excuse her filthy mouth or her poor excuse of manners.

There was also the ball. I mean what’s a royal book without a ball?!

I liked the whole cultural ambiance of the scene with the folk dancing and the kilts and the dresses——it was all very grand. I loved how Daisy that Miles looked attractive in a kilt or how she got dizzy staring at all the shades of plaid in one area.

I loved when they danced—–or should I say, “stripped the willow” 😉 —–in that folk line dance thing, sweating, letting loose, and just having fun. Miles smile also made a rare appearance here tonight too. With all the hype and joy going on, Daisy felt these feelings in her chest blossom. There was this moment where she was dancing in line with Miles and he was going to bring her close, but Daisy ran off saying she needed to catch her breath from all the dancing. Yea, I don’t think it was the dancing that had her solely out of breath.

Daisy found herself a comfy bench to sit on and the queen sees Daisy and was like, “no one can sit on that bench.” If the queen didn’t dislike her enough! Poor Daisy, the queen’s scary alright, but she also has a royal stick up her butt. I don’t care if she is the queen, there’s something called respect. And that lady did not have it.

Your crown might give you power, but that doesn’t mean that you are more powerful if you treat other as less than.

You would think Daisy had seen it all by now. But nope, she goes into the bathroom and sees Flora kissing Tamsin, the girl Seb is supposed to be with.

Just great.

The day after was such an eventful day, that you gotta appreciate book time and how fast things can change in an instant.

“Sorry, I’m not used to gunfire going off right by my head,” I tell him, and Gilly looks at me, puzzled.

“But you’re American,” he says . . .”

(Pg 229)

I don’t know what kind of roast this was—-it can be sardonic or about something else, but boy was it a GRADE A ROAST from Gilly (another royal wrecker). I didn’t know he had it in him.

Because Daisy’s not too keen on shooting pigeons for fun, her and Miles make a getaway to see the more beautiful aspects of Scotland. But before that, I liked that moment between Flora and Daisy where Flora’s surprised that Daisy kept her secret. It kind of goes to show how mistrusting Flora is because she grew up in this culture where people want something from her or aren’t always looking after her best interest, but themselves. So it’s refreshing to Flora that Daisy would keep her secret and it creates this trusting relationship and newfound respect of Flora for Daisy.

But back to Miles and Daisy because we all know, that’s what needs to be talked about. But HOW CLICHÉ in the best kind of way that the tire would go flat and then it would pout and then they would get stuck in an old cabin in the woods together waiting to be rescued. LIKE WHAT A HALLMARK MOVIE?! Am I right? 😆 But I was living for it. They just kept talking and talking and opening up about their feelings and all of that stuff and I could physically, emotionally, and mentally feel the romantic tension in the room. And add in the fireplace crackling in the background, like boy, was the fire place not the only thing crackling and burning with a passion!!!

I was sitting in my seat literally saying they’re gonna kiss, they’re gonna kiss, THEY HAVE TO KISS! And then things felt real between them and the rain was dying down and they were moving close to each other and I was like THEY”RE GOING TO KISS!

But DARRRRRRNNNNNNNNNNNNN!!!!!!!!

I swear, I was fooled with!!!! Darn Rachel Hawkins had to make Ellie and Alex interrupt the kiss of the century!!!!

UGH!

I had to take a second to regroup.

The funny part about it all was how Daisy was like “Nothing! Nothing!” Yea, when a person says nothing’s happening, you best bet something is happening. And I love how Ellie gave them the look like she knew Daisy wasn’t telling the truth.

But you know what they say, all good things comes to those who wait. And I waited long enough.

And they had the most honest moment in that horse barn where they were being real with each other about their feelings and how what they felt wasn’t fake. Daisy was like a kiss is special and she didn’t want to kiss him for show, but have it be real. Then he shuts her up like any good romantic movie with a kiss! It was just so perfect for them and how he was like “A kiss is special to me” and then he says “You’re special to me.”

Gosh, if you’re not melting at the fact that a prince kissed you after fake dating, I don’t know what will!?

Maybe a bucket of water for that witch heart? I’m joking. I’m joking! You’re amazing.

Then you know, like everything, the moment had to be ruined by Glynnis.

“So what do we do now? I ask him, the words surprisingly loud in the empty barn.

“You smile!” A bright voice says, and we turn to see Glynis in the doorway, the photographer right behind her.”

(Pg 266-7)

Way to kill the mood.

You know who else is good at killing the mood? Drunk Seb.

My gosh, if you thought Seb couldn’t be more ostentatious, he proclaims his undying love for Ellie and Ellie and Alex are, of course, behind him when he says it and then Alex pops one on Seb because he’s after his fiancé and things get royally screwed up. I liked how Rachelle includes blog posts in between chapters because it gives an outside point of view as to their world. I loved how everyone was freaking out that a prince punched his own brother and how everyone thought he was trying to defend Daisy’s honor or something. Suffice to say, the whole thing makes the queen angry. The stick up her butt, way up there.

When their all called to see her, Ellie stands up to the queen for the first time in asserting how she just wants to talk to her sister alone. I feel like we hardly get scenes with just Ellie and Daisy—–always just thinking about how Ellie would feel, looking at Ellie from a distance, or passing Ellie here and there. So I loved the calmness and the slower pace when it came to just this sister-to-sister moment.

Ellie toned down to track pants and a t-shirt and they walked to a hill and sat down. There was no guards, no chaotic royals, just two sisters having a chat on a hill and smiling despite it all. It really stripped down Ellie to who she was before she entered this whole royal world and I liked how she would smile in this scene and how she seemed genuinely relaxed. I feel like whenever Daisy saw her, it was always he upright, tense, and rigid as a board, trying to impress the royals who made her feel like she had no place in their world as a “commoner.” A common thing I found between Ellie and all the royals is how they had different personas they turned on and off like a light switch when the situation called for it. I think Ellie just became lost in who she needed to be in making the queen happy and the media unsuspicious, that she needed to step back and realize that that person who puts on a fake smile or acts for show, isn’t who she is deep down.

I liked how Ellie apologizes to Daisy in knowing that Daisy has done so much to make her sister happy. She tells Daisy how she felt sorry that she made Daisy be someone she wasn’t to fit into her world—–the royal world—-when she loves her sister for who she was. And I loved that. I truly did.

Ellie also mentioned how she’s scared of all the things that she’s going to be responsible for as a duchess, and then a future queen with royal kids. It’s a lot of responsibility and I give Ellie more credit than she give herself because considering how everyone has treated her, I think she held her ground and her tongue well.

Everything kind of slows down towards the end of the book because Daisy’s going back to Florida because her summer there is over. But then there’s Miles she has to leave. And for some reason, she thinks because she’s going away, they have to break up. I don’t get why al fictional characters feel the need to call a quits to a relationship if their moving away, but then again I can understand that the character wouldn’t feel like it’s fair to hold the other back. But still. The AGONY.

The whole scene was heart-wrenching because this whole book we see Daisy as strong and humorous, but when she knows she has to break up with Miles, part of her strength and humor is gone because it hurt her to break up with him. It hurts the too, girl.

She was definitely lying to herself in saying to Miles that “It was never real.” Girl, if was real! Well, as real as a fictional book is real. And Miles, closes up to her again—–back to the boy we met in the beginning of the book. Miles is hurt and he doesn’t shed tears or cry, but he retreats.

I shook my head the whole time. What a shame.

So Daisy’s back in Florida and is kind of in a funk of not knowing what to do —-she’s uninspired. There’s still her position at the Sur-N-Sav that she could go back to, but Daisy doesn’t want to go back because it was a boring job and part of her doesn’t want to see all those tabloids with her face on it and false titles screaming at her every time she walks down the store.

There was such a powerful moment with her dad at the end when he takes her to the Sur-N-Sav. Can we take a minute to acknowledge the intuition and love of the dad who’s able to pick up on Daisy’s feelings? Such a good father if you ask me. But during this part, he brought Daisy a magazine and flipped through it. Then he asked her this:

“Is there anyone at all, anyone who matters to you, who thinks any of these stories are true?”

(Pg 289)

And Daisy said no.

She realizes that those stories don’t matter because she knows the truth about what happened and so does her loved ones. The only options that should matter to her are her own and those of the ones who cares about her. Anyone else doesn’t matter because people will create whatever story or image, paint whatever lie in their heads and make people out to be the worst or the best, but you never really know what’s the truth——we just want to believe something that might be close to it, so we believe anything. But Daisy believed in herself and knew that she was stronger than the tabloids and their claims.

The magazines didn’t scare her anymore.

One day, Daisy’s working a calm shift, when this guy comes to the register with all these clichéd American “grub” and when Daisy turns around, lo and behold, it’s prince charming himself.

Miles.

He was going to stay in the states for school and “explore the colonies a bit.” The COLONIES? Who calls East America the colonies? Gosh that sounds insensitive and yet funny. And then, gosh, we just know they have to make out in the Sur-N-Sav—–Hallmark movie come full circle.

Still kind of unexpected that he would just show up all of a sudden like that, but maybe he genuinely missed her and wanted to be with her so it was cute. Since Glynnis wasn’t in the states to interrupt the moment, we have none other than Sur-N-Sav’s finest, Mrs. Miller, to attack Daisy for having no boys in her store. It was a full circle moment from Michael in the beginning who was like the frog, and now there was Miles who was the prince who swept Daisy off of her feet.

Overall, I loved the angsty romance thing that occurred during the end of the book. I didn’t really feel the love connection in the beginning because Miles had so many walls built up around him that made it hard to understand his feelings or like him. But when those walls came down, it was nice to see him be kind to Daisy and to see them fall really fall in love. Doesn’t it always seem like the best kind of love stories are the ones that form from fake relationships? Maybe we should all have a fake boyfriend before a real boyfriend? 😏

Anyway, there’s still so much I wished we could have delved more into. First, there’s Seb and his drinking problem and how he feels unloved. I think he need a good proper person in his life to make him feel comforted and less alone. Second, there’s Flora and her love story with Tamsin. I wonder if Flora ever formally comes out to her mom and how she handles that. I bet not well. But I think there’s more to be said about both siblings. I think more could be said about Miles as well because we know he’s not the richest of the bunch, but yet we don’t know why. Who are his parents? Are the alive? Any siblings? Or there’s Isa. She showed up during some parts of the trip and to my understanding she was still in Scotland this whole time, so why didn’t she hang out with Daisy more? I don’t know, maybe she wasn’t in Scotland, but still, I think we don’t mention her after a while.

Then there’s the royal wedding. I mean, c’mon, we have to have a royal wedding book with Ellie and Alex. That would be grand, would it not? I think there’s room for a third book with Ellie’s perspective in planning the wedding and her coming to respects with the queen and Seb. That would be fun!

What are your thoughts of the book? Any favorite or least favorite moments? Out of the Royal Wreckers, who do you think you would fall in love with?

I hope you have a shining and glorious day!

And as always, with love,

Rating

4.56 Full Bloom Flowers

Characters: Daisy is someone who is strong willed and who you will fall in love with. She has a humor compared to no other and a mouth on her in the best way. You’ll also find the complexity of the royals interesting and how the royal life, isn’t always what it seems.

Plot: There was some moments that weren’t as exciting as other moments, but every scene had a purpose that led up to the greater plot of the book. The romance between Daisy and Miles didn’t really start until halfway through the book, but that’s because there was a lot of world building and common ground the reader needs to know before understanding why they would have to fake date in the first place. But the wait is wroth it.

Writing: The writing was simple to follow and easy to get into. I also HIGHLY loved the humor of this book. There was never a dull moment that didn’t make me laugh.

Romance: Lots of romance in this book from different characters who have different love interests—–sometimes it can be complicated to follow ; ) But the romance between Miles and Daisy is something genuinely real even though it starts off as fake.