REVIEW: How to Tame a King by Juliette Hyland

In How to Tame a King by Juliette Hyland, King Sebastian needs a wife. His brother had a publicized lottery to find his wife, which turned out to be a love match. So Sebastian pulls a name out from one of the potential brides that were in the lottery. When he arrives at the house, he finds that the woman he was expecting to marry him was, in fact, being replaced by her twin sister.

Breanna and her twin, Annie, had grown up with parents who tried to crush their dreams because all they cared about was their status. All Annie wants is to be an interior designer, but when their parents mention is to be marrying the king, the sisters know that dream would no longer come true. Breanna sacrifices herself for her sister and marry the king herself.

The book takes readers on a journey of two strangers, both of whom have had no choices in their life, come together to make the best of the situation. They go from strangers to a budding friendship, and finally a romance. The main struggle they face is that Sebastian believes everything is for the crown, and that the crown always comes first. Can Breanna convince him that while the crown is his job, it’s not his whole life?

Readers will feel for both characters, who have had no say in their own lives. While they seem like they’d be opposites, they find that they have a lot in common with the lives that they’ve led. While there is some tension between the couple at one point, it’s mainly a drama-free book. The book did feel like it dragged on in spots, but it wasn’t enough to take away from my overall enjoyment of the story.

This is the second book in the Royals in the Headlines duet. If you haven’t read the first book, you can still read this one as a standalone. The author does a good job of summing up of how the couple of the previous book met, so readers new to the duet won’t feel like they’re missing anything.

This book would be for readers who enjoy stories about royals and the marriage of convenience trope.

Book Info:

Publication: May 21, 2024 | Harlequin Romance | Royals in the Headlines #2

Marrying a king sounds like a fairy tale… But what happens when their real feelings start getting in the way of their convenient arrangement? Find out in the second installment in Juliette Hyland’s Royals in the Headlines duet.