Andrea Molloy from www.nzbooklovers.co.nz wrote "Anyone who has struggled with family expectations or wondered whether to follow their heart or their head will relate to Lexi's journey. The writing is sharp and moves quickly, making this the perfect holiday read. Rebecca Armitage lives in Tasmania. After years of reporting on the royals, she's successfully channelled her insider knowledge into an entertaining page-turner."
Lexi Villiers is a 29-year-old Englishwoman doing her medical residency in Hobart, working too hard, worried about her bank balance, and living with friends. It's a good life, and getting even better, because as the dawn is breaking on New Year's Day, Lexi is about to kiss the man she loves for the very first time.
But by midnight, everything will change. Because Lexi is in fact not an ordinary young woman. She is Princess Alexandrina, third in line to the British throne - albeit estranged from the rest of her family and living in voluntary exile on the other side of the world. But following a terrible accident, Lexi - the black sheep of her family and, until this moment, always destined to be the spare - is now the heir apparent, first in line to the throne once her grandmother, the elderly Queen, dies. Called back to do her duty, she arrives in London to a Palace riven with power plays and media leaks, all the while guarding painful secrets of her own. Palace waters are treacherous, rumours are rife, and selling each other's secrets is a family tradition. And with the Crown just within her grasp, Lexi must choose what bonds she will keep... and what she is willing to leave behind.
'This engrossing debut ... is filled with secrets, scandals, and a few unexpected twists, including a forbidden and beautiful love story. Armitage's writing is spectacular, with rich dialogue and descriptions, a vibrant depiction of the burden of duty versus personal freedom, and unique insights into royal life.' - Booklist, starred review
Holly Ringland (Author) wrote "An absolutely delicious, compulsively readable, stylish novel about a young aristocratic woman, who has to choose between duty and her heart - think The Crown meets Taylor Jenkins Reid. I loved it. I devoured every page of this glorious novel."
'For everyone wondering who's going to be the next big thing on the Australian literary scene, I have the answer: it's Rebecca Armitage. The Heir Apparent is one of the best books I've read all year.' - Natasha Lester, New York Times bestselling author of The Mademoiselle Alliance
'A fabulous novel, juicy and irresistible' - Pip Drysdale, bestselling author of The Close Up
Rebecca Armitage is an author and journalist, who likes to write about royals.
As a journalist, she has written stories about the death of Queen Elizabeth II, the coronation of King Charles III, the exile of Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan, and the abdication of Denmark’s Queen Margrethe. As digital editor for the ABC’s International news team, she has covered several US elections and travelled to Israel to cover the war in Gaza. She lives in Hobart, Tasmania, with her husband and a poorly behaved German Shorthaired Pointer named Chino. The Heir Apparent is her first novel.
Paperback, 416 pages
H: 234mm W: 154mm Spine: 25mm
Weight: 432 grams