Book Review: Royal Secret by M. Knopik

Royal Secret by M. Knopik is a novella about two men with secrets. To save his kingdom from war, Raven married Prince Nicholas—as a princess. But on their wedding night, instead of his secret being revealed, Nicholas refuses to have any intimate contact with his new bride, and even goes out of his way to maintain distance between them. To make matters worse, the queen makes increasing demands for an heir. When Raven overhears Prince Nicholas ask his best friend, Lord Henry to father the child, he panics. He turns to the only person he can trust—his chambermaid, Emilia. With her help, he soon learns that the Prince has a secret of his own.

Royal Secret is short and sweet in its way. I liked the fact that the main characters got to know each other slowly, and that there is more than just a single story line happening in the novella. I loved getting to know Raven and discover his secrets, and the connection and care for Emilia. I was a little disappointed that he was not trans but in the position of pretending to be female because of family obligations. I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to explore those boundaries, but the story was still an interesting read. I do feel like we learned very little about Nicholas in comparison with Raven and I would have liked to know more about his emotions and thoughts- rather than just what I can cobble together from observations.

Royal Secret is a good, quick read for those looking for a different male/male romance. The Goodreads information on this book labels it as the start of a series, but I have yet to find more.