Author: Emma Chase
Publication Date: 14 August, 2017
Publisher: Emma Chase, LLC
Series: Royally, book 3
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Age Recommendation: 17 and Up
Rating: 5 Stars
~ I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review ~
Book Description:
Logan St. James is a smoldering, sexy beast. Sure, he can be a little broody at times—but Ellie Hammond’s willing to overlook that. Because, have you seen him??
Sexy. As. Hell.
And Ellie’s perky enough for both of them.
For years, she’s had a crush on the intense, protective royal security guard—but she doesn’t think he ever saw her, not really.
To Logan, Ellie was just part of the job—a relative of the royal family he’d sworn to protect. Now, at 22 years old and fresh out of college, she’s determined to put aside her X-rated dreams of pat-downs and pillow talk, and find a real life happily ever after.
The Queen of Wessco encourages Ellie to follow in her sister’s footsteps and settle down with a prince of her own. Or a duke, a marquis…a viscount would also do nicely.
But in the pursuit of a fairy tale ending, Ellie learns that the sweetest crushes can be the hardest to let go.
***
Logan St. James grew up on the wrong side of the tracks, in a family on the wrong side of the law. But these days, he covers his tattoos and scars with a respectable suit. He’s handsome, loyal, brave, skilled with his hands and…other body parts.
Any woman would be proud to bring him home to her family.
But there’s only one woman he wants.
For years he’s watched over her, protected her, held her hair back when she was sick, taught her how to throw a punch, and spot a liar.
He dreams of her. Would lay down his life for her.
But beautiful Ellie Hammond’s off-limits.
Everybody knows the bodyguard rules: Never lose focus, never let them out of your sight, and never, ever fall in love.
My Review:
Royally Endowed turned out to be everything I hoped it would be. A slow burn romance that never dragged on, a book full of humorous and sweet moments A book of sadness and joy, strengths and weakness, friendships, family, and love. It was a beautiful wrap up to a series I have thoroughly enjoyed and am sad to see go but so happy to see it go the way it did.
Logan, Logan, Logan F'N St. James!
“Logan St. James. Bodyguard. Totally badass. Sexiest guy I have ever seen—and that includes books, movies and TV, foreign and domestic. He’s the perfect combo of boyishly could-go-to-my-school kind of handsome, mixed with dangerously hot and tantalizingly mysterious. If comic-book Superman, James Dean, Jason Bourne and some guy with the smoothest, most perfectly pitched, British-Scottish-esque, Wessconian-accented voice all melded together into one person, they would make Logan fucking St. James."
This is the man we have all been waiting for, admit it, since book one you have been craving this book and the above quote is one of the main reasons why. There is no doubt in my mind that any one who picked up Royally Screwed fell in immediate and unwavering love with Logan and you have just been bidding your time through two (awesome, mind you) books to get to his story. Here's this broody, a bit mysterious, pulled himself up from his boot straps kind of guy and you know he deserves, no needs, his own happily ever after from the first moment you meet him and yet he can't have it. He can't have the one thing that could fulfill him, that could make his life complete. The reasons, because that one thing is:
1. Too young.
2. His charge.
3. Too sweet.
4. His boss's sister in law
5. The sister of the Prince's wife, the sister-in-law of the King
6. She is out of your reach
but what if she isn't. What if her sly glances, her flirty behavior, her kindness isn't just a school girl crush. What if her 'crush' last years as you watch her accomplish her dreams, watch her fall down and pick herself back up, watch her grow and mature...what if the way she looks at you like you could be the one to save her never wavers, what if you finally took the chance and gave yourself to her, what if you gave up everything you thought you wanted but got everything you ever needed back in return?
I loved watching these two. I loved watching them both grow and mature, because Logan had a lot of growing up to do himself. He may have been a hardened war hero, but that didn't mean his journey was complete. I loved seeing Ellie in a bit of a different light. We are given these ideas about her in the previous books and while she is some of those things ( I mean come on when we first meet her she is still a teen) there is so much more (yes, yes, she's an onion) underneath the superficial look we are first given.
I loved the slow burn, the years of angst and desire that build between these two. At first I thought it was going to bog me down and I'd quickly get bored of watching them play off each other but never get anyway, but Emma writes this story beautifully giving us all the time that the characters need and in a way that this our tension building right along side the characters so that when the time comes it is explosive, beautiful, (Yes, I am a woman who has never met an adjective she didn't like)heartfelt, powerful, joyous. I can honestly say that in the case of Royally Endowed there is absolutely no other way that Logan and Ellie's story could have been written. Had they come together to soon neither of them would have been in the place they needed to be to have the relationship they needed. They needed to be able to be strong for one another because their story wasn't always easy and rarely ever smooth. If they had come together when she was younger it would have felt contrived and wrong and as the reader I would have walked away thinking there's no way that couple is going to make it but now, now I can say they can weather any storm and that they will stand strong together and with their family.
Emma Chase has become one of my favorite authors. She knows how to weave the romance, humor, and poignant moments beautifully giving us stories that are fulfilling and complete. You walk away believing in the world and characters she creates and maybe feeling that in some small way they have changed how you look at your relationships. I love the sense of family she writes, the truth in family being just as much the people you choose to make your family as the ones who are born to be your family.
If you are a contemporary romance fan you can't go wrong with an Emma Chase book and this series is one of my favorites. They can be read as standalone, but you now I always feel books even like this should be read in order other wise you miss out on the little nuances, especially when it comes to Royally Endowed. There is so much history between these two and while it is not the focus of the first two books there are glimpses that I think are important to the over all story of Logan and Ellie.
Don't hesitate to pick up this book or series, I promise you, you won't be disappointed.
~ HAPPY READING ~
Excerpt:
Ellie
But then the mood shifts, as if the air becomes thicker, weighted, more . . . sultry.
Because slowly, Logan sinks down to one knee in front of me—looking in my eyes the whole time. In this position, I could touch his shoulders, comb my fingers through his thick, dark hair. He’s the perfect height for me to bend down and kiss his mouth—the perfect height for him to kiss me back . . . in a lot of places.
My breath hitches. And I wonder he feels it too.
There’s a sound of tearing Velcro, and Logan takes something off his ankle—a holster, with a small silver knife, about three inches long.
“Keep this on you all the time,” he says seriously. “Just in case. If you wear a skirt, the strap will fit around your thigh.”
And I almost laugh. Most girls get a ring from a guy on his knees. I get a murder weapon. But still, it makes me feel safe . . . watched over. Like I’m something precious that deserves to be protected.
I take the knife from him, testing the surprisingly solid, heavy weight of it in my hand. I press my index finger to the tip.
Logan grabs my wrist tightly. “Careful. It’s sharp.”
There’s a small, painless nick, a tiny bead of blood, so I put my finger in my mouth, sucking.
And Logan’s watching me again.
Watching my mouth.
His chest seems to rise just a little faster, and his throat ripples when he swallows. He bends his head, curves his strong back, and then I feel his hands on my ankle, securing the strap. His touch is warm and self-assured. It’s the way he always moves—confident and experienced. Logan knows his body and he knows how to use it, in every way possible.
I almost moan. The sound is in the back of my throat, but I keep it trapped. I never knew the ankle was an erogenous zone, but it sure as hell is now. A hot pulse of pleasure streaks from Logan’s fingers on my bare skin, up my thigh, between my legs.
And I throb there, growing swollen and heavy as he keeps his hands on me.
Can he tell? Does he know? He’s so aware of everything, always so attuned, I wonder if he can sense my arousal . . . feel it in the air that clings between us.
Emma Chase is the
New York Times and
USA Today bestselling author of the hot and hilarious Tangled series and The Legal Briefs series
. Emma lives in New Jersey with her husband, two children and two naughty (but really cute) dogs. She has a long-standing love/hate relationship with caffeine.
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