One note about the royalty aspect – this is not the main plot of the book, it’s a background subplot and as such I was more easily able to be okay that there was no dealing with colonialism or racism.With Dom and Sylvia doing both the reality show and the wedding cake together there is a very delicate balance to achieve and Lucy Parker masters it. The vulnerability Dominic reveals slowly through the cracks of his armor is just at this achingly perfect pace throughout the book. This essentially leads them on a scavenger hunt that brings Dominic and Sylvia closer and closer together. The Royal pair who are engaged challenge the two to come up with a design they will both love, and whoever proves to have the better design will be the one to get the business.

As in a literal Princess! Dominic and Sylvia end up being the last two in the running for this huge honor and the amount of emotion Lucy Parker is able to pack in the smallest detail is amazing to me. A Royal Challenge – a secondary challenge unexpectedly arises when Princess Rose is getting married.I loved this aspect of the book because it bakes (ha!) in fun side characters that we get to see throughout the book, along with dramatic challenges that keep us wondering if they’ll be able to pull off. The Baking Show – Operation Cake is a competition reality show that first Sylvia is a competitor on, and then, fast forward a few years, voila, she is successful enough to become a judge on the show.

Battle royal by lucy parker