ARC Review: Battle Royal by Lucy Parker

“This is perfect for fans of the Great British Baking Show and royal drama with a bit of enemies to lovers sprinkled in and a grumpy/sunshine pairing.”
~ Under the Covers

I admit it, I fell for the beautiful cover. Plus I’ve wanted to read Lucy Parker for a long while. So this was perfect! I’ve also enjoyed in the past books with a chef and reality TV mix. I couldn’t wait to dig into this one.

I immediately fell in love with our heroine. Sylvie was a contestant in a baking show where she stood out for her original creations. One of the judges, and our hero Dominic, is the opposite of her. Sophisticated and classical. Also a bit grumpy. Their relationship wasn’t the easiest and certainly didn’t end on the best terms. Now, their successful businesses are competing for the wedding cake contract for the Princess. The princess loves Sylvie’s style but the palace prefers Dominic’s traditional taste.

There were a lot of elements to this story that I really enjoyed and on paper it should’ve been a total hit for me. But I think the pacing was a bit off. It started off really good and I was immediately invested. Loved both characters (I love a good grouch) and their chemistry was excellent. But somewhere along the way I felt the story loss some drive and felt a bit boring.

I did like that we are seeing both characters years after the reality TV show and Sylvie has made a name for herself. She’s successful and on equal footing with Dominic.

This is perfect for fans of the Great British Baking Show and royal drama with a bit of enemies to lovers sprinkled in and a grumpy/sunshine pairing. I’ll certainly be on the lookout for more from Lucy Parker and will continue on in this series.