{"product_id":"american-royals-ii-majesty-isbn-9781984830210","title":"American Royals II: Majesty","description":"\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eNEW YORK TIMES \u003c\/i\u003eBESTSELLING SERIES • Is America ready for its first queen? If you can't get enough of Harry and Meghan and Will and Kate, you'll love this sequel to the \u003ci\u003eNew York Times \u003c\/i\u003ebestseller that imagines America's own royal family--and all the drama and heartbreak that entails. \u003ci\u003eCrazy Rich Asians\u003c\/i\u003e meets \u003ci\u003eThe Crown\u003c\/i\u003e. Perfect for fans of \u003ci\u003eRed, White, and Royal Blue\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eThe Royal We\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ePower is intoxicating. Like first love, it can leave you breathless. Princess Beatrice was born with it. Princess Samantha was born with less. Some, like Nina Gonzalez, are pulled into it. And a few will claw their way in. Ahem, we're looking at you Daphne Deighton. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAs America adjusts to the idea of a \u003ci\u003equeen\u003c\/i\u003e on the throne, Beatrice grapples with everything she lost when she gained the ultimate crown. Samantha is busy living up to her \"party princess\" persona...and maybe adding a party prince by her side. Nina is trying to avoid the palace--and Prince Jefferson--at all costs. And a dangerous secret threatens to undo all of Daphne's carefully laid \"marry Prince Jefferson\" plans. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA new reign has begun.... \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Inventive, fresh, and deliciously romantic--American Royals is an absolute delight!\" --Sarah J. Maas, #1 \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author of the Throne of Glass series and Court of Thorns and Roses series“With love and rivalries, a heady pre-wedding atmosphere, and a country's future poised to change, American Royals II: Majesty is \u003cb\u003ean indulgently fun escape\u003c\/b\u003e.”\u003ci\u003e \u003ci\u003e—\u003c\/i\u003eShelf Awareness\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“With \u003cb\u003eelegance, saucy secrets, and forbidden love\u003c\/b\u003e, \u003ci\u003eAmerican Royals\u003c\/i\u003e is fast-paced and utterly charming. Katharine McGee’s prose sparkles, capturing the \u003cb\u003eglamour\u003c\/b\u003e and pressures of an American monarchy.” —Kendare Blake, #1 \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author of the Three Dark Crowns series\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e“Inventive, fresh, and \u003cb\u003edeliciously romantic\u003c\/b\u003e—\u003ci\u003eAmerican Royals\u003c\/i\u003e is an absolute delight!” —Sarah J. Maas, #1\u003ci\u003e New York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author of the Throne of Glass series and Court of Thorns and Roses series\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“\u003cb\u003eImagine a world where Meghan Markle is the queen \u003c\/b\u003eof the United States of America…. American Royals is the next closest thing.” –\u003ci\u003eTeen Vogue\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"\u003c\/i\u003eFor all the \u003cb\u003eglamour and intrigue, \u003c\/b\u003ethere's also a reality check. All four central characters struggle to reconcile the expectations the world imposes on them with the internal selves they discover through heartbreak and struggle.\" \u003ci\u003e—The New York Times Book Review\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cbr\u003e“\u003cb\u003eA soapy, escapist blockbuster\u003c\/b\u003e [following] the drama, scandal and romances of the impossibly glamorous young court. An unabashedly frothy romp, and \u003cb\u003eenormous fun\u003c\/b\u003e.\" –\u003ci\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA fun, fast-paced read packed with \u003cb\u003edrama, scandal, and romance\u003c\/b\u003e” –\u003ci\u003eThe Sun\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“Mixing scandalous secrets and political intrigue, \u003ci\u003eAmerican Royals\u003c\/i\u003e is \u003cb\u003ethrillingly addictive\u003c\/b\u003e.” –\u003ci\u003e\u003ci\u003eShelf Awareness\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e\"\u003c\/i\u003eCritical questions \u003cb\u003etantalize readers\u003c\/b\u003e through the foibles and flaws of characters who are frustratingly human… readers will eagerly await the next installment to find out whether true love will win or stodgy tradition will triumph.” —\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“A \u003cb\u003edeliciously soapy\u003c\/b\u003e American royal family… McGee’s characters are \u003cb\u003ewell-crafted\u003c\/b\u003e and flawed, giving the narrative emotional texture that elevates it above the dramatic formula\u003ci\u003e.” —\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“Readers will be\u003cb\u003e hooked\u003c\/b\u003e…. A \u003cb\u003efun \u003c\/b\u003etwist on history as we know it, and the ending will have readers hoping for a sequel.” \u003ci\u003e—School Library Journal\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“For readers looking for intrigue—and for those who like their royal fever with a twist—this is \u003cb\u003ea quick and\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cb\u003edelicious read\u003c\/b\u003e.” \u003ci\u003e—Booklist \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e  \u003c\/i\u003eKatharine McGee is the \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eAmerican Royals\u003c\/i\u003e and the Thousandth Floor trilogy. She studied English and French literature at Princeton University and has an MBA from Stanford. She now lives in Houston with her husband. Visit her online at katharinemcgee.com. Follow her at @katharinemcgee.\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e1\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBeatrice\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSix weeks later\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBeatrice had never heard the palace so silent.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eNormally its halls echoed with noise: butlers giving orders to footmen; tour guides lecturing groups of students; ambassadors or ministers chasing after the Lord Chamberlain, begging for an audience with the king.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eToday everything was still. Dust sheets hung over the furniture, emitting a ghostly glow in the half-­light. Even the crowds that usually thronged the main gates had melted away, leaving the palace stranded, an island in a sea of empty sidewalks and trampled grass.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBehind her, Beatrice heard her mom getting out of the car. Sam and Jeff had elected to stay at the country house another night. When they were younger, the three siblings used to go there together—­in a dark SUV, watching movies on its drop-­down TV—­but Beatrice could no longer ride in the same car as her sister. The monarch and the first in line for the throne weren’t permitted to travel together, for security reasons.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eShe’d only made it halfway across the entrance hall when her heel snagged on an antique carpet. She stumbled—­and a firm hand reached out to steady her.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBeatrice looked up into the cool gray eyes of her Revere Guard, Connor Markham.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“You okay, Bee?”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eShe knew she should reprimand him for using her nickname instead of her title, especially in public, where anyone might overhear. But Beatrice couldn’t think properly with Connor’s hand on hers. After all these weeks of distance, the feel of his touch sparked wildly through her veins.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eVoices echoed down the hallway. Connor frowned but took a swift step back, just as two footmen turned the corner, accompanied by a man with grim features and salt-­and-­pepper hair: Robert Standish, who’d worked as Lord Chamberlain for Beatrice’s father, and now for her.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHe swept a formal bow. “I’m sorry, Your Majesty. We weren’t expecting you until tomorrow.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBeatrice tried not to flinch at the title. She still wasn’t used to \u003ci\u003eYour Majesty\u003c\/i\u003e being directed at her.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe footmen began moving from room to room, whipping away dust sheets and tossing them in a pile. The palace sprang to life as ornate side tables and delicate brass lamps were hurriedly uncovered.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“I decided to come back early. I just . . .” Beatrice trailed off before saying \u003ci\u003eI just needed to get away.\u003c\/i\u003e This past month at Sulgrave, the Washingtons’ country estate, was supposed to have been a getaway. But even surrounded by family, she’d felt alone. And exhausted.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eEach night Beatrice tried to stay awake as long as she could, because once she fell asleep the dreams would come. Horrible, twisted dreams where she had to watch her father die, over and over again, and know that it was her fault.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eShe\u003c\/i\u003e had caused her dad’s death. If she hadn’t shouted at him that night—­hadn’t threatened to marry her Revere Guard and renounce her position as queen—­then King George might still be alive.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBeatrice bit back a sigh. She knew better than to let herself think like this. If she did, her mind would sink like a stone, deeper and deeper into a well of grief without ever touching bottom.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Your Majesty.” Robert glanced down at the tablet he carried with him at all times. “There are a few things I’d like to discuss. Should we head up to your office?”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIt took a moment for Beatrice to realize that he meant her father’s office. Which belonged to her now.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003e“No,”\u003c\/i\u003e she replied, a little forcefully. She wasn’t ready to face that room—­and all the memories trapped inside it. “Why don’t we talk in here?” she added, gesturing to one of the sitting rooms.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Very well.” Robert followed her inside and pulled the double doors shut behind them, leaving Connor in the hall.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAs she perched on a striped green sofa, Beatrice darted a glance at the three bay windows that overlooked the front drive. It was a nervous habit she’d picked up after her father’s death: to study the windows of each room she walked into. As if the natural lighting might help her feel slightly less suffocated.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOr as if she was looking for an escape route.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Your Majesty, your schedule for the upcoming week.” Robert held out a sheet of paper, embossed with the royal crest.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Thank you, Lord Standish,” Beatrice said, and paused. She’d always addressed him by his full title, ever since she’d met him as a teenager, but now . . . “May I call you Robert?”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“I would be honored,” he said obsequiously.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“In that case, you must start calling me Beatrice.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe chamberlain gave a throaty gasp. “Oh, no, Your Majesty. I would never presume to do such a thing. And I would suggest,” he added, “that you never make an offer like that again, certainly not to anyone in a service position. It simply isn’t appropriate.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBeatrice hated that she felt like a chastened schoolgirl, like she was seven years old again and her etiquette master had snapped a ruler over her knuckles as punishment for a sloppy curtsy. She forced herself to study the paper in her lap, only to look up in confusion.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Where’s the rest of my schedule?”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe only events listed were low-­stress public appearances—­a nature walk outside the capital with a conservation group, a meet-­and-­greet with the local Girl Scouts—­the sort of goodwill-­generating events that Beatrice used to do as heir to the throne. “I should have an audience with each of the party leaders in Congress,” she went on. “And why isn’t a Cabinet meeting scheduled for Thursday?”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“There’s no need to dive into all of that right away,” Robert said silkily. “You’ve been out of the public eye since the funeral. Right now, what the people need from you is reassurance.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBeatrice fought off a sense of disquiet. The monarch was meant to govern, not run around shaking hands like some kind of mascot for America. That was what the \u003ci\u003eheir\u003c\/i\u003e to the throne was for.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBut what could she say? Everything she knew about this role she had learned from her father. Now he was gone, and the only person left to advise her was Robert, his right-­hand man.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe chamberlain shook his head. “Besides, I’m sure you’ll want to spend the next few months planning the wedding.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBeatrice tried to speak, but her throat seemed to have glued itself shut.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eShe was still engaged to Theodore Eaton, the son of the Duke of Boston. But in the past month, each time she’d started to think of Teddy, her mind had violently shied away. \u003ci\u003eI’ll figure it out when I’m back,\u003c\/i\u003e she’d promised herself. \u003ci\u003eThere’s nothing I can do about it now.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIt had been easy to let herself forget about Teddy at Sulgrave. None of her family members had spoken of him. They hadn’t spoken much at \u003ci\u003eall,\u003c\/i\u003e each of them wrapped up in their own private grief.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“I’d prefer not to focus on the wedding just yet,” she said at last, unable to hide the strain in her voice.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Your Majesty, if we start planning now, we can hold the ceremony in June,” the chamberlain argued. “Then, after your  honeymoon, you can spend the rest of the summer on the newlyweds’ royal tour.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eMight as well say it all at once,\u003c\/i\u003e Beatrice thought, and braced herself. “We’re not getting married.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“What do you mean, Your Majesty?” Robert asked, his lips pursed in confusion. “Did something . . . happen between you and His Lordship?” Beatrice drew in a shaky breath, and he lifted his hands in a conciliatory gesture. “Please, forgive me if I’m overstepping. To do my job effectively, I need to know the truth.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eConnor was still standing out there in the hallway. Beatrice could picture him: frozen in the Revere Guard stance, his feet planted firmly, a hand near his holstered weapon. She wondered, with a bolt of panic, if he could hear them through the closed wooden doors.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eShe opened her mouth, ready to tell Robert about Connor. It shouldn’t be hard; she’d had this very conversation with her father—­had marched into his study and informed him that she was in love with her Revere Guard—­the night of her engagement party to Teddy. So why couldn’t she say the same thing now?\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eI need to know the truth,\u003c\/i\u003e Robert had insisted. Except . . . what \u003ci\u003ewas\u003c\/i\u003e the truth?\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBeatrice didn’t know anymore. Her feelings for Connor were tangled up in her feelings about everything \u003ci\u003eelse,\u003c\/i\u003e desire and regret and grief all painfully intertwined.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“I’d agreed to get married while my father was still alive, because he wanted to walk me down the aisle,” she managed. “But now that I’m queen, there’s no need to rush.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eRobert shook his head. “Your Majesty, it’s \u003ci\u003ebecause\u003c\/i\u003e you are queen that I suggest you get married as soon as possible. You are the living symbol of America, and its future. And given the current situation . . .”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“The current situation?”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“This is a period of transition and uncertainty. The nation hasn’t recovered from your father’s death as easily as we might have hoped.” There was no inflection, no emotion in Robert’s tone. “The stock market has taken a hit. Congress is at a stalemate. Several of the foreign ambassadors have handed in their resignations. Just a few,” he added, at the expression on her face. “But a wedding would be such a unifying occasion, for everyone in the country.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBeatrice heard the subtext beneath his words. She was now the Queen of America—­and America was afraid.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eShe was too young, too untried. And most of all, she was a woman. Attempting to govern a country that had only ever been led by men.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIf there was instability in America right now, \u003ci\u003eBeatrice\u003c\/i\u003e was the cause of it.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBefore she could respond, the room’s double doors swung open. “Beatrice! There you are.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHer mom stood in the doorway. She looked elegant even in her travel clothes—­slim-­cut navy pants and a pale blue sweater—­though they fit more loosely than they used to. Grief hung over her shoulders like a weighted cloak.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhen Queen Adelaide saw Robert, she hesitated. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe chamberlain rose to his feet. “Your Majesty, please join us. We were just discussing the wedding.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAdelaide turned to Beatrice, a new warmth in her voice. “Have you and Teddy set a date?”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Actually . . . I’m not sure I’m ready to get married.” Beatrice shot her mom a pleading glance. “It feels too fast. Don’t you think we should wait until we’ve had time to grieve?”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Oh, Beatrice.” Her mom sank onto the couch with a heavy sigh. “We’ll never be done grieving. You know that,” she said softly. “It might sting less with time, but that doesn’t mean we’ll ever stop feeling the loss. We’ll just get a little better at carrying it.”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAcross the room, Robert nodded in vigorous agreement. Beatrice tried to ignore him.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Random House Books for Young Readers","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46301561454821,"sku":"NP9781984830210","price":18.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9781984830210.jpg?v=1742924524","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/es\/products\/american-royals-ii-majesty-isbn-9781984830210","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}