On May 19, Britain’s Prince Harry will marry his American love, Meghan Markle. The Royal Wedding will take place at 12pm (7am ET) at St. George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle. If your invitation got lost in the mail, you can celebrate along with the rest of the world, as the royal festivities will be broadcast online and on several television stations (ABC, CBS, NBC, PBS, and HBO will all have coverage, among others). We’re even having a Royal Tea Party here at CPL!
To help us all get into a regal mood, we’ve made a list of royal reads to set the proper tone:
The Royal We by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan. Unexpectedly falling for the crown prince Nicholas while attending Oxford, practical-minded Bex endures ritzy society gatherings, fashionable outings and unwelcome publicity as well as jealous ex-girlfriends and dark royal family secrets.
The Selection by Kiera Cass. An America Singer is chosen to compete in the Selection–a contest to see which girl can win the heart of Illea’s prince–but all she really wants is a chance for a future with her secret love, who is a caste below her.
Royal Wedding by Meg Cabot. In the first adult installment of the Princess Diaries series, Princess Mia and longtime boyfriend Michael plan their wedding, while a scheming politico is trying to force Mia’s father from the throne because of a royal secret.
Romancing the Throne by Nadine Jolie. When a scandal at her all-girls school threatens her university prospects, Libby enrolls in her sister Charlotte’s posh boarding school, where they become rivals for the affection of their classmate–the heir to the throne of Britain.
Once Upon a Prince by Rachel Hauck. Their lives are worlds apart. He’s a royal prince. She’s an ordinary girl. But everything changes when Susanna receives an invitation to Nathaniel’s coronation. It’s the ultimate choice: His kingdom or her heart?
The White Queen by Philippa Gregory. A tale inspired by the War of the Roses follows the conflict from the perspective of Elizabeth Woodville, who ascends to royalty and fights for the well-being of her family, including two sons whose imprisonment in the Tower of London precedes a devastating unsolved mystery.
Anne Boleyn : a King’s Obsession by Alison Weir. Henry VIII risks his marriage and the political strategies of Cardinal Wolsey in his obsession with Anne Boleyn, who does not welcome the king’s advances and loathes the cardinal for breaking her betrothal to Harry Percy.
Victoria by Daisy Goodwin. Early one morning, less than a month after her eighteenth birthday, Alexandrina Victoria is roused from bed with the news that her uncle William IV has died and she is now Queen of England. The men who run the country have doubts about whether this sheltered young woman, who stands less than five feet tall, can rule the greatest nation in the world.
Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel. Assuming the power recently lost by the disgraced Cardinal Wolsey, Thomas Cromwell counsels a mercurial Henry VIII on the latter’s efforts to marry Anne Boleyn against the wishes of Rome, a successful endeavor that comes with a dangerous price.
Elizabeth I by Margaret George. Growing up at the side of her cousin, Elizabeth I, Lettice Knollys struggles to regain power and position for her family while competing against the queen for the love of Robert Dudley, a rivalry that is set against a backdrop of the flourishing Elizabethan age.