The NerdHerd Reads: Royally Lost {by Angie Stanton}

Title: Royally Lost

Author: Angie Stanton

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Dragged on a family trip to Europe’s ancient cities, Becca wants nothing more than to go home. Trapped with her emotionally distant father, over-eager stepmother, and a brother who only wants to hook up with European hotties, Becca is miserable. That is until she meets Nikolai, a guy as mysterious as he is handsome. And she unknowingly finds herself with a runaway prince.
Nikolai has everything a guy could ask for-he's crown prince, heir to the throne, and girls adore him. But the one thing he doesn't have...is freedom. Staging a coup, he flees his kingdom and goes undercover on his own European tour.
When Nikolai and Becca meet, it’s their differences that draw them together. Sparks fly as they share a whirlwind of adventures, all the while dodging his royal guard. But Becca's family vacation ends in a matter of days. Will Nikolai and Becca be forced to say goodbye forever, will his destiny catch up to him, or will they change history forever?

This book gave me a serious case of wanderlust. Seriously. I think I mainly wanted to read this one for the setting--although a hot prince sure didn't hurt matters ;)

This book was super cute. It was a light, fluffy read, perfect for a summer day (especially when you're stuck taking summer classes, instead of traveling through Europe yourself). Although I didn't feel that there was much substance to the story, it was okay because I wasn't expecting that anyway. I was looking for a cute and fun read, and that's exactly what I got.

Nikolai is crown prince to a country that, well, most people outside Europe haven't really heard of. His country is set in their old-fashioned ways, and Nikolai doesn't agree with that. He is expected to play his part, but his parents don't realize that he is an adult now, with his own opinions and ideas. So, he gets their attention in the only way he can: by running away.

Becca has been dragged on a European vacation the summer before she starts college. Her dad is out of it, and her stepmother is trying way too hard to make them into a family. Becca is tired of being dragged from city to city, forced to take tours of boring castles and other places that no one cares about. Until she meets Nikolai.

Here's the thing: while I loved Nikolai, I couldn't really stand Becca. Becca's complaining was, frankly, getting on my nerves. I mean, your parents are taking you on a tour of EUROPE, for crying out loud. I realize that it wasn't ideal, and that she had issues with accepting her stepmother, but really, it wasn't that bad. And her talk about "history being boring and no one even cares about any of this" was nearly blasphemous.

Nikolai, on the other hand, was more mature and responsible. I realize you're thinking "how?? He ran away from his kingdom and his responsibilities." Well…yes. But even while doing so, he knew that he would have to go back and accept his responsibilities. He had ideas and opinions concerning his country and how things should change. He knew that the way his country was wrong was not working, and some of this thoughts about how things could change were very grown-up and intelligent. He also could appreciate European history and accept it for what it was--history. He just thought the way they actually lived should be more modern.

Although this was a bit insta-lovey (okay...way more than a bit), I did love following the two on their journey and getting to read about the different Europe cities and the sights they saw (when Becca wasn't complaining about them, that is). Like I said, I did think it wasn't very substantial, but it was fun and entertaining and I enjoyed reading it.

I received an eARC via Edelweiss in exchange for my honest review.

This review can also be found on