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The Royal Assignment
Get ready to fall in love with this royally charming rom com scripted exclusively for audio and featuring a full cast!
Maggie Patel has landed her dream job at The New York Spectator; or, it would be, if she could get a decent story assignment. When a career-making interview finally lands on her desk, it’s with the last person she’d ever want to see again—Edward, the Crown Prince of Bairmorne...and her long-ago friend.
When Maggie was a child, her mother worked as a housemaid at the Royal Palace of Bairmorne, a small European nation, until they were unceremoniously kicked to the curb... amidst a cloud of whispered controversy and palace intrigue. Now, Prince Edward and Maggie are all grown up and they both have jobs to do—but there’s a spark between them they can’t deny. Will that spark lead to something more, and can their attraction withstand public scrutiny, royal duty, and secrets from the past?
©2020 Terence Gray, Erin Day, and Ian Thake (P)2020 Audible Originals, LLC.
Maggie Patel has landed her dream job at The New York Spectator; or, it would be, if she could get a decent story assignment. When a career-making interview finally lands on her desk, it’s with the last person she’d ever want to see again—Edward, the Crown Prince of Bairmorne...and her long-ago friend.
When Maggie was a child, her mother worked as a housemaid at the Royal Palace of Bairmorne, a small European nation, until they were unceremoniously kicked to the curb... amidst a cloud of whispered controversy and palace intrigue. Now, Prince Edward and Maggie are all grown up and they both have jobs to do—but there’s a spark between them they can’t deny. Will that spark lead to something more, and can their attraction withstand public scrutiny, royal duty, and secrets from the past?
©2020 Terence Gray, Erin Day, and Ian Thake (P)2020 Audible Originals, LLC.
5 pages, Audible Audio
First published November 4, 2021
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589 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 402 reviews
November 3, 2024
A reconnect story w/ royalty 👑
February 17, 2022
Three authors should have been the first clue that this was going to be a train wreck. Only, it's actually worse than just bad writing. The production, too, was dreadful. Indeed, the only thing that actually worked for this was the quality of the actors. They were outstanding. It's too bad that the only way to tell how good they are is that they made a crappy script seem almost like it were possible. Almost. I mean, they aren't miracle workers.
I actually like the idea of different narrators working each role because it keeps the voices distinct and that's an interesting effect. Only, this "story" has no narrator. So it was all about the dialogue. Which might have been an interesting challenge for a talented writer. It's too bad none was asked to participate in this royal screw-up.
Random things that royally bugged me (untagged spoilers, ditch now if you care):
- Maggie, the investigative reporter, is really, reeeally bad at her job. Like, it was obvious by midway through the story what had happened to her mom, some from her own memories. Only she doesn't twig to it . . . ever. Towards the end, past the really lame dark moment, (I skimmed to get there because I wanted to see if it really was this obvious), she even has the royal daughter outline it in nearly so many words. And she still doesn't make the connection. So not only is Maggie an idiot, but she's a homophobic one who can't even imagine that her mother's affair might not have been with the king, but was with the king's sister who she remembers was "always hanging around". And here's the thing that gets me. The authors should be ashamed of themselves that they'd think it was reasonable for their protagonist to miss the clues they scattered liberally throughout the story and still think she'd be sympathetic. Which means that the authors think it's reasonable for a heroine who is supposed to be smart and who is explicitly progressive to be so inherently homophobic that she'd miss the blindingly obvious. This says very bad things about them, frankly. I mean so much of this story is blatantly progressive and this isn't the only time they got details wrong. Like, I'd almost suspect them of being political conservatives putting one over on their opponents if that didn't give them credit for a cleverness that they clearly don't have.
- Section breaks in the story are filled with musical scores. Some of them are so long, they bleed out all sense of pace or continuity before the next section starts. This was so bad, I actually timed a couple. If you're curious, some were as short as six seconds. But most of them were 20 seconds. Of instrumental flourishing. Seriously, you could chop a half-hour off this royal blight if you'd just had something simple. Chimes are lovely. Could the producer not find a nice chime riff?
- All of the sidekicks were annoying caricatures with "banter" that will be juvenile in a few years, once it grows up a little bit. There were no side characters. Just sidekicks.
Do I actually need to say that this is one star? I'd go lower if I could. Save yourself the time and give this a royal pass.
I actually like the idea of different narrators working each role because it keeps the voices distinct and that's an interesting effect. Only, this "story" has no narrator. So it was all about the dialogue. Which might have been an interesting challenge for a talented writer. It's too bad none was asked to participate in this royal screw-up.
Random things that royally bugged me (untagged spoilers, ditch now if you care):
- Maggie, the investigative reporter, is really, reeeally bad at her job. Like, it was obvious by midway through the story what had happened to her mom, some from her own memories. Only she doesn't twig to it . . . ever. Towards the end, past the really lame dark moment, (I skimmed to get there because I wanted to see if it really was this obvious), she even has the royal daughter outline it in nearly so many words. And she still doesn't make the connection. So not only is Maggie an idiot, but she's a homophobic one who can't even imagine that her mother's affair might not have been with the king, but was with the king's sister who she remembers was "always hanging around". And here's the thing that gets me. The authors should be ashamed of themselves that they'd think it was reasonable for their protagonist to miss the clues they scattered liberally throughout the story and still think she'd be sympathetic. Which means that the authors think it's reasonable for a heroine who is supposed to be smart and who is explicitly progressive to be so inherently homophobic that she'd miss the blindingly obvious. This says very bad things about them, frankly. I mean so much of this story is blatantly progressive and this isn't the only time they got details wrong. Like, I'd almost suspect them of being political conservatives putting one over on their opponents if that didn't give them credit for a cleverness that they clearly don't have.
- Section breaks in the story are filled with musical scores. Some of them are so long, they bleed out all sense of pace or continuity before the next section starts. This was so bad, I actually timed a couple. If you're curious, some were as short as six seconds. But most of them were 20 seconds. Of instrumental flourishing. Seriously, you could chop a half-hour off this royal blight if you'd just had something simple. Chimes are lovely. Could the producer not find a nice chime riff?
- All of the sidekicks were annoying caricatures with "banter" that will be juvenile in a few years, once it grows up a little bit. There were no side characters. Just sidekicks.
Do I actually need to say that this is one star? I'd go lower if I could. Save yourself the time and give this a royal pass.
November 12, 2021
reasons why you should listen to this:
-> hero is a PRINCE
-> hero and heroine with accent
-> childhood friends to lovers
-> full cast!
-> this feels like a movie in your head, seriously if you like audiobooks you'll love this one!
-> fast-paced
-> great friendships
just read this, is cute, is fun, and the audio quality is amazing
-> hero is a PRINCE
-> hero and heroine with accent
-> childhood friends to lovers
-> full cast!
-> this feels like a movie in your head, seriously if you like audiobooks you'll love this one!
-> fast-paced
-> great friendships
just read this, is cute, is fun, and the audio quality is amazing
December 11, 2022
yeah… 😕 this was boring as FAWK
September 21, 2022
Oh I so enjoyed this. Even the parts that may have been a little predictable. I laughed out loud. I liked and rooted for the characters. I enjoyed the monarchy of this made up country and all its quirky characters! It was just fun all around. It's a clever feel good story.
November 10, 2021
This was cute and normally I love a big cast and all the extra audio clips, but I really could've gone with all the music that played as a transition from one part to another. The narration is amazing! An excellent casting. Again, this was cute and a fun quick listen.
November 22, 2021
I was looking for a short weekend listen to entertain me while I was gardening and this was just the perfect fit.
Maggie has been trying to get a breakthrough story assignment to help boost her journalism career with The New York Spectator. When she attends a press conference for Edward, the Crown Prince of Bairmorne she attracts his attention. You see they were childhood friends growing up, Maggie’s mother worked for his family and she was very close to Teddy and his younger sister. Maggie was devastated when they had to leave in the middle of the night and never saw them again.
Edward (Teddy) is thrilled to see Maggie. He could never understand why they left so suddenly and he is keen to reconnect, finding out more about her life now. Maggie sees this as an opportunity to advance her career and hopefully to get some answers about all those years ago. She is up front about it being an interview and Teddy is happy to participate.
Things don’t quite go as planned and they get progressively worse. However, the bond these two once shared is still alive and has now moved into a strong attraction to each other. Is it realistic for these two to have a happy ending together? And what about the mystery around the eviction from the palace all those years ago?
There was a big cast for this considering it was less than two hours long but they all played an important part in delivering superb performances.
Maggie has been trying to get a breakthrough story assignment to help boost her journalism career with The New York Spectator. When she attends a press conference for Edward, the Crown Prince of Bairmorne she attracts his attention. You see they were childhood friends growing up, Maggie’s mother worked for his family and she was very close to Teddy and his younger sister. Maggie was devastated when they had to leave in the middle of the night and never saw them again.
Edward (Teddy) is thrilled to see Maggie. He could never understand why they left so suddenly and he is keen to reconnect, finding out more about her life now. Maggie sees this as an opportunity to advance her career and hopefully to get some answers about all those years ago. She is up front about it being an interview and Teddy is happy to participate.
Things don’t quite go as planned and they get progressively worse. However, the bond these two once shared is still alive and has now moved into a strong attraction to each other. Is it realistic for these two to have a happy ending together? And what about the mystery around the eviction from the palace all those years ago?
There was a big cast for this considering it was less than two hours long but they all played an important part in delivering superb performances.
November 21, 2021
This is very much an audio drama and not a book. There is no narrator, no descriptions or insight into the characters and thoughts and reactions, only dialogue and sound effects. While I’ve enjoyed audio dramas in the past, this didn’t work for. In fact I DNFd it pretty close to the end. While the full cast performance was fun, relying solely on dialogue, it was really hard to get a sense for the characters connection or chemistry, or to care about them much at all.
January 14, 2022
4.2 ⭐️
Adoro cuando un personaje es de la realeza y más aún con todo el drama qué hay en esta historia.
Este audiolibro estaba narrado de una forma muy peculiar y la verdad es que me gustó bastante. Es narrado como una obra de teatro. ¿A qué me refiero? No te narran como: "él le tomó la mano y la acercó a él escuchando la lluvia detrás" solo te dan diálogos más sonidos de fondo. Ejemplo: en vez de decir te que están caminando, se escuchan los zapatos de fondo.
Siento que es una historia corta y divertida. Tiene un protagonista masculino que me pareció tierno la mayor parte del tiempo. La protagonista femenina me gusta bastante por lo inteligente e independiente que es.
¿Lo recomiendo? Si, si buscas un audiolibro en un formato distinto. Esta historia es la tuya.
Adoro cuando un personaje es de la realeza y más aún con todo el drama qué hay en esta historia.
Este audiolibro estaba narrado de una forma muy peculiar y la verdad es que me gustó bastante. Es narrado como una obra de teatro. ¿A qué me refiero? No te narran como: "él le tomó la mano y la acercó a él escuchando la lluvia detrás" solo te dan diálogos más sonidos de fondo. Ejemplo: en vez de decir te que están caminando, se escuchan los zapatos de fondo.
Siento que es una historia corta y divertida. Tiene un protagonista masculino que me pareció tierno la mayor parte del tiempo. La protagonista femenina me gusta bastante por lo inteligente e independiente que es.
¿Lo recomiendo? Si, si buscas un audiolibro en un formato distinto. Esta historia es la tuya.
November 10, 2021
2.75 - Cute, but cheesy at times.
November 16, 2021
I’m surprised by how much this just didn’t work for me. There were one too many pet peeve tropes (chip on her shoulder, jumping to conclusions). And the weird music between scenes? Idk. Did nothing for the story. And I just didn’t love it.
February 29, 2024
This was cute, and ultimately I really liked it on the strength of the voice actors (though it took me a bit to warm to Prince Teddy, who sounded rather insufferably smug most of the time). The full performance of voices made this one shine brighter than I think it would have otherwise.
It's basically a rom-com audiobook novella otherwise, but I love me a good rom-com audiobook novella, so I was on board. The set-up is exactly what it says on the tin: woman whose mother once worked for the royal family (but they were kicked out unceremoniously when she was still a young girl) has become a reporter, reports on the heir to the throne (who she grew up with and was close to), sparks fly, the truth comes out about what happened, everything tailspins, but of course, happy ending. Exactly what you expect, but with some great side-characters stealing the show while they're around with the main characters.
My only caveat is one I saw coming, was the telegraphed reason behind why Maggie's family got turfed from the palace (I'm not bragging at having figured it out, it's a rom-com audiobook novella, and it wasn't subtle). That said, it's technically a spoiler, so:
Anyway. Like I said, mainstream story, it sort of made me sigh a bit, not the total end of the world or anything, just a note for my fellow queer readers who might want to prepare to heave a big sigh.
It's basically a rom-com audiobook novella otherwise, but I love me a good rom-com audiobook novella, so I was on board. The set-up is exactly what it says on the tin: woman whose mother once worked for the royal family (but they were kicked out unceremoniously when she was still a young girl) has become a reporter, reports on the heir to the throne (who she grew up with and was close to), sparks fly, the truth comes out about what happened, everything tailspins, but of course, happy ending. Exactly what you expect, but with some great side-characters stealing the show while they're around with the main characters.
My only caveat is one I saw coming, was the telegraphed reason behind why Maggie's family got turfed from the palace (I'm not bragging at having figured it out, it's a rom-com audiobook novella, and it wasn't subtle). That said, it's technically a spoiler, so:
Anyway. Like I said, mainstream story, it sort of made me sigh a bit, not the total end of the world or anything, just a note for my fellow queer readers who might want to prepare to heave a big sigh.
November 8, 2021
All the extra sound effects were just meh. And very quick to love. It was just meh.
November 8, 2021
Zero chemistry. Na-da!
February 11, 2022
I hate to say it, but I just cannot find a way to enjoy these Audible audio productions. This is not an audio book. This is radio theater. There's no narration here. I can't get into these stories. The production overshadows the actual story. There are too many things that irritate me about the way that the story is presented. The gazillion actors who are all playing parts in this "book" do a phenomenal job. I'll bet they would be amazing if we actually got to see them ACT out this story. But, like I say, the "production" overshadows the actors and the story. I found the weird musical interludes between scenes to be tiresome. There was also distracting background noises meant to create atmosphere, I'm sure, but it just felt weird to listen to an audio book where people are speaking while you can hear crowd noises or traffic or footsteps in the background. Weird. Overall, the story was pretty bland. This is the story of a non-royal girl eventually finding love with a future king. I normally like the wish-fulfillment angle of stories like this, and it was nice enough, I guess. But this story was not good enough to overcome the way it was presented. I can only give it two stars. It was okay.
February 11, 2024
I'm a radio theater snob. Audible is getting better at it, but it's just not there yet.
One example: Maggie is eavesdropping on palace gossip through a door and the muffled voices on the other side are so difficult to hear, I cranked up the volume in my car. But then the volume switches aggressively back, and I yelled and turned it way back down again. Pretty sure everyone in the parking lot heard the voices audibly OUTSIDE my car AND my subsequent yell.
Anyways, it had a run-of-the-mill Hallmark channel storyline and mediocre writing. Enough that I finished, but not enough that I would recommend it to anyone else.
I'd rate this an R for the sheer number of curse words and adult humor. Without the swearing, this would have landed an easy PG-13 as it's actually quite chaste.
Original review posted 2/11/24.
One example: Maggie is eavesdropping on palace gossip through a door and the muffled voices on the other side are so difficult to hear, I cranked up the volume in my car. But then the volume switches aggressively back, and I yelled and turned it way back down again. Pretty sure everyone in the parking lot heard the voices audibly OUTSIDE my car AND my subsequent yell.
Anyways, it had a run-of-the-mill Hallmark channel storyline and mediocre writing. Enough that I finished, but not enough that I would recommend it to anyone else.
I'd rate this an R for the sheer number of curse words and adult humor. Without the swearing, this would have landed an easy PG-13 as it's actually quite chaste.
Original review posted 2/11/24.
November 28, 2021
Amazing full cast narration and I particularly liked the music and sound effects.
October 12, 2023
Super cute read! I LOVED the cast; their performance was vivacious, just so well done and so much fun. Highly recommend!
November 11, 2021
I watch dozens of holiday Hallmark movies and this was too saccrine even for me
October 26, 2025
Απόλαυσα το audiobook και με ενθουσίασαν οι εναλλαγές ανάμεσα στους ηθοποιούς και τα ειδικά εφέ. Αλλά πιο πολύ με τράβηξε η πλοκή σε αυτό το βιβλίο, το royal στοιχείο που ενεπλάκη σε ένα βαθμό με το δημοσιογραφικό, λόγω της φύσης του επαγγέλματος της ηρωίδας. Ένας πρίγκιπας που ήρθε σε επαφή με την παιδική του φίλη, μετά από πολλά χρόνια. Και εκεί μέσα στις αναπολήσεις του παρελθόντος και την νέα εκδοχή των πρωταγωνιστών, κάτι αναδύθηκε. Μια νέα σχέση δημιουργήθηκε και παλιά μυστικά ήρθαν στο φως..
3,5 /5
3,5 /5
November 24, 2021
Upon reading the excerpt & reviews, I would say that I was pretty excited to give this book a listen. But unfortunately, it just didn’t turn out so well for me. I actually wanted to stop midway but gave it the benefit of the doubt and forced myself to finish it. Who knows, I might end up really liking it.
Nope.
That didn’t happen. This was an audible original and the way it was set up, there is NO narrator whatsoever. While I appreciate all the sound effects and such, it really just sounded like I was watching a movie with blindfolds on and let me tell you, it wasn’t that great. There were no directions for the characters, no inclination of what their thoughts were, or even a simple narration of where they were going and who they were speaking to. It made it confusing at times.
I also felt that the story fell flat. I didn’t care much about any of the characters because they never gave me a chance to get to know them beyond their dialogue. I also did not find it funny or romantic or refreshing as many had said. I mean, each to their own but personally, I thought this was a very bland read/listen. There was no character development and no real plot in my opinion. Perhaps it had potential but the end result was not so great.
Nope.
That didn’t happen. This was an audible original and the way it was set up, there is NO narrator whatsoever. While I appreciate all the sound effects and such, it really just sounded like I was watching a movie with blindfolds on and let me tell you, it wasn’t that great. There were no directions for the characters, no inclination of what their thoughts were, or even a simple narration of where they were going and who they were speaking to. It made it confusing at times.
I also felt that the story fell flat. I didn’t care much about any of the characters because they never gave me a chance to get to know them beyond their dialogue. I also did not find it funny or romantic or refreshing as many had said. I mean, each to their own but personally, I thought this was a very bland read/listen. There was no character development and no real plot in my opinion. Perhaps it had potential but the end result was not so great.
January 2, 2022
I made it like an hour in but even that was a struggle. The “banter”, if you can even call it that, was so mind numbingly boring… I feel like the couple with the most chemistry was the prince and the assistant. Their casual conversation about the girl was more flirtatious and entertaining than any conversation the two leads had together.
November 12, 2021
Short and sweet. A not too overly complicated story. The shining character in the book was a supporting character Brona. She made me laugh.
Personally, I think the audio drama sound effects took away from the story rather than added to it but each to their own.
Personally, I think the audio drama sound effects took away from the story rather than added to it but each to their own.
January 30, 2024
kinda okay. would have probably given it 2.5 stars if it wouldn’t been for the plot twist at the end that had me grinning :D
September 20, 2022
The Royal Assignment by Terence Gray, Erin Day, Ian Thake
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐/5
NA/ 🌶5
SYNOPSIS:
Maggie Patel has landed her dream job at The New York Spectator; or, it would be, if she could get a decent story assignment. When a career-making interview finally lands on her desk, it’s with the last person she’d ever want to see again - Edward, the crown prince of Bairmorne...and her long-ago friend.
QUOTE:
MY THOUGHTS:
This was a cute listen. It was more an audio drama than an audiobook and I really appreciate all the work that everyone has done on this production.
There is a little of learning curve when first listening to it because there is no descriptions, just dialogue and sound effects.
What I enjoyed:
phenomenal actors
fun sound effects
there is a prince with hot accent
What did not work for me
chip on the shoulder, the main heroine is holding this deep grudge for the royal family and we do not find out until later what it is.
miscommunication trope- if they only talked to each other we would avoid all this nonsense
jumping to conclusions by the main heroine, again if you just took 2 freaking seconds to text him you would avoid international drama
the main heroine... she was pretty petty, unprofessional and annoying...
we are told by everyone and their mother what wonderful and smart journalist she is, but literally everyone needs to tell her what she should do next, one tiny inconvenience and she runs out of the room. Prince will not answer her very leading and mean question... she needs to throw a fit... ehh...
banter? idk what it was but there is 0 chemistry between them
To sum it up, I loved the beautiful production and all the effort but not the story....
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐/5
NA/ 🌶5
SYNOPSIS:
Maggie Patel has landed her dream job at The New York Spectator; or, it would be, if she could get a decent story assignment. When a career-making interview finally lands on her desk, it’s with the last person she’d ever want to see again - Edward, the crown prince of Bairmorne...and her long-ago friend.
QUOTE:
MY THOUGHTS:
This was a cute listen. It was more an audio drama than an audiobook and I really appreciate all the work that everyone has done on this production.
There is a little of learning curve when first listening to it because there is no descriptions, just dialogue and sound effects.
What I enjoyed:
phenomenal actors
fun sound effects
there is a prince with hot accent
What did not work for me
chip on the shoulder, the main heroine is holding this deep grudge for the royal family and we do not find out until later what it is.
miscommunication trope- if they only talked to each other we would avoid all this nonsense
jumping to conclusions by the main heroine, again if you just took 2 freaking seconds to text him you would avoid international drama
the main heroine... she was pretty petty, unprofessional and annoying...
we are told by everyone and their mother what wonderful and smart journalist she is, but literally everyone needs to tell her what she should do next, one tiny inconvenience and she runs out of the room. Prince will not answer her very leading and mean question... she needs to throw a fit... ehh...
banter? idk what it was but there is 0 chemistry between them
To sum it up, I loved the beautiful production and all the effort but not the story....
March 4, 2022
3 stars, and it is only 3 because of the talent - they did an amazing job with a lacklustre script.
It took 3 people to write this? Really?
It was completely over produced - did we really need the kissing noises, the noises of someone writing in a notebook? No, we did not.
And what was with the 20+ second musical interludes between each scene? I had to check that my phone hadn't switched to Spotify when the music kept going.
Shane East as Teddy was the standout for me
It took 3 people to write this? Really?
It was completely over produced - did we really need the kissing noises, the noises of someone writing in a notebook? No, we did not.
And what was with the 20+ second musical interludes between each scene? I had to check that my phone hadn't switched to Spotify when the music kept going.
Shane East as Teddy was the standout for me
January 8, 2022
ماجي تعمل كصحفية مبتدئة
تأتي لها فرصة للترقي بعملها من خلال إجراء مقابله مع الأمير إدوارد
وهو آخر شخص ترغب بمقابلته
لقد عاشت طفولتها مع العائلة المالكة لكن بيوم تم طردها مع والدتها من القصر دون أن تعرف السبب لهذه المعاملة
تتقاطع حياتها مع الأمير بعد سنين طوال
أحببت القصة فهي مليئة بالرومانسية
أنصح بها
تأتي لها فرصة للترقي بعملها من خلال إجراء مقابله مع الأمير إدوارد
وهو آخر شخص ترغب بمقابلته
لقد عاشت طفولتها مع العائلة المالكة لكن بيوم تم طردها مع والدتها من القصر دون أن تعرف السبب لهذه المعاملة
تتقاطع حياتها مع الأمير بعد سنين طوال
أحببت القصة فهي مليئة بالرومانسية
أنصح بها
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