The Royal Secret by Lucinda Riley
Thank you for joining me this week for Book Beginnings on Fridays where participants share the opening sentence (or two) from the book they are reading. You can also share from a book you want to feature, even if you are not reading it at the moment.
MY BOOK BEGINNING
“James, darling, what are you doing?”
-- from The Royal Secret by Lucinda Riley, a story of scandal and mystery within a fictional British royal family, set in the 1990s. I found this on my TBR shelf and it looks good. I thought I'd give it a go.
This book has an interesting history. According to the author's note in the beginning, it is a surprise it ever got published. She submitted it in 1998, shortly after Princess Di's death and before the Queen Mother's 100th birthday. Apparently, England wasn't ready for a thriller set amid the royal family, even if the family was fictional. Not only did her publisher cancel the book contract, Riley found herself cancelled before the term cancel culture even existed. She ended up taking years off from writing, concentrated on raising her kids, and only started publishing books again after she took a new last name. Finally, in 2018, she got a deal to publish The Royal Secret, although even then she used The Love Letter as the UK title.
YOUR BOOK BEGINNING
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The next was a large, creased brown envelope, addressed in spidery writing so indecipherable she was amazed it had even reached her. She tore it open and took out its contents.
When Sir James Harrison, one the greatest actors of his generation, passes away at the age of ninety-five, he leaves behind not just a heartbroken family but also a secret so shocking, it could rock the English establishment to its core.
Joanna Haslam, an up-and-coming reporter, is assigned to cover the legendary actor’s funeral, attended by glitzy celebrities of every background. But Joanna stumbles on something dark beneath the glamour: the mention of a letter James Harrison has left behind—the contents of which many have been desperate to keep concealed for over seventy years. As she peels back the veil of lies that has shrouded the secret, she realizes that she’s close to uncovering something deadly serious—and the royal family may be implicated. Before long, someone is on her tracks, attempting to prevent her from discovering the truth. And they’ll stop at nothing to reach the letter before she does.
That *is* an interesting history of publishing!
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