Tilly Maguire and the Royal Wedding Mess

Tilly Maguire and the Royal Wedding Mess by Emma Grey (Harper Collins) RRP $19.99 (PB)ISBN 9781460755051

Reviewed by Nean McKenzie

Tilly Maguire and the Royal Wedding Mess (An Accidental Fairy Tale) is a romantic comedy for teenagers set amongst the world of British celebrity. Tilly, a blogger from Australia, arrives jetlagged in London for her new job as an intern for a PR company. She goes straight to a charity ball, where she meets her childhood crush, boy-band member Reuben Vaughan. One misunderstanding plunges Tilly into the limelight of the tabloid press and the world of the rich and famous. 

Just finished high school, Tilly’s big international opportunity goes pear-shaped when she snaps a photo of Princess Isabelle (supposedly in the middle of a marriage proposal from Reuben) and accidently shares it to the worldwide media. Reuben goes into damage control and whisks Tilly off into hiding after announcing she is his ‘muse’, meaning Tilly is thrown together with the boy she obsessed over as a teenager. Now Tilly has other ambitions than marrying a pop star, like writing a novel, but to save her career she must go along with a subterfuge. This leads to a series of confusing events, not just for Tilly, but for Reuben and Isabelle, and finally to a royal wedding.

Tilly is an impulsive, funny character who is given more depth by the fact she suffers from anxiety, and Reuben’s character becomes more appealing by the way he responds to this. Princess Isabelle is not your standard princess as she has been hiding her sexuality from her conservative parents and the girl she loves. Told from multiple perspectives, the fast-paced plot, with a twist, leads the characters to a better understanding of themselves. And a ‘happily ever after’ at the end!

Tilly Maguire and the Royal Wedding Mess should appeal to readers in their mid-teens. The pink cover with a tiara and high heels seems to direct the story mostly towards girls. Written with age-appropriate terminology and humour, this book should be a page turner for these readers.