Prince James ascends to the throne after the sudden death of his father, plunged into a chaotic media storm reminiscent of Megan Markle as the first Black British king. As the rumours suddenly become more accurate he realises the very worst has come true—there is a rat afoot. 

Sometimes a good YA thriller is exactly what you need after a pile of difficult books. The King is Dead by Benjamin Dean did just that for me. 

Had I read this pre-death of QEII I think I would have been able to suspend my beliefs a trifle amount more—let’s face it, the inaccuracies do seem a little criminal now—but I think we can let Dean off a little. Equally the characterisation of James felt a little more middle-class schoolboy than royally raised teen, good for relatability, not always the best for his character. 

The twists, however, worked excellently. There was real tension, leaving you unsure of who was the rumour spreader and, despite suspecting the revealed culprit, I still felt taken aback. Can you really ask more of a thriller?

If you like royal hijinks and shake your head every time you see a Sun headline this is the book for you!