When Princess Araminta of Essex invites George Nearly and friends to her sister’s royal wedding, the party princess has plans to make it a day to remember for the happy couple. Quite horrid plans. And those plans involve him. Of course they do. It’s been one of those weeks for George.

It’s not long before things start going awry for our reluctant saboteur, as he encounters the cream of eccentric high society, an eligible young man with eyes for his plus-one Sam, a party-princess lookalike, and a barmy bridesmaid who wants to take him for a wild ride on a rocking chair.

Will Araminta somehow sabotage her sister’s celebrations? Can George rescue his first date with Sam? Or will he lose her, as well as his sanity? Find out, in this hilarious sequel to An Accidental Royal Kidnap by self-proclaimed king of comedy fiction Paul Mathews!

I received a free copy of this book courtesy of the author in exchange for an honest review.

It seems like I have a penchant for picking out books An Accidental Royal Kidnap ended with an unexpected invite for George Nearly, his best friend Lennon and his old colleague Sam to attend a wedding. A royal wedding. The wedding of Princess Hermione, sister of Princess Araminta. Araminta divulges her intention to sabotage the wedding and she would need George and Lennon to help make it happen. The second book picks up just a week after the incidents of the first book.set in New Orleans with a paranormal touch. It’s a city I have always loved yet not visited just yet. In this outing, rather than delving into the lore of the ancient city, The Rift takes a dive into the battle between good and evil, between heaven and hell. Decades before, a gaping chasm between the deepest bowels of hell and the mortal plane of Earth opened, freeing demons of all kinds to run amok.

As ever, George is attempting to rid himself of the presence of his overbearing mother while preparing for the wedding. Predictably things take a turn from the outset, what with an urgent need to change his suit and a very last minute shopping trip for wedding gifts. The drama and disasters begin when Lennon finds himself distracted by a lit novelty candle in the shape of Windsor Castle. A tumble leads to it setting George’s suit aflame. Things go from bad to worse from this point onwards.

Disastrous gift shopping aside, the entire event is one catastrophe after another. From an eligible bachelor with designs on his plus one, Sam, to an overzealous bridesmaid after anyone and a couple of single, older ladies of society on the prowl, George has more than enough on his plate without being a royal wedding saboteur.

With this second novel in the series, Mathews brings the drama, dilemma and absurdity to even greater levels. The story is ridiculous, over the top and utterly mad. It’s funny, exasperating and cringe-inducing in equal measures. I thoroughly enjoyed it and cannot wait to see what dramas befall George and his friends next time out!

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