I wanted to read this book because I enjoyed the Mika in Real Life and Tokyo Ever After and decided to try and finish this series. I preferred the first book in this series, and I think the love triangle ruined this book (for me personally). 

This book is still based on Izumi Tanaka who we met in the last book and once she learned her father was the Crown Prince of Japan and she became a princess overnight. Now she’s overcome conniving cousins, salacious press, and an imperial scandal to finally find a place she belongs. She has a perfect bodyguard turned boyfriend. Her stinky dog, Tamagotchi, is living with her in Tokyo. Her parents have even rekindled their college romance and are engaged. A royal wedding is on the horizon! Izumi’s life is a Tokyo dreaming come true. But her parents’ engagement hits a brick wall. The Imperial Household Council refuses to approve the marriage citing concerns about Izumi and her mother’s lack of pedigree. And on top of it all, her bodyguard turned boyfriend makes a shocking decision about their relationship. At the threat of everything falling apart, Izumi vows to do whatever it takes to help win over the council. Which means upping her newly acquired princess game. But at what cost? Izumi will do anything to help her parents achieve their happily ever after, but what if playing the perfect princess means sacrificing her own? Will she find a way to forge her own path and follow her heart?  

I still enjoyed the aspect of this, and the Princess Diaries vibes and Izumi was having such a hard time during this book where everyone was pressuring her on her future, and she didn’t know what she wanted after all the changes she’s had. Just like the last book, she had a great character development, and I loved how she went from trying to please everyone to standing up for herself and what she wanted to do. I loved that some of the focus was on Izzy’s mum and dad’s relationship and how Izzy’s mum was also struggling to adjust to Tokyo and understood what Izumi went through during the first book. I loved seeing the twins getting their redemption arc.  

Unpopular opinion, but I actually loved Eriku and his relationship with Izumi and preferred those two together over Akio. I don’t like love triangles in most stories and then this one felt a little forced from how the first book ended. I loved Eriku and he was so patient with Izumi, and I loved how it was a slow love, and you could tell that it was going to be happy if they carried on. I think if Eriku was introduced in the first book, the fans would have gone for Eriku but I just felt like he got a bad ending, and he didn’t deserve it. I also felt like Akio didn’t deserve the girl, he dipped in the first half and then was pissed because Eriku was with his girl, like no thanks.  

I would have loved for this to be multiple POV with the parents and Akio and Eriku, especially with Izumi’s mum struggling and her dad freaking out that they wouldn’t find them. I would love for this series to have another book once Izumi has finished university and to see how she’s doing in her adult life and hopefully Akio leaves and Eriku comes back.