Bedmates: An American Royalty Novel

Written by Nichole Chase

Narrated by Saskia Maarleveld and Will Damron

From the New York Times bestselling author of Suddenly Royal comes the first in a sparkling new series about America’s favorite royal—the First Daughter.

Everyone makes mistakes, especially in college. But when you’re the daughter of the President of the United States, any little slipup is a huge embarrassment. Maddie McGuire’s latest error in judgment lands her in police custody, giving the press a field day. Agreeing to do community service as penance and to restore her tattered reputation, Maddie never dreams that the incredibly good-looking but extremely annoying vice president’s son, Jake Simmon, will be along for the ride.

Recently returned from Afghanistan with a life-altering injury, Jake is wrestling with his own demons. He doesn’t have the time or patience to deal with the likes of Maddie. They’re like oil and water, and every time they’re together, it’s combustible. But there’s a thin line between love and hate, and it’s not long before their fiery arguments give way to infinitely sexier encounters.

When Jake receives devastating news about the last remaining member of his unit, the darkness he’s resisted for so long begins to overwhelm him. Scared to let anyone close, he pushes Maddie away. But she isn’t about to give up on Jake that easily. Maddie’s fallen for him, and she’ll do anything to keep him from the edge as they both discover that love is a battlefield and there are some fights you just can’t lose.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperAudio
• Release date: Oct 4, 2016
• ISBN: 9780062446152

Nichole Chase

Nichole Chase is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of Suddenly Royal and Recklessly Royal. She lives in Georgia with her husband, little girl, superhero dog, Sulcata tortoise, and two cats. When not devouring novels by the dozens, you can find her writing, painting, crafting, or chasing her daughter around the house while making monster noises.

Reviews for Bedmates

[nancyluebke · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

My goodness, this was an interesting read. I received this book for free and I voluntarily chose to review it. I've given it a 4.2* rating. This was a fairly fast read but because of sexual content, it's not for the under 18 readers. This story tackled the PTSD problem, so yes there are some sad parts to this. So it showed a little of what might happen in the background of the Whitehouse, which was interesting in some parts. Had just too much erotica for my tastes but overall, it tackled a big problem in our country today.

[jessicadelellis · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I received this book for free through LibraryThing's Early Reviewers.I started reading this book way back in January and put it on hold for the longest time because I was in such a reading slump. This was a nice and cute romance book. I did like that it touched upon PTSD which is a heavy subject and showed the effects that it can have. Overall, it didn't blow my mind, but it was still a good romance novel.

[sdbookhound · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Maybe I have read too many romance books in the past few years, because it has become harder and harder for a book like this one to make an impression on me. It was an ok romance. The characters were adequate. The serious issue of PTSD was dealt with, but I have read similar story lines that were much the same and impressed me more. Two stars.

[oddandbookish · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I received this book for free through LibraryThing's Early Reviewers.I started reading this book way back in January and put it on hold for the longest time because I was in such a reading slump. This was a nice and cute romance book. I did like that it touched upon PTSD which is a heavy subject and showed the effects that it can have. Overall, it didn't blow my mind, but it was still a good romance novel.

[conkie_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A little housekeeping first: OUCH! I forgot to post my review of this book after finishing it in early November (2016). It was received as part of the LibraryThing Early Reviewers program; I remember being impressed it was mailed out within 3 weeks of the winners announcement! This was the first book by Ms. Chase I had read, and I really enjoyed it (review to follow). Over the weekend, the eAudio version was available for borrowing through my local library. Terrific! I could add onto the "existing" review, my thoughts of how well the narrators performed the book... and, THAT's when I realized, I hadn't posted my FIRST review. So here goes...

This is a story about two people, whose lives interwove due to their parents' shared political careers. Maddie McGuire, 21 and daughter of the U.S. President, is a serial non-conformist do-gooder. Jake Simmon, 27ish and son of the Vice-President, is an Afghanistan-war veteran, adjusting to society after experiencing devastating losses from a 'mission gone wrong.' Their shared background has been on hiatus for the past 5-6 years, as Jake went through Officer training school and then deployment overseas. However, prior to Jake leaving, he enjoyed besting Maddie whenever he could, since she tried to get him into trouble. For Maddie, outward efforts to show her disdain of Jake, were actually fueled by an unrequited "teen" crush on him. Fast-forward to current day, the two are assigned to work together on a long-term Veterans assistance program. Both are leery of this arrangement, as they independently recognize there is a spark between them, despite their past skirmishes.

As is my policy, I won't disclose further details of the story; instead sharing my feelings about the storyline, etc. While I have read a fair amount of 21st century military stories, involving the difficulties in transitioning back into society, I still felt this book had a separate voice. The author does not tip-toe around the real issues veterans face. Likewise, she doesn't pull punches with character dialogue. Most of the characters speak colloquial dialogue. However, there are times during the book, when the author seemed unsure if the overall theme was about the characters' resiliency in the end or a hot, HEA romance. Sometimes I felt Maddie was written too young in age; she didn't always match up to a returning, seasoned soldier. In contrast, the male characters all spoke as guys would in real life; reluctantly and sparingly. Despite the bit of inconsistent writing, the story moved along nicely, the characters were developed as well as each needed to be, leaving me with the hope that the author will write another story based on some of these characters: Jake's two sisters, or Jake's buddies, Slade and Tame. This story rates four stars.

NOTE about the Audio version of this book: Two narrators were utilized during this production. Usually I rather enjoy having male and female off-setting voices; in this instance, I did not. The female narrator Saskia Maarleveld was new to me. At first she seemed a little subdued, but her pacing and ability to invoke different intonations that were easy to listen to, won me over. I wished she had been a solo narrator on this book. The male narrator Will Damron just never sounded the way I "heard" Jake's voice in my mind. His interpretation of how Jake should say things, just didn't work. He was often too "hard" and "abrupt" in his emphasis and cadence. His "female" voice was not easy to listen to. Too nasally? whiney? I am just thankful I read this story in book format first, as the audio version was lacking.

[collsers_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Overall, this was an enjoyable, quick read. A romance arises between the President's activist daughter and the VP's veteran son, brought together on a charity project. The characters were a bit more nuanced than you usually find in this genre, and the sex scenes were well-written. Recommended for fans of the genre.