The Royal Correspondent: A Novel

Written by Alexandra Joel

Narrated by Caroline Lee

The author of The Paris Model captures the glamour, style, excitement, and romance of a bygone era in this sumptuous novel—set in the Sydney and London of the 1960s—about an up-and-coming young Australian reporter with a deadly secret. 

Breaking into the newspaper business in 1960s Sydney—a competitive world dominated by hard-edged men—isn’t easy for a woman. But Blaise Hill is far from ordinary. The only female in The Clarion’s newsroom, her long-held dream of being a reporter has come true. Blaise isn’t chasing stories just to make a name for herself; she’s helping support her family and her beloved sister Ivy, whose life has been transformed by polio.

But the ambitious young journalist’s confidence is shaken when she secretly witnesses the murder of a top crime boss—a death that rocks the Sydney underworld. One of the few people who knows what really happened—and what Blaise knows—is the handsome, enigmatic Adam Rule, who helps cover up the murder. When she gets a plum assignment—moving to England to cover the British royal family—Blaise hopes to put it all behind her. 

Carving her own path among the scandal and intrigue of the Swinging Sixties in London, life is just about perfect—until the night she attends Queen Elizabeth’s gala in honor of the upcoming nuptials of Princess Margaret and Antony Armstrong-Jones. Among the exclusive crowd is the last man she ever wanted to see—Adam Rule. 

Is Blaise’s dark secret coming back to hurt her—or is this the beginning of something far more dangerous? 

In this mesmerizing novel, Alexandra Joel brings to life the thrilling, colorful world of 1960s Sydney and London, when fashion, music, society, and even the royal family rode the waves of change—and a spirited, ambitious heroine dared to make her way in a man’s world.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperAudio
• Release date: Sep 7, 2021
• ISBN: 9780063112827

Alexandra Joel

Alexandra is the former editor of Harper’s Bazaar and of Portfolio, Australia’s first magazine for working women. She has also been a regular contributor to The Australian and The Sydney Morning Herald Good Weekend Magazine. Alexandra has two children and lives in Sydney with her husband. She ensures that she visits Paris on a regular basis and can be found on Instagram at alexandra.joel 

Reviews for The Royal Correspondent

[susan0316 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

t's the late 1950s and Blaise is trying to become a reporter, a job that has been held exclusively by men. The only women who worked at the newspaper were the few women who worked on the women's pages which was not considered real news. When she has her first interview, she's told that she doesn't have what it takes to be a reporter but she finally gets a job as a 'copy boy' and works her way up to a night reporter job. She's ridiculed and the butt of jokes by the male reporters but she works hard to fulfill her dreams. When she makes a crucial mistake with a breaking story, she is sent to work on the women's pages. This is a job that she's always looked down on but as she makes friends and begins to enjoy the job. When she is sent to London the cover the wedding of Princess Margaret, she's thrilled with the chance to prove herself. However she left behind a potential scandal in Sydney and believes its behind her until she starts receiving mysterious letters from someone who knows her secret. London is a total change for her - it's the 60s and London is full of fun and vibrant people and the era was referred to as the Swinging Sixties. Will Blaise be able to keep her secret from jeopardizing her current exciting life or will it all blow up in her face?I loved the main character - she was gutsy and tenacious when she went after her dream of becoming a reporter. She stood up to the men in the newsroom who wanted to belittle her for being a woman. Her life changed dramatically from the poor section of Sydney with very few clothes to London where she is respected and has a whole new wardrobe of stylish and popular clothes. It was more than the job and the clothes - Blaise continued to work hard at her job to bring the real news to the people.I loved the writing, the plot and the characters of this novel and will read whatever the author writes in the future.Thanks to goodreads for a copy of this book to read and review. All opinions are my own.

[jillrhudy · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Thanks to HarperCollins and Netgalley for an advanced readers copy in exchange for an honest review.What a pleasure! Extensive research by the author sets this book apart from other historical fiction. A Sydney girl from the rough side of town gets a job with a Sydney newspaper, the Clarion. Through hard work and a nose for the news, Blaise Hill becomes a cadet reporter in a field reserved for men. She also gets mixed up in a murder, covering up for an old childhood friend from the streets who kills a drug dealer in self-defense. Blaise hides the murder weapon in her handbag and is wondering how to get rid of it when a handsome and sexy stranger, Adam, appears out of nowhere and, claiming to be a friend of her old pal, takes the bloody knife off Blaise's hands. Blaise is very attractive to Adam but knows almost nothing about him.To Blaise's disappointment, she is reassigned to the Women's Pages at the Clarion and given a Devil-Wears-Prada style makeover. The newly glamorous Blaise falls into an exciting gig covering the royal family for the Advocate in London, beginning with the royal ball celebrating the impending royal wedding of Princess Margaret. When scandal threatens to envelop Margaret's new husband, Blaise is determined to protect her, and earns the queen's gratitude.Even with this plum assignment, Blaise dreams of covering "hard news" just like a male reporter, but life among the London elite definitely has its pleasures. She befriends a rich baronet, Charles, who wants her to marry him and become a lady one day (complete with large country house). Charles tells her that Adam is a very bad sort. Who should she believe, and how can she keep either man from getting in the way of her ambitions in journalism? The solution at the end of the novel is surprising and eminently satisfying.This book is a natural for lovers of the TV series "The Crown" and an ideal choice for book clubs. Wonderfully plotted and paced, the novel only lags in a couple of places when Blaise is between assignments and feeling indecisive; otherwise The Royal Correspondent provides nonstop enjoyment for the reader.