Vampire Royals: The Gala by Leigh Walker-A critique

"The Gala" is a 2018 book of more than a hundred pages by Leigh Walker. It is the second book in the Vampire Royals book series.

Book Overview (according to Amazon)

"FOUR WEEKS. TWENTY CONTESTANTS. ONE PRINCE.

The Pageant is almost over, and Gwyneth West knows she can win - except the prince is a vampire, and some of the other contestants are turning out to be quite beastly.

What do you do when the person you love…might want to eat you alive?

Struggling to hold onto her position in the palace, Gwyn knows her vampire prince could slip through her fingers in an instant. And when human rebels threaten to storm the vampire royals once more, Gwyn finds herself caught between two worlds: her people, and the vampire she loves."

Critique

The book is written from the Prince's return and it's written in a way it can be read as a stand-alone. The girls assumed Gwyneth was sexual with the prince to gain his favour which Tamara spread and Shaye did not defend her. I was happy Gwyn got to see how the rebels were to accept they were as prejudiced as she was despite theirs being extreme and murderous. I'm not surprised that Balkyn was still fighting the vampires with his father but like, they could have returned home. I don't know, for the cause I guess. I was happy Dallas took her home and tended to her family. It was sweet. I know she's 18 and jealousy can differ for everyone but my word she was annoying at times. It took Balkyn's imprisonment, Dallas's hurt and the possible anger from the King to make her realize she should probably stay put. Dallas has been through a lot because of her. I liked Blake she was supportive, self-aware and made the best of her situation. I see she and Dallas have a friendship and he hopes to set her up with his brother still up north. Hmm, should be interesting.

Dallas visited the settlements for the first time and like in the first book, he got to realize that he's been lied to about a lot. The king told him that conquering would help the settlements and that they had been doing fine but they hadn't. He's perceptive and has emotional intelligence. We learn he's 20 (in normal human years or he's stayed 20) and she's 18 or well she was in the previous book. There's still the possibility of greater dangers to the settlements as it was mentioned in the first book. Gwyn asked and found out more about vampires. We see that Dallas would never encourage his wife to turn because he doesn't appreciate the immortality factor of being a vampire. After all, it allows a long time to regret. He has regrets about a lot of killings he's partaken in. We see the depth of his trust in Gwyn as he tells her what hurts and kills them. We also see how she trusts him as well as she didn't tell her brother about what could cause harm to him but stalled to figure something out. 

I like that she got horse riding as her date activity and that she remembered how to because, as she mentioned, she used to do it before the war. Dallas explains that his family took the horses to prevent the rebels from using them. As I was reading, I thought that if I were her I would just be tired. I would request for elimination because it's a lot plus you still get the stipend even if they don't choose her. I mean, the King did not like her before due to her affiliation with the Ben and he doesn't know the new prisoner who is a rebel is also her brother. I like Mira's random moments of support too like in the first book. I also love the support from Evangeline, Bria and Bettina. It was ironic for Dallas to call werewolves filthy but I guess we'll see why in the coming books. I like that Shaye apologized to her and all but yeah. The harsh editing and structuring of reality tv was added in this evident in how they quickly filmed Tamara's kiss scene with Dallas the night before but edited it to look like he saved Gwyn's family then came back for a date.

I didn't like the fact that Tariq gave her a dress that was so exposed when she was already accused of giving him sexual favors to advance in the competition. Dallas often had to reassure Gwyn. He often made things clear to her apart from the times he doesn't that he wants her and this is a game which he has to at least pretend to be fair. I was happy he said he needed her trust. He also said that she was still naive from being sheltered for having Tariq and Tamara's efforts impact her. After her interruption of Shaye's date, I was surprised Shaye didn't say anything to her. Yes, she calls Shaye a peacemaker but she still has emotions as we've seen her falter during this fight for the prince. I actually thought it would become a situation of her joining Tamara against Gwyn to be create a narrative since Gwyn interrupted both dates. The book ends with the fours friends and ladies being picked as finalists-Shaye, Blake, Gwyneth, and…Tamara. I was happy about Eve's growth. She made the most of her situation and loves being a vampire. Eve was happier and calmer as she said the wisdom she gained came with the immortality as a vampire because all you can do is think. She had a purpose at the palace and was recognized by the Queen so much so that she asked Gwyn about it. The Queen was using Eve to replace her dead daughter for a bit but seems to like her. I think Shaye will become nastier, Tamara will be Tamara (unfiltered, sensual, devious), and Blake will be Blake (still calm, collected and hungry). Oh and the trip Dallas came back from was not for her brother but it technically was since he's part of the rebels he searched for.

Favourite character: Blake, and Eve.

Favourite scene: When Blake encouraged her at the common room. When Bria and Bettina encouraged her before the Gala.

Most memorable thing: Who is this Lucas they keep mentioning? He was mentioned briefly in the first book as well.

Overall: I enjoyed it as well.