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Verdict: A light, funny royal romance with a sweet, mature couple and a sapphic fairytale feel. Fans find it swoony, and one likens it to Red, White & Royal Blue; critics found it instalove-heavy, low on tension and bland, and several downgraded it over its AI-generated cover.
Best for: Readers who want a royals-meet-sport fairytale with humour and a guaranteed happy ending.
Heat level: Steamy
Rating: ★★★★☆ (3.7/5 — a 4.12 Goodreads average across 3,110 ratings, 3.83 on StoryGraph from 597 reviews, and 4.6 stars across 1,968 Amazon ratings)
Tropes: Royalty, celebrity athlete, secret relationship, closeted heroine, instalove, forbidden romance.
The Princess Match is Clare Lydon’s 2025 contemporary lesbian romance. Ashleigh, captain of England’s women’s football team and a European champion, receives an MBE from Princess Victoria, the heir to the throne — and neither is the same afterwards.
It holds a 4.12 average across 3,110 Goodreads ratings, with 75% of them four or five stars, 3.83 on StoryGraph from 597 reviews, and 4.6 stars across 1,968 Amazon ratings.
What Is The Princess Match About?
Victoria has perfected the royal playbook: calculated smile, convenient boyfriend, impeccable press. Behind the tiara, she is tired of the rules.
Ash is the media darling who proves authenticity wins. Stolen glances become secret meetings, private texts become tabloid gold, and when the romance hits the headlines, Victoria must choose between tradition and love.
What Works in This Romance
- A mature couple: Readers call Victoria and Ash sweet, respectful and easy to root for.
- Lydon’s trademarks: Humour, atmosphere and, one reader says, a first kiss that has you kicking your feet.
- Realistic tension: A fan liked that the conflict comes from reality — including an excruciating meet-the-parents — rather than villains.
- Fairytale appeal: One reader compares it to Red, White & Royal Blue, and another pictures it as a film.
Book Synopsis
One football star. One future queen. One meeting at an investiture that changes everything.
As their secret romance grows, both women have to decide what they are willing to risk to be together in public.
My Review
This is Lydon in comfort mode: warm and witty, with an old-fashioned courtship quality that one reader enjoyed. For readers after a sapphic fairytale, it delivers exactly that.
The criticism clusters around lack of tension. Readers who dislike instalove found the chemistry thin and the characters bland; one says the leads know they want each other almost from the start. Others found the opening slow, wanted to see public reactions to the couple going public, or felt it was forgettable. Separately, a number of one-star ratings object to the AI-generated cover rather than the book.
My honest note: Go in for comfort, not suspense.
| Element | In The Princess Match |
|---|---|
| Central relationship | Princess Victoria, heir to the throne, & Ashleigh, England’s women’s football captain |
| Core tropes | Royalty, celebrity athlete, secret relationship, instalove |
| Setting | London, the palace and English women’s football |
| Heat level | Steamy |
| Length | 352 pages (Kindle listing) |
| Series | Followed by The Forever Match (2026) |
| Content notes | Homophobia, lesbophobia, biphobia, alcoholism, classism |
How Spicy Is The Princess Match?
More than you might expect from a royal romcom. StoryGraph users have tagged graphic sexual content, and one reader says she can’t hear a certain Taylor Swift song the same way again.
StoryGraph users have also flagged homophobia, lesbophobia, biphobia, alcoholism and classism.
Who Should Read This Book?
You’ll likely love it if: you want a royal fairytale with a football star. It is on our sapphic sports romance list.
You may want to skip it if: instalove or low-conflict romances leave you cold.
In short: A cosy royal fairytale.
What Readers Are Actually Saying (September 2026)
On Goodreads the split is 41% five stars, 34% four, 19% three, 3% two and under 1% one. On StoryGraph, 78% tagged it lighthearted and 60% hopeful, and 92% found the characters loveable.
Why readers love it (according to the discourse): The couple first. Second, the humour. Third, the fairytale premise. Fourth, the spice.
What readers argue about and complain about: Instalove and low tension, above everything. Second, the AI cover. Third, a slow start.
The comparison worth making first: Clare Lydon’s Hotshot, which two reviewers loved and measured this against.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is The Princess Match about?
Princess Victoria, heir to the throne and publicly closeted, pins an MBE on Ashleigh, England’s football captain, and the attraction is instant. Secret meetings follow, until the tabloids catch on.
Does The Princess Match have a happy ending?
Yes. Readers describe a safe HEA, and a follow-up, The Forever Match, centres on the couple’s wedding.
How spicy is The Princess Match?
Steamier than the cover suggests. One reader clutched her pearls, and StoryGraph users have tagged graphic sexual content, though another called it a little bit of spice.
Why do some reviews mention the cover?
A number of low Goodreads ratings object to the cover being AI-generated rather than to the story itself.
Is The Princess Match on Kindle Unlimited?
Not at the time of writing — the Kindle edition was listed at $8.99, and an audiobook edition is available.
If You Loved The Princess Match, Read These Next
Look out for The Forever Match, or try Hotshot. For more, browse our sapphic sports romance list and the full Book Reviews archive.
The Bottom Line
The Princess Match sets out to be a feel-good royal romance, and for many readers it is. What holds it back is how little tension it builds. Worth it for fairytale fans. Check The Princess Match on Amazon →
The Eikna Overall Ranking
On the Eikna scale, The Princess Match ranks as a good comfort romance — sweet, safe.
The Evidence Scorecard
Overall ★★★★☆ 3.7/5
- ✓ 4.12 average across 3,110 Goodreads ratings
- ✓ 75% of Goodreads ratings are four or five stars
- ✓ 3.83 on StoryGraph from 597 reviews
- ✓ 4.6 stars across 1,968 Amazon ratings
Romance ★★★★☆ 3.6/5
- ✓ Sweet and mature
- ✓ Great first kiss
- ✓ Instalove
- ✓ Low tension
Characters ★★★★☆ 3.6/5
- ✓ 92% loveable characters
- ✓ Easy to root for
- ✓ Bland for some
- ✓ Real-feeling families
Writing ★★★★☆ 3.7/5
- ✓ Lydon humour
- ✓ Atmosphere
- ✓ Slow start
- ✓ Old-fashioned courtship
Emotional Impact ★★★★☆ 3.5/5
- ✓ Tagged lighthearted by 78%
- ✓ Tagged hopeful by 60%
- ✓ Swoony
- ✓ Forgettable for one
Heat Level ★★★★☆ 4/5
- ✓ Steamy
- ✓ Graphic content tagged
- ✓ Pearl-clutching
- ✓ Mixed perceptions
Ending ★★★★☆ 4/5
- ✓ Safe HEA
- ✓ Going public
- ✓ Wedding sequel
- ✓ Wanted more aftermath
Re-read Value ★★★★☆ 3.5/5
- ✓ $8.99 Kindle price
- ✓ Audiobook available
- ✓ Not on Kindle Unlimited
- ✓ Sequel out
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