Red as Royal Blood by Elizabeth Hart

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Red as Royal Blood

by Elizabeth Hart

Published by HarperCollins on November 18, 2025
Genres: YA Royal Mystery
Pages: 333
Format: Audible Audiobook, Audio CD, Hardcover, Kindle
Source: NetGalley
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Get Your Copy at: Amazon

The Inheritance Games gets the royal treatment in this paperback original thriller that combines courtly intrigue, succession drama, and romance.

Ruby has never found a puzzle she couldn’t solve. Even though she’s destined to spend the rest of her life as a servant to the royal family, her mind itches for a true challenge. But no puzzle could prepare her for the king’s decision to name Ruby as the next heir to the throne just before his death.

Thrown into the viper’s nest of court, Ruby is forced to contend with a kingdom in crisis, the dead king’s angry wife, and the three entitled and annoyingly handsome princes. Then, as if being newly crowned queen wasn’t enough, she discovers a note left by the king that claims he was murdered . . . and that she might be next.

Unsure of who she can trust, Ruby makes uneasy alliances with each of the princes as she tries to solve the king’s murder. But with the clock winding down, she will face her most difficult challenge finding the truth before the killer comes for her.

Red as Royal Blood by Elizabeth Hart takes a royal mystery on a whole new level.

Can Ruby stop the person from killing all the monarchs?

Ruby has been a servant for most of her life in the castle. The reason for that is that she is a war orphan and had no one else to take care of her. I like Ruby because she grew up as a servant and was then elevated to a royal status by the king, so she knows what life is like for the working class. She likes to have a challenge, and the biggest challenge of all is the note that the king left her.

I loved the royal intrigue and all the elements of different genres that Ms. Hart brought to the table within this novel. The mystery, the royalty, the romance, and of course, the historical aspect of it all. Ms. Hart created a fascinating world, and I loved the limited time that we were in it for this novel.

I was keeping tabs on all the mystery elements and trying to solve the mystery before Ruby. Sadly, I wasn’t able to, as I never guessed that it was that person who ended up being the culprit. I thought it was a totally different person.

Four Stars

My rating for Red as Royal Blood by Elizabeth Hart is four stars. I am also recommending this book. Ms. Hart wrote this novel well, and I almost read it all in one sitting. I will miss being with Ruby and all the other characters.

Thank you for dropping by! I hope you enjoyed this review of Red as Royal Blood by Elizabeth Hart.

Until the next time,

Happy Reading!

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Reading this book contributed to these challenges:

• 2025 Cloak and Dagger
• 2025 Goodreads RC
• 2025 Medical Examiner Mystery RC
• 2025 Romance Book Reading Challenge
• 2025 Young Adult Book RC

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