The following version of this book was used to create this study guide: Cocks, Heather and Morgan, Jessica. The Royal We. Grand Central Publishing, 2015. First Edition.

The Royal We is a novel told in the first-person by Rebecca “Bex” Porter, a young American woman living in England. A prologue at the start of the novel reveals she is to be wed to Prince Nicholas of Wales, who is second in line for the throne of England. The rest of the novel takes place in a flashback leading up to the wedding. At the start of the flashback (Part One) Bex is a Cornell art student who is doing a semester abroad at Oxford. It is the first time she has been away from her twin sister, Lacey, but she soon bonds with her new roommates at Oxford, including Nick. Though Bex is having a casual fling with Clive, another roommate, she and Nick begin to bond by watching TV together late at night, when neither can sleep. Eventually, Bex confesses her love for Nick and they begin a relationship.

In Part Two, Bex and Nick are still happily in a relationship, but after a photo of them kissing is leaked to the press, they become the subjects of intense scrutiny from both Nick’s family and the press itself. Bex thinks this will be an opportunity for them to finally reveal their relationship to the world, but Nick is intent on keeping things quiet. He confesses to Bex that the reason he has so much fear of the press is because of what it did to his mother, Emma: after marrying Richard and giving birth to her two sons, the paparazzi hounded Emma so intensely that she became paranoid, and eventually reclusive. Now, she lives alone, hardly speaks, and seems entirely disconnected from reality. Despite this confession, Bex and Nick are still hounded by the press, causing Nick to try to hide their relationship even more. At Nick’s birthday party, Nick spends the entire evening with an ex-girlfriend, Gemma Sands. Soon after, Bex is uninvited to attend a wedding with Nick. Bex feels them growing distant and fighting more often. Eventually, things crumble on Bex’s birthday. She and Nick fight before reluctantly agreeing to break up, saying that with things as they presently are, they cannot sustain a union.

In Part Three, Bex agonizes over her breakup. She briefly returns to the United States, where she proceeds to mope around her parents’ house. They encourage her to return to England, where her life is. Bex does so, and begins an intense streak of partying, that ends with her and Clive sleeping together on New Year’s Eve. Bex returns to England to comfort an injured Nick, who was accidentally punched after a reporter shouted inappropriate things about Bex at him. Bex carries on with her life, dedicating herself to her job at the Soane Museum and developing the Paint Britain program. She and Freddie, Nick's brother, start spending time together and bond. During a party, they accidentally kiss. After their kiss, Lacey finds Bex and tells her that Earl, their father, has died. The sisters return to America and grieve. When Bex returns to England, Nick is at her apartment waiting for her, and they immediately reconcile. Nick takes Bex to meet Emma, and after the meeting he proposes to her.

In Part Four, Bex and Nick are gearing up to make their engagement announcement official. The preparations have created strained relationships among Bex's friends. When Nick goes back to the Navy, Bex is alone and feels highly isolated. She and Lacey fight over Lacey’s flashy, attention-grabbing behavior. Meanwhile, Bex is being groomed by Marj to fit the role of a Duchess. The Queen asks Bex to sign away her American citizenship. At Gaz and Cilla’s wedding, Bex breaks down from the pressure, and Freddie takes her home. Freddie then confesses his long-repressed feeling for Bex, and they kiss again. Bex denies him and they reconcile. Nick calls from the Navy and says Bex should not sign away her citizenship, but she does so anyway.

Part Five picks up where the prologue left off: present day, just as Bex and Nick are to be wed. Lacey and Bex fight because Clive has roped them into a blackmail situation. He has Lacey on tape talking about Bex and Freddie kissing, among other things. At the wedding rehearsal, Bex can tell that Nick already knows the details of the situation and he is furious. At the rehearsal dinner, they barely speak. Bex goes to Emma’s chambers and confesses to all of the ways she has screwed up. Nick finds Bex there and he apologizes for being angry with her and says he still wants to get married. They assemble all of their friends to hatch a plan to combat Clive’s blackmail attempt. Nick suggests they get married that same night, so no one can come between them. The group heads to a nearby church, and they have a small, humble ceremony and are married.