Publication Date: September 16, 2025
An amateur online sleuth must enlist the help of a jaded PI to clear her name while taking down a shady tech start-up in this exhilarating romantic suspense novel.
Fiona Addai is ready to set her plan in motion. To honor the anniversary of her brother’s death, she’s going to steal back his brilliant invention from the ruthless corporation that stole and claimed it as their own. As a famed Reddit detective known as @Princess_PI, Fiona has used her online connections and sleuthing skills to time every step down to the minute. But with one disastrous misstep, instead of getting justice, Fiona finds herself accused of murder.
Maurice Bennett is no stranger to insomnia. These days, he’s not losing sleep over the cases he’s solving—but running from the one he couldn’t. Instead, he’s been settling for small-time scandals that don’t stir up the guilt he’s buried. But when he spots Fiona Addai at the center of a murder investigation, something clicks. And for the first time in a long while, Maurice feels that old spark of intrigue.
However, Fiona is not the helpless damsel she appears to be. Sure, she needs Maurice’s help to clear her name, but she’s got conditions of her own: she wants a crash course in real-world detective work. Maurice isn’t exactly thrilled. With every late-night stakeout and tension-filled interrogation, their partnership, rife with tension and unexpected chemistry, unravels a dangerous web of corporate crime and familial secrets. To bring the real killer to light, they’ll need to trust each other and that might be the most dangerous gamble of all.
The Princess and the P.I. by Nikki Payne is a mystery with some steam. Set in Maryland, there are crimes not only to solve, but also to uncover.
A feisty cover drew me in, but the story itself started slowly. There are titles for every chapter, and they piqued my curiosity and interest. Fiona is the princess, and Maurice is the P.I. But when they work together to solve a murder, they get more than they bargain for. She’s the daughter of a church leader whose church is more like a cult. She is often at odds with her older sister and father, but ultimately, they learn to work together to figure out whodunnit.
Multiple stories are being told with so many twists and turns. When Maurice gets Fiona and sees her, she gathers strength to do what’s right and bring honor and justice for those deserving it. As we get closer to whodunnit in several of the crimes, Fiona rises to the occasion each and every time. It was interesting to watch her become a better and stronger version of herself. The emails included from her podcasts added another level. There is closure and a chance for a happily ever after, but the story ended abruptly, even with the epilogue.
The Princess and the P.I. gathered clues and red herrings to figure out whodunnit.
By day, Nikki Payne is a curious tech anthropologist asking the right questions to deliver better digital services. By night, she dreams of ways to subvert canon literature. She’s a member of Smut U, a premium feminist writing collective, and a cat lady with no cats.
