Prince William Wants to "Stay Neutral" for Prince Harry's Book Release

Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, Prince Charles, Prince of Wales and Prince Harry attend the Opening Ceremony of the Invictus Games at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park on September 10, 2014 in London, England — (Image credit: Getty/Max Mumby/Indigo)

It's been a while since a book release caused this much drama.

So far, Prince Harry's impending memoir release has reportedly caused royals to "quake in their boots," has attracted criticism for its proximity to the Queen's Jubilee celebrations, and is rumored to have the potential to cause Prince William to suffer significantly. Oof.

The Royal Family may be silent about their enfant terrible's scribblings publicly, but in private it sounds like they are working around the clock to keep it from being too damaging both to their emotions and to their public image.

Prince Charles is apparently scared that the book will amount to an "excoriating takedown" of Camilla Parker-Bowles, because of the affair she and Prince Charles had while he was still married to Harry's mom Princess Diana.

After doing his best to patch things up with his youngest son via a metaphorical pat-on-the-back in a recent Newsweek essay, Charles is reportedly trying his luck with his eldest, Prince William.

"Charles has shared his concerns with William, and is keen he somehow goes on the record and sticks up for Camilla, should the book attack her," a source told The Sun.

"But as much as William loves his father, he’s unlikely to want to get involved. In all likelihood he will try and stay neutral."

From an outside perspective, this certainly seems like the right course of action for the Duke of Cambridge, whose formerly tight-knit relationship with his younger brother has suffered a lot from the Sussexes' departure from the U.K. and royal life. Speaking out in opposition to Harry could only further damage their relationship.

Although there have been some reports of reconciliation efforts, things have continued to be pretty frosty between the two brothers. Here's to hoping they're able to repair their bond sooner rather than later.

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Iris Goldsztajn is a London-based journalist, editor and author. She is the morning editor at Marie Claire, and her work has appeared in the likes of British Vogue, InStyle, Cosmopolitan, Refinery29 and SELF. Iris writes about everything from celebrity news and relationship advice to the pitfalls of diet culture and the joys of exercise. She has many opinions on Harry Styles, and can typically be found eating her body weight in cheap chocolate.