'Red, White & Royal Blue' by Casey McQuiston
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| 'Red, White & Royal Blue' front cover |
'Red, White & Royal Blue' by Casey McQuiston - Review
*Trigger Warning marked in this review*
*SLIGHT SPOILERS*
Description
What happens when America's First Son falls in love with the Prince of Wales?
When his mother became President, Alex Claremont-Diaz was promptly cast as the American equivalent of a young royal. Handsome, charismatic, genius - his image is pure millennial-marketing gold for the White House. There's only one problem: Alex has a beef with the actual prince, Henry, across the pond. And when the tabloids get a hold of a photo involving an Alex-Henry altercation, U.S/British relations take a turn for the worse.
Heads of family, state, and other handlers devise a plan for damage control: staging a truce between the two rivals. What at first begins as a fake, Instagrammable friendship grows deeper, and more dangerous, than either Alex or Henry could have imagined. Soon Alex finds himself hurtling into a secret romance with a surprisingly unstuffy Henry that could derail the campaign and upend two nations and begs the question: Can love save the world after all? Where do we find the courage, and the power, to be the people we are meant to be? And how can we learn to let our true colours shine through?
Goodreads Rating: 4.23 My Rating: 5
First Impressions
I had seen this book floating around on Bookstagram and Goodreads and immediately fell in love with the idea behind the story - LQBTQ+, enemies-to-lovers, AND both characters having royal/political backgrounds? Sign. Me. Up! There's something so intriguing about what life would be like in those circumstances, but also a mix of an exciting and nerve-wracking forbidden kind of romance...
I had no idea the novel would be as long as it is which surprised me, but I was able to get stuck in so quickly and couldn't put it down! We meet our narrative character, Alex, and begin to learn more about him, his life, and his opinions towards Henry right from the get-go, as well as experiencing their first interaction in the book in the first chapter. Already, their chemistry was so strong and engrossing that it was impossible to NOT see what happens next!
The Characters
Alex: son of the President of the United States, quite a cheeky chappy, but wants to make a positive difference to the world.
Henry: Prince of Wales, seemingly uptight, but wants to make a positive difference to the world.
As both characters learn more about one another, their similarities really shine out in a beautiful way and bounce off of the other in such an endearing fashion. At the same time, their differences are embraced too! One part I must touch upon is that sexuality was handled in an amazing way and it really warmed my heart to feel validated as a result of Alex being validated as bisexual!
Alex and Henry were able to develop as people on their journey and be unapologetically themselves, despite everything that had been thrown at them. I couldn't help but feel so emotionally connected to them and always hoping the absolute best out of every situation!
But not just Alex and Henry; the entire range of characters! This book is SO diverse and the story felt authentic, too, so I seriously applaud Casey McQuiston for that! There are also quite a lot of other serious topics that are highlighted throughout, such as (*TRIGGER WARNING*) drug abuse, grief and bereavement, racism, homophobia, the list really goes on!
What I Loved / Final Thoughts
I had a huge smile on my face for the entire time I was reading the final chapters of this book, everything was so well-written and just seemed so REAL - I mean, I would absolutely adore Henry and Alex to actually be real but 'Red, White & Royal Blue' was perfect escapism from what the world has been for the past four years! Each emotion that was felt within the story resonated with me: tension, happiness, fear, love, anger... Casey McQuiston did an absolutely AMAZING job!
Now for more things that I loved about it! Firstly, representation. There were so many different races, sexualities, and identities, and the whole thing challenges oppressive views and opinions! We had a divorced, female President with half-Mexican children; congressmen and senators of different races and sexualities; and so much more. It felt good to hide within this book and imagine what so much acceptance and love from positions like these ones would be like...
*TRIGGER WARNING: mental health*
As well as this, the way mental health was portrayed really captured me. Anxiety and panic attacks, depression, grief, and hints of ADHD (I read an interview on Goodreads where McQuiston mentions this, I'll link it below for you!) are fitted into the book with a genuine approach and made me feel understood at multiple moments with my own anxiety. But the book was also light-hearted too! The range of emotions in different moments is amazing, and I really did feel what I was supposed to feel - I just love this book!
Conclusion
'Red, White & Royal Blue' is a gorgeous story that embraces sexuality, identity, politics, mental health, anything you could think of! There is a place for everyone within this book, with every kind of emotion tied in. I truly felt understood and heard, which a lot of other people have too. Although it is MUCH longer than other books I've read - 418 pages! - it certainly didn't feel like it at all. Once I was stuck in, I couldn't put it down! A phenomenal book, and may just be one of my favourites...
If you needed one last push to buy/borrow/READ 'Red, White & Royal Blue', this is it! If you were looking for a good, queer read, this is your guy! If you fancy a little holiday away from the shit-show 2020 has been (and the President...), give this one a go! Okay, I think I got my point across now, I just love this book...
Goodreads Article Interview with Casey McQuiston:
Let me know what you think! :)
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