“When Alex was a kid, before anyone knew his name, he dreamed of love like it was a fairy tale, as if it would come sweeping into his life on the back of a dragon one day. When he got older, he learned about love as a strange thing that could fall apart no matter how badly you wanted it, a choice you make anyway. He never imagined it’d turn out he was right both times.” Casey McQuiston
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After the Obama administration the first female president, Ellen Claremont, is elected to the White House. Not only is Ellen from Texas, she is also mother to two biracial children from her previous marriage. Red, White & Royal Blue starts on the cusp of her 2020 re-election campaign. It is all hands on deck at the White House for campaigning including her two children; June, first daughter and aspiring journalist and Alex, first son, and future political leader. As a family they are unsure about their future in the White House so they must ensure nothing comes between them and the election in the coming months. But what none of them saw coming was an international scandal they were unable to prepare for.
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Alex has always had strong feelings for Prince Henry of England since he first met him years before his mother became president. Those feelings were of hatred, anger, more frenemy than anything else. But Alex still had a gravitational pull to Henry he didn’t even know how to describe. After a royal wedding PR nightmare, both Henry and Alex must fake a friendship to ensure their country a truths. That hatred slowly grows to resemble friendship, then turns into something more through witty texting banter, late night phone calls, emails and one New Years Eve Party.
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This book is about family, and friends that support you no matter what. It is about the melting pot of America and the inclusion for all to be welcome, no matter race or sexual orientation. It is about not hiding behind your true identity, or letting anyone else stifle your true self. But most of all, this book is about a love that expands continents and the oceans to bring two struggling young men to terms with their true identity, and possibly find true love in the process.
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Thank you Netgalley and St. Martins Griffin for the opportunity to read and provide an honest review of this book.

Casey McQuiston reboots the royal romance with a joyful, clever, quick-witted and totally irresistible debut. It’s an enemies-to-lovers romance, and a forbidden one to boot.

We meet first son Alex Claremont-Diaz, son of President Ellen Claremont. Intelligent, ambitious and charming, Alex plans to follow in his mother’s political footsteps. Life is great, except a trip abroad has him dreading an encounter with his rival—Henry, Prince of Wales. A heated—and very public—exchange at a wedding, sends their handlers atwitter and in full damage control mode. Now, Alex must pretend to be BFFs for the good of the Crown, and his mother’s re-election campaign.

Henry seems to be everything Alex isn’t. He’s cool and collected… the perfect Prince Charming. But while they nurture their bromance in front of clicking cameras, Alex begins to realize there’s more than meets the eye when it comes to the handsome prince.

Soon enough, hate turns into something entirely different, as the two fall into a secret relationship which could propel two nations into chaos. After all, there’s no future for the First Son and the Prince of Wales—it’s a wild impossibility… right?

Alex and Henry’s relationship is a beautiful thing to witness. Their verbal sparring, their truths and struggles, their intense longing for the other. Their feelings come to life poignantly not only through late-night, whispered conversations, but also through poetically written emails in which they bare heart and soul.

The emotional rawness and authenticity of the novel is buoyed by whip-smart wit and rapid-fire banter. There’s an addictive effervescence to it all, making the story impossible not to devour.

This is one of those books that is a pure joy to experience—those that remind you why you love to reach so much in the first place. It’s a gem of a love story, fresh and fun, and deserves all the gushing it will undoubtedly receive.

I received and ARC of this book and voluntarily give my review.

Red, White, & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston was more than I ever could have hoped for. A royal and political elite romance, enemies to lovers, M/M, and Romantic Comedy. This book had me waking up my husband with laughter when I read late into the night. The banter between characters was so witty and sharp I spent a good portion of this book laughing out loud. When it wasn't funny, the tone and emotion of the romance between our heroes brought tears to my eyes. The underlying note of political satire, the alternate universe where a Democratic woman is president, remarried and has biracial children is one I hope to experience one day. The criticism of America's political system was not lost on me, and made me pause to remember that while hate gets a lot of press these days, there are still people who believe in love and equality. This book was extremely enjoyable, and I recommend it for all readers.

When the president's son and the prince of England cause chaos at the royal wedding, they are forced to enter into a fake bromance in order to fix this PR nightmare. They thought their time together would be painful, but it seemed that underneath the angst were some feelings of mutual admiration and attraction.

I say - believe the hype. This book was really wonderful, and there are so many things to adore about it. I love reading reviews for a book like this, which seems to appeal to so many different readers for different reasons. I therefore commend McQuiston on producing a work that can do that.

One of the things I loved about this book were the amazing characters. They were well drawn and distinct, as well as really interesting. I was particularly fond of the 20-something squad formed when Henry and Alex's groups mixed. The six of them were fantastic and the interplay between them was fabulous. I don't know if McQuiston plans on writing any other books in this world, but I know I would love to read books focusing on HEAs for Pez, June, Nora, and Bea. (I'm just saying...)

I also really enjoyed a lot of places we got to go with these characters. I had a ton of fun accompanying them on their outings. They were sometimes outrageous, but always entertaining. The royal wedding, the NYE bash, karaoke in LA, the Victoria and Albert museum -- all fantastic.

Family also played a huge role in this book. Neither Henry nor Alex's family was perfect, but there was love, especially in Alex's family. He and his sister shared a really special bond, and both his parents were open, loving, and accepting.

But my favorite thing about this book was the romance. Watching this faux bromance evolve into a friendship and then love was a beautiful thing. Alex and Henry were very sweet together, but it was their emails that brought tears to my eyes. It was via email, where they they revealed those hidden layers of themselves and really exposed their emotions.

I think the only reason I didn't rate this book higher was because I felt like the politics encroached a bit on the romance. That said, I still adored this book. I shed some tears as I wrote this review, because I was so touched by the way McQuiston wrote the love story between Henry and Alex, and I look forward to reading more of her work.

I was sold on the plot of the son of the president falling in love with the prince of Wales, but what I got was so much more. This was a beautifully written story featuring amazing characters that I won’t soon forget. The author told more than just a love story, but a story of hope and of change in a world that desperately needs it right now.

CASEY MCQUISTON, TAKE ME AWAAAAAAAAY!!!!!! this review is not about to be a very coherent one but I have genuinely never loved a book more in my life, everything about Red, White & Royal Blue is absolutely PERFECT to the tenth power and I feel like I’ve been smiling soooo big ever since I finished reading it, and just, God, this is the happiest a book has made me feel in such a long time!!! I feel like I could fly away like a helium balloon, my heart feels so full!!

and, I mean, formulaically, RW&RB is a flawless book. you have a huge mass of finger-licking-good tropes (perfectly done enemies to lovers?? HELLO??), you have an irresistible plot, and you have the true highlight, the crème de la crème, the pièce de résistance: the CHARACTERS. everybody in this book is, first of all, absolutely hilarious. Alex & Henry especially are charming and witty and so fun to read, but every single secondary character just shines so brightly and everyone gets their own little moment in the spotlight and they’re all so lovable and I’m just SUCH a fan of good characterization I could MELT. also, the pacing and writing are so seemingly effortless and smooth, and considering the fact that this book is so long, and that this is Casey’s debut?? how did she get so good at writing so fast?? she literally deserves the entire world, she’s so talented and she’s adorable and I love her.

say whatever you want to say, but this book deserves absolutely every single little bit of hype it’s been getting (note: coming from a non-american who LOATHES american politics and would do anything to get away from them, I think RW&RB makes it fun and interesting and even a little hopeful, considering what you guys have to go through literally all the time). Red, White & Royal Blue is a silver lining in times of peril: it’s optimistic and funny and cheerful, the writing is top tier best quality there is, and truthfully I just cannot wait for this book to debut as a best-seller and for everyone out there to read it. thanks again to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing a free copy!!

Do you ever read a book that just borrows it’s way directly to the center of your heart and sets up a full on camp because it knows it ain’t leaving?

I am so in love with this book! I had so many moments of absolute giddiness while reading and at one point I was lying in my bed at 1:30AM with tears streaming down my face. I love when a book can take you through all the emotions and you feel everything to your core. I even said out loud to no one while reading, if this book doesn't have a happy ending I am going to lose it!

"𝘈𝘭𝘦𝘹 𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘴 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘩𝘪𝘮, 𝘧𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘰𝘯 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘩𝘦𝘦𝘭𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘩𝘦’𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘭𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘥. “𝘍𝘪𝘯𝘦,” 𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘴𝘢𝘺𝘴. “𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵? 𝘍𝘶𝘤𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘦. 𝘐’𝘭𝘭 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦.”
“𝘎𝘰𝘰𝘥.”
“𝘐’𝘭𝘭 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦,” 𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘺𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘴 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘯𝘴 𝘪𝘯, “𝘢𝘴 𝘴𝘰𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦.”"
-𝘙𝘦𝘥, 𝘞𝘩𝘪𝘵𝘦 & 𝘙𝘰𝘺𝘢𝘭 𝘉𝘭𝘶𝘦, 𝘊𝘢𝘴𝘦𝘺 𝘔𝘤𝘘𝘶𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘯

This story was ultimately a beautiful tale of true love but it also assesses our political climate, race relations, gender, and sexuality. This book hit every point perfectly.

“For the weirdos and the dreamers.” Right from the author’s dedication, I connected with this book. After all, anyone who dedicates a book to weirdos and dreamers must also be one, right?

Add in absolutely witty one-liners from the main character’s point of view, such as “the wedding is as sexy as a business transaction” and you have a snarky, sarcastic, and loveable leading man. Alex Claremont-Diaz instantly connects readers to his world, and we find ourselves cheering him on.

The main problem I had with the book is a personal one, so therefore I didn’t dock any points/stars. I was warned before I read the novel that there were graphic scenes and rated R moments (after all, it is not classified as YA – it’s New Adult/NA). I personally dislike reading sexual scenes and anything related to the matter, so I wasn’t a fan of those parts.

Alex Claremont-Diaz’s world is fraught with political correctness and is continuously in the public eye. I loved seeing the insides of The White House and how the First Son fit into the mold (also I would totally vote for Alex’s mom?? Claremont 2020 run please??)

Red, White & Royal Blue is Casey McQuiston’s debut novel! If we don’t get more in the future, I for one am going to be sorely disappointed.

Oh sweet mother of all things liberal and romantic and political do I LOVE THIS BOOK. Alex and Henry are my favorite couple ever and I just want to read about them for the rest of my life. But the POLITICS. This book gave me a glimmer of hope for our future......I don’t know about 2020 being quite so shiny and idealistic as this but hell, maybe by the time my youngest daughter can vote in 2032??

Also, the description of this reads almost YA-ish but it is NOT YA, although with the characters all being in their early 20s and living in the White House and royal palace, it muddies the waters as far as maturity and target audience. The sex scenes will quickly make you realize this is for the adult market, however

I started hearing about this book around Valentine’s Day and when I saw some of the early reviews, the word JOY seemed to be in all of them. Casey McQuiston is an author who is new to me, and Red, White & Royal Blue appears to be her debut novel. It is an adult rom-com and honestly McQuiston grabbed me by the heart and the funny bone and refused to let go of either until the very end.

Alex is the first son of the first woman president and he has a long standing grudge against Prince Henry of England. They are about the same age, and he has always felt like they were compared to each other in the news and tabloids. Alex feels as though he could never measure up to Henry’s smooth, distant charisma, and the riches that he has access to don’t help either. So when the first family attends the royal wedding of Henry’s brother Philip and Alex gets drunk and trips into the table holding the $75,000 wedding cake, pulling Henry down with him, it creates a media firestorm that can only be quelled by a staged friendship between the two. The forced interactions become a close friendship, which eventually becomes more as Alex comes to realize that he is bisexual and Henry is definitely gay.

The physical interactions are good, but I think I enjoyed reading their emails and texts to each other more. The intimacy with which they talk to each other, even with an ocean between them, was just as powerful as their physical bond. If I’m being honest, I felt like I was eavesdropping and as their relationship continued, I became more and more worried about their information pinging around on the internet, given how high the stakes were: Alex’s mom running for re-election and Henry having been told that he would not embarrass the monarchy with his “depraved urges.” If even one text gets out, one email sent to the wrong person, someone overhears them, the world could absolutely explode. (That probably made everything that much hotter though, tbh, no regrets.) I won’t spoil the ending for you but WOW. It’s something.

My heart, you guys. My heart was in love with all the characters from the very first pages. This is one of those books where I don’t want to describe every detail to you, I just want to hold the book out to you until you take it and agree to read it. There is so little light and joy in this world right now and this book is a bright beacon in the darkness and you must let it wash over you and take you to a place that is pure and delightful, if even for the short amount of time that you will be reading this book. It’s a fast read by virtue of the fact that you won’t want to stop reading. Your eyes will race over the page, hungry for just one more chapter of these wonderful men. Go get you some.

Could this book BE anymore adorable?! Spoiler alert: NO! It was such a fun read, the perfect blend of snark, wit, romance and charm, everything that I look for in a romance novel (and more). Did I mention that this is a debut? I’m even more impressed by that fact and so excited to see what the author does next because this was seriously cute.

Enemies to lovers tropes are always so fun to me and I’ve never read one with the first son of the United States and the Prince of Wales. It’s pretty genius timing actually, US politics have never been more of a hot button topic and the entire world is currently obsessed with baby Archie so this one couldn’t really be anymore relevant and fresh feeling. Henry and Alex are individually interesting characters but when you put them together it’s a little bit magical. They have great chemistry and a fantastic, sharp banter, I kept doing that snort laugh thing while I was listening. The secondary characters are just as engaging and hilarious, from Madam President herself (Alex’s Mom) to Henry’s quirky best friend they all added some extra flavor and spunk to the story.

The narrator was great, he delivered the dry and sarcastic lines like a pro, it was seriously perfect and I think he was a great choice. Since I listened to this one versus read it I did feel like it dragged a bit at times but maybe if I was reading the actual book it would’ve been quicker, just wanted to throw that out there because it did feel a teesny but long for awhile. But overall this was a really fun read and one that I can definitely recommend, if you’ve had your eye on it go ahead and give it a shot, I don’t think you’ll be disappointed!

Red, White and Royal Blue in three words: Smart, Hip and Hilarious

I don't normally read romcom fiction, but I'm so glad I read this one because it was DELIGHTFUL, cheeky, smart, funny and sweet! This book definitely lives up to its hype. It also gave me the type of fuzzy, optimistic feeling about politics (truly a vintage feeling) that The West Wing once did so successfully. I was pleasantly surprised by because I didn't really think that feeling was possible for.me anymore in this dreadful political climate. It felt like magic to resurrect that hope for the duration of the book.

I loved these characters, and the magnetism of forbidden love was rendered so poignantly. It's a swoony romance that I will not soon forget! I stayed up all night reading it. I was also intrigued by the author's note at the end about writing this book on the verge of the 2016 election. I loved her comment about the experience of writing into what she thought would be a parallel reality that unexpectedly veered into escapist fantasy. Overall, a thrilling read. I recommend it, and I hope very much that it will be made into a movie!

I feel extremely gushy about this novel. I'm not usually a romance reader, but found myself internally squealing through the entire book. This is the most perfect summer read to ever exist.

I can't even begin to describe how much I love this book. It surely has come to the top of all of the books I've read during the year (at least for now). I don't know if anyone will come close, though.
Red, White & Royal Blue narrates the mesmerizing love story between Alex, the son of the first USA female president, and Henry, the Prince of England.
At the beginning of the book they really cannot stand each other and I have to admit I was pretty much sold by that. I love "hate" to love relationships, it's one of my favourite tropes. But it's not just that. It's how the two of them understand each other, how they completely fall head over heels for each other way before they have any chance to admit that even to themselves.
Casey McQuiston writing is honestly so entertaining and I almost could not believe that this was her debut novel. I cared very deeply for all of the characters, even though I have to admit I have a soft spot for Henry, but I really cared for everyone, not only the main ones. I loved June, Nora, Zahra, Ellen, Bea, Pez, the whole lot.
I also think McQuiston did a terrific job talking representation wise. Even though this book is not quite a YA (I would not recommend it to anyone under the age of 16 since it has its moments of adult content) I still think this is a book mostly aimed at a young audience (even though I think ANYONE should read it and love it). We need representation in YAs and not only in them. Here we have the whole lot. Alex has Latinx blood and he's bi. Henry is gay, even if he's the Prince of England and you know what that entails. We have f/f relationships hints and even a wink to polyamory. And don't even get me started about female power in this book. All of the girls are POWERFUL AF, and I loved them all so much.
Basically this book gives me hope. Hope in a better future, in a better America, in a better Europe, but also in a better world where everyone won't be ashamed of who they are and where everyone is inclusive and supportive.
And Taylor Swift is also mentioned so what could I want more?
Talking a bit about the romance, I was overwhelmed with feelings for Alex and Henry. I rooted for them since the beginning, since we first see them together. I love how this book really deliveres a good relationship between two characters and how we don't have to wait like all of the book for the two of them to come to terms with their feelings.
The fluff in this book was over the top. But also the angst in this book was over the top, and I love a good balance of the two.
Another great thing I enjoyed about this book was how on point it was in dealing with mental health rep. This topic touches me in more ways than one and I felt like we have a good deal of anxiety and panic attacks representation. I so felt for the people affected by them and it's so important to have this kind of content in a book. You are not alone.
The fact that I enjoyed the most though is how I think this story is first and foremost a coming of age story for the two boys. I see them grow from boys to men and I cannot help but root for them and be proud for what they've struggled in order to become who they truly are.
I don't know what else to say except please, please, please, do yourself a favor and read this book, I promise you won't be disappointed at all, I mean, I'll go as far to say you will truly love it.

This was a really fun story that I thoroughly enjoyed reading. I liked the characters and thought the story was very well written. Their was more politics in the story than I was expecting but it worked well. Aside from being a romance, this book was also hilarious. I’d recommend this title to a friend,
Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’ Press for this advanced copy, my opinions are my own.

I adored this book. It had more substance than I was expecting. The characters had depth, there were lovely excerpts of historical love letters, the political setting was interesting and the writing felt fresh and modern.

I don't read a lot of contemporary romances which is a shame because the last five or six I've read have been phenomenal! Back in February, I kept seeing several of my bookish friends talk about this new adult romance they were reading and all of them were just raving about it. I found myself curious so I looked at the book's synopsis on Goodreads. A queer romcom where the main characters/love interests are the First Son of the United States and the Prince of Wales?!? Dear Lord, I needed this book in my life! So I immediately went to Netgalley to request the ARC.

Okay. Buckle up, guys, because I'm so ready to absolutely rave and gush about how perfect this book was. I'm calling it now. Red, White and Royal Blue will be on my Top 5 Favorite Books of 2019 list if not my overall #1 favorite of the year. It was everything my little queer heart wanted and needed! I'm more than a bit obsessed with it and I can't stop think about it. Case in point: I have reread it three times since reading it for the first time during the Romanceopolyathon in April. It makes my heart grows three sizes too big every time I think about the romance and the characters.

The voice in this book is spectacular! You all know how much I love good banter and this book had it in spades! The dialogue felt so real! It's a bit crass. More than a bit smart while being hysterical and romantic. I loved the writing in this book so much! I loved how the author included tweets, texts, and emails as part of the narrative! The emails between Henry and Alex were everything! I’m literally the heart-eyes emoji every time I think about them.

I loved how politically and socially relevant it was! I don't know why I was so surprised by the amount of politics in this book especially since the story is told from the perspective of the First Son of the United States but I was. But I also loved how seamlessly they were integrated into the story and how much they added to the narrative. I was also deeply fascinated because it felt like a true look behind the White House curtain. The political issues are so relevant to our current political climate. It was also a little bittersweet reading about this amazing female president that won the 2016 election. I loved that the Claremont-Diaz family and the royal family were fictional but had these wonderful real life optimistic parallels.

I love me a relevant woke book and I'll stop gushing about that aspect of it because I haven't talked about the characters and the romance yet! It was the perfect enemies to fake friends to friends to lovers book I didn’t know I needed in my life. The meet cute disaster! The bickering and the banter! The romance! Alex's bisexual awakening was written in this perfectly believable way that made my heart ache in all the best ways. I also couldn't stop grinning like a fool at all of Alex's Oh Shit! moments and at how adorable the romance between Alex and Henry was. It was extremely gratifying seeing how they brought out the best in each other and how they let in the people around them.

Let's talk about the friendship and family dynamics and how perfect they were. I absolutely adored June, Nora, Bea, and Pez! The total support that they gave to Alex and Henry made my heart ache and tear up in places. I love seeing positive sibling relationships in books and the ones in this one were perfect! June and Alex! Henry and Bea! I loved it so much! I also loved Alex and Nora's friendship! It's always so refreshing to read about an opposite gender friendship that doesn't turn into the romance. I am low-key obsessed with all the relationships in this book. I loved Alex's parents and his relationship with them. Also, his relationship with Zahra was so great!

Also, can we talk about how amazingly diverse this book is? I loved how extremely and truly diverse the entire cast was, in so many meaningful ways. It has a biracial (half-Mexican, half-White) and bisexual main character with a diverse cast with both racial and sexual representation across the board. This book is everything I want to see more of in books. I'm always saying that I want to see more of my favorite and slightly overdone tropes made queer. This book embodies all of those wants and it is a great example at just how good a queer remaking of our favorite tropes can be.

Reading this book was like reading a romcom movie and I can't get the thought out of my head about how much I want this book to be made into a movie. I loved that the film options have sold and I want it to be made so badly! I feel like it would be one of those movies I would gladly watch a million times. It would have all the best beats and tropes of a romantic comedy. So yeah, I loved this book a lot a lot. Is one book too early to make Casey McQuiston an autobuy author? Because I’m pretty sure she’s just officially made my auto-buy list with this book.

ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley.

as the president's only son, alex claremont-díaz is paparazzi fodder. he's young, attractive, and smart. he's got a will-they/won't-they thing going on with his best friend nora, the vice president's granddaughter and a great relationship with his older sister, june. which is a good thing, since they inhabit this politically-famous world together, one where they must balance being wild and carefree with avoiding scandal at all costs.

and maybe if alex hadn't been forced to attend the future king of england's wedding as red, white & royal blue opens he might have avoided running into prince henry and taking out the wedding cake in a spectacular fashion. it's not every day an act of clumsiness and rivalry results in an international incident. but it has, and now he is forced to spend even more time with his possibly least favorite person on the planet.

(my only complaint about this book is that prince henry is named henry. i would have preferred some extra distance from the current royal family. this is a book that presents an alternate reality, and i would have been more easily able to stay in it if his name had been edward or james or some other innocuous british royal family name.)

anyway, the more henry and alex spend time together, the more there is something there. between them. a spark. a connection. something. alex isn't quite sure he knows how to put it into words. and when henry takes action. well, oh my.

i really and truly enjoyed this debut. the characters are all wonderfully drawn, and the way they work through their problems is done in a way that is sweet and lovely and so swoony. i love enemies-to-lovers stories, and this book is just my jam. if you liked carry on and the royal we you will like this book.

I'm pretty sure I was laughing by page 3 and never stopped. Oh my, this book was so great! This is one of the best debit novels I've ever read. I don't know where this author has been hiding but she needs to write ALL the books. Now!

The writing is witty and exciting, the banter between all of the characters will crack you up or make you melt. I find I don't really have the words to adequately express how much this book entertained me. Alex is such a nut. Seriously, he's a bit of a neurotic mess. He's also lovable, goofy, sexy and super smart and driven.

Henry, the Prince of Wales, has a quiet demeanor initially but once he drops his public facade, he is the perfect compliment to Alex. Henry is thoughtful, poetic, kind, and has a razor sharp sense of humor. Every scene these two have is just magic. The book is only told from Alex's POV (third person) but since Henry wears his heart on his sleeve, it's no loss to the story.

I had a review copy so I'm not sure if this will be a problem with the finished product but the transitions were hard to follow. Some sort of page break or '****' to indicate you were changing scenes would have been nice. I had to stop and start a few sentences over several times due to this. But it might just be a formatting thing for the review copy.

The book is pretty sexy which I thought was great. I hadn't really expected that since the cover is sort of cutesy but don't expect anything super detailed. I really hope a lot of people give this book a try.

The story does run a bit to the 'alternate universe' from an American political standpoint. But don't let that turn you off. Just remember that it's fiction and the characters view don't have to reflect your own (although they do mine so hah!). The author wrote this book beginning in 2016 so the political climate was not quite the same as it is now.

This will likely be in my top reads for 2019 list!

Reviewing a book with this much hype and buzz pre-release almost makes me want to... not. There are already legions of fans to gush about how amazing Red, White, & Royal Blue is, and dissenting from that opinion always seems a little uncomfortable, but I must. While McQuiston’s début has a lot of charm going for it, and was a pleasure to read at times, I can’t say it’s a perfect book.

The story takes place in what is essentially an alternate universe where the 2016 election was won by a Texas democrat named Ellen Claremont, and across the pond an entirely different royal family is ruling England (but Brexit is still a thing). In this more dayglow world, Claremont’s son Alex Claremont-Diaz is an up-and-comer in D.C. who has made a name for himself as part of his mom’s political team. Unfortunately, he has a bad run in with His Royal Highness, Prince Henry of Wales (yes, not Harry) at a royal wedding and now needs to do damage control for the sake of US/UK international relations.

The idea is that they’ll pretend to be friends, show up to some events together, get photographed, and it will smooth over any ruffles. Red, White, & Royal Blue advertises itself as an enemies-to-lovers romance, but really the flares of annoyance between Alex and Henry burn out fast, and soon they’re texting late at night  and getting to know each other as people, not just political figureheads.

To be honest, the book almost lost me in the setup. I was incredibly excited for it  based on the premise, but it’s a slow starter. If you look at the page count, maybe that shouldn’t be a surprise because it’s pretty long for a romantic comedy. Alex and Henry spend ages on opposite sides of the Atlantic, with only tiny interactions, and I was impatient for the romance to start.

At the same time, I had to adjust some to the voice. I don’t think I’d be wrong to say this book is very ‘millennial’. I’m a fellow millennial, but dear God. The humor, cultural references, and general style of dialogue between Alex, his sister June, and friend Nora is like someone was screaming ‘We’re youths!!!’ and the humor was at times funny and at others just plain forced. It gave the story a weird feel of both existing exactly in our current time, and also being eerily so not our current political climate (politics plays a large part in the story) that I wasn’t sure how I felt about it. I do wonder if the whole book will feel terribly dated in a very short time.

Now, once the romance sparked, it was lovely. Alex and Henry are both adorable, well-rounded characters that I loved. Really, the whole cast of the book is fantastic. Alex comes off as someone young and probably reckless who isn’t sure where he wants to be, but he’s very rooted to the people in his life. Henry is almost the opposite in that he’s cautious and thinks his fate is predetermined by birth, but longs for relationships with anyone who can deeply understand him. The boys falling for each other is stellar, and I’d recommend the book to anyone just for their relationship. It felt realistically like young love - all uncertainty and newness and excitement. If you extracted the romance alone from the story, it would’ve been an A+, hands down.

My only caveat to that is a personal one, in that so much of their relationship takes place via text message and email and I have a pet peeve about that. I just don’t enjoy reading long exchanges in an epistolary format, and there’s a lot of that here (including a podcast). Also, their emails were... a lot to take. If there are twenty-something guys that write evocative, maudlin emails with quotes from historical figures, I’ve never met one.

Besides that, one of the biggest issues I had was that the pacing - and the timeline of the book - is very odd. There are no real transitions from scene to scene, so you’d be in D.C. with Alex thinking about something, then suddenly he’s sitting beside Henry. How did we get here? When is this? I wondered if this was partially due to the formatting of the ARC I had, but I think a lot was the writing style and how McQuiston kind of meanders from thought to thought at times. It was a challenge to understand the timeline and when characters changed location, which pulled me out of the story.

Obviously, scores of readers have already enjoyed Red, White, & Royal Blue, and plenty more will as well. I found myself both completely engrossed and wanting to savor parts, as well as skimming others. I don’t think my reservations are enough that I would tell anyone not to read it, because most people will fall into the camp of enjoying it despite its flaws. And really, I think Alex and Henry are pretty swoon-worthy, and I look forward to the movie version of them when it inevitably gets made. If I sound overly critical, it’s because I think this book could have been perfect if not for the drawbacks – the forced humor, the indiscernible timeline and location shifts and the epistolary nature of much of the romance. There’s so much to love about the concept of a queer, international royal romance that has humor and a New Adult voice, that I wish so much I hadn’t found a single issue. Sadly, I think Red, White & Royal Blue just had too much going on, and that kept it from reaching DIK status.

Buy it at: Amazon/Apple Books/Barnes & Noble/Kobo

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