Red, White & Royal Blue: A Novel Kindle Edition

Red, White & Royal BlueCasey McQuiston2020422 pagesOverall Rating: 5/5MM Contemporary RomancePlot: Rising political star and overachiever Alex Claremont-Diaz gets a kick out of being a tabloid darling, thanks to his association with the most famous family in the world. Raised to work hard and dream big, the First Son of the United States is busy trying to finish college and become the youngest person ever elected to Congress. But those same tabloids he always laughs at won’t quit comparing him to the equally handsome and debonair First Son from Across the Sea, Prince Henry of the UK– as if the two are involved in a heated contest for Most Eligible Bachelor in the World or something. And Alex hates to lose any competition, especially if it involves his royal arch-nemesis.After an embarrassing public mishap occurs between the two young men during the middle of a contentious election season, some speedy damage control is required, forcing Alex and Henry into a fake friendship to help keep the peace between the two nations. And as it turns out, they have a lot more in common than they thought.First Take: This book will always hold a special place in my heart as the one that turned me on to dudes— as in gay romances. I was always afraid to dip my toes in the MM pond because it felt so forbidden, but then I picked up this book and never looked back. I was obsessed immediately. This book is so earnest and sweet and dang did it make me remember my own first love and the intense, I-will-die-without-you feelings that go along with that. Nothing gets me going like a high stakes forbidden love story with a strong emotional connection, and this book is that– political empires are at stake here, people! There may or may not (emphasis on may) be a gay awakening that is just so believable and beautiful to watch. And who doesn’t love the idea of a prince falling in love with a commoner? This one hit all my buttons.Characters: The story is told entirely from Alex’s perspective, so we get great insight into his thoughts and feelings. He is sarcastic, loud and playful, but not afraid to be serious and follow his heart when it points him in the right direction. Henry, on the other hand, is outwardly the epitome of “stiff upper lip” until you get to know him, and then all his ooey gooey sweetness comes out. He is passionate with a Capital P. There is also a great supporting cast, with Alex’s stylish and protective older sister, June, and super-smart number-crunching best friend, Nora. Special appearances by a no-nonsense Madame President with a heart of gold and aging queen who specializes in cold shoulders.Praises: There are so many things to praise about this book. Alex’s voice is so earnest and introspective, and I really enjoyed going with him on his journey of self-discovery. The romance is sweet and intensely emotional, and the high stakes feel real– my heart was racing to the very end. The writing has a sense of poetry and yearning that I really enjoyed. The story takes place in an alternate universe that felt both familiar and unique, and ultimately very relatable.Critiques: If I have one critique, it would be that it’s a tad heavy on the politics. I understand the author wrote this book in response to real-world events and the fear and uncertainty that people really felt at the time, and ultimately it is meant to be a story of hopes and dreams of what the world could be. That being said, the election process is a big part of the story and the politics lean pretty heavily democrat, which might alienate some people. I would hazard a guess that many of those alienated people aren’t terribly interested in MM romance, so it’s likely not a huge problem for most.Themes: Politics, Coming of Age, Contemporary Romance, Identity, Man v SocietyOverall Tone: Earnest, heartfelt tone with plenty of sarcasm and wit mixed inProse: Some of the descriptions are so vibrant and feel like poetry when you read them. This book is full of beautiful yearning.Steam: 3/5: The s*x scenes lack the nitty gritty details of some of the more erotic romances. They are sweet and meaningful and rather oblique– you have to use your imagination a bit.Trigger Warnings: Some discussion of the death of a family memberTropes: Fairytale, Bi awakening, Enemies-to-Lovers, Coming Out, Forbidden LoveKinks: NoneSwear Jar: 5/5: If you made this a drinking game, you’d be drunk AFMemorable quotes:“As your mother, I can appreciate that maybe this isn’t your fault, but as the president, all I want is to have the CIA fake your death and ride the dead-kid sympathy into a second term.”“Should I tell you that when we’re apart, your body comes back to me in my dreams?”The lines of him are long and languid in the moonlight, and he’s so beautiful that Alex thinks this moment, the soft shadows and pale thighs and crooked smile, should be the portrait of Henry that goes down in history.He wants to match the new freckles across Henry’s nose to the stars above them and make him name the constellations.Worthy of a reread? Obviously. Already read this one like 4 times. I think I actually read it twice in one week– basically finished it and then immediately started over. It was that good.Stand-Alones, Prequels, Sequels, & Tangents: Stand-alone novel. Would dearly wish for a sequel but will likely be waiting in vain.Check out more romance reviews at The Hopeless Romanticist blog!

Alex is the son of the US President. Prince Henry is second in line for the British throne. And the two of them don’t get along. When an embarrassing incident causes an international stir, the two countries want the young men to pretend they’re friends. Almost against their will, Alex and Henry not only become friends, but over time, they fall in love. And as you can probably imagine, the next international stir looms ahead.There’s a lot to like about this LGBT romance. The plot is solid – set in the political arena, which puts a great deal of external and family pressure on the young men. Messages about love, acceptance, and personal freedoms enter the mix as a natural part of the story.Alex and Henry are likable characters, and it was easy to root for them. Secondary characters are wonderfully distinct, and many reflect the changing attitudes of the younger generation in support of loving who you love. I appreciated that the author takes plenty of time to grow the relationship between the two young men. There are pages and pages of banter via text, and it’s hysterical. I adored the sense of humor and wit that pervades the story from start to finish.There’s also a lot of tenderness and compassion. And a lot of sex. I’m not much of a fan of erotica, no matter who’s doing it, but it's well-written and not overly graphic. In general, the book is a wonderfully written and delightful read, with great characters and endless laughs. Highly recommended.

“Red, White, and Royal Blue” has been in my TBR since I decided to jump back into reading at the beginning of this year. I've been a sucker for "White House-related” romances since I can remember and this book drew me in like a magnet. But I'm a fantasy junky so I didn't pick up the book until the first trailer for a “RWARB" movie came forth from Amazon Prime.Fast forward two days before the movie comes out. I had just finished reading another fantasy book and after much debate, I decided I wanted to read the book before watching the movie. So I proceeded to do nothing other than work and come home to completely devour this book.By the end of chapter one, I was hooked. This book is unapologetically funny, I've never laughed harder while reading a book, every other page if not every single page. Even the sad or slower pages had me screaming laughter. Casey's comic timing deserves a medal, truly spot on *chef's kiss*.As for her charters, Alex is PERFECT!!! His internal battle over Henry, over his sexuality, over his career, is so painfully real. He's so relatable. His charm and personality which he's built over the years, are clearly built for others, not himself. Henry is DREAMY and also painfully perfectly imperfect. Always wearing a shield his family build so no one sees him for who he truly is. Alex being the only person who's broken the shield, finally seeing him the true Henry, not what the royal crown has created of him. I love how hard yet easy it was for them to learn how to take care of and love each other. Henry's anxiety and ticks, Alex's trauma responses. The plot twists are truly delicious. A bit predictable but in the best way possible.Alex, June, and Nora will forever be one of my comfort trios. How they complete each other. How they protect each other. Each one having a role they play so beautifully it should be a sin. June's relationship with Alex is everything a sibling should aspire to have with their sister or brother. Nora is the kind of best friend everyone wishes they had but is incredibly hard to find in this world. Nora with the emails killed me. Luna and Nora completely sneaked up on me in that chapter but filled my heart with so much joy and love knowing it was Luna, I almost cried.Speaking of which, can we just talk about the diversity of this book? Holy crap! Casey truly didn't hold back. Alexander, named after Alexander Hamilton, the mixed son of the first divorced, Woman President of the United States of America. One of Alex's mentors, Raphael Luna, is an openly gay senator who's also Hispanic. How unapologetically strong Zarah, the president’s Chief of Staff. All these people strong and beautiful and portrayed as they should be. All the mentions of gay, bi, etc characters. Nora, Bea, Liam, etc. Again, Perfect.Is there a little bit of spicy? yes. Is it tasteful? absolutely. I read this book with the audible narrator (which I 1,000% recommend, he's brilliant) and it made the experience 10x better. Nothing was overly explained, They came together and they made love, simple as that. In more words obviously but you get my point. Not really smut, more sensual than sexual. I love smut but this was beautiful and exactly what it needed to be.It's almost impossible to put into words how beautifully rich this book is. In story. In love. Inequality. The way the story unfolds reminds me of aged fine whisky, smooth and rich in flavor. Pacing, like the majority of this book, was spot on as well. I was never bored or trying to look ahead, it was incredibly well-paced so I was just living in the moment. Enjoying every page, paragraph, and sentence. Without much effort at all, this book has become hands down my comfort read of 2023, possibly my comfort book forever.If you decided not to read this whole thing, I understand, it’s a lot. And it’s more for me than it honestly is for you. But, nonetheless, at least read this sentence. Take this one thing with you. It’s worth it, read it. Enjoy it. Devour it. You won’t regret it!

The media could not be loaded. Me llegó en tres días, pedí la Collector’s Edition. Mi mayor miedo era que lo enviaran en sobre pero llegó en caja. Con algunas manchitas en a portada pero se pudieron quitar fácilmente. El libro es precioso, el precio es bueno, incluso más barato que comprar en físico la versión en español. No me arrepiento para nada de esta compra, me hizo muy feliz.

Que história gostosa de ler! A personalidade dos personagens é bem desenvolvida, a história prende, dá vontade de saber o que vai acontecer, não deixa o leitor entediado, não dá vontade de parar de ler! Terminei o livro sentindo muita vontade de que tudo fosse real, que realmente tivéssemos essa revolução na nossa História. Muito bom! Ansiosa pelo lançamento do filme.

Filminden sonra alıp okuyayım dedim iyi ki de almışım. Mükemmel bir kitaptı. 10/10. Casey mükemmel bir yazarsın diğer kitaplarını da alıp okuyacağım

I honestly don't know how many times I have read this book. Definitely recommend reading it!!!

Bel libro, pagine particolari (forse carta riciclata), bella storia.