When I first heard about RWRB, I knew immediately that I would love it. After all, I’ve been looking forward to a soft and light read as a result of reading so many heavy and densely written ones. Red, White & Royal Blue was a perfect opportunity to lay my head down and just enjoy a simple and heartwarming book.
Alex Claremont-Diaz has it all: the heartthrob status, roguish charm, two best friends who have his back, and to top it all off, he’s also the son of the first female President of the United States. The only thing he doesn’t have is a friendship with the youngest prince of England, Henry Windsor. In fact, Alex swears that they’re archenemies. But when he causes an international incident at the royal wedding, Alex has no choice but to fly to London to pretend as if he’s been best friends with Henry all along.
Alex is incredibly easy to get attached to as a character. He’s confident but vulnerable at times, and he has the drive and passion to be the best version of himself. He’s biracial—Cuban and American—and is very much aware of the racism he endures as the First Son of the United States. He’s sarcastic, smart, funny, and I’ve officially adopted him as my son. Henry, on the other hand, is nerdy, very gay, and VERY LOVEABLE. He’s literally Hufflepuff personified. I can’t even get into how much I love this boy because I’ll end up babbling about the whole book.
Red, White & Royal Blue is a masterpiece that I see thousands of people framing in the future. The characters are created so well and are so multilayered that they end up feeling more real than anything else. The relationship had the perfect growth from rivals to friends to best friends and then finally to lovers. Alex and Henry are the representation of love in the purest form. Ever.
I absolutely love both of these characters and their family members (well, some of their family members). Alex is extremely sarcastic, smart, and funny. He dreams of joining politics and making Henry’s life as miserable as possible. Henry is nerdy, funny, and 100% gay even though most of his family refuses to acknowledge it. He tries his best to not ruin his family’s image and be the perfect prince.
This has got to be one of the cutest and fluffiest books I’ve read. I have been in the worst reading slump lately…to the point where I could barely write reviews, but Red, White & Royal Blue pulled me out of that so quickly and really got me going. In fact, I was able to finish this in less than a day! There’s the effortless writing style that stole the show, the loveable characters you can’t help but root for, and the soft and honest romance. Even the wonderful side characters have so much depth to them. The writing alone holds a lot of funny, witty banter, but it’s filled with a message of love and of hope…that someday the world will really turn out like this. So loving. So accepting. So welcoming. And I knew as I hit the fifth page, that this was it. Probably one of the easiest five stars I’ve given.
RWRB captured my heart from the very first line and never let it go. I experienced a lot of emotions reading this—I laughed, I cried, I visibly blushed in public—but really, it’s a very timely and current book. This is one that I’ll return to when I feel down, when I need inspiration, and when I need sunshine in my life. I can’t recommend this book enough, just pick this up. This was an absolute joy to read. It’s a book about two men who discover what they want for their lives and for their respective nations, both for themselves and together.
Casey McQuiston did an amazing job with this book, and I’m really excited to read more of her work. Red, White & Royal Blue has got to be the best debut novel I’ve encountered so far this year, and I won’t be surprised if it ends up being my favorite book of 2019. I’m really looking forward to her upcoming F/F book next year.
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Title: Red, White & Royal Blue
Author: Casey McQuiston
Genre: New Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Source: ARC
Publication Date: May 14, 2019
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Rating: 5/5
