Red, White & Royal Blue

Red, White & Royal Blue

by Casey McQuiston

4 out of 5

Synopsis
What happens when America's First Son falls in love with the Prince of Wales?

When his mother became President of the United States, 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 an actual prince, Henry, across the pond. And when the tabloids get hold of a photo involving an Alex/Henry altercation, U.S./British relations take a turn for the worse.

Heads of the family and state and other handlers devise a plan for damage control: Stage 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 presidential campaign and upend two nations. It raises 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 ben? And how can we learn to let our true colors shine through? , how will history remember you?



Review
As the First Son, Alex has always been compared to his very bland counterpart, Prince Henry of England. He's always hated it, and hated him... or has he?

Alex lives in the White House with his mother, the first female president of the US. He also happens to be mixed race, and the darling of the media, various fanfics and many people's fantasy. He loves every minute of the attention, and he lives for the political drama, knowing that this is what his life is going to be, even after his mother's term ends.
He barely sleeps, and is surrounded by people that he knows, but never friends; and he doesn't know what he's missing.

Alex is obsessed with hating Prince Henry. He sees the young royal as his nemesis. Whereas Alex is modern and passionate, and really cares about what he's doing; Henry is wooden and emotionless, a traditional figurehead who is generally pointless. He hates that the media are always comparing them, when they couldn't be any more different.
Alex can't stand him, but can't help antagonising Henry at every opportunity. Until an incident at the wedding of Henry's brother threatens to ruin international relations.

This is such a sweet story of the two families becoming friends, as their young people are all under the same public pressure. And of course, Alex and Henry's friendship and blossoming romance is very cute.
Alex is bi, and Henry gay; they both struggle to... not so much accept their own sexuality, but how it might clash with their public image and what is expected of them.
I loved the public support when their relationship becomes common knowledge, how they were making their own history, and making life easier for so many other LGBTQ individuals.

I thoroughly enjoyed the romance, but I did find the rest of the story quite fluffy.
I thought that the political team behind Alex's mum being 100% good guys was idealistic; and her opposition was one step away from being a mustache-twirling villain.

Being British, their take on the monarchy was quite eye-rolling; and having their version of the Queen be the big baddie was cringey and just made me wince.

I thought the whole cast was quite juvenile, feeling more like teenagers that people in their twenties. I guess I can kinda understand them seeming young, as these people have never had a real life, or had to work for what they want.

Overall, this was a fluffy, fun read with excellent LGBTQ messages. I enjoyed it and look forward to more of the author's work.

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