* Instant NEW YORK TIMES and USA TODAY bestseller * * GOODREADS CHOICE AWARD WINNER for BEST DEBUT and BEST ROMANCE of 2019 * * BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR* for VOGUE, NPR, VANITY FAIR, and more! * 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, … 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 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, Instragramable 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 colors shine through? Casey McQuiston’s Red, White & Royal Blue proves: true love isn’t always diplomatic.
“I took this with me wherever I went and stole every second I had to read! Absorbing, hilarious, tender, sexy–this book had everything I crave. I’m jealous of all the readers out there who still get to experience Red, White & Royal Blue for the first time!” – Christina Lauren, New York Times bestselling author of The Unhoneymooners
“Red, White & Royal Blue is outrageously fun. It is romantic, sexy, witty, and thrilling. I loved every second.” – Taylor Jenkins Reid, New York Times bestselling author of Daisy Jones & The Six
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What’s a book that you feel everyone has read but you? u2063
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There are a few for me, but one at the top of my list was Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey Mcquiston! I included this book in my five-star prediction stack several weeks ago because I’ve heard such good things about it! Well, I wasn’t wrong in that prediction!u2063
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There isn’t much I can say about this one that hasn’t already been said…that’s the problem with waiting so long to read it. Why did I wait so long to read it??u2063
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I loved Alex and Henry! I loved their banter. I loved their emails. I love that Henry was brave (and angry) enough to finally kiss him! I loved knowing Alex was falling in love with Henry and that it surprised him. I love the bravery and the idea that we may someday live in a world where that bravery may not be needed. u2063
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I loved the fact that the President was female and from Texas! The little Austin facts thrown in there were great since that’s where we live. But, I also loved that there was a point that she made a conscious decision to be a mom vs the president. u2063
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The side characters were my favorite kind – fiercely loyal and a little snarky! u2063
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Thanks to all my friends who strongly suggested I read this one. I smiled, I laughed, and I cried and it was amazing!u2063
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an unlikely romance, but characters are cute to extreme. There is not a super
steamy novel, but a funny and romantic one. You will love the interaction between
the two characters.
A wonderful story about overcoming a multitude of prejudice and misconceptions.
This story is a twenty-first fairytale.
This was a good book, filled with great characters. I liked that it took place in Washington and England.
I’ve been going through a rom-com kick, and this one might just be my favorite (which is saying a lot because I’ve read some fantastic stories).
This book has all my favorite feels. It made me laugh, cheer, and tear up. It also made me wish the Claremont’s were in the White House. Yes, yes, I know most things in real life don’t work out as they did in this book (I won’t say more because no spoilers), but lets face it reality sucks lately. I want this one instead, and I got to have it for a few short days while devouring this book. So thank you, McQuiston.
i really loved this book, but rereading it in 2020 was kind of painful.
The story told in this book is not new. It has been told many times. Two powerful families. Two young star-crossed lovers. What is different is the modern twist. Two young men in love. One a son of a female president of the United States (a female US President might make this a fantasy). The other is third in line to the British throne.
The romantic story happens with a reelection campaign as a backdrop. The author has created strong characters and has kept the subplots interesting, even though we know how it is all going to end.
Alex and Henry are heartthrobs. I wonder why we authors don’t want to write stories about ordinary-looking people. I loved all the quotes in their emails to each other.
Hopeful story on many levels.
Warnings: Explicit sex, cursing, alcohol, smoking, and drugs
This story will appeal to romance readers.
p.s: Charles Dickens is a perfectly fine author to read and enjoy.
**Pretty steamy sex scenes, you’ve been forewarned**
This was the book I needed to escape this dumpster fire of a year 2020! It’s definitely your liberal’s perfect world dream of how 2016-2020 should have gone. Don’t read this book if you are going to be upset by LGBTQ+ issues, democratic thinking, Gen Z communication styles, bi-racial family dynamics, and a US woman president.
I haven’t read a book featuring LGBTQ main characters, and I thoroughly enjoyed it! I definitely want to broaden my search in the romance novel area to support and read all kinds of relationships.
I really enjoyed how much they brought in all of the Gen Z pop culture references (celebrities, articles, magazines, twitter, Instagram). I loved reading the text message excerpts because I could truly relate. I know that some of the things mentioned will probably become outdated in the future, but it will be a solid nostalgia story then!
I read to escape. I don’t always need it to be something that could “actually happen”. This book fulfilled my fantasies of how our world could be. You have your stereotypical happy ending that was so wholesome and comforting. The ending made me cry with happiness because sometimes we need to believe that there could be a world where this could happen.
Would definitely recommend to the people of the right audiences (as stated above). Perfect fluffy, summer beach read!
Just a total delight from beginning to end.
I truly enjoyed it, because it didn’t require a lot of deep thought . Sort of a whipped cream of a book. Everyone needs one of those once in a while
4.5 stars
This is a story I would love to see play out in real life. America’s First Son falling for the Prince of England. Oh, the political, social, and personal ramifications!
Alex is outgoing, determined, and always on the go working for his mother’s re-election campaign. He eats and breathes politics, future plans, and has not taken time for relationships. Henry is quieter, subdued by his title, and hiding the fact he is gay. From antagonism to friendship to longing to love…I fell for both of these guys. They had such a fun and witty rapport. I enjoyed seeing them start to truly connect, feel, and figure out more of what they wanted both personally and professionally. And I especially loved seeing Alex encourage Henry to find his own voice so he had a chance to live a more fulfilling life. These two were risking it all and living in a fishbowl and highly charged political climate. It kept me tense since I knew eventually things were going to have to get messy.
The side characters add a lot of color, humor, tension, and drama.
It is a long book, and there is a lot about politics in it. But considering where we are right now around a month until the election in 2020, it is appropriate. And it makes me want to believe in the power of change and inclusivity. I would totally vote for Claremont!
This book was truly amazing, for months I heard so many people saying how good it was, but I really wanted to read it during Pride Month. It didn’t end up being what I expected at all. I thought I was going to read a cute rom-com when actually this book is super researched and really based on politics and royalty. On top of the romance story, we have such a deep insight of what a presidential campaign is and also of how royalty works.
Henry and Alex are so different and I really liked their nemesis relationship at the beginning of the story. Alex is full of life while Henry seems way too polite, always following the protocol. My favourite part of the story was discovering who Henry really is when he is not HRH. The e-mails and the texts they send each other when they are apart are really what makes the book so special, especially those written by Henry. I think I would have loved this book even more if there had been some chapters from his point of view.
The LGBTQ+ aspect was so good, there was no big revelation crisis and it really felt natural between them. It is really rare to see a good representation of bisexuality, or even pansexuality, and Red, White and Royal Blue was just perfect in that sense. I really like that the book was quite steamy, it could have been more, but it was still satisfying. The book is also relatively low drama, which I LOVE.
I ended up giving it four stars and not five because I didn’t feel a big connection to Alex and was not really transported by their love story, even though I absolutely adored every scene Henry was in. I think we could have had more insights on Henry and Alex’s relationship and maybe a tad less politics.
Red, White and Royal Blue is for sure on my favourite LGBTQ+ books list!
This book was such a treat! It was funny, heart-warming, sexy…you name it. A real page-turner.
An adorable read for many reasons…
It’s fun to read a book where the guy gets the guy (in this case, the son of the U.S. president and the Prince of Wales).
It’s fun to fantasize about a liberal, hard-ass woman having won the 2016 election and installed in the White House with all kinds of quirky, fun, swear-loving (too much for my tastes, actually) staff and her two mixed-race (half Mexican) kids.
I enjoyed roaming through the intimate spaces of the White House and Kensington palace.
I enjoyed the variety of characters. They were pretty much all likeable and smart, in varying ways. The young people give you hope for this world! The characters often speak in smart, charming quips like 1940 actresses/actors (sometimes it was a bit dizzying…and being a bit “old” for the book’s target market, I didn’t get all of the contemporary references).
I LOVE how the guys court each other in emails using quotes from historically prominent queer people.
I’d call it a YA novel. People are freaked about that label because of explicit gay sex, but give me a break…
There were times I felt it could have used a better edit, cutting back on the extraneous stuff.
It has a ton of reviews, a book that has hit a nerve. Good on you, Casey McQuiston! And it’s her first novel.
Wow. I got this book quite a bit after the hype (I’m not typically a big romance reader, and have little interest in the monarchy nor American politics) and I was definitely not disappointed.
Full of likeable characters, fun, drama, and lots of feels – this is an exciting and compelling read. Just enough romance, just enough sex, and plenty of conflict; there really was a lot to love about this book. You feel the mako shift in goals in the third act, which somewhat readjusts the tension levels, but the momentum that rooting for the two leads has built up carries you through the last few chapters smiling.
great story
Ok, I don’t usually squee over contemporary political romances but OMG. 100% MUST READ,
Loved, loved, loved this book!!!!
Charming, sexy, funny — an overall delight! I loved the totally unique and creative premise and world-building. A wonderful book!
I devoured this in a day. A genuinely wonderful bit of escapism.