Book Review: Red, White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston

Goodreads Synopsis:

First Son Alex Claremont-Diaz is the closest thing to a prince this side of the Atlantic. With his intrepid sister and the Veep’s genius granddaughter, they’re the White House Trio, a beautiful millennial marketing strategy for his mother, President Ellen Claremont. International socialite duties do have downsides—namely, when photos of a confrontation with his longtime nemesis Prince Henry at a royal wedding leak to the tabloids and threaten American/British relations.

The plan for damage control: staging a fake friendship between the First Son and the Prince. Alex is busy enough handling his mother’s bloodthirsty opponents and his own political ambitions without an uptight royal slowing him down. But beneath Henry’s Prince Charming veneer, there’s a soft-hearted eccentric with a dry sense of humor and more than one ghost haunting him.

As President Claremont kicks off her reelection bid, Alex finds himself hurtling into a secret relationship with Henry that could derail the campaign and upend two nations. And Henry throws everything into question for Alex, an impulsive, charming guy who thought he knew everything: What is worth the sacrifice? How do you do all the good you can do? And, most importantly, how will history remember you?

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“The next slide is titled: 'Exploring your sexuality: Healthy, but does it have to be with the Prince of England?' She apologizes for not having time to come up with better titles. Alex actively wishes for the sweet release of death.”

Look at these cuties. How can you not love them?

Red, White and Royal Blue was McQuiston's debut novel, in addition to being the winner of the Goodreads Choice Awards 2019 for, both, best romance and debut novel.

While Alex and his sister, June, are busy navigating the troubled waters leading up to the Claremont matriarch's reelection bid, Alex manages to wreak havoc at the royal wedding. And falls into a cake. Only an American. Only. An. American.

His clumsy fall (call it fate?) lands not only himself, but Prince Henry- the dashing lad in red please feel free to take a look at him please- at the center of global media attention. And into a cake, also please remember he lands into a cake.

And of course what could be more logical than forcing the two to be best friends when the entire Claremont campaign is on the line? And so it begins: THE MOST ASDFGHJKL LOVE STORY OF ALL TIME. It's definitely safe to say that all those feelings of hatred these two harboured over the years were uhm something else all together.

McQuiston does a fabulous job of putting together a multitude of clichés and making them work, you just happen to find yourself rooting for the two! They are completely fangirl worthy, if only I knew what their ship name was. Halex? Wiaz? Idk.

But let's just say that they're absolute OTP and that watching them fall in love was a treat. And wow ALL THE TENSION jeeezzzz.

While it's always nice to read a fairytale love story once every now and then, about half way through the novel I was waiting for it to end. It was dragged on and on and on, and it was really unnecessary. The book would've been much better and a lot more engaging had it been shorter. A novella, perhaps?

It was a good one time read, with a lovely plot. It just gets tiring after a while. Basically what I'm trying to say is that you should read Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda instead :)

Rating: 3/5