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A review by astravars
Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
this book positively surprised me.
you may ask yourself why that is, given its popularity, but i have to admit i am usually a little careful with books as well loved as this one,,, i had no reason to be
what i hear most people talk about when it comes to this book is the achillean romance itself
which makes sense of course, given this is a romance book, HOWEVER it was so much more than i'd initially thought
this might be a me thing but i tend to love the aspects of the relationship that aren't necessarily romantic the most - the deep talk about feelings and trauma, the healing, the caring
our main character, alex, talks about the idea of "home" and what it means to him, there's his parents' divorce, and how he uses work as a way to distract himself from thinking about his feelings
henry struggles with the pressure his family puts on him to "retain the crown's image", the homophobia he's faced with for the same reasons and the death of his father
i won't talk about their relationship a lot since i'm sure you all already know this, just know that i loved it a lot and i would do anything to ensure their happiness
the supporting characters were so well fleshed out as well?? - june, nora, bea, pez; i loved them all so much
i think bea might have been my favourite. her backstory. the way she threatened philip with a guitar when he tried to talk to henry about "the consequences of his actions"?? iconic
speaking of which... henry was probably my favourite character overall and i connected to him so well, he's so relatable (people pleasing mf with death of a loved one as a core trauma? that's me)
then there was, of course, the politics. i love books about politics. usually, however, they're sff, not contemporary
good to know i enjoy a contemporary politics plot as well
i'm so glad henry kept talking shit about his ancestors - as he should
rafael luna was also an icon
so, in conclusion, this book was a rollercoaster, it kept tearing at my heart strings in all the right ways, and in the unlikely scenario that you have not read this yet, i highly recommend you doing so soon
ps. i think it's kind of funny how i finished this the day the movie came out (shout out to sar for forcing me to finally read this)
pps. though there was one trans character i wish there was more genderqueerness, but hey that's okay
you may ask yourself why that is, given its popularity, but i have to admit i am usually a little careful with books as well loved as this one,,, i had no reason to be
what i hear most people talk about when it comes to this book is the achillean romance itself
which makes sense of course, given this is a romance book, HOWEVER it was so much more than i'd initially thought
this might be a me thing but i tend to love the aspects of the relationship that aren't necessarily romantic the most - the deep talk about feelings and trauma, the healing, the caring
our main character, alex, talks about the idea of "home" and what it means to him, there's his parents' divorce, and how he uses work as a way to distract himself from thinking about his feelings
henry struggles with the pressure his family puts on him to "retain the crown's image", the homophobia he's faced with for the same reasons and the death of his father
i won't talk about their relationship a lot since i'm sure you all already know this, just know that i loved it a lot and i would do anything to ensure their happiness
the supporting characters were so well fleshed out as well?? - june, nora, bea, pez; i loved them all so much
i think bea might have been my favourite. her backstory. the way she threatened philip with a guitar when he tried to talk to henry about "the consequences of his actions"?? iconic
speaking of which... henry was probably my favourite character overall and i connected to him so well, he's so relatable (people pleasing mf with death of a loved one as a core trauma? that's me)
then there was, of course, the politics. i love books about politics. usually, however, they're sff, not contemporary
good to know i enjoy a contemporary politics plot as well
i'm so glad henry kept talking shit about his ancestors - as he should
rafael luna was also an icon
so, in conclusion, this book was a rollercoaster, it kept tearing at my heart strings in all the right ways, and in the unlikely scenario that you have not read this yet, i highly recommend you doing so soon
ps. i think it's kind of funny how i finished this the day the movie came out (shout out to sar for forcing me to finally read this)
pps. though there was one trans character i wish there was more genderqueerness, but hey that's okay