Reviews

Rojo, blanco y sangre azul by Casey McQuiston

violetduckie's review against another edition

I’ve decided to stop thinking about finishing this book. I watched the movie and enjoyed it instead

bookishcarli's review against another edition

5.0

Reread this and now have first prince brainrot lol i love this Sm

edit: reread again bc I had to reread the whole book bc I got the collectors edition with the Henry pov and I love this book sm

sarag19's review against another edition

3.0

2.5 out of 5 Stars Rounded up to 3

***Wish granted! ARC received from NetGalley and St. Martin's Press in exchange for honest review. Opinions are my own, thanks!***

I'm so torn on this one. There are parts of it that are good but when it falls flat it falls incredibly flat and struggles to to pick itself back up again.

The Good

- Representation. This book is just heaping with representation across the board from the main characters to the secondary characters. The first children are bi-racial and the book has a lot of LGBTQ+ representation within it. When Alex declared himself to be bisexual I was worried, it seems often enough that we see bi erasure even if people don't really mean it but it was really nice to not see that. Alex is bi, his relationship with women and men mean something to him and people respect that.

- Politics. Okay, as a political junkie I enjoyed that aspect of the story. This was definitely a "what if" story about had the 2016 election turned out differently and during the book a campaign is running in the background. Its addresses the petty, ridiculous but also down right cruel nature of politics even if it just kinda glosses over it. I wanted more of this story.

The Not So Good

- Characters. I just had a hard time with the characters and some of the dialogue. There were so many times during this book that I had to remind myself that these were college grads not high school students getting drunk at parties while the parents weren't home. Which happens more than was necessary.

Spoiler

The characters of the royal family in particular really struck me as harsh and caricature of the stiff upper lip can't accept change British. Its the only real backlash that struck out to me about the romance, everything else functioned in a world were same sex relationships are just totally cool. There is still a lot of homophobia in the world, not just within the royal family.

- Romance. For a romance book this wasn't my favorite part. If you have read enough fanfiction in your time (guilty, sorry not sorry) you've read pretty much everything this book will throw at you. Two characters that have hated each other from the beginning, but secretly loved each other for that entire time that get forced together, literally. They end up in a broom closet, lifted straight from a million fanfiction stories. The friendship felt at least a little more organic to me but the romance just hits you over the head as suddenly being there, same with their apparent arch enemy status. I'm led to believe it was because of something Henry said years ago or because he is pompous and arrogant? I suppose, it felt more forced than the romance did. The romance itself it pure fluff, with some fluffy sex scenes thrown in for good measure until it comes to the "conflict".

- The Conflict. Can't have a fluffy romance without a conflict.

Spoiler

Alex and Henry have both been in the public eye for years, particularly Henry having been born right into the public eye so the fact that they are shocked and everyone around them is shocked when their romance gets thrust into the gossip pages made me laugh. Even if their wasn't a reelection going on it was going to happen eventually. Its not like they are exactly being careful with keeping their romance secret.

Even the bigger conflict, back to politics here felt tacked on to give some resolution to that story line and in the end it really didn't impact the plot since it happens so late in the story.

In the end its not a bad book, I think some of the issues I had could have been helped with pacing and deciding what it wants to be, a political fantasy or a romance fantasy because it can't really balance being both.

bledoux's review against another edition

2.0

This book was way too damn long.

It's very fluffy and cliche but that's what I wanted when I read this so it didnt disappoint. I was invested in all of the characters but it dragged once you got to page 300, so by page 400 I was over it and skipped to the last pages.

I do recommend if you're looking for a fluffy and cute love story about the presidents son and the prince of england.

binilovesbooks's review against another edition

funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

tlejeune's review against another edition

adventurous inspiring lighthearted relaxing slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

mrskhugs's review against another edition

4.0

3.5 rounded up. It felt like it dragged on in a few spots, and a few parts were predictable, but overall a good and entertaining read.

alliepeduto's review against another edition

4.0

I’m back! The midterms are over and I felt like I could return to this with less anxiety and more joy. And joyful it was! I cried. Like full blown tears streaming down my face. I felt all the feels and it’s the little boost I needed.

I loved Alex, but I really loved Henry. I enjoyed that we got to see Henry through Alex’s eyes for the story, and my heart hurt for the situations they found themselves in. But we get our happily ever after in more ways than one, and I was grateful to be on the journey!

I left my original notes here but highly recommend and so glad I finished it!

This book is glorious, do not get me wrong. I adore the characters, even at just a third of the way in, but the timing is just not great for me to fully focus on the joy of this novel. I had originally planned to read this while I was on a trip to DC (because duh), but between the recent death of Queen Elizabeth II and upcoming the mid-term elections, it’s a perfect storm of distractions whenever anything comes up in the story related to the royal family and politics…which is case you didn’t know is kind of the majority of the plot.

So I’m going to probably return to this in like late Nov?? Since I mostly read as a form of escapism (especially romance!), I want to make sure I’m in the right headspace to fully embrace this. But the 5 star is still 100% accurate, so I’m leaving it there!

angk's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful inspiring medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

0.5

cupiscent's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I really enjoyed this - a great and intricate character study in a complex and nuanced situation, with a solid and moving romance.

But the ending, particularly on the American side, just...

Spoiler

in the time that has passed since this was first written and published, or maybe it's just my current bleak outlook, but honestly, the hopefulness of the election result literally hurts, because it feels so far from reality. So impossible that America, let alone Texas, could be won over by those circumstances. Could view that Republican behaviour as unacceptable. Could do that. Overall, it's so sweet, but that poked me right in a bitter bruise. (To be honest, the film version worked better for me, in that Alex had put in a lot of hard work on the ground to shift Texas, but also in that the film felt intentionally further away from reality. The book is so detailed, so close.)