trayslays's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
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? It's complicated
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Outing and Sexual content
Moderate: Biphobia, Homophobia, Alcohol, Grief, and Death of parent
Minor: Drug abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, and Racism
undecidedpersonality's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
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? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Outing, Cursing, Grief, Homophobia, and Alcohol
Moderate: Addiction, Drug abuse, Drug use, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Death, Racism, Sexual harassment, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Death of parent, and Sexual assault
Minor: Biphobia, Child abuse, Transphobia, and Colonisation
torilara's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
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
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Outing, and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Racism, Death of parent, Xenophobia, Sexual content, Misogyny, Homophobia, Toxic relationship, and Biphobia
Minor: Cancer, Adult/minor relationship, Pedophilia, Addiction, Alcohol, and Forced institutionalization
a_kt's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
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? It's complicated
4.0
I don't normally read romance novels but the last book I read was really long and a bit of a bummer so I needed something of a palette cleanser, if you will. I saw the trailer for the Amazon Prime adaptation of this and thought I'd give it a go.
First off, here are the aspects of this book I really enjoyed: Mainly, it was easy. This book isn't some world-view-shattering triste on geopolitics or queer representation or anything like that. It's a star-crossed starry-eyed bubblegum romance about two people that fall in love and struggle to be together due to their circumstances in life. That's what it is on the surface, and that's what it remains throughout the entire book. The characters are funny, endearing, and well written if a bit unrealistic, encroaching on parodies of personalities. The leads, Alex and Henry, have a relationship that grows and develops organically. The book is written from mostly Alex's POV, and watching him come to terms with himself, his feelings, and his identity seemed really well done for me personally (please note: I do not identify as lgbtqia+ so I have no idea if this part of the book was realistic or not). Lastly, the book does get pretty spicy at parts, and I thought the spicy parts were tastefully done without coming across as too voyeuristic.
The aspects of the book I didn't much care for: the ending dragged, and I mean, like, seriously dragged on. No spoilers, but there is a bit of a reckoning in the book, as you can probably expect, and the amount of faff in this book to wrap everything up just keeps going and going and going. The story reached, what I thought was a natural conclusion, and to my surprise there were 3 more chapters and 100+ pages left! This made me realize the pacing of the entire book is a little wonky. Alex and Henry are pretty much thrust together by the end of the first chapter, their relationship has a bit of a slow burn before becoming exponentially involved with each other, then there's the conclusion of their story which carries on at a snail's pace. It's a bit weird, but maybe that's par for the course for romances, I'm not really sure. Overall though, not a huge criticism and it didn't really detract from my enjoyment.
In the end this book is pretty much exactly what it's advertised to be. It can get pretty cheesy, on the nose, and even a little... cringe?? at parts, but overall it's a good story. Frustrated wish fulfillment with the US's (maybe the world's) current political climate wrapped up in a pretty safe, feel-good love story.
First off, here are the aspects of this book I really enjoyed: Mainly, it was easy. This book isn't some world-view-shattering triste on geopolitics or queer representation or anything like that. It's a star-crossed starry-eyed bubblegum romance about two people that fall in love and struggle to be together due to their circumstances in life. That's what it is on the surface, and that's what it remains throughout the entire book. The characters are funny, endearing, and well written if a bit unrealistic, encroaching on parodies of personalities. The leads, Alex and Henry, have a relationship that grows and develops organically. The book is written from mostly Alex's POV, and watching him come to terms with himself, his feelings, and his identity seemed really well done for me personally (please note: I do not identify as lgbtqia+ so I have no idea if this part of the book was realistic or not). Lastly, the book does get pretty spicy at parts, and I thought the spicy parts were tastefully done without coming across as too voyeuristic.
The aspects of the book I didn't much care for: the ending dragged, and I mean, like, seriously dragged on. No spoilers, but there is a bit of a reckoning in the book, as you can probably expect, and the amount of faff in this book to wrap everything up just keeps going and going and going. The story reached, what I thought was a natural conclusion, and to my surprise there were 3 more chapters and 100+ pages left! This made me realize the pacing of the entire book is a little wonky. Alex and Henry are pretty much thrust together by the end of the first chapter, their relationship has a bit of a slow burn before becoming exponentially involved with each other, then there's the conclusion of their story which carries on at a snail's pace. It's a bit weird, but maybe that's par for the course for romances, I'm not really sure. Overall though, not a huge criticism and it didn't really detract from my enjoyment.
In the end this book is pretty much exactly what it's advertised to be. It can get pretty cheesy, on the nose, and even a little... cringe?? at parts, but overall it's a good story. Frustrated wish fulfillment with the US's (maybe the world's) current political climate wrapped up in a pretty safe, feel-good love story.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual harassment and Sexual assault
Minor: Homophobia and Racism
letiross's review
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Outing, Sexual content, and Homophobia
Moderate: Death of parent
Minor: Sexual assault, Racism, and Drug abuse
ohshebookish's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
"Because you're it, okay? I'm never gonna love anybody in the world like I love you."
Alexander Gabriel Claremont-Diaz and HRH Prince Henry George Edward James Fox-Mountchristen-Windsor (whew that's a lot!) will live rent free in my head until the end of time.
This book has everything:
-Enemies to friends to lovers
-Found family/Familial bond
-Self discovery
-Queer rep
-Badass women
-Banter
-Political commentary
First off, I really enjoyed how the time frame and events of the world are in this story. It's 2020, there's a Democrat woman from Texas as the President of the U.S. with two biracial children. Could you imagine that with the state of the world today? But, crazier things have happened in 2020 in reality, so who knows, maybe one day. The progression that the nation, and world, has made in the story was very refreshing, even though it wasn't without controversy looming. It made me so happy to see, sad that the world isn't this way in real life, and hopeful that maybe one day it could be.
The political commentary weaved seamlessly throughout the story, highlighting topics that are a real concern in today's world. The author tackled those issues with a real lens, and I appreciate how everything wasn't just sunshine and rainbows. All of the characters had to go through difficult scenarios and decisions that made the story feel real. Even the monarchy and the commentary around the royal family was similar to current events. This book isn't just all about the romance, but there is also a lot of depth as the story tackles these hard situations.
The relationships in this book are *chefs kiss* The romance, oooh the romance, it's one of my favorites that I've ever read! The banter between Henry and Alex is top tier, but their emails to each other made me want to MELT. I especially loved Alex's growth. He went from despising (or so he assumed) Henry to being so in tune with his emotions and caring about Henry's feelings before even his own. Everyone should be loved the way Alex loves Henry. And Henry standing up to his family was one of my favorite moments, I literally felt like a proud parent. Let's not forget about the friendships! I loved how not only Alex and Henry found each other, but the entire friend group and support system that developed. It was beautiful to see how they all rallied for each other in different ways.
All in all, this book was such a quick and beautiful read. I laughed, I cried, I got angry, I felt all the feels. I would highly recommend, especially to help get out of a reading slump.
Alexander Gabriel Claremont-Diaz and HRH Prince Henry George Edward James Fox-Mountchristen-Windsor (whew that's a lot!) will live rent free in my head until the end of time.
This book has everything:
-Enemies to friends to lovers
-Found family/Familial bond
-Self discovery
-Queer rep
-Badass women
-Banter
-Political commentary
First off, I really enjoyed how the time frame and events of the world are in this story. It's 2020, there's a Democrat woman from Texas as the President of the U.S. with two biracial children. Could you imagine that with the state of the world today? But, crazier things have happened in 2020 in reality, so who knows, maybe one day. The progression that the nation, and world, has made in the story was very refreshing, even though it wasn't without controversy looming. It made me so happy to see, sad that the world isn't this way in real life, and hopeful that maybe one day it could be.
The political commentary weaved seamlessly throughout the story, highlighting topics that are a real concern in today's world. The author tackled those issues with a real lens, and I appreciate how everything wasn't just sunshine and rainbows. All of the characters had to go through difficult scenarios and decisions that made the story feel real. Even the monarchy and the commentary around the royal family was similar to current events. This book isn't just all about the romance, but there is also a lot of depth as the story tackles these hard situations.
The relationships in this book are *chefs kiss* The romance, oooh the romance, it's one of my favorites that I've ever read! The banter between Henry and Alex is top tier, but their emails to each other made me want to MELT. I especially loved Alex's growth. He went from despising (or so he assumed) Henry to being so in tune with his emotions and caring about Henry's feelings before even his own. Everyone should be loved the way Alex loves Henry. And Henry standing up to his family was one of my favorite moments, I literally felt like a proud parent. Let's not forget about the friendships! I loved how not only Alex and Henry found each other, but the entire friend group and support system that developed. It was beautiful to see how they all rallied for each other in different ways.
All in all, this book was such a quick and beautiful read. I laughed, I cried, I got angry, I felt all the feels. I would highly recommend, especially to help get out of a reading slump.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Homophobia, Racism, and Drug abuse
Minor: Death of parent
sophieamreacher's review
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Much better than the film, more romantic and well thought out. I liked the emails and transcripts. The politics was a bit over my head at times but good book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Racism, Sexual content, and Outing
Minor: Sexism, Classism, Alcohol, Drug abuse, Death of parent, Deportation, Sexual assault, Addiction, Grief, Death, and Biphobia
painteed_12's review against another edition
emotional
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
"História, hem?"
Comprei este livro na feira do livro do ano passado porque tinha ouvido falar bastante, e já me tinham recomendado.
Esta história que envolve política e romance, é uma história sentimental com uma mensagem, e gostei bastante da relação do trio da casa branca e henry com o Alex e os demais.
Comprei este livro na feira do livro do ano passado porque tinha ouvido falar bastante, e já me tinham recomendado.
Esta história que envolve política e romance, é uma história sentimental com uma mensagem, e gostei bastante da relação do trio da casa branca e henry com o Alex e os demais.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Homophobia
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual assault, and Racism
violetdisposition's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Outing
Moderate: Homophobia, Sexual content, and Racism
Minor: Sexual assault
sav_22's review
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
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
4.0
This book is a fun read if you want something light and soft. I read it because of the movie coming out recently, I wanted to see what it was like comparatively and wasn’t disappointed. It’s cheesy, it’s cute, it’s a rom-com through and through. If you liked the movie, the book has so much more to offer! The movie does it’s best to bring it to life and the actors surely captured the essence, but I’d highly recommend reading the book! It has complexities and very good characters that deserve to be read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Outing, Homophobia, and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Racism and Death of parent
Minor: Drug use and Eating disorder