Scan barcode
A review by paperlo
Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
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
4.0
I went into this book expecting it to read like a very well-written piece of fanfiction and that’s exactly what it felt like - and I think having those expectations, that this would feel like fanfiction instead of typical literature, really helped me to throw myself into the concept of the book and enjoy it much more.
The romance is satisfying and nicely explored and the characters are very immediately clear and developed - there’s no mysteries around who these people are, but they’re clearly presented and fully fleshed out. They each feel like their own little completely realised fictional person from the get go - and more importantly, they’re loveable from the start.
The politics side of the plot isn’t particularly my cup of tea - I think it was very much supposed to be hopeful and aspirational but I feel like instead it just made me somewhat sad about reality - it was a little too like impossible fiction rooted in reality and so did not feel enough like any sort of escape, in the way I like my fiction to feel. I think more than anything it made me just feel jaded, so as an experience it felt a little more irritating than satisfying. Not being from the US and often bored of hearing about US politics, I also really wasn’t particularly invested in the actual political side of the story anyway - I found it to occasionally drag, but fortunately the romance was fun and interesting and more than made up for this.
Being from the UK, the less than favourable glimpses of British politics of it all did mostly amuse me, although I think this book depicts most of the royal family much more favourably than they perhaps deserve, in the finish. Still, it was fun and engaging to read.
I read the story near enough in one sitting, in the space of a day and by the end, I found myself still wanting more of the two main characters, so ultimately I’d count it as an incredibly enjoyable success in my book. It feels exactly like I’ve just read a wonderfully written, unusually well edited fanfic, sure, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing - and in fact I feel that same pleased satisfaction at having been given something so unapologetically romantic and so inescapably queer as good fanfiction gives me. If you go into this book willing to simply give into the conceit of it, you’ll have a remarkably good time.
The romance is satisfying and nicely explored and the characters are very immediately clear and developed - there’s no mysteries around who these people are, but they’re clearly presented and fully fleshed out. They each feel like their own little completely realised fictional person from the get go - and more importantly, they’re loveable from the start.
The politics side of the plot isn’t particularly my cup of tea - I think it was very much supposed to be hopeful and aspirational but I feel like instead it just made me somewhat sad about reality - it was a little too like impossible fiction rooted in reality and so did not feel enough like any sort of escape, in the way I like my fiction to feel. I think more than anything it made me just feel jaded, so as an experience it felt a little more irritating than satisfying. Not being from the US and often bored of hearing about US politics, I also really wasn’t particularly invested in the actual political side of the story anyway - I found it to occasionally drag, but fortunately the romance was fun and interesting and more than made up for this.
Being from the UK, the less than favourable glimpses of British politics of it all did mostly amuse me, although I think this book depicts most of the royal family much more favourably than they perhaps deserve, in the finish. Still, it was fun and engaging to read.
I read the story near enough in one sitting, in the space of a day and by the end, I found myself still wanting more of the two main characters, so ultimately I’d count it as an incredibly enjoyable success in my book. It feels exactly like I’ve just read a wonderfully written, unusually well edited fanfic, sure, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing - and in fact I feel that same pleased satisfaction at having been given something so unapologetically romantic and so inescapably queer as good fanfiction gives me. If you go into this book willing to simply give into the conceit of it, you’ll have a remarkably good time.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Sexual content, and Outing
Moderate: Death of parent and Alcohol
Minor: Addiction, Biphobia, Cancer, Drug abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Sexual assault, Terminal illness, and Sexual harassment