Red, White, and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston

Upon reading Red, White, and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston, it is pretty safe to say that this book has become one of my all time favorites. This book is written in the third person perspective through the eyes of main character Alex Claremont-Diaz, the Mexican son of the president of the United States. The story kicks off with Alex and his archnemesis, the British Prince Henry, accidentally causing a public scandal which strains relations between America and Britain. The solution to this problem, you may ask? To concoct a story of a fake friendship between the two, and to actually pretend to be friends. While Alex finds himself annoyed with this arrangement at first, he discovers much more about Henry and himself as their friendship begins to progress. Now in a secret relationship with the prince, Alex finds himself faced with questions of the consequences. Personally, I love the plot of the book. I think that the pacing was a little weird throughout the book (it is very quickly paced at certain parts while being very drawn out at others), but I love the story so much that I don’t really mind the pacing at all. I absolutely love McQuiston’s writing style. I think that McQuiston’s prose is beautiful and really takes you along with the characters. McQuiston excels at the “show don’t tell” writing method, and I honestly couldn’t put the book down once I was immersed through their writing. I also like the plot of this story.  While this story is mainly focused on the romance, there are so many other events that take place outside of Alex and Henry’s relationship. I was always interested in the plot of the story and never felt bored. I absolutely adore all of the characters. The characters are very well written, three dimensional masterpieces. The characters are all in their 20s, setting this apart from most other books I read with 16-18 year old main characters. I love the dynamics between all of the characters, and I really enjoy the realistic relationships that were portrayed. For example, the sibling bond between Alex and June, his older sister, felt so natural and truly represented what it is like between brothers and sisters. I also like the friendships that were scattered throughout the book. While towards the beginning of the book, Alex didn’t really have many friends, as the story progresses Alex becomes friends with more people and all of those friendships were very well written. I absolutely love the romance between Alex and Henry. After all, who doesn’t enjoy a classic rivals to lovers trope? Their banter towards the beginning of their relationship is great, and I love how the story shows how they got to know each other and became closer and closer until they entered into a secret relationship. Alex and Henry have so much chemistry, and it is so delightful to read about their relationship. Their bond is unmatched, and it is so addictive to read about. Overall, this book is such an enjoyable read and I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys a good contemporary romance.