Red, White & Royal Blue (McQuiston)

Red, White & Royal Blue 
Casey McQuiston, 2019
St. Martin's Press
432 pp.
ISBN-13: 9781250316776


Summary
What happens when America's First Son falls in love with the Prince of Wales?

When his mother became President, Alex Claremont-Diaz was promptly cast as the American equivalent of a young royal. Handsome, charismatic, genius—his image is pure millennial-marketing gold for the White House.

There's only one problem: Alex has a beef with the actual prince, Henry, across the pond. And when the tabloids get hold of a photo involving an Alex-Henry altercation, U.S./British relations take a turn for the worse.

Heads of family, state, and other handlers devise a plan for damage control: staging a truce between the two rivals.

What at first begins as a fake, Instragramable friendship grows deeper, and more dangerous, than either Alex or Henry could have imagined.

Soon Alex finds himself hurtling into a secret romance with a surprisingly unstuffy Henry that could derail the campaign and upend two nations and begs the question: Can love save the world after all?

Where do we find the courage, and the power, to be the people we are meant to be? And how can we learn to let our true colors shine through? Casey McQuiston's Red, White & Royal Blue proves: true love isn't always diplomatic.  (From the publisher.)

Author Bio
• Birth—ca. 1990-91 (?)
• Where—Baton Rouge, Louisiana, U.S.A.
• Education—Louisiana State University
• Currently—lives in New York, New York


Casey McQuiston is the New York Times bestselling author of Red, White & Royal Blue, as well as a pie enthusiast. She writes books about smart people with bad manners falling in love. Born and raised in southern Louisiana, she now lives in New York City with her poodle mix and personal assistant, Pepper. (From the publisher.)

Book Reviews
[A n] exquisite debut…. McQuiston masterfully navigates two very different political realms, conjuring the quick-fire decision-making of a progressive White House and the iron-grip traditionalism of Buckingham Palace with equal skill. That would be impressive enough, but it's nothing compared to the consuming vividness of Alex and Henry. They shine as individuals… and when they fall in love, the intensity of their infatuation, youthful but not immature, is intoxicating…. McQuiston manages to make her characters believably, truly flawed while still utterly lovable…. It's hard to watch [Alex] fall in love with Henry without falling in love a bit yourself—with them, and with this brilliant, wonderful book.
Jaimie Green - New York Times Book Review


Effervescent and empowering on all levels, Red, White & Royal Blue is both a well-written love story and a celebration of identity. McQuiston may not be royal herself, but her novel reigns as must read rom-com.
NPR


[A] fireworks in the sky, glitter in your hair joyous royal romance that you’ll want to fall head over heels in love with again and again. A+
Entertainment Weekly


[An] escapist masterpiece…. It’s a truly glorious thing to live inside the world of this book and to imagine it becoming reality, too.
Vogue


The super specific love story you never knew you needed.
Cosmopolitan


(Starred review) [O]utstanding…. The impossible relationship between Alex and Henry is portrayed with quick wit and clever plotting. The drama… is both irresistible and delicious. Readers will be eager to see more from McQuiston after this extremely promising start.
Publishers Weekly


(Starred review) [With] quick-witted dialog and a complicated relationship…, McQuiston's debut is an irresistible, hopeful, and sexy romantic comedy that considers real questions about personal and public responsibility.
Library Journal


(Starred review) In between sweet and steamy love scenes, Red, White & Royal Blue allows readers to imagine a world where coming out involves no self-loathing; where fan fiction and activist Twitter do actual good…. This Blue Wave fantasy could be the feel-good book of the summer.
Booklist


(Starred review) The much-loved royal romance genre gets a fun and refreshing update…. The love affair between Alex and Henry is intense and romantic… [with] poetic emails that manage to be both funny and steamy. A clever, romantic, sexy love story.
Kirkus Reviews

Discussion Questions
1. Red, White & Royal Blue has fun with a number of romance tropes. Which ones are your favorites and why are they so appealing?

2. At the beginning of the novel, Alex and Henry are enemies, then they become friends, and eventually lovers. Why does their relationship work so well? How do they balance each other out?

3. What’s the most swoon-worthy moment in this book (if you can pick one)? What do you think is the biggest turning point for Alex and Henry’s relationship? Discuss.

4. McQuiston adds a great deal of LGBTQ+ historical context for Alex’s journey throughout the novel. In what ways is this important for both Alex and the reader?

5. Alex and Henry’s communication escalates from texts to phone calls, and eventually to intense emails that quote the love letters of historical figures. How does their correspondence add to the story?

6. While the book is about a romantic relationship at its core, there are a number of other relationships with friends, parents, and siblings throughout. How are these relationships important to Alex and Henry, and how do they enhance the story?

7. McQuiston has provided a rich cast of supporting characters. Who is your favorite supporting character and why? Do you have any favorite secondary pairings? If so, who and why?

8. How do the concepts of community and found family play a part in the novel? How might Alex and Henry’s journey have differed without a support system of friends and family in place?

9. Red, White & Royal Blue takes place in a United States and United Kingdom that closely resemble our own but ultimately exist in an alternate universe. How do the politics in the book reflect what’s happening in the real world? Who are your favorite fictional political or royal figures in the book and why?

10. Why do readers have royal fever? What is it about royalty that sparks such interest? What did you think of this royal family? Did it make you think differently about real-life royal families?

11. The book ends with Alex’s Democrat mom, Ellen Claremont, winning a second term as President of the United States and Alex and Henry making plans for the future. What happens afterward for this cast of characters? Where do you see Alex and Henry in five years, in ten?
(Questions issued by publisher.)

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