SOPHIE LI

I’ve been hearing lots about this book and couldn’t wait to read it. After a string of long & serious classic and high fantasy novels, I was looking forward to something light, sweet, and fun. Red, White & Royal Blue was EXACTLY what I needed.

A big-hearted romantic comedy in which First Son Alex falls in love with Prince Henry of Wales after an incident of international proportions forces them to pretend to be best friends…

First Son Alex Claremont-Diaz is the closest thing to a prince this side of the Atlantic. With his intrepid sister and the Veep’s genius granddaughter, they’re the White House Trio, a beautiful millennial marketing strategy for his mother, President Ellen Claremont. International socialite duties do have downsides—namely, when photos of a confrontation with his longtime nemesis Prince Henry at a royal wedding leak to the tabloids and threaten American/British relations.

The plan for damage control: staging a fake friendship between the First Son and the Prince. Alex is busy enough handling his mother’s bloodthirsty opponents and his own political ambitions without an uptight royal slowing him down. But beneath Henry’s Prince Charming veneer, there’s a soft-hearted eccentric with a dry sense of humor and more than one ghost haunting him. 

As President Claremont kicks off her reelection bid, Alex finds himself hurtling into a secret relationship with Henry that could derail the campaign and upend two nations. And Henry throws everything into question for Alex, an impulsive, charming guy who thought he knew everything: What is worth the sacrifice? How do you do all the good you can do? And, most importantly, how will history remember you?

First Son Alex Claremont-Diaz confronted his arch-rival Prince Henry of Wales at a wedding that threatened to ruin international relations between the US and Britain. To patch things up, Alex and Henry staged a fake friendship… that became something real.

Alex Claremont-Diaz had such a distinct and humorous voice that sucked me into his story right away. I couldn’t help but relate to him in his daily struggles as a First Son and international socialite… even though this is much different from what a typical person goes through.

Prince Henry was SO adorable. I loved the chemistry between Alex and Henry that was palpable from the very beginning.

The amount of diversity in this novel was inspiring. Really LOVED that we had a woman as the President of the United States. And of course, it was to be expected that there was a good mix of LGBTQ+ characters in this book!

Despite being a cute and light-hearted story with a cast of fun characters, this book dealt with heavy issues such as discrimination against LGBTQ– even though there was growing acceptance for homosexuality, Alex and Henry faced roadblocks as their relationship developed.

It was kind of predictable. I foresaw every twist and turn in the plot, although it didn’t make it less enjoyable of a read. Because I was so invested in the characters, I wanted to read about how characters got from point A to point B.

Oh the cheese! Yeah, there were some cheesy words and dramatic romantic gestures exchanged between our couple haha.

Although there was some focus on their families & friends, these relationships took a back seat to Henry & Alex’s romantic relationship. Would’ve loved to see more focus on the platonic relationships here.

Overall an enjoyable read! If you are looking for great LGBTQ representation and a sweet & sizzling romance, consider adding Red, White & Royal Blue to your TBR!

Do you have any favourite romances with LGBTQ representation?

Photo by Alex Martinez on Unsplash; Aleksander Vlad on Unsplash