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

Alex Claremont-Diaz is handsome, charismatic, a genius – pure millennial-marketing gold for the White House ever since his mother first became President of the United States. There’s only one problem. When the tabloids get hold of a photo involving an altercation between Alex and Prince Henry, U.S./British relations take a turn for the worse.

Heads of family and state devise a plan for damage control: stage a truce. But what begins as a fake, Instagrammable friendship grows deeper, and more dangerous, than either Alex or Henry could have imagined. Soon they are hurtling into a secret romance that could derail the presidential campaign and upend two nations.

‘Red, White & Royal Blue is outrageously fun. It is romantic, sexy, witty, and thrilling. I loved every second.’ – Taylor Jenkins Reid, New York Times bestselling author of Daisy Jones & The Six

How was it?

I rushed to get this book but did not rush to read it. So this book sat there for while and I started to get ideas about it. I genuinely thought that it would be a bland, shallow story about a prince falling in love with an American commoner. I did not know that the American would be the first son, because I buy books without reading the blurb, and this one was heavily marketed.

So imagine my surprise when I discovered that it’s a proper gay romance novel. There’re some steamy scenes, that are graphic enough – which was well played by the author because what’s happening is obvious AND most importantly I didn’t feel like it was censured because it was two dudes. I didn’t expect such an earnest, sweet, and intense story that felt like reality. The story is grounded to such a level that it almost – and I mean almost – feels like the retelling of something that happened.

Alex and Henry feel as reel as the story is grounded in reality. Even though the story is told through Alex’s eyes, they both become complex and fleshed-out characters whose lives do not revolve around their romance. It’s another thing that I appreciated about this novel, the set-up, the two boys being in the political sphere is not just window dressing and part of the novel. Funnily enough, it’s also where the novel leans more toward fantasy. By that, I don’t mean that a divorced woman with mix-raced kids couldn’t be president but there’s a whole election side to the story that becomes a bit much, there’s some suspense of disbelief going on there.

However, this book remains a great read and I’d recommend it.

Red White & Royal Blue is available on Amazon and other book retailers near you.