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rowan92579's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
slow-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
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Outing and Alcohol
Minor: Drug abuse and Death of parent
b3c's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Drug abuse, Sexual content, and Homophobia
Minor: Sexual harassment and Death of parent
parasolcrafter's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
this book is really and truly not at ALL worth the hype & reputation it has. the characters are bland, the plot has almost no meaning by the end as all the stakes just end up...not really mattering, and the writing is far too in the realm of fanfiction for me, which makes complete sense. this could have been a good book with an interesting story, but nothing was executed well. the characters didnt dislike each other enough to be enemies, they didnt show me enough of their past for me to get invested, and we werent really shown WHY they supposedly disliked each other except because theyre both young men from famous families...? like im sorry but thats not enough for me. it really isnt. the plot for them to get together was completely rushed, and then when they got together it just. stopped. and never really picked up again. i thought the politics of this book would be a very tense, interesting point of the story almost had next to no meaning in the book. like, i really thought the whole issue with the other presidential candidate would lead to SOME ramifications in the book, but it just didnt. also the fact that alex doesnt even WANT to go into politics by the end of it, which was part of the reason why their relationship had some reason to be kept secret...thats just bad writing. oh, and all the 'jabs' at the royal family were far too on the nose to me; it really feels like they were just there for the author to point to say 'look! look i pointed out that the monarchy is bad!!!' like spell it out for us a LITTLE less. have some nuance.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia and Racism
Moderate: Drug abuse, Classism, Addiction, Alcohol, Bullying, Car accident, Cursing, Death of parent, Sexual content, Death, and Drug use
dannothedino's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Mental illness, Emotional abuse, Outing, Alcohol, Grief, Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, and Sexual content
Moderate: Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Death, Death of parent, Addiction, Alcoholism, and Biphobia
Minor: Sexual harassment, Genocide, Classism, Cancer, Colonisation, Rape, and Sexual assault
tweesee_93's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Sexual content, and Outing
Moderate: Mental illness
Minor: Death of parent, Drug abuse, and Alcoholism
rnewk's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
sad
slow-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
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Outing
Moderate: Drug abuse
Minor: Death of parent, Chronic illness, Homophobia, and Racism
sirenricobooks's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-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
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Outing, and Sexual content
Moderate: Classism, Alcohol, Cursing, and Death of parent
Minor: Colonisation, Drug abuse, Grief, Addiction, and Incest
aaannika's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Homophobia and Drug use
Minor: Drug abuse
rosesandproses's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I read this book after watching the movie on Amazon, and it is a much different experience than the movie. If you watched the movie, you will enjoy the book, but they have some very key differences. I mean all this in the most neutral way: I enjoyed both in different ways.
Alex is the POV I kind of love to hate because he is a little shithead, although I imagine if this were told from Henry's POV or switched between them, the pacing would be much slower. I love the pace of this book, and it makes me more confident in my own preferred writing style that leans on vinettes and not always a perfect flow from event to event.
I mean, I saw the movie first, so I knew generally how the story would go and end, but I enjoyed watching the events unfold with the nuance and extra detail of the book that just doesn't fit so well in a two hour movie.
And yeah this is largely a romance novel, and a damn fine one at that, but as someone who was closer to the characters' ages at the time of the 2016 and 2020 elections when the novel takes place, I really appreciated the role of politics in the book. I laughed at the jokes, screaming "too soon!" to myself sometimes remembering how the reality of those situations went down.
The use of articles in this book is also excellent. The role of the media, newspapers, magazines, tabloids, social media, etc is so central to the story and McQuiston uses them brilliantly. None of these pieces felt out of place. Even the format of including text and email conversations is just *chef's kiss* and blends well into the storytelling.
Love the representation in this book as well. It's just sort of there. There's callouts to different aspects of characters where it's important (especially because politics), but characters exist as whole people and not token minorities.
Love this book. Borrowed a copy from a friend but will probably be buying my own to reread. I feel like this really changed how I look back on those particular elections in the real world and gives them a bit of a silver lining instead of the dread I usually saw them in, which is definitely not what I was expecting from a romance novel.
Alex is the POV I kind of love to hate because he is a little shithead, although I imagine if this were told from Henry's POV or switched between them, the pacing would be much slower. I love the pace of this book, and it makes me more confident in my own preferred writing style that leans on vinettes and not always a perfect flow from event to event.
I mean, I saw the movie first, so I knew generally how the story would go and end, but I enjoyed watching the events unfold with the nuance and extra detail of the book that just doesn't fit so well in a two hour movie.
And yeah this is largely a romance novel, and a damn fine one at that, but as someone who was closer to the characters' ages at the time of the 2016 and 2020 elections when the novel takes place, I really appreciated the role of politics in the book. I laughed at the jokes, screaming "too soon!" to myself sometimes remembering how the reality of those situations went down.
The use of articles in this book is also excellent. The role of the media, newspapers, magazines, tabloids, social media, etc is so central to the story and McQuiston uses them brilliantly. None of these pieces felt out of place. Even the format of including text and email conversations is just *chef's kiss* and blends well into the storytelling.
Love the representation in this book as well. It's just sort of there. There's callouts to different aspects of characters where it's important (especially because politics), but characters exist as whole people and not token minorities.
Love this book. Borrowed a copy from a friend but will probably be buying my own to reread. I feel like this really changed how I look back on those particular elections in the real world and gives them a bit of a silver lining instead of the dread I usually saw them in, which is definitely not what I was expecting from a romance novel.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Sexual assault and Drug abuse
Mention of sexual assault but no explicit description,beanie_bob's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
The second paragraph of Casey McQuiston’s acknowledgments is one sentence: "What I hoped to do, and what I hope I have done with this book by the time you’ve finished it, my dear reader, is to be a spark of joy and hope you needed."
I think this is a really nice sentiment, and a really human instinct. McQuiston is trying to make an escape for the reader during a very tumultuous time. However, there’s something about it that is broken for me. I can’t seem to nail it down in words. Politics isn’t escape, I guess.
This is a difficult book to rate. It’s fun, often hilarious, the characters are loveable even when they’re too much. But it felt like every page held something that made me think 1) this is completely implausible 2) I would be so stressed out living in this universe 3) how is this going to age?
Political implications abound. FSOTUS dating a prince is a bipartisan issue, to say the least. Meanwhile, there’s no world where the queen gets gently bullied into accepting a gay royal if it’s not fit for the crown. They’d send him away. They’d have him gagged and married. And if he abdicated, they’d do to him what they do to Harry and Meagan.
I don’t know. I don’t want to be mean. I’m sure this book helped a lot of people through dark times. But I can’t turn off the part of my brain that questions the people and the system.
I think this is a really nice sentiment, and a really human instinct. McQuiston is trying to make an escape for the reader during a very tumultuous time. However, there’s something about it that is broken for me. I can’t seem to nail it down in words. Politics isn’t escape, I guess.
This is a difficult book to rate. It’s fun, often hilarious, the characters are loveable even when they’re too much. But it felt like every page held something that made me think 1) this is completely implausible 2) I would be so stressed out living in this universe 3) how is this going to age?
Political implications abound. FSOTUS dating a prince is a bipartisan issue, to say the least. Meanwhile, there’s no world where the queen gets gently bullied into accepting a gay royal if it’s not fit for the crown. They’d send him away. They’d have him gagged and married. And if he abdicated, they’d do to him what they do to Harry and Meagan.
I don’t know. I don’t want to be mean. I’m sure this book helped a lot of people through dark times. But I can’t turn off the part of my brain that questions the people and the system.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Homophobia and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Drug abuse