Reviews with content warning for Grief - Red, White & Royal Blue

bighearted and bombastic, truly a joy from start to finish! With a cast of characters that are so believably naïve, sincere, deeply flawed, relentlessly misunderstood and so so easy to root for. The prose are stunning, the humor is razor-sharp and never once felt like it was punching down.

McQuiston invites us into the turbulent world of Henry and Alex, who quite possibly two of the best rom-com leads in recent memory, sharing an unbelievable chemistry that just leapt off of the page and into my heart, never to be forgotten. What else is there to except, this was just great, and I can't recommend it enough...

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sabalicious's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? N/A
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

☆ The Love Story I Didn't Know I Needed. But I Did ☆

I have watched the film before I have started the book and really enjoyed it and was thrilled to find out it was actually based on a book. The plot of the book was therefore no surprise to me but even so the novel was even more fun that the movie was. It is an absolute treat.

I was in love with our protagonists from the get go. The insight to their backstories and their thoughts and feelings that the book was able to provide was probably why I enjoyed the book more so than the movie.

The contemporary setting really worked in favour of the story as I've found it incredibly relatable, witty and entertaining. The characters were engaging throughout and I could not read the book fast enough.

Though it features some sensitive topics such as loss of parent, substance use, and outing, it is a genuine feel good romance novel.

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foxclcves's review

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emotional funny inspiring 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? It's complicated

4.0

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anndreya's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted 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? It's complicated

3.5

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adalinemccormick's review against another edition

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funny lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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swiftpool's review

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adventurous funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad 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

3.5

Super cute and an easy read. June adds so much more depth to the story compared to the movie. Her character also lends depth to Ellen and the different ways she treats each child. I even at one point predicted June would, as a journalist, out her brother due to being jealous of the love and attention he receives. Instead we got a living older sister self sacrificing parts of her own life to be there for him, from giving up her relationship to leaking photos of her and Henry to dispel rumors around Alex and Henry. Her flirtation with Nora and Percy was also super cute, funny, and ambiguous, letting Alex and Henry take the spotlight. Seeing Nora being feral in the background of scenes was cute. Even Leo adds a tumultuous family relationship to the story the movie doesn’t have. Liam, too, adds a lot to Alex’s story and self reflection. I was glad he came back into his life as a friend - and after seeing the movie, them biking to Alex’s house makes much more sense with Liam around. The only real cons I have were with Nora handled Alex coming out, and the scene where Alex barges into the palace. Honestly I didn’t love how Nora takes Alex coming out to her. Just because she’s queer and already guessed, doesn’t mean she should be so …. up front about it? Especially because even though we see her as logical and clinical, she is also said to be his best friend, and who he goes to for everything even above his sister. It felt like she was pushing him off, like, “yeah so what?”, despite coming to terms with sexuality being big and scary to Alex despite knowing he’d be accepted. As for the palace scene, it’s not that big of a gripe because it was very much written like a real fight - I just don’t happen to love Henry’s character in the moment. And they do, in the morning, clear up that he was an ass. But Henry lashing out at Alex despite being the one to fall first, kiss him first, and then ghost him multiple times and expect Alex to just accept that? Annoying. Definitely could use more communication skills.

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