The fictional pair is publicly embroiled in a rivalry that soon evolves into a forbidden love, with Alex’s free spirit clashing with Henry’s restraint. Their bond challenges tradition and the push/pull romance between the two has fans hooked, turning McQuiston into the sole winner of both best debut and best romance at the 2019 Goodreads Awards.
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So what do we know about the novel that inspired this summer’s hottest queer romance film?
Who is Red, White & Blue’s author, Casey McQuiston?
McQuiston’s 2019 debut novel Red, White & Royal blue earned the author a huge fan base, but they originally studied journalism and worked in magazine publishing before finding success as a queer romance writer.
Born on January 21, 1991, McQuiston, who is openly queer and uses they/them pronouns, grew up in Southern Louisiana. They attended a deeply conservative Christian school and previously acknowledged in interviews that it impacted the stories they choose to write.
“Anybody who’s been through queer religious trauma has ways of coping with that in adulthood,” they said in an interview with Time magazine.
Publishing Red, White & Royal Blue wasn’t easy for McQuiston. They told NBC News: “It was really, really hard to get mainstream adult romance publishers to take a risk on a queer adult romcom.”
The 32-year-old has since doubled down with two more queer romances. One Last Stop is a queer love story published in 2021 with a paranormal twist, while I Kissed Shara Wheeler is a 2022 young adult romance that draws on McQuiston’s conservative upbringing.
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From BookTok to the big screen
Red, White & Royal Blue first gained traction when it caught the attention of BookTok, the corner of avid book readers and reviewers on TikTok.
Jacob Demlow, better known by his TikTok handle @a.veryqueerbookclub, frequently discusses and promotes Red, White & Royal Blue on his account. He told The New York Times that his initial reaction to reading the book was to fling it across the room in delight.
“It was all these amazing tropes that romance lovers have loved forever, but there was a couple in it who looked like a couple I would be in,” Demlow said.
And with the entire literature community on TikTok raving about the book, news of a film adaptation triggered an entirely new craze.
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How does the film adaptation differ from the book?
Amazon Prime’s Red, White & Royal Blue departs somewhat from the book, as is typical of film adaptations. Director Matthew López made some small and some significant changes, but the central love narrative involving Alex and Prince Henry is still intact.
For example, Alex’s mum Ellen (played by Uma Thurman) and dad Oscar are divorced in the book, but they are still married in the film. Another adjustment is the gender of the royal family’s head, as we see the novel’s Queen Mary replaced by King James III in the film, played by Stephen Fry.
While there are other minor variations throughout the adaptation, June Claremont-Diaz, the first daughter of the American president and Alex’s older sister, may be the most conspicuous absence. June plays a significant role in the story as Alex’s confidante. She even pretends to be the one dating Henry when the media begins to question the relationship between the two boys.
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While June is sorely missed in the film, López explained to People magazine: “Anything that didn’t feed into that story had to go. It’s just the logic of movie storytelling.”
In an Instagram post, McQuiston expressed their contentment with the book’s adaptation, writing: “I’m so thankful that the creative team on this project always made it their top priority to stay true to the heart of A&H’s [Alex and Henry’s] story.”
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