I have honestly been in a reading slump. I mean, sure, I have a TBR pile that is legit taking over my room, but I have felt like NOTHING is original.
And that’s been the hard part.
I’ve been picking up books and then setting them back down, because I just have felt like it’s something that I have read before. But if we’re being fair – I know they aren’t. Everyones word smithing is different.
I picked up American Royals, because it came highly suggested and I am obsessed with anything and everything royalty.
If you aren’t familiar with American Royals here’s the synopsis –
What if America had a royal family?
When America won the Revolutionary War, its people offered General George Washington a crown. Two and a half centuries later, the House of Washington still sits on the throne.
As Princess Beatrice gets closer to becoming America’s first queen regnant, the duty she has embraced her entire life suddenly feels stifling. Nobody cares about the spare except when she’s breaking the rules, so Princess Samantha doesn’t care much about anything, either . . . except the one boy who is distinctly off-limits to her. And then there’s Samantha’s twin, Prince Jefferson. If he’d been born a generation earlier, he would have stood first in line for the throne, but the new laws of succession make him third. Most of America adores their devastatingly handsome prince . . . but two very different girls are vying to capture his heart.
The power. The drama. The intrigue. The Crown. New York Times bestselling author Katharine McGee imagines an alternate version of the modern world, one where the glittering age of monarchies has not yet faded–and where love is still powerful enough to change the course of history.
So why should you read it? Well, there are three reasons.
IT’S WRITTEN BY KATHARINE MCGEE
We’ve been fans of Katharine McGee’s for awhile. Her series THE THOUSANDTH FLOOR series captured us. She’s a wordsmith, building beautiful worlds with beautiful words. But what is amazing and great about her writing is that you feel drawn into her worlds. You can read the words, close your eyes, and feel like you are in the world that she has created.
Katharine McGee has a talent for building complex worlds that draw you in. You can escape.
And that’s a great thing, especially when you are in a reading slump. She can help take you out of it.
REWRITING HISTORY
If we’re being honest – in todays America – I want to be anywhere but here. It’s a nightmare. I joke – but sometimes really wonder – what it would be like if we were all still under the rule of the English.
In the book – we still win the Revolutionary War, but what if our forefathers had maintained a monarchy?
Sure, this rewrite of history doesn’t take into account a lot of the true history and how this really never would have worked, but it does get you thinking. But at the same time you don’t overthink it.
I think that it’s always fun to get out of your own head and be dragged into another world.
The only thing is – I feel like what was missing was the explanation of how the world got there. I would have loved more of a look in the past. I would have loved to see the world develop in 1776.
But once I got over the overthinking part, I remember that it’s a story about the present and I have to think about what is in the present. I have to think of the fun of it all.
And when I do – I am drawn into the rewrite of history and I love it.
DRAMA, DRAMA, DRAMA
The story is told from multiple points of view and I normally would go crazy with that. But I think in this instance it only added to the drama of the book. Beatrice’s story, Samantha’s story, Nina, Daphne’s – it was a lot.
But it was good.
I love a soap opera, and I got it. Only I didn’t have to suffer through bad acting. Instead I got to imagine everything. I loved Beatrice’s story – I got drawn into it. Samantha annoyed the hell out of me.
But I really wanted to see every character in the book succeed. I wanted more. I wanted to know more about them.
And hey – that’s the sign of a good book. The sign that you become emotionally invested in the characters.
There is a lot of love, angst, and trope – but for me – that’s the kind of shit I live for. This book is like Gossip Girl meets The Crown meets The Royals. AND I AM LIVING FOR IT.
OTHER THOUGHTS
I will read anything this woman writes. I want more in this world. No joke.
American Royals is available now.