If you have a fascination with all things royalty, then American Royals is the book for you. American Royals by Katharine McGee is a dystopian novel that reimagines the political landscape of the United States with a monarchy.
I am not lying when I say I couldn’t put this book down. It was that good. If you love dystopian romances that are full of drama then you’ll agree with me that this book is fantastic. Without further ado, let’s get into the American Royals book review!
American Royals: Plot
“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. Like most royal families, the Washingtons have an heir and a spare. A future monarch and a backup battery. Each child knows exactly what is expected of them. But these aren’t just any royals. They’re American.
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 for 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.”
American Royals: Review
I was extremely excited about this book when I first heard of it. American Royals by Katharine McGee was released in 2019 and is the first book to be released in the series. There is a sequel in the works titled American Royals II: Majesty which has a release date of September 1, 2020.
I had no idea it was a series when I first bought the book, but I am so glad it is. Even though the book is quite large, it just wasn’t enough.
I’m not going to spoil anything, but the book does end with a cliffhanger and is a perfect transition into a sequel. It doesn’t leave you without important information, but it does leave you on the edge of your seat wondering what will come next. It had me wishing I could read the sequel immediately.
American Royals: Characters
The point of view of the novel is divided between the four leading ladies: Beatrice, America’s future Queen; Samantha, Beatrice’s younger sister; Nina, Samantha’s best friend; and Daphne; ex-girlfriend of Samantha’s twin brother. It’s safe to say that between these four girls there is tons of drama.
Each character has a clear storyline that is related to the overarching plot, which essentially is that Beatrice is preparing to be America’s first Queen. All of the events in the book are leading up to that point in Beatrice’s life, and all of the characters around her are dealing with their own problems in relation.
I was nervous that with so many characters that the book would get confusing, but McGee did a great job of introducing all the characters early on. It was clear from the beginning who was who and what each character’s motivations were in relation to the plot.
I really loved that the book wasn’t only from one point of view because it gave the reader multiple perspectives of the same situations, which fueled the drama.
American Royals: Context
Context is important when it comes to books that have a historical nod and McGee set this book up for success. McGee begins the book with a chapter dedicated to explaining how the monarchy was created. This introduction was extremely helpful in understanding the history of the book and the present society in the book as well. The explanation was intriguing and set the story up for success while hooking the reader in.
The other great thing about American Royals is its nod to women’s equality. Beatrice is going to be the first female heir due to a change in the constitution and her chapters of the book focus on how to prepare Beatrice to be Queen.
The book challenges traditional gender roles, such as Beatrice needing a husband before becoming Queen, and shows us what a modern female monarchy would look like. I really liked how in-depth this aspect of the book went and how much attention was given to showing the reader what goes into preparing the next royal heir.
American Royals: Overall Review
Overall, I would give American Royals by Katharine Mcgee a 5/5. I truly loved this book and it was a serious page-turner for me.
I was a bit surprised because I had read, or tried to read, McGee’s first book series The Thousandth Floor and could not finish it. The storyline had appealed to me, but the way it was written was too confusing. It was written in a similar style as American Royals, but there were too many characters who all had intricate plotlines which made it hard to keep track of what was going on. I am really pleased that American Royals is not like that and that it flows so well.
All in all, I highly recommend American Royals to anyone and everyone. It was written extremely well and had me hooked from the very beginning. If you haven’t checked it out yet, I suggest you do. And, for those of you who have read it, I would love to know your thoughts.
Check out American Royals by Katharine McGee on Amazon or Chapters.
If this isn’t your type of book and you’re looking for something else to read, check out my other book reviews here.
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