Playing the Palace

I remember absolutely nothing from my 10th grade Chemistry class, but I do know, for a fact, that this book has way less chemistry in it then my brain does.

I thought I was trash for the American fallz in love with a prince trope. I've seen that fucking Netflix Christmas movie with the girl from that one Power Rangers season like 10 times. I don't know what I'm trash for anymore.

The characters were annoying. There feelings developed put of nothing. It tried to be funny, but the jokes missed everytime. I couldn't tell the side characters apart. I think I hate myself more for not DNFing this.

This was a wildly hyper, fun, Loud, happy book. The MC is super excited the whole time.

I think I'm too asexual to appreciate the pacing in the first 1/4th of the book. Also had to suspend logic a bit. But I have no problem reading books that require suspended logic.

It felt like it would have made more sense as a musical then a book tbh.

Thank you to Berkley Books for the ARC of Playing the Palace by Paul Rudnick.

First things first. Toward the end, there are some unfinished words at the end of paragraphs, a lack of punctuation at the end of some sentences, and paragraphs are accidentally split up.

That being said: Whilst this is not as good as Red, White & Royal Blue, it is still delightful fun. It's a bit more episodic and not terribly deep, and Carter and Edgar are a weird, abrupt couple. BUT it's awfully cute and hilarious. I had a laughing fit whilst my wife was on the Switch Light playing a farm game with a friend. They were quite confused. But I have a crass sense of humor, so the scene in question just killed me. This book is all about being light and feel good and fun. And it succeeds. The characters are fairly precious, although kinda quirky in that rom-com tropey way. But they're all so likeable. Except Callum. And Carter really needs to figure himself out, because everyone (almost) adores him.

I sped through this book happily. I enjoyed it immensely. It isn't perfect, and it's very like RW&RB; but if you want an HEA with lots of humor and adorability, this is a great read. I laughed A LOT.

Let's just get this out of the way: No, this book is not [b:Red, White & Royal Blue 41150487 Red, White & Royal Blue Casey McQuiston https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1566742512l/41150487.SY75.jpg 61657690]. It doesn't try to be, and there's no rule that says we can only have one book about an American guy falling in love with a British prince. Playing the Palace is more of a fairy tale romp, a rom-com movie waiting to be filmed. Paul Rudnick, a noted gay playwright, knows how to be funny, and much of the book is plain shtick. Our narrator Carter Ogden is an insecure, recently heartbroken, wisecracking Jewish event planner who meets Prince Edgar whilst coordinating a United Nations press conference. Carter gives Edgar a few tips about loosening up before his speech, they almost kiss, and we're off and running. The Prince is proudly gay and out, so that doesn't factor into the challenges facing the two men. The dramatic tension centers primarily on Carter fearing he is not good enough for a prince, and the wacky hijinks that ensue when he tries to fit into Edgar's world. Of course Carter has a cliched loud, pushy Jewish family so that leads to plenty of humorous if stereotypical interactions as well.There is very little attempt to portray a realistic picture of the British monarchy. If you don't mind the Queen of England literally cockblocking a late night booty call, or Carter's Great Aunt Miriam stuffing extra rolls into the Queen's purse just in case she gets hungry later, you will likely enjoy this story. Carter seems like a (much) younger version of the author (always a bit suspicious of someone age 60+ writing a Millennial MC), and Edgar comes off as a bit one-dimensional. The “free-spirited American shows stuffy British royal how to unwind” trope is nothing new, but it's entertaining nonetheless.I doubt this book will have the cultural impact of RWARB, but taken on its own merits it's campy fun. It will make you chuckle more than swoon, but you'll be smiling when you finish, which is no small feat these days.ARC received from Net Galley in exchange for honest review.