The Girl Who Cried Poetry

As a lover of all things literature, I am equally in love with authors. I am always in awe whenever I finish a good book, and I bless the author’s writing. Authors are the reason we readers have passion today. They decide that a story needs a voice, and they give it one and make it the best thing that ever happened to us.

I make it a point of priority to check out more books from an author if the one I read was fire. I mean, if they could write something this awesome, what more do they have in store for us?

That’s why I’m starting the Author Spotlight. I want to use my book blog as a medium to write about the authors who give us a reason to stay awake at 3 a.m. with the utmost joy because the story is getting hella good.

And for this blog post, as seen in the title, I’ll be writing about one of my favourite authors because of their TikTok sensation, Casey McQuiston!

Author’s Bio (Culled from Wikipedia)

Casey McQuiston (pronouns: they/their) (born January 21, 1991) is an American author of romance novels in the new adult fiction genre, best known for their New York Times best-selling debut novel, Red, White & Royal Blue, in which the son of America’s first female president falls in love with a prince of England, and her sophomore book, One Last Stop. [1] McQuiston made their debut in the young adult fiction genre with their book I Kissed Shara Wheeler, which was released on May 3, 2022. [2] They were included in Time magazine’s 2022 Time 100 Next list. [3]

The first book I read from Casey McQuiston was Red, White, and Royal Blue. If you haven’t read it, whether you’re a lover of queer literature or not, I don’t know what you’re waiting for.

This was one of those books that made me want to read every piece of queer fiction I could get my hands on. Now look at me, an addict.

When I first started the book, the writing style stunned me. I even stopped it at first, but something kept telling me to go back to it, and boy, look at the shocker of my life.

Even if you haven’t read the book, you must have watched the movie adaptation. We all know it can be rare to find a book-to-movie adaptation that is even close to the accuracy and precision of the book, but Red, White, and Royal Blue was a fan favourite, with stars Taylor Zakhar Perez and Nicholas Galitzine.

Though, if you ask me, is it better than the book? Absolutely not. It’s not even coming close. Real fans will know that.

My first favourite thing about Casey McQuiston is their writing. I have read a ton of books, and I love a lot of books, but books that make you feel something about the language? Amazing. There’s something poetic about the way they write. With their gentle tone and descriptions that are always on point, you will realise that they don’t play with their research and are very passionate about what they include in their books.

That passion is what I felt when reading One Last Stop. Her second book, I believe, I tried so hard to gatekeep this book only to include it in my Top 10 Queer Literature of 2023, but I know I didn’t do justice to it at all. I don’t think I can remember much from it, but it was a massive page-turner for me.

Just to be clear, it was a lesbian romance, and please, it has to be the best I’ve read. Yes, I agree I haven’t read a lot, but that’s besides the point. In the beginning, you think you have the book all figured out, and you’re not really expecting much until the whole point of the plot hits you and you’re left wanting to know more. I definitely recommend the book. You won’t know what hit you, and you just have to love the way it ends.

I believe my favourite thing about romance novels is the pleasure they give the reader, and once an author can put in place the slow burn and chemistry of the two characters and make it sizzling hot, you just know that sort of book is what I, Mercy, will rave on about endlessly, and that’s a predominant factor in Casey’s books. You’ve just gotta love it.

My second favourite thing about Casey McQuiston’s writing that I believe not a lot of people must have put together is the inclusivity of bisexuality. This is something that we don’t see a lot in the film world or even in literary works. It’s like bisexuals don’t exist! And as a bisexual woman, it kind of worries me, you know?

But Casey McQuiston, as a non-binary bisexual who understands the same thing, does so much justice to it. Alex is bisexual in RWRB. August being bisexual in One Last Stop. This might seem miniscule at best, but it’s not. It’s great, really!

I love what they wrote here in their Substack Newsletter:

I’m so interested in the stereotype of the slutty bisexual in fiction, and I wanted to rejig it. What if, for some, bisexuality does manifest as being a slut? What is so terrible about being sensual, embodied, horny, or just plain old promiscuous when you have access to the full range of human sexuality and the freedom to fuck around?

Truer words have never been said.

And what they write here about romance novels and pleasure…

Once, I’d felt obligated to justify my work as more than that, as if romcoms about queer people had to serve some greater good to be allowed to exist. Now, I hold pleasure in much higher esteem. I think we all should. I think a lot of us probably need to repair our relationship with pleasure, and a romance novel might be the best place to do that.

Everything.

Authors like Casey McQuiston are the reason that being queer makes you feel all the colour that it comes with. I absolutely love how in-depth the themes of life are in their novels, and you feel everything to its fullest as it ought to be. They even make you cry at some point. It’s really great.

I believe this novel is a great thing for them, and I’m glad they’re sharing it with the world. A new Casey McQuiston novel? You’ve just got to be there.

It’s coming out on June 8, 2024, and you can pre-order it as well.

Another book they’ve written that isn’t included here is I Kissed Shara Wheeler. A book I hope to read soon, because why not? Casey’s that good.

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