Two princesses vying for the ultimate crown.
Two girls vying for the prince’s heart.
This is the story of the American royals.
What if America had its own royal family? New York Times
bestselling author Katharine McGee took this question and ran with
it in her latest young adult novel, American Royals.
Telling the story of Princess Beatrice, heir to the American
throne, her younger sister, Samantha, and brother Jefferson, McGee
weaves a fun and fast-paced coming-of-age story of love, duty, and
sacrifice to the crown.
McGee took the time to chat with Royal Central about the novel, her favourite member of the Royal Family, and what to expect from the upcoming sequel to American Royals, titled Majesty.
Kristin Contino: How did you get the
idea for a novel about an American royal family?
Katharine McGee: When I was younger, I used to steal my mom’s
Philippa Gregory novels and read them in secret. I’ve been an avid
reader of historical fiction ever since! Royalty is such a
compelling plot device—it’s all about power, and those who were
born with it versus those who have to fight for it. I’d always
dreamed of writing my own historical fiction, something with
forbidden love and political intrigue and villainous characters
scheming for the throne. (Which, of course, all exist in
American Royals…)
It was the Cambridges’ wedding in 2011 that planted the seeds of
this book in my mind. I was living in New York at the time and
actually watched the live broadcast with friends at a bar, even
though it aired at 6 AM (the things you do at age 23…!) The moment
the newlyweds kissed, it felt like all of New York broke out in
cheers. I remember marvelling at how invested Americans felt in the
fairy tale of it all, even though we don’t have royals of our own.
Which got me to wondering… how would the world be different if we
did have a royal family?
As an American, did you find it hard to picture your
country having a monarchy at first? Walk us through how you decided
to create their ruling system.
America with a monarchy—it seems like both an obvious concept and a
counterintuitive one. After all, many people ask, didn’t we fight
the Revolutionary War to escape monarchy? But that isn’t
really true. It’s easy, now, to take the American political system
for granted, but in the 1770’s the idea of a democratic-republic
was wholly radical and unprecedented. I was surprised to learn how
many of the Revolutionary soldiers assumed that the war would
result in an American monarchy, with George Washington on the
throne. It wasn’t the theory of monarchy that they were
opposed to—after all, they didn’t know anything else—but this
particular monarch, who lived across the ocean and had
never even visited America.
In creating a modern monarchy, I tried to use the most
recognizable royal structures (like an aristocracy) but put an
American spin on them. And of course, I had to decide what the rest
of the world looks like. If you assume that the American Revolution
helped inspire other revolutions in world history, from the French
Revolution to that of the Spanish-American colonies, it follows
that those monarchies still exist in the world of American Royals.
My goal was to capture all the eighteenth-century sparkle and
glamour but to interweave it with twenty-first-century attitudes
about society and inclusivity. I obviously didn’t want to write a
modern world that featured serfdom or slavery. So, you’ll still see
the Romanovs ruling Russia, but you’ll also see black and Latino
dukes at the highest levels of American aristocracy.
Although Daphne is supposed to be the social-climbing
villain, she actually ended up being my favourite character. Which
of your characters was the most fun to write?
I don’t know if I can pick a favourite! But Daphne is definitely
the easiest to write because her chapters are always so clear.
Every time I approach a new scene, I have to ask myself what the
character wants and what she’s willing to do to get it. That can
get muddled with some of the characters—Samantha is often her own
obstacle, and Nina struggles to understand what she wants—but with
Daphne it’s inevitably clear! What does she want? Prince Jefferson.
What is she willing to do to win him? Anything.
Speaking of favourites, do you have a current favourite
member of the British royal family (or any royal
family?)
Princess Charlotte might be my current favourite. She seems already
to have such an irrepressible sense of mischief! I can’t wait to
watch her grow up—I feel like she’s going to be a real style
icon.
Do you ever wish America really did have a
monarchy?
It’s impossible to read a novel set in an alternate reality without
comparing it to our current reality. And a lot of this book did
arise from my thoughts about America’s current political system.
After all, the central character is Princess Beatrice, who will be
America’s very first queen. (Of course, it goes without saying that
America still has never elected a woman to its highest office—that
unlike Britain, where girls can look at a history of queens and
female PMs, there are no such precedents in America). It was
important to me to tell the story of a young woman coming into a
position of power that has, until now, always been occupied by
men.
What can you tell us about the sequel, Majesty? Is
there a third book in the works as well?
Right now American Royals is just two books, so the story concludes
at the end of Majesty… but I know better than to ever say a series
is really done. I have some ideas for where I would take the
characters in a third book, if I ever decide to write one!
Majesty is filled with more of everything you’ve come to expect
from American Royals. More drama, more romance, more intrigue, more
secrets coming to light. It’s also got some fun new characters and
explores new corners of the American Royals world. I feel like the
ending is going to surprise a lot of readers! But all I can say
about that is to quote Oscar Wilde, and remind you that “the good
ends happily and the bad unhappily. That is what fiction
means.”
To hear more from Katharine McGee with a special bonus question video, head over to Royal Central’s Instagram story.
Order your copy of American Royals here or pre-order Majesty.
