American Royals

Princess Beatrice Washington is one of the main protagonists in American Royals and the eldest child of the king and queen of America. At the novel’s beginning, Beatrice is 21 and newly graduated from Harvard, and as the oldest child in the family, she is “always thinking about the future” (6). While Samantha and Jefferson are free to while away their lives and act out in public, “the rules [are] especially stringent for Beatrice, because she [is] not only a princess,” but “the first woman who would ever inherit the American throne” (3-4). Beatrice’s grandfather changed the law that originally forbade first-born daughters from inheriting the throne, which means that her rule as queen will be groundbreaking and filled with unprecedented challenges. As the heir, Beatrice is held to a higher standard than her younger brother and sister.

Beatrice has been brought up to behave like a proper lady, and as the future ruler of America, “all the expectation—in the family and, really, in the world—[is] focused like a white-hot spotlight on Beatrice” (4). Beatrice has been taught to conceal her emotions from the public eye, and she has isolated herself because no one understands the immense pressure she is under.