Benjamin Dean’s YA debut, “The King is Dead,” is a fun and fast read set among British royalty and tabloids, full of secret romances and blackmail. This romantic thriller follows James—the shy, handsome, mixed-race heir to the British throne— who becomes the first black heir to the British throne once his father passes. With a new boyfriend to hide, James is woefully unprepared for the sudden shine of public scrutiny and must choose between love and duty amidst a dangerous scandal and a tabloid media desperate for his downfall.
When his secrets come spilling forth across tabloid pages and the man he thought he loved has suddenly disappeared, James finds himself on the precipice of ruin. As every detail of his life becomes public knowledge, his sense of safety is shattered and the people he trusts the most become the likeliest suspects.
Benjamin Dean is a London-based celebrity journalist and middle-grade author of “Me, My Dad and the End of the Rainbow” and “The Secret Sunshine Project.” He has interviewed a host of glitzy celebrities and broke the news that Rihanna can’t wink and can be found on Twitter as @notagainben tweeting about Rihanna and LGBTQ+ culture.
What made you decide to focus on an interracial scandal for your YA debut?
From the outset, I really wanted to explore and twist the dynamic of who gets to have power and status, as well as who people will accept having that power. The British monarchy is a historically white institution, and I was intrigued by the question of what it might be like for someone who looks and identifies like me – a mixed-race, gay man – to sit on the throne. I’ve always been curious about what goes on behind closed doors too (I think that’s from my years as a celebrity reporter haha!) and how public figures might react in private to a public scandal that threatens the image they’ve worked so hard to maintain. With all that in mind, I had a lot to work with when I set about writing ‘The King is Dead.’
If you had to pick a Rihanna album or song for each character, what would it be and why?
Oh my god, I’ve never been asked this question – I feel under pressure! The first one that springs to mind is ‘Bitch Better Have My Money’ for Cassandra. She’s something of a villain in the story and wants nothing more than to get her hands on the crown! I think for James, maybe something like ‘California King Bed’ as he pines a lot for the boys he develops feelings for but is never quite sure how to approach it. Or actually maybe a dark and brooding song like ‘Russian Roulette’ would suit him too! Grigor is smooth and confident, so ‘Unapologetic’ would be the album for him. And then Jonathan . . . hmm, I’ll say ‘Stay’ which is ironic as he disappears very early on in the story!
Race seems to play an important role in your novel. How do you think including white supremacy and racial stereotypes in your YA debut will impact your 21st-century audience who know the cruel history of race in our country?
Certain scenes were tough to write at times and facing the bitter truth of that bigotry and racism is always going to be tough for any black person, or indeed, person of colour, who understands it on a deeper level. However, one thing I wanted to make sure of was that there were light moments to balance the dark. In the story, we see a soft and sensitive side to James in private that he tries to hide from the public, and we get to understand his hopes, fears and grief. And, of course, there’s the romance aspect too. That was so important to me. I want to see black boys loving and being loved on the page. I never got to see that growing up, and it’s something that would’ve helped me feel less alone in the world. I hope that despite the tougher themes, readers take solace and happiness from those lighter moments too.
If America had a monarch, would you have considered setting the story there? Or is there something particular about London culture that you found perfect for “The King is Dead” and can’t be replaced?
I think because I’m from the UK and live in London, I felt more comfortable setting my debut YA book here. I had all that history and tradition to use as research too, and it felt a bit rebellious flipping it all on its head in some ways. But my next YA thriller, ‘How to Die Famous,’ is set in Hollywood, so best of both worlds!
How does your experience as a celebrity reporter help you as you continue to flourish as an author?
I think it definitely helps with deadlines, that’s the main thing. I’m coming from a job where if the work wasn’t done yesterday, you were already too late for the story, so I’m used to working to pretty tight schedules. When you’re writing your first book, you have all the time in the world to make it perfect, but then after that, you have to get used to writing to a deadline which can add a lot of pressure, especially if you’re not used to it. And coming from a journalism background, especially in the celebrity sphere, it definitely helped to put me in the mindset for writing scandals that break in the press. I know what goes down in newsrooms and behind the scenes, which was a huge advantage for a book like this!
Thank you so much Benjamin for answering my questions! From one reporter to another, I think it’s really cool to see how media can bleed into the book publishing industry. Excited to read “How to Die Famous” next!
First off, I’d like to thank Marisa Russell who was working at Little, Brown Books for Young Readers and extended me this interview opportunity and sent me a published copy of Benjamin’s writing. Shortly after, I was directed to Hannah Klein who sent me to Cassie Malmo. Both Hannah and Cassie have been wonderfully kind to me in my adventure of the Author Spotlight series so being looped back to them was such a treat. This interview would not have been possible without any of them so for that, I’m forever grateful.