I ate this book up!

Soooo good! So entertaining and fun to read.

I enjoyed it so much and I’m definitely reading more from this author!

I absolutely adored Gwen and Art Are Not in Love. It took me a little bit to get to know the characters but once I did I fell in love with them all. And I didn’t only love the romantic relationships but the friendships as well. I think my favorite duo in the book was Arthur and Sidney. Their friendship was the best with the laughter and banter between them.

This was a fun story about finding and being true to yourself. It doesn’t matter what time period you’re in, you love who you love.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the advanced copy. All thoughts are my own.

This was one of my most highly anticipated reads and it did not disappoint. I love retellings of legends, and this handled it so well with a queer twist. Definitely staff-picking every copy we get in store!

Lex Croucher’s Gwen & Art Are Not In Love was one of my most-anticipated reads of 2023… and I absolutely loved it! It was so romantic as it was hilarious. I’m always down for a good rom-com *cough cough Ali Hazelwood*, and an LGBTQ+ focused one was right up my alley. A brilliant story!

This book was not what I was expecting but let me tell you it was so much better. Loved every minute of this chaotic read. The growth of the characters was brilliant and the pacing of the story was medium so I was neither bored nor stressed about the developments.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

This was a fun book! It was entertaining and humorous. All of the characters even the side characters are all well-written. Sometimes Gwen and Arthur were frustrating to me but at the same time, I was fully invested in their journey!

There was a lot of queer rep within this story which I LOVED. This book has been compared to Heartstopper and even though they both have a lot of queer rep, I do want to note that this book does have quite a bit of violence that Heartstopper didn't especially towards the last 30% of the book!

Another point I want to make: this isn't a retelling. It's definitely inspired by Arthurian legends and set in the same world but set several generations after the legends we are familiar with.

Overall, I highly recommend this book!

we all need a queer historical retelling in our lives! Do yourself a favor and pick up this one! It was a slow burn but worth while. I loved the vibes, as I'm a huge retellings girlie. This was funny, uplifting, and full of witty humor and dialogue. So great!

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. The perfect romcom for the summer, an adorable and heartfelt read.

Oddly paced, but I enjoyed the premise. More dialogue heavy than I prefer, but still cute. A good middle grade/YA queer miscommunication romance.

I really enjoyed reading this book! Admittedly, it did take me some time to get into it, and I wasn't feeling the characters in the beginnning. However, as the book went on, I got more involved in the story and more invested in the characters. It felt like a slow burn, but I appreciated the relationship building.

The relationships really make the book shine. Without gettig into spoilers, we look at family relationships, friendships, and three budding romances. I appreciated the dynamics in the different scenarios.

The book was an interesting take on descendants from Arthurian times. This YA book was definitely a fun read, and a fun take on the medieval times. I appreciated the LGBTQIA+ & POC representation.

I'd definitely recommend this book!

If you like rom-comy stories, this is for you. I just couldn’t really connect with the characters. Arthur started off as annoying, and as the story went on, he only became a little less annoying. I usually like knights and Arthurian tales, but there just wasn’t enough growth/development. There wasn’t much in the ways of creating the world around the characters, it was rather vague [I’m a sucker for detail and world building]. The story wasn’t balanced, and I wished I could have enjoyed it more. If you like coming of age stories, you will enjoy this.

This book was unexpected and adorable. The transition from enemies to friends was very sweet. Explores the ideas of coming out in a beautiful and heartwarming way. The side characters were very well developed as well.

If it's Lex Croucher, I will read it. If it's an Arthurian plot, I will read it. So when Lex Croucher wrote GWEN & ART ARE NOT IN LOVE, I was in love! A queer Arthurian plot where battles, decrees of love, banter, and humor.

Arthurian legends make me happy, but having a queer retelling done in a surprising way is what made it fun to read. I think that is why I like Croucher's writing so much because I'm always kept on my toes with something else still coming, yet the book doesn't shy away from the hard stuff. It's fluffy, romantic, honest, and gritty. It covers all the emotions. An excellent read!

Content Warnings: (per the author's website) violence, homophobia, struggles with mental health including depression, unhealthy relationships with alcohol, parental death, parental abuse

Princess Gwendoline and Lord Arthur Delacey have been betrothed since Gwen was born. Now that Gwen is coming of age, her parents have decided it’s time she and Arthur get married. To prepare for that, Arthur has been invited to spend the summer at the castle during the annual tournament so that he and Gwen can get reacquainted after years apart. Years they spent apart because their last summer together, when Gwen was 12, was filled with so much animosity.

They’re both determined to ignore each other until Gwen catches Arthur kissing a boy, while she is spying on the only female knight, Lady Bridget Leclair. Arthur quickly deduces this and uses it to his advantage to call for a truce. The two of them will pretend to get along, while helping each other pursue other people. For Gwen, that’s Bridget. For Arthur, that soon becomes Gabriel, Gwen’s older brother, and the future King of England.

"Gwen & Art Are Not in Love" is a charming romantic novel that takes us on a journey through the lives of Gwen and Arthur. The book delves into their ill-fated betrothal and their individual pursuits of true love. The story is packed with teenage angst and humor that will keep you entertained throughout. Through alternating points of view, we get to learn more about the two main characters and witness their growth and development. Additionally, we are introduced to two delightful side characters - Arthur’s man Sydney, who acts as his bodyguard, and Gwen’s Lady-in-Waiting Agnes, who also find love.

The romantic scenes between the characters are tastefully written, with no explicit content. The author skillfully builds up the tension between the characters, leading to steamy make-out sessions that will leave you wanting more. Overall, "Gwen & Art Are Not in Love" is a well-written novel that is rich in character development, plot, and writing. The author’s ability to weave together a captivating storyline that leaves you wanting more deserves a four-star rating.

Lex Croucher's queer medieval rom-com--the author's debut young-adult novel--is an absolute gem; it's full of excellent banter and lots of heart. I smiled while reading this one.

“Nobody else is ever going to care as much as you do about the things that you want, Gwendoline. So it's up to you --you can put them aside forever, if you can live with that, or you can put on your big-girl girdle and demand more for yourself.”
It's hundreds of years after King Arthur's reign, and his descendant and namesake Arthur, a future lord and committed partier and social butterfly, has long been betrothed to the short-tempered princess Gwendoline.

Gwendoline has strong opinions and is feeling constricted in her prescribed royal role even without the weight of her pending marriage upon her.

But Gwendoline and Arthur detest each other. And when they're forced to spend the summer together at Camelot to prepare for their upcoming nuptials, it doesn't take long for them to realize that Art has been kissing a boy and that Gwen has a crush on the only female knight in the kingdom.

They would make better allies than enemies, and as they agree to cover for each other amid sword-fighting, royal court goings-on, and romantic dramas, they forge a friendship that just might last.

The premise of Lex Croucher's Gwen & Art Are Not in Love is irresistible, the pacing is great, and the banter is excellent--funny dialogue is a favorite element of mine. I adored the voices of the characters and witnessing their growth over the course of the story.

I just loved the redefining of class-driven limitations (as with the attraction between Gwen's lady's maid and Arthur's right-hand-man); the unorthodox and touching loyalty within a reimagined Gwen-Arthur relationship; and the LGBTQ-positive, actively reinvented possibilities for the royals.

This didn't feel strictly young adult to me, although it's certainly romantic without being explicit regarding scenes of attraction and expressions of love. The story deals with issues of identity, showing resolve in the face of strict societal expectations, and redefining relationships and traditional roles.

I received a digital edition of this title courtesy of NetGalley and St. Martin's Press.

Lex Croucher is also the author of Infamous, Reputation, Trouble, the upcoming Not for the Faint of Heart, and other books.

A cute, queer coming-of-age story about two young people who are betrothed and wish desperately that they weren't. Or at least, not to each other.

The writing was fun and story was engaging enough to hold my attention. The characterization of Gwen and Art felt new and fresh and relatable.

I went into this book not enjoying the other Lex Croucher book I read, but I was pleasantly surprised by this one! The banter and snakiness was the absolute best — I found myself laughing out loud at several conversations the characters made. I was also a bit worried about how the book was going to resolve, and I liked that it was left unfinished and without the ability for the characters to continue to grow since I didn’t think they were ready to completely commit to anything and still had lots to learn. Croucher has redeemed themselves with this book in my mind, and I will be recommending this book to others!

So charming! This was everything I hoped it would be. Delightfully queer, funny, and full of characters I wanted to root for.

This was a super queer very entertaining re-imaging(?) of the world of King Arthur. We follow siblings Gabriel and Gwen as they have to fulfill their duties to the throne, whether that means following through with a marriage or finding someone to marry. Neither sibling wants what life has in store and with the help of Gwen's "betrothed" the manage to create of very convincing scheme. Set alongside a tournament with cultists uprisings it's hard enough being a royal let alone ones that don't fit the mold. Overall, a great and very heartfelt story (also I would love a sequel or another book in this universe).


Thank you to the publishers for providing me with an arc for an honest review.

In support of the SMP boycott, I will be withholding my review of this title until SMP speaks out. If the boycott is resolved, I will update with a full review.