sapphic medieval rom com? say less.
this book was so so so fun. the main characters were delightful and it was a perfect light fun read

“Gwen and Art are Not in Love” was a cheesy adorable rewrite of. Classic tale incorporating LGBTQ+ characters into classic literature. At points, the language felt modern, which took me out of the medieval time period of the text.

As a high school teacher, I teach King Arthur and the knights of the round table as part of my curriculum. Using this as a paired text would show how the tales could be mixed or manipulated depending on the author’s purpose.

A special thank you to the author, the publisher and Netgalley for an advanced copy, in exchange for a honest review!

If you like Merlin the show, or really any Arthur Pendragon / Merlin / Morgana themed stuff, you haaaave to pick up this book. This one was equal parts fun and vulnerability, and there were quite a few honest discussions on coming out as queer and living like that in a time period where that is considered treasonous - some of the discussions are downright therapeutic.

The plot twists at the ending, the war - I wasn't expecting it at all, but it did add a dramatic flourish to the book and made it even more complete.

TWs - homophobia (internal and external), misogyny, war, death, near-death

-- ty to the author, the publisher and Netgalley for an advanced copy!

I absolutely adored this story. It was so much fun to read. I'm going to be recommending it to all my friends and library patrons. I've already requested my library order this for our collection. I love that it wasn't an exact retelling of King Authur's love story, but wove lots of tidbits from that story into this one to make it a great historical queer romantic tale.

lverall, this author just created an amazing story that will be comforting to many of us, and that's exactly what our community needs.

Thanks to NetGalley for a copy in exchange for an honest review.

It was a fun, interesting take on the King Arthur legend but I found myself skimming the last 30-40% of the book.

This book had banter, witty sarcasm, LGBTQIA reps, and all around fun plot. The world building was different from anything I’ve really experienced recently. It was fun with the banter and the constant growth of the story as had you gripping onto something new. The dual POV was great as you had two stories in one and it was enjoyable to see two different romances but one evoking friendship. It was a slow start but the book was great!

This was so good! I went into this knowing nothing beyond it being a sapphic king Arthur retelling romance, and everything I learned as I read was amazing. Dual POV (Gwen and Art) and two romances in one book? Yes, please. The characters were amazing and so lovable, and I immediately fell in love with them and the story. I was hooked from the first chapter and did not want to put it down til I finished. Having both Gwen's and Art's POVs in this book also added so much to the story and the characters and it made it such a fun and heartwarming story. For example, seeing both Gwen's and Art's romances from their own perspectives, and seeing Gwen and Art's friendship evolve over the course of the book. I feel like a lot of the time, friendships are pushed aside in romance books, (which makes sense since the plot is romance, but still..) so one of my favorite parts of this book was how important Gwen and Art's friendship was to the story and to each of them. It's been a couple weeks since I read this book as I'm writing this review, and I am still thinking about it at least every other day. Highly, highly recommend to anyone looking for a fun, absolutely heartwarming LGBTQIA+ story about family, friends, love, duty, and taking risks.

I loved the story, the world building and meeting the different characters. I felt completely immersed in the story and couldn't stop reading it.

This was beautiful, fun, and so heartwarming! Gwen and Art are not in love gave me everything it promised and more. I was absolutely smitten with this little found family.

Gwen and Art are sworn childhood enemies, newly betrothed to be married, who now have to spend the summer together. They each discover a secret about each other - Arthur kissing a boy, and Gwen's diary revealing that she's in love with the kingdom's only female knight. They form a reluctant alliance to cover for each other's secrets while political tensions brew in Camelot and come to a head. The description on Goodreads describes this story as "Heartstopper meets A Knight's Tale", and I couldn't have described it better.

I fell in love with so many of these characters - Sid and Agnes were so much fun and were such loyal companions to Art and Gwen. The found family aspect of these kinds of stories always melts my heart, and I love how Art allowed himself to be loved and Gwen was able to be brave enough to develop connections. Gabriel's character was lovable in his own way, even if he was skittish for most of the story. I wasn't expecting the action of the climax and how it played out, and the enemies portion of the beginning wasn't my favourite - but that's consistent for me across most stories. I would easily recommend this book to so many people.

Thank you to the teams at St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the eGalley of Gwen and Art Are Not In Love!

What a quirky, tongue-in-cheek, laugh-out-loud book! I enjoyed the characters as they grappled with their identities in relation to their responsibilities to their families, each other, and themselves. Gwen, named close enough to invoke the legendary Queen Guinevere, is stuck being betrothed to Arthur, the actual namesake of King Arthur. Gwen’s father is the King, but knows he can solidify his claim and title if he marries his daughter off to Arthur’s descendant. The only problem is that both Gwen and Art are queer and struggling to hide their true selves. Anyone who loves the original Arthurian cycle mixed with teenagers trying to understand themselves will enjoy Lex Croucher’s Gwen & Art Are Not in Love!

This was fine, but I was honestly a little disappointed. It was a very slow start and I felt like the plot suffered at the expense of all the banter. There was so much snarky conversation that it took a long time for anything to actually happen, and by the time things DID start to happen, I didn't care anymore.

I really liked the concept of the book, but I think the execution fell a little flat

I enjoyed this book. The main characters were either great to begin with or they grew on you. I honestly would have loved to get Gabriel’s POV on all this but it would have changed so much and altered the suspense, tension, and emotions of some events. It’s a cute story, more emotional and a little darker than I was expecting, yet also just a fun read.

Gwen and Arthur are betrothed, but both would rather be romantically involved with other people ... So they decide to work together in this light historical romance.

This book is not as funny as it thinks it is, but it was entertaining enough. I didn't really feel much in the way of romance, but the characters are ok otherwise. Overall it was fine, but not one I'd go back to!

Thank you to the publisher for providing a copy for review

It seems like YA historical fiction is starting to become more popular again, and I couldn't be happier about it. This is such a fun romcom, full of genuinely funny moments and dialogues, with both an f/f and m/m romance that I guarantee you will love. Like I said, it's an excellent comfort read, and I loved how it pokes fun at Arthurian legend.

I absolutely adored this book! As soon as I read the premise, I knew this would be a must read for me and it did not disappoint in the slightest. I loved every single character and how it switched back and forth between Gwen’s story and Art’s. I also loved seeing their friendship blossom throughout. The author did an amazing job not only writing amazing characters, holding a plot that kept my interest, but also tackled themes of sexuality and self acceptance beautifully.

I absolutely loved this book! I’ve now come to realize that I have a thing for King Arthur retellings - and this definitely did not disappoint! I aspire to be as badass as Bridget someday, I just wish we got more of her and Gwen - only complaint! Can’t wait to get a physical copy when it’s officially released!

This was very much more A Knight's Tale than a romance. The setting is a vaguely medieval England where King Arthur was a real person some centuries ago and everyone is still obsessed with him. The two main characters, Gwen and Arthur, are betrothed but not love interests - in fact they're both interested in other people and can't stand each other.

The book alternates POVs between Gwen and Arthur as they each pursue their own love interests and grow into their relationships with each other, their friendships, and understanding themselves a bit better. Honestly, thank goodness they do, because they're both painfully unlikeable characters at the beginning. Arthur is petulant, selfish, and mostly drunk, while Gwen is cowardly, self righteous and horribly judgmental.

Most of the book focuses on their self growth. I would say there is a fair bit of kissing but very little relationship building between two romantic relationships featured in the book. Bridget, who is solidly a badass as the only lady knight in the kingdom, gets to show off quite a bit of her sword skills but I wouldn't say we really get to know her as a character, and Arthur's relationship with Gabriel is frustrating at best and mostly just faced with rejection. The only person really successful in pursuing his love interests is Sidney.

Despite this, the characters do grow on you. Sidney and Arthur's relationship is pretty delightful, we see Gwen grow quite a bit as a person and start to stand up for herself. Arthur gets quite a bit less drunk and less obnoxious. There is quite a bit of really charming banter throughout, and Arthur of all people is the one rallying everyone to be true to themselves.

The book also has quite a bit of politics sprinkled throughout which the teenagers pay very little attention to but is mentioned offhandedly nonetheless, until it all comes together at the end. I think the political plot actually is at the center of the book and the romantic relationships are a distraction, or at least it feels that way with the amount of depth allocated to each element. It was an enjoyable read, but I think it needed quite a bit more polish for all the elements to really work together.

The characters do all get a somewhat happy ending, I guess, with maybe a bit more blood and gore than bargained for.

4.5. I was so pleased to receive an e-ARC of this book! I ended up being very surprised by its spirit and unique spin on a popular classic tale (although it's definitely not a retelling, more of a continuative spin-off). Gwen and Art are both very flawed, but very human, characters and their personal growth is great to bear witness to. They each have a lot of responsibilities thrust upon them from birth, and ultimately fight throughout the rest of the novel for their right to simply exist as they are; to be queer teenagers. The political conflict was also intriguing and fit right alongside the main characters' personal trials and tribulations, making for an unexpectedly exciting and eventful climax. Also, Bridget is just awesome. I did wish we got to see a little more of the teens hashing it out with their respective parents, though. I feel like a lot may have been left unsaid between Arthur and his father, as well as Gwen/Gabriel and their father. In addition it would've also been cool to see more of the vintage letters discovered by Arthur, of the late original King Arthur and Sir Lancelot, since it turned out to be an extremely big deal. Nonetheless I really enjoyed this one, and will definitely be recommending it upon it's publication later this year. Many thanks to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for the opportunity!

Lex Croucher has written another light-hearted and fun historical romance. Gwen is the daughter of the king and Arthur is the very distant descendant of the legendary King Arthur Pendragon. This should be a match made in heaven, except for the fact that they hate each other. When their parents decide that it is finally time to get engaged they are forced to spend the summer together. While they slowly form a begrudging friendship, it becomes clear that they aren't compatible as they are both gay. Gwen has a crush on the dashing Lady Bridget Leclair and Art has eyes for Prince Gabriel.

Lex Croucher always manages to knock it out of the park but this was extra awesome because who doesn't want a queer retelling of Arthurian legend. This book has a little bit of everything, romance, banter, and even some action. So many historical queer stories end in heartbreak so it is always refreshing to read something light-hearted. The book sometimes feels a bit slow, but it picks up in the end. While these enemies do not turn into lovers, they become friends, and everyone gets their happy endings.