ARC received from Netgalley.
I really loved this book. From start to finish it was a fun and wild ride. Getting to see Gwen and Art grow from hating each other entirely at the beginning of the story to loving and relying on each other by the end was so beautiful. They did not find the love for each other they expected to, but instead helped each other find the love and happiness they needed. Becoming family along the way. The plot was quite fast paced, keeping you hooked all the way through to the end. Recommend it to anyone who enjoys queer coming of age-esc romances and crazy fun (not necessarily accurate) historical romances.

A contemporary romance of queer proportions based in the midevil fantasy world. This was super sweet book and I did enjoy the rom-com elements. Something that is honestly refreshing to see especially for YA.

I think there are a lot of Camelot inspired stories coming out soon but THIS one was so much fun to read. The dialogue was witty and realistic, the characters were a lot of fun, and overall this YA was extremely enjoyable.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. All opinions expressed are my own.

A sweet romance that kept me delighted and turning pages. Though I usually read quite slowly, I sped through this and had a lot of fun.

What happens when you have two queer siblings set in the last vestiges of Arthurian England? Great news, this book tells you. And it does it through really funny and honest characters, snappy dialogue, and a well-paced, engaging plot.

When Arthur comes to town to spend time with his betrothed, he ends up falling for her brother and then acts as wingman for her and her lady night. Sidney is an absolute joy, and while I was worried Arthur would annoy me, he was actually hilarious. I cannot compliment the dialogue enough. It was fast and witty and often goofy in a very believable way. There was a sort of Sorkin-esque quality to it that really hit me and I found myself rereading bits often.

The character growth of Gwen from timid mouse in her brother's shadow to unabashed lesbian icon is what I can only hope for everyone to experience at least once.

I enjoyed that this story told the story of different types of bravery and different types of timelines when it comes to grappling with sexualities, and while the themes could easily be heavy, there was a certain optimism beneath it.

Can't wait for more from this author, and can't wait for this to take its place in top tier queer content.

***Thanks for the ARC***

The blend of light fantasy, two queer love stories, found family, and enemies to “lovers” made this book hard to put down. I found I flew through the first half of the book wondering what would happen next with the characters.

Each character felt well defined and I understood how they thought and what their motivations were.

I’m giving this four stars because 3/4 of the way through the book there was a bit of repetition in the story and made it harder to keep reading, but this is only a small complaint as it gets back to action quite quickly.

Thank you NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I have one qualm: this isn't heartstopper meets anything. If anything, the queer webcomic this story is like is high class homos. I find just tacking HeartStopper on to signal that a book is queer is cheap and generally does disservice to both heartstopper and the story ita being used to sell. However, given my only major criticism is with a tag line being used to sell this book, I am floored. I adored this book, as someone who grew up way too invested in BBC merlin I feel so seen with this book. I loved Gwen and Bridget, Sidney and Agnes, Gabe and Arthur. The final act made me be ten minutes late for work because I couldn't put it down once I got to it. This is a book I'm gonna be collecting special editions of, I just know I need multiple versions of it. Unreasonably good.

I really enjoyed this book! Both from noble families, Gwen and Art have been engaged to be married since they were children. They grow up hating each other, but when they each discover that the other is queer they become allies instead of enemies. Gwen is falling in love with a knight, Lady Bridget and Arthur begins to fall for Gwen’s brother, Gabriel, who is the future king of England.

While things do get a little dark at points during this book, overall, it’s a pretty light read. Both Gwen and Arthur can be annoying at times, but they are teenagers, so that’s to be expected! They both experience a lot of growth throughout the book, so I was happy to see that.

There’s quite a bit of Arthurian legend here, which I was fan of. I had initially assumed when reading the book that these characters were intended to be the legendary characters. It was a nice surprise to learn that they weren’t. I also liked that they weren’t relegated to the typical roles of Arthurian retellings.

I haven’t laughed so much while reading a book in a long time! The banter between so many of the characters is so funny! Some of my favorite scenes were between Arthur and his manservant, Sidney as they were both hilarious. All of the banter is so well written, and it’s what I love most about this book.

4 STARS ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Gwen & Art Are Not in Love is an adorable fun book. It’s funny and light-hearted while dealing well with serious topics. An amazing part of this book is the representation. Obviously, the LGBTQ+ rep was the main focus of the book, however it also deals a little bit with things disabilities (this isn’t a HUGE portion of the book, but I still felt like I should mention it) This book was a nice comfy read. I found myself smiling and laughing along with the characters, who I loved even more than I expected. I’d have to say my favorite character was Gabriel, although I ended up loving all of the main cast.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. I expected to like it but I was blown away by how much FUN I had while reading it. 4 stars easily.

Cute, fun queer rom-com that had me smiling and laughing from page one. I really loved the different and refreshing take on Arthurian Legend. The characters were fun, relatable, and endearing, but the plot didn't have enough momentum to really keep me hooked. This book will be a great hit for anyone looking for a fluffy rom-com and for an opportunity to escape into a world of beautiful lady knights and handsome princes!

<i>“It’s a bad break. It doesn’t heal by itself. Other people have to care about you—bring you food and protect you while you heal—when really they should just leave you behind to die. They have to make sacrifices that make absolutely no logical sense for their own survival. They have to defy all rationality, in the name of love.”</i>

Ever since my young obsession with Morgana from BBC Merlin, I have always gravitated towards Arthurian retellings. Gwen and Art Are Not in Love is not that. The story takes place in a Camelot many many generations after the original legend, and though the two main characters share their names with the iconic heroes, they are far from them.

The characters are so fully formed, and that is rare for YA romances. Even the side characters have so much life to them. I loved Gwen and her dreamy love interest Bridget almost immediately, and related to Gwen's struggles with herself a lot. Bridget is the lady knight of my dreams, and I loved her little arc, and that she wasn't just the love interest. I admit that it took me a second to like Arthur; I'm just not a huge fan of the jerk with a heart of gold trope on men, but he grew on me a lot. Gabriel had a lot of depth and potential to him, but I wish there was a bit more with him.

I will warn that this is one of those books where the author throws in modern references and jokes, so if you can't stand that you should probably steer clear. Otherwise this was a fun and surprisingly emotional read.

Thank you to Wednesday Books and NetGalley for the ARC.

- I didn’t really like the pacing of the story - the beginning and end felt rushed, and I didn’t feel like there were very substantial plot points throughout, just the characters sneaking around with one another.

- the political uprising and (SPOILER) kings death felt almost too dramatic/high stakes for what the story was intending to be (royal historical fluffy romance). The book couldn’t decide if it wanted to be unserious and fluffy or more mature thematically, and fell in an awkward middle.

-there were way too many things that happened out of convenience, plot points/conflicts that were rushed through/solved without substantial or clear effort put into them.

- the main characters were initially quite unlikeable. There was character growth, but it was done lazily. The characters were just suddenly, at the end of the book, like “oh no sorry I was wrong I’ll be a better person now!” Rather than to be shown actively learning from their mistakes/understanding why they got off on the wrong foot

- for a book that seemed to be intending to focus primarily on the romance/coming of age and not taking itself too seriously, said things felt pretty dissatisfactory. The romances felt rushed and poorly developed, and there was no payoff as there was a timeskip right as the characters actually got together. As for the coming of age, the same teen/sexuality anxieties were rehashed in the same way over and over again, only for the growth/payoff/lessons learned from these things to be summarized in a sentence at the time skip conclusion of the book.

aside from all of this, this book is still almost a 3 star, because I did enjoy reading it most of the time. A lot of the aforementioned flaws were distracting at times and prevented it from being a truly quality story, but I was for the most part engaged and entertained. The characters weren’t particularly loveable or well developed but it got big points in my book I think for checking a lot of my favorite trope boxes. While I enjoyed a lot of the middle, I ended up being ultimately dissatisfied.

This was an absolutely delightful tale! A queer YA medieval romcom isn’t something I knew I needed in my life until I read this!

Gwen and Art, despite being betrothed since childhood, cannot stand to be in each other’s company. They quickly realize they have more in common than they thought, and become reluctant allies. As they each get to know the people they’re truly interested in - in Gwen’s case, the knight Lady Bridget Leclair, and in Arthur’s case, Gwen’s brother and the crown prince, Gabriel - they forge a genuine friendship. This was heartwarming and funny, and I will definitely be buying a copy once this is released!

When I first found this YA novel, I expected it to be a retelling of the legend of Arthur and the Round Table. Instead it is the delightful story of Gwen and Art, descendants from members of King Arthur’s Court. They were betrothed as children, but cannot stand each other. I’m this love story, they don’t fall for each other, but instead band together to save the kingdom from those who would destroy. Gwen falls for a lady knight while Art falls for a future king. Both Gwen and Art and spoiled children at the beginning of this novel. Both doing their best to not grow up. Yet over the course of the book, they each find strength within themselves they didn’t know they had. This story is slow to start, but picks up quickly. I loved the LGBT storyline. I would love to get immersed in this world again.
I received this book for free and am voluntarily giving this review.

My thanks to NetGalley for the advanced reader copy.

This book was tremendous fun. Croucher does a great job of keeping the tone and language true to the period while also making it all feel relatable and timeless. The comparison to A Night's Tale in the blurb is spot on. I really liked all the characters but, in particular, adored Arther, scoundrel that he was!

An enjoyable romp all around.

A fantasy romcom masterpiece!

Gwen and Art Are Not In Love is the queer fantasy romcom I didn't know my heart needed. From the first chapter, the character of Gwen, Art, and their beloved friends come alive and off the page, feeling like I've known them all along. I fell instantly in love with the roguish, silly Art (I'm a sucker for sarcastic cinnamon roll boys) and, of course, with his opposite, the refined Gwen. I rooted with them through a series of unfortunate events that had me laughing hysterically (and getting misty eyed).

More than that, there were moments that this book gave more than what I would expect from a romcom. The discussion of internalized homophobia, the individual character growth, the unexpected disability rep, and even thumbing the nose at doctors who write off women for "women problems" (Lex Croucher, I APPLAUD YOU!) make this book so much more than the 'weird' book the author describes it as in the acknowledgements.

I think this book will be loved by fans of Red, White, and Royal Blue, but adds a fantasy setting with lots of Arthurian myths in. I think it deserves to be a bestseller, and I will recommend it to every single person I know. My only complaint is that it ended, because I want so much MORE of these characters.

I received a free ARC of this book through NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

** I'd like to thank St. Martin's Press for giving me an eARC of Gwen & Art Are Not in Love in exchange for an honest review **

rating: 3.8 ⭐️'s

I loved the aspect of this book and the overall storyline presentation. I enjoyed the queer representation, angst and finding oneself, and overall coming into your skin. Both characters are relatable, but both can rub people wrong depending on how they relate to characters. The relationships were slow burn, but could've received a bit more attention (particularly Arthur and his boy). The story dragged a few times, but that's bound to happen with such a long book! Overall, this is a good read full of comedy and the feels - perfect for any people looking for wlw and mlm romance mixed in one. Though, it might have been better presented as a duology with each book focusing on Arthur and Gwen respectively to build them up equally.

Highly recommend, but it doesn't not have faults. Happy reading!!

This was a super fun Arthurian tale with a queer twist, that will appeal to fans of Heartstopper as well as the Miracle Workers television show. I really enjoyed the way the author let the characters be the teens that they are, even teens about to become kings. Funny, often silly, and a fun read!

Gwen and Art Are Not in Love by Lex Croucher

5/5

I’m a strong believer that the best types of characters are idiots. The main characters who are super capable and yet also incredibly stupid and oblivious to the most obvious things. In fantasy they’re capable of leading armies and ruling countries, but would never guess that someone they know may have feelings for them. ‘Gwen and Art Are Not in Love’ is full of these types of characters and it’s what makes this book as good as it is.

This novel is incredibly lighthearted and fun and every character has something to add to the story. While the plot itself has lots of action, battles and royals causing chaos. This Arthurian rom com follows Gwen and Art, who are NOT in love, despite their betrothal. They hate each other and are complete opposites in every way, or so they think. Don’t be fooled however, this is not an enemies to lovers story (it’s even better). When Gwen soon discovers Art kissing a boy and Art discovers Gwen’s romantic interest in a lady knight, they agree to cover for each other. They discover hidden plots while sneaking around the castle and must find a way to protect camelot while struggling with their respective potential relationships. Full of cute and awkward romantic relationships, entertaining sibling dynamics and friendships, the writing in this book is full of humour and heart and makes this story beyond enjoyable.

If you’re looking for a character driven romance fantasy with hilarious characters that’s full of jokes and doesn’t take itself too seriously this one is for you

"To be truly brave, first you must be afraid- and to be afraid, you must have something you cannot bear to lose."

I was hooked from page one. That was by far one of the best new adult romances I’ve ever read. It has everything I love; lgbtqia+ romance, witty banter, swordplay, politics, war, a spicy cat, a LIBRARY! I couldn’t have asked for a more perfect book.
Sidney and Arthur are by far the best male friendship ever. The unconditional love they have for each other is something everyone should strive to obtain.
Bridget is a badass and I’m actually in love with her.
Gwen and Gabriel come so far in terms of finding themselves and what they stand for.
Just, wow. I can’t wait until this is published so that I can add a physical copy to my shelves. This was beyond good.

4.5/5

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher who provided me with an ebook copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All of these thoughts and opinions are my own.