For fans of A Knight's Tale and Song of the Lioness, Gwen & Art Are Not in Love is a cute rom-com about four gay teenagers muddling through young love while England fractures in the background. While very enjoyable, I would warn that the end of novel verges on being more twee than I could handle, even considering the ultimate headcount sitting at a few hundred.

I found the pacing to be a bit off, with the political intrigue plot only really kicking off after the halfway point, but the disruption Arthur causes to the Gwen and Gabriel’s lives was entertaining enough to easily carry the first half.

I was also really disappointed that the plot thread with the Morgana cultists and their charms fizzled away to nothing, as I was really intrigued by them and would have loved to see more.

Ultimately, while I had a good time with Gwen & Art, I wouldn’t really recommend it as either a romance novel or historical fiction, but if what you’re looking for is a quirky rom-com with some anachronistic medieval trappings and a very clearly presented message about the value of being true to yourself, you’ll love Gwen & Art Are Not in Love!

Thank you to St. Marten’s Press and NetGalley for this eARC, provided in exchange for an unbiased review.

Gwen and Art Are Not in Love was such an adorable read! The characters are lovable and complex for being adolescents. They're written to be multi-dimensional and I appreciate the direction the novel went in. The representation for the LGBTQ+ community is great and this is the perfect addition to a pride month tbr!

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this YA read, I loved it!

I never wanted this book to end, but I also couldn’t stop reading because I needed to know what happened next. I was a little devastated when it ended because I could read about these characters and their relationships with one another forever. By the end of the book all of them truly felt like friends.

These are my favorite things about this story:
- drawing on classic figures to explore new stories and perspectives
- characters that feel like real people
- INCREDIBLE banter amongst characters
- intriguing plot line with political intrigue as a backdrop to a character driven story
- discussion of what it means to be brave, and what life can look like if you are truly yourself

I deeply appreciate how this story invites it’s characters and it’s readers to reflect on how you can show up as yourself, for yourself, when the world wants you to be a version they expect or are comfortable with. There is a lot of conversation about queerness and identity, and some of it can be triggering because there is not instant acceptance of self or others from certain characters. However, through those events our characters learn more about themselves and the happiness they deserve.

Five stars for Big Feels, relatable characters, and asking people to reflect on what they really want, and how they can be their true selves and thrive in it.

⭐️ 3.5 Stars ⭐️

“Gwen and Art Are Not in Love” is a great choice for those that enjoy a good romantic comedy with a touch teen angst and pining!

Croucher included a diverse group of characters and relationships in this queer, Arthurian RomCom. Though it was only platonic, I found the friendship between Gwen and Arthur took the main stage as I read this book. From enemies constantly at one another’s throat to true friends that can still share a lighthearted jest. Though this is fiction, I always find queer historical fiction to be a good reminder that queer people have always been here and deserve to have their stories told.

If I had to critique anything, it would be the romantic developments and the way the story was brought to a close. I had a hard time finding any actual chemistry between the main characters and their love interests. Their relationships ended up lacking communication or depth. Both Gabriel and Bridget did not feel fully characterized to me. I also thought the ending felt like an incredibly rushed series of events and I would have appreciated seeing more of Gabriel and Gwen’s new roles. I really thought the author would have their parents play a larger role, so I was surprised that they felt like minor background fluff.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!

Gwen and Art are not in love. They're also not the Gwen and Art you might be thinking about, though they do live in an alternate history medieval world. What are they? Hilarious, and thought-provoking, and romantic and wonderful.

Gwen is the daughter of the reigning monarch. Her brother will one day be king, and she is, therefore, destined to be married off in a power-brokering alliance. Art, her intended, is a "troubled youth", in a relationship of mutual loathing with his dad, who wants to marry him into a powerful family for his own nefarious ends. Gwen and Art have known each other forever and have not liked what they have seen. However, when they realize in fairly short order that each of them would much rather be in a same-sex relationship, they begin to work on how they might turn the situation to their advantage.

This book was a devour-in-a-day delight. The characters are well-drawn, and the relationships that develop are a great deal of fun. The gutsy female knight that Gwen falls for is a fabulous independent woman and the way she navigates the career she has chosen is one of the stronger parts of the book. Lex Croucher creates a terrific batch of supporting characters, so there are almost 5 leads in the story, and even more strong secondary roles. That allows for a lot of intersectionality to be explored in terms of feminism, family responsibility, friendship and racial identity. A rom-com that makes me laugh, but also give me space to think about big ideas? That's pretty dreamy for this reader.

Thanks to Wednesday Books and NetGalley for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

I received a free copy of this book; all opinions expressed below are my own!

What a lovely read! While Gwen & Art does switch between humor and drama, it does it in a way that feels very real and very human. The characters are delightful in their individuality, and the dialogue is sparkling with humor and wit. The story builds the dramatic elements slowly, and while it doesn't shy away from the realities the characters face (combat, sexuality, political machinations), it is not especially graphic, particularly in the romantic elements. There are absolutely jokes with sexual innuendo and double entendres, but for on page depictions there's nothing beyond heavy kissing. Violence is there, as this is a medieval period with jousting and such, but it's handled in a way that neither glorifies the violence, nor shies away from the ugliness of the reality of it. All in all, it was a fantastic reading experience, and I recommend the title to others!

This book was adorable! One of the few books that has literally made me laugh out loud, it was the ultimate sweet comfort read.

One of the only issues I had with this book was the pacing. The last 10-15% of the book was so rushed that I found myself anxiously checking to see how much time was left because it seemed impossible to wrap up all of these loose ends. While I enjoy a standalone, I could see this easily becoming a duology and expanding on some of the plot points, or perhaps just being a bit longer to flesh out some of the points at the end.

Other than that, the character development, setting, and humor were all on point. Such a fun read, I highly recommend it!

What a wonderful spin on an old tale! I truly loved seeing all the relationships form and grow into something really lovely; both in friendship and romance. This book explores medieval times/battles through a more modern lense. Each character exhibits so much personal growth; from Gwen finding her voice to Arthur finding his home.
Gwen & Art are Not in Love is one of those books that feels like a big hug. Thank you to Lex Croucher for writing this piece of art. Huge thank you to St. Martin's Press & NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review of content.

i am a big fan of HAVING FUN as a concept and this book was SO MUCH FUN FOR ME!!!!! big "merlin BBC if it was gay, and also shrek" which is always a welcome vibe in this house, this is a book i would have diedddd for when i was a teen and i love that it exists, pleaaaaaaaaaaase buy it when it comes out.

(Galley provided by publisher, thanks!)

✨A (Lusty) Knight’s Tale✨

*spoilers betwixt these lines below, proceed with caution*

It was a bit too metal for me at the end. I definitely wouldn’t classify the second half of the book as a romance novel: too much death and limb loss (sorry but it’s no Kresley Cole). It took a while for the couples to pair off and then it took even longer for emotional things to develop and then there were battles and death and it never rest regained the happy, charming feel of the beginning.

I think we definitely saw more growth between Gwen and Bridget, and I definitely was more convinced by their romance. I was actually living for it. The massage got me down SO BAD. I also liked how they compromised in their relationship at the end.

But I definitely needed more from Art and Gabriel; I never was really sold that they were a good match. Gabriel was a tough nut to crack and since we didn’t have his POV, a lot of necessary inner monologue didn’t happen. Art and Gabriel were never really together, with Gabriel fully embracing who they were until the very last chapter. I adored Art, but yeah Gabriel needed to cook a bit longer. They had the makings of such a sweet relationship, but what we saw on page didn’t have too many sweet moments.

For as long as the book was, the relationships really weren’t given enough space to develop, just with how the book was paced and plotted out. I guess the way the book ended in the last third needed to happen so they could all get their HEAs…but I guess I’m not entirely happy and honestly the characters didn’t really either?? Just sad and a bit miffed all around. The book was very long and kinda felt that way towards the end.

Overall, The ambiance of the book was incredible, and it definitely hit that A Knight’s Tale modern historical mark, but I wish it developed the romances fully. I loved the friendships in the book as well. The one between Sidney and Arthur REALLY embodied that Heath Ledger and Alan Tudyk energy. I’d have preferred this book be split into two books in a duology, rather than the one with both relationships. But even then, I feel like the book as a whole will work better for me via audio, as that creates a more cinematic experience.

⭐️⭐️⭐️.75/5



Big spoilers:
I’d also just prefer a nice father not get stabbed in the neck lol. On a scale of 1-Lion King…ngl I felt a bit like Simba reading that. Also I just do not think Gabriel was ready to be king, he didn’t break out into song ONCE with a persnickety hornbill. And Arthur was hurt for like 70% of the book, poor chap.



Thanks to the publisher for an eARC via NetGalley. All opinions are honest and my own.

While I loved the characters and the representation (bisexual, gay, aro), I wasn't expecting that there would be absolutely zero plot. I wish the premise gave a little bit more indication that this would be a character-driven book full of their personal development.

Because of this, some of the book felt like it dragged on a lot for me. Since it was so focused on the characters' growth, I would've appreciated maybe 50-100 pages less haha. However, the way that they wove in the original Arthurian legends and people involved was very fun!

I enjoyed reading this. Croucher balanced the light hearted witty tone of their novel with the various struggles and flaws each character had. I enjoyed getting to read about several queer experiences and coming outs. It was also novel to read about queerness in a medieval setting. I did find the book jam-packed with tropes and secondary character like Sidney did seem somewhat static, which other readers could find off-putting (I however, love all written trope).

I really really liked this but I seriously needed it to be a duology or something. Not because I want more of the story after it ended, but because it got so rushed at the end and it would have been massively improved by just letting it be two books. It has two main elements that are, of course, deeply interwoven. The premise of the book is that a cult popped up through England’s early history who believed that one day King Arthur would return and take his place as ruler of the country, bringing magic back with him. This group is in political conflict with the dominant Catholic Church, which backs Gwen’s father’s right to the throne. Art’s father is a cultist, and Gwen and Art were arranged to be married as children to create ties between the two groups. So that’s one element of the book: a sort of political intrigue storyline. The other element is the relationships between Gwen and the knight she’s been obsessed with for years, Gwen and Art, and Art and Gwen’s brother, Gabriel. These relationships were all absolutely wonderful to read about and tackled some important themes. Unfortunately, they took a backseat to the first storyline in the fourth quarter of the book, and their resolutions felt forced and overly perfect because they weren’t given the room to resolve naturally. This was really frustrating to me because there were serious issues with each relationship that needed to be talked through, and those conversations just sort of got skipped over. Making it into a two-book series would have given all the storylines room to resolve naturally, as well as explore some of the elements that were mentioned but never fully explored. I realize this sort of YA romance is typically a standalone, but I think in this case a duology would have been appropriate, and readers would have been happy to read another – I know I certainly would have been. All of this is not to say it’s bad or not worth reading, because it was definitely really lovely and heartwarming; just a bit of a missed opportunity.

I want to start by thanking NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the advanced reader copy of this title.

This was a very cute historical rom com. I loved the friendship that grew over the course of the book between Gwen and Art. This book had me cry laughing as well as just regular crying there at the end. I don't think I've ever highlighted a book as much as I did this one. This is exactly what I needed to get out of a reading slump.

I loved this MM & FF romance. I delivered on the quotable lines and it handled the stress of being non heterosexual in a very challenging time. I will recommend this book to anyone that will listen. Very interested in reading more from this author, I really enjoyed her prose until the very last word.

(here is the bit where i say that i received an arc from netgalley, this is my honest review)

I love this book. I went into it hoping and expecting to love it but I could not have predicted how much this book means to me now. Truly, honestly. I'm going to do my best to turn my thoughts into something more than *screaming*. Be warned though, there will be screaming. Also, this book is one of those special ones that brings back my faith in YA, that shows that YA books can be written and edited with love and with care, with respect for their readers, and with an acknowledgement of the messiness of teenage years without reducing characters to turmoil and anger and romance they aren't ready for yet. In the past, while reading ARCs, I've found that I took pages and pages of notes on the books I disliked while the ones I liked I took almost no notes on, because usually my notes were things I was angry about. But with this book all of my notes are rambles about the emotions I am feeling and quotes that I adore and basically, they function as a love letter to <i>Gwen and Art Are Not In Love</i>.

What brought this book together was the characters. Gwen and Art, of course. but Bridget and Gabriel and Sidney and Agnes were all brilliant as well.

Gwen broke my heart, because I loved her and I understood her and I was her. Gwen, who likes embroidery but who struggles to recognise that her creations are art. Gwen, who likes her routine because it stops her from thinking about all the ways her life is unhappy and empty. She struggles with her own passivity and feelings of invisibility, because despite being an honest-to-god princess she is unable to view herself as someone who could change things. She was raised to be a one-day wife, and even though she hates it she has no idea how to rebel against it. This girl is so smart, but she is completely incapable of imagining herself as she is, which is a force to be reckoned with. When Gwen is forced (for culty reasons) to say something she likes about herself and one thing she wishes she could change (paraphrasing), all that she can come up with is "I'm consistent with my embroidery" and "I'm a coward." Gwen is hilarious. She thinks about her crush and goes "'<i>God</i>,' Gwen thought wistfully. '<i>I hope she stabs me</i>.'" She learns to stand up for herself and for others throughout this book, even when it scares her. Her minor not-like-other-girls moment is one that she grows out of almost immediately, and also is fairly excusable considering she is a princess and therefore not at all like the other girls, in some ways. I need to stop talking about Gwen though because otherwise I will run out of space for loving on everyone else.

Let's talk Arthur next. I have less to say about him, not because I liked him less but because I couldn't see myself in him. I still love him. Arthur is funny and unapologetically himself. He has been abused by his father his entire life and even though that very much shadows his opinions of himself, he doesn't stop being his own person. Every thing he says and thinks is hilarious, even in emotional moments, but in a way that doesn't take away from the meaning of the conversation. I read him as depressed and feeling unloved, from his self-deprecating humour to the way he so readily believes that he is a horrible person. But he isn't.

I'm going to try to limit what I say about the other characters, but here goes. Gabriel, my sweet repressed baby, I love you and I believe in you. I hope you never stop rescuing cats and crows and poorly behaved boys named Arthur. Bridget, you are strong and you stand up for yourself. You refuse to give up your life for a girl, even when that girl is a wonderful princess, because you know it would mean giving yourself up. You are a badass, and I completely understand why Gwen wishes you would stab her. Sidney, Arthur could not ask for a better sidekick. You are great. Agnes, I love how you kept on being friends with Gwen even when Gwen didn't realise that was what was happening. She needed it. You know how to stand your ground, and I think you're wonderful.

Gwen and Art hate each other at the beginning of this book, for reasons that completely make sense on account of them having been upset and children in all their previous encounters. The development of their friendship feels real and natural, as they learn to trust and be kind to each other.

There is a mild miscommunication plot in here, which is normally my least favourite kind of plot. But I didn't mind here because even though it was kind of clunky it felt like part of the story, rather than a desperate author trying to move stuff along.

The ending is bittersweet, but the growth and learning these characters go through is beautiful, and it is easy to see the amazing people they will continue to grow into.

I was laughing while I was reading, and when I wasn't laughing I was ranting to my friend about how much Gwen breaks my heart because I want the world to be better to her. Wholeheartedly, absolutely recommend this book. It is brilliant, and funny, and charming in all the best ways. Please people, read it.

Thank you to Wednesday Books & NetGalley for an e-arc of this book!

First things first, I am obsessed with all things Arthurian, so I NEEDED to read this. Clearly, obviously.

Secondly, it was QUEER. Therefore I needed it even more. Also, the cover is to die for.

This book was hilarious on so many levels. The banter between all the characters just had me rolling every few minutes. I also loved how it made fun of some parts of the Arthurian Legend and made it even funnier.

Honestly, this is a book you just need to experience without reading too much about it, it's full of surprises, sweet romance and laughter. There are of course a few moments of more darkness in this book, but overall the tone is lighthearted and fun.

It was such an easy read, and I just breezed through it, because I couldn't put it down. This is a book that teens and adults are going to LOVE simply because it's a rollicking good time. I would say there is definitely humor from like Knights Tale/Princess Bride type of movies, but queer. This book features m/m and f/f relationships, and all the characters are endearing. Even when they're being obnoxious.

I loved the moments of friendship and family in this book, and just the solidarity between them. It was a lovely read and I HIGHLY recommend it.

This book....was everything. It was incredibly fun while also being nuanced and emotional and triumphant and just gave me all the feels. I loved how rich the cast of characters was, it's really rare for me to feel as connected to an ensemble character as I am to a main character. I wouldn't go into this expecting a super faithful retelling, but it is a fun light-hearted queer historical romcom that will give you all the fuzzy feels :D

Gwen and Art Are Not In Love tells a tale as old as time - boy meets girl, both are gay, and a little queer clique is formed.

The writing is funny, and all the characters are loveable. It features a lesbian knight! Watching the friendships and romances develop with a backdrop of court intrigue and knight tourneys was perfect.

I assumed this was going to be a King Arthur retelling, it’s not at all. But it is set at Camelot a few hundred years from the actual events. Although it is an alternative history, social pushback still exists against defying gender norms (i.e., being a lady knight) and same-sex relationships.

I will re-read this when I get my hands on a physical copy in November (for UK people, I think it came out in May, go read it now!!)

Thanks to Wednesday Books for the eARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Such a fun, heartwarming YA from Lex Croucher! I absolutely loved the characters and the how the tone of the story managed to be heartfelt but serious at times as well. It was all balanced perfectly and it was a superbly enjoyable, quick read. Highly recommend 🩷

Gwen and art are not in love, but I am most certainly in love with them. The joy of reading one of your most anticipated releases of the year and it exceeding your expectations. Reading this felt like watching a queer combo of Merlin and A Knight’s Tale and I enjoyed myself the whole way through. Getting to see both Gwen and Bridget’s, and Art and Gabe’s romance develop had me swooning.
I especially appreciated Gabe’s development in accepting himself as he is, because he is such a wonderful person and deserves to enjoy his life!!!
I exceptionally loved Art’s heartfelt talks with both of the siblings and his encouraging them to go after what they really want. He had so much verbal abuse from his father growing up telling him he was useless and not good enough, yet he didn’t let it stop him from being who he wanted and helping others do the same.
And BRIDGET my god. What a woman. She, too, was just so unapologetically herself and didn’t let anyone tell her who she was and she couldn’t do. And you know always love a woman with a sword 🫡😏.
And, of course, Gwen. My darling girl. It was so heartwarming to see her build her confidence with the help of Bridget and Art and become a stronger person. Especially near the end when she finally made a brave and scary decision for her family and so reaped the rewards from it.
And shout out to Sidney to being the best, most caring and swoon-worthy body man out there.
All in all, a terrific queer story of the bravest and most lovable kids you’ll ever see.
(Also, the fact that Lex Croucher thanked four of my most beloved authors, Alice Oseman, C.S. Pacat, Rainbow Rowell, and Freya Marske, who created some of my most favorite stories and characters, just solidifies that this book is perfect.)