I loved everything about this book! It was a love letter to adventure and romance, European cuisine and art, to second-chance love, to finding yourself and seizing what makes you happy. This was beautifully written and so different from McQuiston’s previous works. I loved the way both Theo and Kit narrated the story and I adored every single person they met during their tour. I always love an adventure romance and appreciate how the locations and food were equal stars in this story. While nothing can top the sheer genius of Red, White, and Royal Blue, I think The Pairing might actually be my favorite!

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

I had a really hard time getting into The Pairing and I don’t know if it was all the ritzy french and alcohol references..I am too broke to travel to other countries and don’t drink haha. So many descriptive scenes about food and wine which didn’t really add to the plot. But I gave it a fair shot and didn’t give up!

Kit and Theo didn’t feel fully developed or rounded as characters and I didn’t really feel like they had much chemistry, besides sexually. Also had a hard time keeping up with the dual pov, which I suppose is on me, not the book. The story was weighed down by lengthy descriptions of food and locations, which became tedious and distracted from the plot. Although the setting was integral to the story as a food and wine tour, these paragraphs became monotonous for me and led to me skimming over them.

I love Casey McQuiston’s books, but this one just fell short for me.

Casey McQuiston has, over the past few years, become my favorite author—the only person whose books I will buy sight unseen, which usually, as a public librarian/someone who's bought mediocre books before, is a big no-no. I love their prose, and all the giant emotions packed into it; I love the queer joy that radiates off of every page. I couldn't believe my luck when I was approved for an advance copy of this, my most anticipated book of 2024 (still can't believe it, if I'm honest).

My first impression is that this is VERY different, in a number of small ways that add up, from anything McQuiston has written before. Fans of their writing style, their funny, quirky, big-hearted characters, and the devastatingly emotional roads to HEA will not be disappointed, but in many ways, it does feel like a departure from their previous works. And I think that's a good thing! It's refreshing to see this author expand the scope of what their work looks like, and in particular, I thought that the setting—a bus trip taking a food and wine tour throughout Spain, France, and Italy—was a ton of fun. I love a good road trip story, and this was as decadently rendered as the many, many delicious things the characters eat and drink on the trip were decadently described (I don't recommend you read this book while hungry; it will make that so, so much worse).

Other things I liked: the dual POVs were woven into the story in a way that was new to me, and that I really appreciated (one character narrates the first half of the book, the other, the second half—the way this shift occurs makes sense, and, personally, I liked it a lot more than the typical chapter switching technique of showing dual POVs). The way McQuiston writes the romantic conflict between the two characters, who are childhood best friends turned lovers reuniting after a nasty breakup and several ensuing years without seeing one another, was SO good—all the unresolved feelings and angst and grief had me all in my feels. Also, McQuiston did not exaggerate when they described this book as their spiciest, or the plot as "being a slut in Europe"; this is definitely the smuttiest of their books by a long shot.

Extra-special shoutout to the inclusion of a reference to The Lizzie McGuire Movie during the Rome leg of the food and wine tour. I can't wait to read this book again when it's released in August.

This book is so full of love, it's overflowing with it. I had so much fun reading this story and following these beautiful characters on the tour. The descriptions are so rich I could almost taste the food and the wine, feel close to places I’ve never been and experience art I’ve never seen personally.

Theo and Kit are such passionate, funny, brilliant, horny IDIOTS I couldn’t help falling in love with them a little. The atmosphere’s cozy and all the side characters are almost as chaotic and charming as the main duo. It’s a heart-warming story about human connection, love, finding oneself and starting over.

Many thanks to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I want to go on this food tour and eat everything mentioned in this book but honestly I found Theo kinda annoying.

I feel like this book has rearranged the orientation of my heart. It tugged so perfectly at my gut, and I fell head over heels in love with every character, setting, meal, and drink. I want to read it fifteen more times and travel the world and eat insane pastries. I cannot possibly put into words how pitch-perfect every moment of this book was.

Casey, thank you for Theo! As a cis woman, I've never experienced how you described gender in terms of Theo. I have always known that gender is different for everyone, but you painted a beautiful picture of how flowing and changing it can be for someone, so again, thank you for opening my eyes and helping me become a better ally to others

okay y’all i just finished and i think the pairing may be my new CMQ favorite ??? it’s a slutty bisexual food and wine and art and fucking tour through europe and it’s exactly what i’ve always dreamed of ??? it’s def their smuttiest book yet which WE LOVE *and* the characters are infinitely loveable and kind and interesting 🧚🏼‍♀️ also the nonbinary rep was amazing and so beautifully described 😭🩷 5 fucking stars !!!!!!

The Pairing follows Kit and Theo, two childhood best friends turned lovers turned exes as they find themselves on a European wine-tasting trip purely by coincidence.

As a huge fan of Casey's past works I was more than excited to be able to read this book early and unfortunately, I didn’t love it as much as I thought I would. The characters to me didn’t feel as fleshed out as they had been in past works, and multiple characters were being introduced, making it hard to keep track of all of them. Maybe it’s just me and my lack of fine food and wine knowledge but it took me out of the story having to go and look up what we were talking about.
I enjoyed the dialogue and funny moments between the two main characters, but I found myself skipping multiple paragraphs and was bored in some parts.

Overall, l I don’t think I would read this book again but I would recommend it to friends if it were something I thought they would enjoy as the representation was top-tier.

Thank you to NetGalley for giving me and ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed reading about this whirlwind European adventure and felt deeply envious that I wasn’t attending the tour with Theo and Kit in real life. I loved all the descriptions of the food, wine, and art. This book had a wonderful blend of deeply beautiful quotes and laugh-out-loud dialogue.

Was lucky enough to read this early and what a joy it was. The amount of research required to flesh out this story was clearly extensive and it paid off. Lush descriptions of scenery, food, wine and art made this wonderful to read.

I am a fan of Red, White and Royal Blue but Casey' McQuiston's follow up books weren't my favorite. But I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked this book. The characters were interesting and the story was fun and fresh! I would say the only part I didn't care for was the absurd amount of sex scenes. It got to a point where I just skimmed over them bc I was tired of reading about sex. But overall I enjoyed this book.

I was given this book in exchange for my honest opinion. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC.

Another excellent title from Casey McQuiston! Travel, romance, and a great story... What more could you ask for. If you've enjoyed Casey's other titles, you're sure to like this newest installment.

Possibly Casey McQuiston's most poetic work yet. Big thanks to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for sharing this ARC with me!

Bring snacks (preferably croissants), because reading this book will make you HUNGRY. Join Kit and Theo on a European adventure full of luscious flavors, crisp landscapes, iconic art exhibits, sexy strangers, and rekindling romance. The setting descriptions are phenomenal. It really makes you feel like you are sitting at the patisserie alongside them. I love a good story with relatable yet extraordinary characters, and this one beautifully describes heartbreak at the same time as blossoming love. Big support for the eating-croissants-outdoors industrial complex (:

Kit and Theo were best friends since childhood. Then they became a couple. After a horrible breakup and some time, they each separately decide to use the voucher for a European dream vacation they had planned together at the same time. The trip forces them to talk. An epic love story of break up and reconciliation paired with lots of wine and delicious pastries.

This very adult novel is super spicy.

This book made me FEEL things. It’s like pressing on a bruise exquisitely.The author has crafted these characters so lovingly and carefully, and it’s like nothing I’ve ever read before. It made me think about parts of myself in new ways, which was at times uncomfortable and at others enlightening. It's also such a luxurious sensory experience the whole way through. The scenery, the food, the wine, the sexuality, the friendship, the love. Not only is this absolutely their best writing yet, but it also transcends the entire notion of queer representation as we typically see it in romance. I am utterly feral for whatever they do next.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this gorgeous book.

I don't know how Casey keeps outdoing themself, but every time I read a book by them, I think it can't get any better and they can't make me love these characters anymore than all of their other characters and then BAM, it happens anyway. This book is everything I could ever want in a romance, including characters who share both sides of my enby identity--the angsty poet and the crocodile hunter. I want to curl up into this book and live here.

This will be a good summer read for everyone! I enjoyed it for the most part, but after about halfway the descriptions of the scenery and food just felt very excessive and it started to feel like the novel was dragging at the slowest pace. Very glad I got to experience it but I don’t think it will be one I pick up again.

CMQ has done it again!! This book is HOT, it is FUNNY, it is A FANTASTIC EXAMINATION OF BEING QUEER AND IN LOVE. I was giggling and kicking my feet the whole time.

A fun filled, sunny, deliciously sexy tale of two sweet but thickheaded bisexuals whose wires got crossed first time around. The scenes set by the author were incredibly evocative of the locations, I have travelled to a few and really was brought back to Rome, Paris and Spain. The food descriptions, the wines, the cocktails, the whole novel was a love letter to Europe, amazinf culinary diversity, and bisexuals everywhere who are figuring out life.

Following Theo and Kit around Europe while they try and figure out who they are individually and *maybe* as a couple again after years apart was delightful. McQuiston has a way with lines that seem to stick in my head forever. Some of the more memorable from this outing include: "talk about colors no one else could see" "DaVinci wanted to hate fuck Michaelangelo" are just the first two that come to mind.

****Spoiler****
The seamless transition in Kit's inner monologue as he began to refer to Theo with they/them pronouns was honestly what one should strive for. Kit saw them for who they were, and it brought things into focus and balance, they were always like that but Theo just hadn't fully realized it yet. Kit's descriptions of Theo began to take on a different flavor as he began to watch Theo begin to fill their space in a way they hadn't previously allowed themselves to do.

Overall this book is a STRONG 4Star read. I'm looking forward to hyping this one up as we get closer to the release date and looking forward to more books from Casey and their beautiful brain.