I made it to just over half way through the book before I realized I simply did not like this book. This is very unfortunate for me, as I have really enjoyed Casey's books in the past and I was SO excited for this one - I even have it pre-ordered! This just felt so draggy to me. I get its about a food and wine tour but I'm not sure how many more in detail descriptions about food and wine I could have mentally handled. I was bored, to say bluntly. The relationship between the characters should have already had chemistry built, considering it was a second chance romance, but I felt zero chemistry or passion between them the whole time. I want to root for the couple to get together, and I wasn't rooting for them at all. I wasn't rooting for them to stay apart either, I just felt indifferent towards the whole thing.

I enjoyed “Red White and Royal Blue” and quite liked “One Last Stop”. Unfortunately I gave up on “The Pairing” after the first random hook-up about 15% of the way through. I found it hard to engage with this book and couldn’t really care less what happened to the two protagonists.

I never thought I would see the day that I would review one of Casey's books with less than a three. First, let me say that I have an unbelievably profound respect for them as an author but this book and I just
...did...
...not...
...vibe

In contrast to their other stories, this book is straight up sad. It's weighed with careless, completely avoidable heartbreak and so much angst-filled yearning. At times it felt like it was just going on forever with too little of the witty, humorous moments of levity.

Where was the rich tapestry of supporting characters? Each one more interesting than the next? And while I would take a bullet for most of Casey's MC's, I'm not even sure I like Theo and Kit.

~sighs~

but I can't bring myself to end this on a sour note. There are three things about this novel that I really enjoyed:
1) I loved getting to see and explore all of the unique and exquisite European locales the tour group visited
2) WARNING SPOILERS (slightly)
The narrative switches between the MC's roughly halfway through the book adding a nice shake up to the storyline and an interesting layer to the character development
3) Fabrizio—I have no notes

Thank you Netgalley MacMillan audio and st Martin's Press for the read now earc & alc my opinions are my own. Not sure how much every book Casey writes is absolutely the greatest book then they write another. This felt like the same world as rwrb and could envision this on screen and expect to see rwrb characters on the mega yacht. They write the most incredible thoughtful and delightful characters and stories and I am sure people feel seen by their books. I will absolutely be adding a copy to my forever shelf. It was so hott!!!

***ARC Review—all opinions are my own***

WE ARE SO FUCKING BACK.
The Pairing has everything we’ve come to know and love from a McQuiston book and more. Atmospheric, immersive, funny, romantic, slutty to its core.

The book follows Theo and Kit, best friends to lovers to exes who haven’t seen each other in 4 years and are suddenly on a three-week food tour across Europe TOGETHER. Surrounded by sexy people, art, and food, the heady, wine-drunk haze of European decadence leads these two pining ex-lovers to compete for number of hookups. Because fucking other people will make them not want each other, right?

Wrong. Y’all. This romance is everything. It’s messy and complicated and gorgeous and so damn hot. There are parts that get frustrating, but they never feel that they’re dragging out too long. The pacing worked really well. Personally, a good bi-for-bi romance is everything I could ever want and goddamn if this didn’t deliver (and take it some directions I wouldn’t have imagined 👀).

I think in general McQuiston’s strong points are atmosphere and characters and although Theo-and-Kit is at the center of it all, Theo and Kit are the reason it’s such a good story. The book starts off strong with Theo’s perspective and changes to Kit halfway through and I adored them both equally. They’re both such strong, likable, complex characters—inextricably intertwined but also wholly independent in their desires and fears. It’s so easy to settle into the intimacy of their minds and you really want to get to know them both as characters. Their interwoven stories create a beautiful picture of queerness that highlights the complexities of love in tandem with self discovery, with gender and sexuality and all the anxiety and want that comes from growing into onesself.

And all this while being a hilarious and fun read that had me biting my lip to keep from giggling out loud.

While I couldn’t pick a favorite McQuiston book, I believe this is their most well-written one yet. In between the dirty jokes, queer culture references, and expertly crafted descriptions of food and drink were heart-wrenching lines and stunning metaphors.

This book is a love letter and a masterpiece. You will feel hungry, horny, and heartbroken. When I get my hands on a finished copy I want to reread immediately and underline in pretty colors, draw hearts in the margins, and get lost in the immersive world and minds McQuiston has built for us all over again.

I have loved all of Casey McQuiston’s books to date, so I was so excited to get a review copy of their newest book. It does not disappoint!

The setting was amazing. It made me so envious! And so hungry! I want to do the same food & wine tour through France, Spain, and Italy. But only if Kit and Theo and their fellow travelers can join me.

I loved the two main characters so much. They were so cool, but also so real as they traveled through Europe, working through their issues while sampling the best local cuisine and culture. I loved the frank discussions of gender and sexuality. This book actually helped me understand more about what being bisexual and nonbinary means.

The romance was a slow burn with lots of tension and plenty of spice. But there was also so much emotion. Their relationship was just beautiful.

I loved this book so much that I’m definitely preordering a paper copy for my shelf when it releases in two months!

Thank you to Netgalley for my review copy.

This book was simultaneously a hit and a miss for me. The first half failed to get me really invested, and it was pretty redundant for a while. It took me until the second half to really be invested in Theo and Kit as a couple. The POV switch truly saved this book.

Where this book shines, though, is the descriptions of food and wine, and so so much yearning. This book pairs excellently with a glass (bottle) of wine while reading in the sun.

The Pairing was delicious, delightful, and very spicy. Reading McQuinston is often like reading glorious silly queer brain candy, but the travel and food writing and romance in this one is like, a multi course meal. Yes, it's a little self indulgent but queer readers deserve it as a treat! Excellent summer/light read but very gloriously spicy for those handselling. Good for folks who like McQuinston's previous work, Alexis Hall, Taylor Jenkins Reid, even Anthony Bourdain foodie types looking to branch out!

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC ♡ I devoured this.

Casey McQuiston on a European Vacation! This was such a fun and sexy book - I loved the main characters and the development of their friendship and relationship. I loved the supporting cast, they were vibrant and vivid and added so much to the story. And I LOVED the European travelogue - there should definitely be a vacation tour tie-in because I would go in an instant. Their descriptions of the travel and the locations made me want to hop on a plane immediately. Such a great read!

No author gets me like Casey McQuiston. I never fall in love with characters more than I do with their books.

This is their spiciest book yet but amid all the spice is so much emotion and so many beautifully written pieces. I highlighted so much of this book because I couldn’t help myself.

One Last Stop is still my favorite and I really teetered between a 4 & 5 for this book. Going 4.5 rounded up to 5 because I liked the ending 🫶🏻

Read this if you loved Here We Go Again by Alison Cochrun.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this book!!

It should come as no surprise that I will read anything by Casey at this point, I love their work! I didnt love this one as much as the other books but it was really good. The imagery of the European places and overall scenery descriptions was so beautifully done. It felt like I was there tasting everything. I really liked reading about a bisexual couple and one of the main characters were nonbinary<3 I really liked both main characters but for some reason kit stood out to me more. I didnt really connect with them as much as I wanted to tho but that’s just a me thing. I also didnt connect with the story itself as much as I wanted to, it just wasn’t that gripping to me but it was good. Second chance is always a good trope for me

Thank you to net galley and the publisher for providing me with an arc!!

Loved this book. I love the idea of seeing how young love can change when you become adults. The development of the relationship between the two MCs throughout the story was so great. You could feel their angst, their heartbreak, every emotion they were going through. The characters were well written and relatable and the story kept me very intrigued.

I did not like this book as much as I wanted to. I never warmed up to the main character, Theo, although I liked Kit from the beginning. The stops on their journey were a bit repetitive: food, booze, sex over and over, and since I have not traveled to most of the places they visited, those chapters did not grab me. I thought the sex challenge was a bit unrealistic - perhaps that is just showing my age - but I couldn't quite imagine doing that with an ex you really loved. The supporting cast of characters were interesting and I would have liked to know more about some of them. Overall, this was a bit of a disappointment. Nevertheless, I always recommend Casey McQuiston books.

Thanks so much to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC!

This is a lovely queer read. Although this is the first book by this author that I’ve read. I know, shocking!! I’ve been wanting to read her other books but I just haven’t gotten around to them. But this book did not disappoint. The author is well loved and there’s a clear reason for it. The writing is amazing. I’ll definitely be reading more!

Theo and Kit were best friends. Then they were lovers. Now they're exes and they're both going on the same food and wine tour in Europe. Only they don't know that the other is going until they show up on a bus in London. The Pairing is a vividly detailed romp through every meal, drink, piece of art and beautiful body Theo and Kit experience while will-they-won't-theying through the aftermath of being in love and being apart.

This book is wonderfully queer. Unfortunately, that representation doesn't mean it's the best book Casey McQuiston has written. I found it very difficult to get into this book. Written in dual POV where the characters switch at the halfway point of the book the first half is incredibly hard to get through. It took me a long time to figure out why I was struggling so hard and then it dawned on me. I kind of dislike Theo. Well, it isn't Theo I dislike exactly. It's more the way they assume so much and don't ever stop to have a real conversation. I think a huge chunk of this book could've been cut had either one of these characters (but especially Theo) stopped and just said "hey, is what I think happening, happening?" Because most of the time - no, it wasn't.

The other thing that really bothered me about The Pairing is that we are not falling in love alongside these characters. They already love each other, have loved each other. We get glimpses into the beginnings told through recollections. We are settled into the after, the part where they've already broken up and have been broken up but where they might still be madly in love with each other. So much context happens outside of the pages, between the chapters and the splits in scenes. Theo and Kit's sexual conquests across Europe is supposed to be a plot point but it gets lost among the well researched and semi-interesting information purge about food and wine and art. Even the side characters get lost to all the chewing through the info dumping that sets the scenes. I'm not asking for spice, I don't necessarily need it. I just want to know more about what these characters are thinking and you just get a little bit of it and then maybe a joke about the act itself on the backend. It's rather unsatisfying.

That said, The Pairing is not a terrible book. It's just not my favorite. Maybe because you can tell from chapter one where this is going and the adventure along the way isn't as good as it could be.

Overall, The Pairing is about two things that fit together to make an overall experience. About how sometimes you have to age, like wine, to find the thing you're meant to be and do. It's about falling in love with the simple, small things in life and seeing past the picture perfect idea of what should be and settling for what is. It's about Theo and Kit, nothing more and nothing less.



I'd like to thank Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read this ARC.

I really enjoyed this one, especially the setting! I felt like I could taste the food in this book and it desperately made me want to go on a food tour! I liked the characters as well, but just wanted a bit more depth to them!

The excitement I had when receiving this ARC to read was unmatched - Casey McQuiston is an author I always enjoy reading and I absolutely love their books.

The Pairing follows Theo and Kit, who are two exes that are now on a food/wine tour across Europe together years after breaking up. This book had such perfect pacing and really shows you the complex background of both characters. One thing that I loved was that we fully get Theo's POV the first half of the book, and then it switches to Kit (vs every other chapter switching, as many books do). I felt so much more connected and in love with Theo after seeing them through Kit's eyes.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and St Martin's Press for the ARC in exchange for an honest review! I had a great time reading this book.

What a fun read. I loved being able to visualize the places we visited and learning about the relationship between theo and kit. Thanks to st Martin and Netgallery for this e-arc

Big thank you to Casey McQuiston and St. Martin’s press for the ebook version of The Pairing.

All I can say is Casey’s books always come in clutch. Whenever I’m having a reading slump, or trying to get through another book is proving really difficult, I know I can trust a McQuiston book to get me out of it and this one did the same thing.

I originally thought this wasn’t going to be one of my favorites by McQuiston because it seemed like there was going to be a miscommunication trope, and boy was I wrong. There WAS a miscommunication trope, but the way it was written here was way more believable than in other books I’ve read and it made it actually work.

McQuistons characters are always another big plus and Theo and Kit did not disappoint. I loved both of them equally which is rare for me.

Overall, excellent book, was so glad I was able to receive a copy. I 10000% recommend picking a copy up for yourself!

Delightful, highly engaging romance with interesting LGBT characters. Vivid descriptions of European locales that paint a rich world.