Kit and Theo were best friends since they were kids, then they fell in love. Unfortunately, they had a huge fight on their way to a European food and wine tour and broke up. Kit moved to Paris and Theo went back to California. Four years later they both decide to use their vouchers from that trip for the same tour and see each other for the first time since their break up.

As they spend time together on the tour, they tried to be friends again. Unfortunately, they find it hard when they’re both still nursing broken hearts. Theo in an attempt to get over Kit suggests a challenge to see who can have sex with the most people while on the tour, which Kit accepts. Unfortunately, it does nothing for either of them except make them jealous of who the other person is with.

"The Pairing," is a captivating story about the rekindling of a relationship between former best friends. The book is divided into two parts, with the first half narrated from Theo's point of view and the second half from Kit's perspective. While the dual point of view added an interesting dynamic, I found myself wishing for more alternating perspectives at times. The narrative truly came alive when Kit and Theo reignited their relationship, and it was evident that they were meant to be together. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed "The Pairing" and would give it a rating of four and a half stars.

This was an interesting read. It was heavy—both in emotions and in words. So many words. There was an entire paragraph explaining the difference between French, Italian, and Swiss buttercream, all so, in the next paragraph, the exact color of French buttercream could be invoked.

I thought I was almost at the end of the book at one point, only to realize it was only halfway over, switching from Theo’s POV to Kit’s. By that point, the details of the food and the drink and the art and the history and the s3x just stopped mattering to me, and I started skimming just so I could be done.

I had issues with this book. Theo and Kit were both in love with each other, and yet they started a competition to see who could sleep with more people. It’s fine if they’re together and have an open relationship, but that’s not what happened here. This is two people pining for each other while purposely sleeping with other people and then bragging about it. I didn’t like that. I didn’t love the wordiness of the book, and I didn’t love the story.

I read this book in 3 days, but it felt like it took the entire 3 weeks of the tour they were on. Had I read every word instead of skimming the last 30%, I’m not sure I ever would have finished.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

i was lucky enough to get an arc for one of my most anticipated reads of 2024 from Netgalley. although a lighthearted enough read that has great conversations about gender and queerness, its writing style hurt it. i feel like the first person and dual POV’s made the tone inconsistent. there was clearly a lot more research done into the food and wine and sights and smells of europe as the two travel together, but it’s confusing to an individual who hasn’t been there and comes across pretentious and cliche for those who have. in a stream of sex and alcohol and never any water, the tourists meet local characters. and without any central or side plot, they’re all a bit forgettable. lot of pop culture references (i am so mad about “Oh, slay.”) that I didn’t really understand. hate the miscommunication trope so much.

the book gets a lot better as the POV switches. the writing suits my style more, more flowery and less direct to reflect how Kit thinks. lot of casual sweet reflections of intimacy, i love food as a love language and there are some lines that are so clever in showing their history and how well they get each other.

overall an okay romance read. pulled on some fan fiction themes which i found funny.

This is CMQ writing through and through. So happy to see non-binary rep, queerness abound, and a book all about food and drink - what more could I possibly want? I did really enjoy this, although I felt like the first part of the book wasn't really my speed - I did enjoy it a lot more once the MCs started rekindling their romance. I'm just not that into reading about casual hookups, I guess. It was nice escapist romance, though, and both Kit and Theo captured my heart fully by the end.
I would have liked a longer epilogue!

This book took me on ride. I mean, OUFFF. First off, i am obsessed with Kit and Theo and their relationship. i knew in the first 5% that i was in trouble. Their relationship is one that i’ll think about for a long time. Friends to lovers is my favourite trope and reading The Pairing was just a fantastic way of being reminded of why. The fact that i unexpectedly started sobbing in the finale part really shows how invested i was.
The vibes were great, the writing was amazing, the characters are fun and the little competition they have going on is fun… and i’m just gonna say it, this book is soooo horny 😂 I love it.
I do think there’s some slower parts, which is stopping me from giving it a five stars, but i will have Kit and Theo stuck on my mind for a while.

This book is very hedonistic and indulgent as a food and wine tour as a twenty something would be. How I wish I had been a rich kid to be able to do something like this. I have to say that the food and wine tour itself was a work of art and I want to immediately jump on a plane to Europe and take it.

I understand the concept is that they are exes, but it felt a little lacking in moments of the two of them together that would encourage me to want them to find their way back to each other. I think Theo's part was interesting and I liked the journey that they took, but Kit's part seemed more interesting to me. There were also some very enjoyable side characters.

The prose and lyrical which worked well for this storytelling. I have read all of Casey's novels and this might be coming in as my second favorite after RW&RB. Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

Cute cute cute!!!! Casey McQuiston really knows how to write characters that get under your skin and side characters that make the novel well rounded and an extreme joy to read. This is a supremely adorable book full of representation and a sweet love story. Another home run by Casey McQuiston!

This is hands down my favourite Casey McQuiston novel. It was masterfully written and they structured the novel in a way that maximized the emotional impact of the plot. I now know why they have been so close-lipped about the main characters in this book because learning about them both was part of the beauty of the reading experience. I absolutely adored the setting and storyline, and I will nee recommending it to everybody because of how splendidly crafted this book was. Kit and Theo will now always have a place in my heart.

I had no doubt a book by CMQ would be great, but The Pairing exceeded my expectations!

I read this in two days and simply loved all the characters and all the travelling they did. All the descriptions of the places, food and wines made me feel like I was there with them. It really was so good!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.

amei amei amei

Once again, Casey Mcquinston doesn’t miss. Their writing immediately draws you in. It is both exciting and comforting at the same time. The pairing takes you on a 3 week journey through Europe, filled with delicious and decadent food, drinks and people. It’s filled with longing, lost love, finding oneself again and second chances.

Their writing makes you feel fully immersed in the experience, making you so often forget that you’re not truly there with Kit & Theo. Their writing is really a gift. This tale had me feeling everything Kit and Theo were going through and rooting for them every step of the way. I loved how everything played out and was worked through, not just ignored and glossed over.

I loved Kit & Theo and the way they loved each other. All the side characters were beautifully written and brought to life. Overall, this book was amazing and took me on the vacation and love of a lifetime.

Thank you so much for the opportunity to review this book! It was a masterpiece.

I was really excited to get an ARC of this (in exchange for a review) and I think ultimately I've been left with mixed reactions. Some parts were excellent, some were not.

Liked:
- Casey McQuiston's writing. They sure know how to turn a phrase and some of the sentences here were gorgeous.
- The delicious food and drink paired with the travel scenes. This is McQuiston's travel writing and they certainly have a talent for it.
- Timothee Chalamet - sorry, he's hot and I for one welcome the future where Timmy replaces Adam Driver as the inspo a lead in all the romances.

Disliked
- I felt like the second chance lovers thing here could've been resolved by like two conversations. That was frustrating and made the longing and pining sort of more annoying. Talk to each other!
- Likewise, the whole "hooking up with other people" thing was not so fun for me. I'm a prude, maybe! But parts of that I just wanted to skim.
- The chemistry in general. Kit's POV was far better than Theo's POV - once it switched to Kit, I really enjoyed the book more. But I never really got their relationship the way I was supposed to.

I think overall, I'm a bit disappointed in this because I love love love Red White and Royal Blue and this just didn't have the same magic. But it was still enjoyable overall.

Parts of this book really resonated with me - Kit and Theo are lovely lovely characters. I enjoyed getting to know them. The trip concept was compelling and different. The descriptions of travel and food were delightful. The ending was very satisfying. A little bit too much of the miscommunication trope for me and the "competition" in the story didn't resonate. However, I thought the book was well written and made me have all the feelings for main characters. Thanks to NetGalley for an early copy!

Another delightful book from Casey McQuiston. This book felt spicier than their other romances. Raunchy in fact. In all the best ways. It actually felt like they were free to write sec that doesn’t often get time in best-selling books. Thank you for that! All the variety is what we need.

Most importantly, I didn’t know I needed a second chance romance mixed with a travel guide and a food blog. It was a wonderful combination!

The pacing lagged a bit in the middle but by the end, I didn’t care. Not even a little. Can’t wait for Casey to bring another couple into the world!

I wanted to like this more than I did. I guess I'm a little tired of the weaponized sex/hooking up. I get that there was misunderstandings left and right, but the avoidance of honestly was getting tired. Everyone around them could see what they didn't. Together they were something special and they continually fought it, which is frustrating. Throughout their story and time together, they did come to understandings about themselves and grew, but did some stupid things along the way. I don't know, I'm not opposed to casual sex, but some of it was a turn off in the story. The scenes where they were honest with each other and happy were definitely the best ones.

Another great book from Casey McQuiston. I loved RWRB and was excited to have the opportunity to read this e-arc of this book.

We follow Theo and Kit, two lifelong best friends and forever exes who are reunited on an European food and wine tour. I love best friends to lovers and exes reuniting so this hit a lot of my ideal tropes. I found the plot engaging and it felt original and engaging while utilizing some tried and true romance scenarios like “there was only one bed”

The 1st half of the book is in Theo’s POV and then the 2nd half switched to Kit’s which was interesting. This book had some great banter and moments that made me laugh out loud which is rare! I enjoyed the food and wine descriptions but eventually it did feel a little tiresome like how in depth they all were. I enjoy good food and wine a lot but I did find myself eventually starting to skim over all the descriptions of the meals and wine.

Some great side characters as well! I enjoyed this book a lot and would definitely recommend reading it.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the e-arc in exchange for an honest reciew

Sometimes, if you’re lucky, you may come across a book that is perfectly written for you. A book that fits perfectly with your interests and what you’re looking for that you just get lost in it while you read. This book was that to me.

I loved Red, White and Royal Blue and I enjoyed One Last Stop so having the opportunity to read and review Casey’s new book was a delight. I was thrilled to find a book so beautify written that charm and warmth oozed from every page.

First, this book is a love letter to food, wine, and art. For someone who did study art history and then went to Europe and visited a lot of places that Theo and Kit visited, this book is also a trip down memory lane reminding me of places I’ve been before. (A fond memory of mine is eating in Florence, this book took me right back there.)

The love for each of these subjects is apparent in every page. You can feel the sun and imagine the taste of every dish. I walked away from this book missing Europe most of all and wanting to take a trip like Theo and Kit did desperately.

Of course, our main couple is the star of the book and I loved both Kit and Theo. I’m glad that we got to hear from both of them, and the point of view switch timing was innovative, surprising, and such a smart move. I love that we get to know Theo and then get to see Kit learn about how they’ve changed over the years and embrace their identity. Brilliant planning and writing.

As far as second chance romances go, I believed in Theo and Kit so much. They truly belonged with each other, there wasn’t any other way for them to move forward other than together. I did get frustrated with them every so often because they just needed to hash things out. But at the same time, I get where the fear of losing each other again came from. (It did drive me a little mad though so that’s where the .25 star was deducted.)

I loved the humor and friendships that developed through the book. This book is less found family and more reconnecting with family, but those family relationships also felt authentic and I loved how they grew through the book too.

Overall, this is a book I’ll be thinking about for a long time, and when I dream tonight, you’ll find me on the shores of Italy, glass of wine in hand and sun on my face wishing to wake up in Europe tomorrow…

Another great queer rom com from Casey McQuiston. This one left me wanting to take a European food tour and wanting a glass of wine. Kit and Theo are both adorable and great rep for bisexuals. 🤩🥰

3.5/5 stars

Some notes on my reading experience:

-I've read every Casey McQuiston book thus far and this is by far the horniest
-McQuiston is the god of writing chemistry
-It took me an embarrassingly long time to realize the title related to food as well as to the romantic coupling...
-Everyone in this book is gay. I seriously don't think I've read a book with as many gay people in it as this one has
-The story made me realize how little I know about food and spirits. I understand Star Trek technobabble better than I understood some of the food descriptions here
-The way Theo experiences gender and refers to themself is so relatable

Overall, I had a really fun reading experience with this one. I didn't love it as much as some of McQuiston's others, I think because there was less plot to keep the story going (and as an ace person sex scenes are not always my cup of tea---and this is full of them). I still recommend this for those who like messy gay romances, and I look forward to reading McQuiston's future work.

Thank you NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Loved this scrumptious summer romance. McQuiston is an immediate read for me because I've loved everything.

Theo and kit's story was so good. Theo's self sabotaging was so frustrating but relatable but Kit's personality was so endearing. Loved the supporting cast as well!

I already can't wait for McQuiston's next book. Highly highly recommend for anybody who is a fan of the genre.

Thank you to NetGalley for giving me an arc in exchange for an honest review!

You know, if I had a nickel for every extremely hot queer food focused romcom I read this year as an arc, I'd have two nickels. Which isn't a lot, but it's weird that it happened twice!

I adored "The Pairing." Kit and Theo are such loveable characters, each with distinct character arcs, quirks, and internal monologues. I loved experiencing their food tour through each of their eyes, I loved watching them fall back in love with each other, I loved their personal exploration of their own queerness. From start to finish, I was so invested in these two, and found the conclusion a really satisfying payoff. If you're on the fence about this title, I'll also add that after reading all of McQuinston's other adult titles, this is by far my favorite.