Everything about this was decadent and delicious. I adored Theo and Kit. While their miscommunications/lack of communication were frustrating as ever (like in most romances), I thought it was layered enough to make sense why they would be so cautious and hesitant about rekindling their relationship - even though it's obvious they're meant to be together.

The European settings are described in luscious detail, with a cast of characters who added personality and fun to the story. The food and drink sounded so good that I genuinely had to write some of them down so I can try them one day.

I think this is a perfect summer read or at least a great read to put you in the spirit of summer. I loved it!

I absolutely adored this book! It’s early yet, but I think this will be my favourite book of 2024. Casey has created such rich, complex characters and goes deep into exploring them, both as individuals and together. I loved Kit and Theo’s journey from best friends to lovers to estranged and all the way back to falling in love again (though they never really stopped!) The detailed descriptions of the landscapes, the food and the local communities they travel to enrich the story, as do the colourful cast of supporting characters that I’ve come to expect from a Casey McQuiston book. CMQ has done it again!

This is a beautiful book about decadence, love, and food. The amount of descriptions of food made me want to hope on a plane and live in Europe. I loved the couple, they grew on my slowly but by the end I was so ready for them to have their happy ever after.

✨ARC obtained through NetGalley✨

As a Casey mega fan, I was SO excited to be able to get my little reviewer hands on the arc of The Pairing. I had sky-high hopes, and they were still exceeded. If you aren't a fan of angst, this one might not be the one for you. But if you're like me and you love a good longing... Oh my god, the yearning! The pining!

As a fellow bi slut, I felt so at home among all these characters. The sights, the food, the art, the wine. It all comes together to make one of the most heady, seductive vibes I've ever felt. McQuiston has truly elevated their ability to transport the reader to new heights with The Pairing.

Oh, and the peach scene?! Probably the hottest yet most original sex scene I've ever read. This is my new favorite book!

5 stars! 🎉

This hurts- I love this author. Red, White, and Royal Blue was a great first start. One Last Stop was enchanting. This one- yikes. Oddly reminded me of the James Bond novel You Only Live Twice, in that there was a plot, but that came in a far second to the author's obsession with describing what was apparently her life changing European food tour..

And the characters; wow. McQuiston knows how to write vivid, breathing characters (see above examples). The two on display here came across as unbridled libertines, and a good chunk of their scenes together came across as being shocking for shock's sake. Also; and this is picky, they/them pronouns are great in speech. In text I kept losing track of how many people were in the room. Rebecca Roanhorse uses "xe" to much better effect.

Anhyhoo- this could have been a pretty good travelogue or a passable romance novel. Both together, not so much

Delicious and lush story of a second-chance romance, with years and misunderstandings and resentments standing between them. When Theo boards the bus for the European food tour they were meant to take four years ago with their then-boyfriend Kit, they’re stunned to see he’s on that bus, too. They haven’t spoken in 4 years since their fight and breakup and now are stuck on their dream trip together, exploring the myriad sights and tastes of France, Spain, and Italy. Slowly they rediscover their friendship, and their never-lost love for each other. I adored reading of their admiration and pride in each other — they both grew in the time spent apart and they each revel in the other’s successes, at first only to themselves but then sharing that pride with each other. We spend the first half of the book in Theo’s head, then jump to Kit’s for the second half — revealing how he’s been thinking of them the whole time, also pining. I wanted to eat everything they are describing, drink all the drinks, explore all of the scenery and beaches and countrysides. A beautiful story wonderfully told.

Oh god, where do I even start with this. This book was all. over. the. place. It was such a mess, and not in a good way. First of all, the main characters are just so flat and they just come across as hungry, alcoholic whores because they only talk about food, wine, and sex. Also, all Europeans in this book are portrayed as hot bisexual sex gods that are always down to hook up in a random alley and that is just very much not true. The sex scenes were underwhelming and the plot was... actually, there was no plot so no real critique there. Overall, a very unpleasant and horny (?) experience.

First, huge thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Griffin for allowing me to read an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I’ve never met a Casey McQuiston book I haven’t gone absolutely feral for, and this book takes it to the next level.

“The Pairing” is about two exes, Theo and Kit, who had the fairytale romance of the century - until they break up on their way to their trip of a lifetime, where they’re going to eat and drink their way across Europe. Years later, both armed with a voucher for that missed trip, they find each other back on that same tour, each changed and having grown from years apart. Both still obviously have feelings for each other and maybe more than a little bit of trauma over how things ended the last go around, so they do the only logical thing: challenge each other to a hook up competition. Whoever has bedded more people in more cities by the end of the tour wins.

As I already mentioned, I’m a huge CMQ fan. But they really outdid themselves with the Pairing. What a sexy, fun romp. This is the most fun I’ve had reading a book in a long while - I truly didn’t want it to end. Each page left me giggling - and googling the food, beverages, and locations I didn’t recognize. The Pairing was somehow sneaky educational - I learned so much about the history, architecture, and culture of so many cities. McQuiston’s descriptions of the scenery, food, beverages, and architecture made me truly feel like I could reach out and run my fingers along the rim of the glass of white wine or across the bumpy stone of the old Tuscan villa. The writing is beautifully descriptive without being overly flowery or precious.

McQuiston has a true gift for creating characters that feel so real and honest that you swear you’ve known them your whole life. The dialogue they craft is truly unmatched. They are able to examine and tackle complex issues like grief, gender expression, sexuality, and loss in a way that feels true and authentic.

Anyway, back to the plot - is it slightly unrealistic that everyone Theo and Kit meet on their travels are both sexually fluid and always ~down for a good time~? Maybe. But there’s always an element of suspended disbelief in romantic comedies, and wow am I willing to suspend my disbelief for this story.

Yes the book is sexy (like, really sexy, blush-worthy sexy even for a non-prude) but it’s also wildly sweet and written in such a believable way that somehow it’s not overboard or cloying.

I want to live in Casey McQuiston’s world. This book was magic. It is indulgent and seductive. It is the book equivalent of the first ripe peach of summer (yes that’s a reference to a very specific scene…), the expensive bottle of wine, the morsel of dark chocolate melting in your mouth. I would read a million sequels about Theo and Kit.

I was very excited about this book because I love RWRB, and I really enjoyed Casey’s other books, specially I kissed Shara Wheeler, but this one I felt it dragged, I was really enjoying at the beginning but Theo’s insecurities and self-sabotage got old pretty fast, I wasn’t sure what Kit loved about them so much other than childhood memories, for being this long I still didn’t feel they showed me this love.
Thank you NetGalley for a copy of this book.

I absolutely loved this book! Casey McQuiston is one of my favorite authors and when I found out this one involved a European food tour, I was sold. Being a Flight Attendant and reading this book while standing over a trash can in the back of a plane, eating a three day old wilted salad was torture though. It was pure, wonderful torture and I’d do it again in a heartbeat. The food and wine in this book will make your mouth water! Not only were the descriptions of the food amazing, but also all the places that Kit and Theo visited. I’ve been to several of the tour stops and McQuiston definitely did their research, it’s like I was right there with the characters.

I wasn’t prepared to love as many of the characters too. Of course the main characters were amazing and I loved their journey, but I loved the supporting characters just as much. It was nice to have a tour group that stuck around the whole book. I’m glad we got to explore their lives a little bit too. The Calums are the best!

I definitely recommend this book and this will 100% be one I re-read over and over again. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the digital ARC ahead of the release in exchange for an honest review.

I found Theo and Kit's relationship to be very interesting. I loved the food and wine descriptions as well as all of the information about travel. Unfortunately I enjoyed the travel and food information more than the main characters.

I love nothing more than a book that describes places in a way that transports me, food in a way I can actually taste, and emotions in a way I can feel. McQuiston absolutely delivered with this one.

I will never get over the fact that so many MCs don’t understand that the feeling is mutual lol, but the pining and growth and yearning here is so so beautiful.

I was transported to places I’ve been and can picture so clearly, and ones I’ve only seen in pictures. Both were equally vivid to me, which is a testament to how beautiful McQuiston painted the setting throughout this book.

The way McQuiston’s characters live out their gender and sexuality was so real and beautiful. I felt like I was expanding alongside them, learning and growing and falling in love as they did.

At one point, I literally put down my Kindle and said out loud “oh my god this is so good”. No spoilers but let’s just say that it was a GENIUS move on McQuiston’s part.

Love this one so much and can’t wait to have a physical copy to reread.

Thank you to St Martin’s and NetGalley for the ARC.

This book was so fun to read, McQuiston created a second chance romance that actually allowed the MC's to become friends again and find themselves and what they each want individually before they are able to get back together. This is a great example of a healthy relationship in the LGBTQ community. It provided so many laughts, tender moments, and enough angst that you just had to keep reading.

I am not sure how to feel about this. I think I liked the premise more than what the end execution of it was. This is between 2.5-3 stars for me.

What a delightful treat of a book - indulgent, romantic, descriptive! Just like the trip that our main characters Theo and Kit take! I absolutely adored this book! It’s a lovely queer second chance, childhood best friends to lovers romance filled with Casey McQuiston’s trademark wit, humor and charm. Two bisexual exes take the same European wine and food tour and challenge each other to a hookup competition - hijinks and romance ensue!

Casey Mcquistons description of the food and wine was so flowery and evocative it had my mouth watering! Fair warning, this book will make you want to book a trip to Europe like YESTERDAY!

I also adored all the secondary characters - they lent some truly hysterical comedic relief to the story- shout-out to the Callums and Fabrizio!

My only criticism was that sometimes the pace of the story felt just a little too leisurely. Otherwise, what a wonderful read! 4/4.5 stars.

Many thanks to Net Galley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I absolutely adored this book! The author created such an immersive experience, not only in the sights, smells, and sounds of this European adventure but they describe the food and drink in such detail if left me starving and wanting more.
The way they also describe Theo and Kit's inner thoughts and emotions was well done and truly had me rooting for them. I'm not especially fond of miscommunication, but to me it worked well in this story. I think the evolution of the miscommunication helped Theo especially realize what they were truly feeling, about the past, present, and potential future.
Now, I will say that at times, as a non-wine drinker, the details of the wines became overwhelming and lost me a bit. I can see that as a downside to others who don't drink wine. But overall the details of everything is what made this an enjoyable experience.

Casey McQuiston will forever be a favourite author of mine. RWARB is a book that I adore so much, and I never thought that there would be another book that I would love more, and yet here we are.

The Pairing is exquisite. In so many ways.

Kit and Theo will go down in history as two of my all time favorite characters. Kit will do anything for Theo and vice vera. The pining, the romance, the slutiness, the joix de vivre in this book is everything. I loved the POV switch halfway through. To be able to be inside both of their precious heads made me love them even more. It was illuminating to be able to witness their problems and neuroses and see both characters really work through it all in the way they did. It's messy and sexy and emotional and I'm here for it all.

This book is decadent. It's about letting go and learning to live life to its fullest. It's about loving. Loving life, art, food, wine, the world and most of all learning to love yourself and the people closest to you. It's about making new friends while discovering the world and being as slutty and European as you can be. Because if not now, when?

This book, Kit and Theo will stay in my heart forever.

5 STARS is NOT ENOUGH. I GIVE THIS BOOK 100 STARS.

Thank you #NetGalley and St Martin's Press for the eARC. My opinions are my own. The PAIRING IS OUT 8/6/24! I have already pre-ordered the sprayed edges copy of this book and you should too.

I really enjoyed the overall premise here — 2 exes unknowingly end up on the same European food/wine tour and try to be friends. To help make things “easier” they start a hookup competition, even though it seems like they’re each pining for the other.

The story featured chapters in each new tour location, great descriptions of the food and drinks they got to have, and awesome queer romance rep. It was also pretty steamy, partly due to the nature of hooking up being a main plot point.

While I am definitely a CMQ stan, this one felt too long to me. Eventually I fell tired of the same type of situation happening over and over at each stop. That being said, I still enjoyed the overarching plot, McQuiston’s dynamic and enjoyable characters, and would still recommend this to friends!

I loved reading this contemporary romance with bisexual MCs, one of whom is non-binary. The trip around Europe was dreamy and I enjoyed how each section was a stop on the tour. A large plot point of the book is based around sex — which shockingly wasn’t my vibe. However, the queer spicy scenes between our two MCs were lovely.

This is a 3.5/5 star for me based on a slower pace and some of the plot devices — but it’s definitely a matter of personal preference and I’ll always be excited to read a Casey McQuiston novel. 😍

Read for:
🫶🏻 queer and non-binary representation
🥐 mouth-watering descriptions of food and drinks
🤗 second chance romance

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martins Press for the opportunity to read this ARC!

first of all, NO THIRD ACT BREAKUP. everyone cheered!

second, this was…the most unique book i think i’ve read so far, at least in the romance genre. idek if this can even be called a romance because at the end of the day is wasn’t very romantic at all.

theo, (who, to clear up confusion i’ve already seen, is nonbinary) and kit spend half the book fucking other people as was the book description but that sucks?! and it hurts??? very badly!!! no romance there. and the other half of the book i shit you not was about different food descriptions (which made me hungry), sexual paintings, sexual innuendos, threesomes, and navigating sexual acts. so i mean if that’s your cup of tea kudos to you and this is perfect for ya! i can’t say i’ll think about this book again to be so honest