Loved the settings and food writing in this book, but I didn’t feel as invested romance as I wanted to! I loved the individual journeys the characters went on, but the central romance didn’t win me over as much as in McQuiston’s prior novels.

The Pairing
⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
Author: Casey McQuiston

I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press and Macmillan Audio, I am providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased.

Synopsis: Theo and Kit have been a lot of things: childhood best friends, crushes, in love, and now estranged exes. After a brutal breakup on the transatlantic flight to their dream European food and wine tour, they exited each other's lives once and for all. Time apart has done them good. Theo has found confidence as a hustling bartender by night and aspiring sommelier by day, with a long roster of casual lovers. Kit, who never returned to America, graduated as the reigning sex god of his pastry school class and now bakes at one of the finest restaurants in Paris. Sure, nothing really compares to what they had, and life stretches out long and lonely ahead of them, but—yeah. It's in the past.

All that remains is the unused voucher for the European tour that never happened, good for 48 months after its original date and about to expire. Four years later, it seems like a great idea to finally take the trip. Solo. Separately. It's not until they board the tour bus that they discover they've both accidentally had the exact same idea, and now they're trapped with each other for three weeks of stunning views, luscious flavors, and the most romantic cities of France, Spain, and Italy. It's fine. There's nothing left between them. So much nothing that, when Theo suggests a friendly wager to see who can sleep with their hot Italian tour guide first, Kit is totally game. And why stop there? Why not a full-on European hookup competition?

My Thoughts: This story is a beautifully written love story of the journey of two best friends that became estranged after a difficult split. They both go their own directions enriching their lives. They both have a European tour voucher that is about to expire, bought 48 months earlier. Separately, and not knowing they both reach the same decision, they decide to take the tour. It is not until they are on the bus that they discover that they have taken the same trip at the same time. Now they are trapped with one another through a tour of France, Spain, and Italy. Will they rediscover each other? Or will they enjoy the competition of meeting other people? This follows the tropes of queer romance, enemies to lovers, childhood friends, international romance, and LGBTQ+ community.

This book is narrated by both Theo and Kit, but narrated separately, the first half was in Theo’s POV and the second half was in Kit’s POV. Even though we have the separate POV’s, I felt the character distinction was uneven, with most focusing on Theo. It felt like the book was split in half with the structure as it was. I LOVE dual narration, but prefer it in a back in forth type structure. I usually love supporting characters and they almost always elevate the story to another level for me. However, the supporting characters here were hard to connect with and did not add any value to the plot. The beginning was wonderful and the middle had some valuable insight, then the ending was outstanding. Their journey of self-discovery will take you on a rollercoaster of emotions. The author does an amazing job at scene detail, it does make you feel like you are there through the journey of the European countries. The banter and angst was instilled from the beginning and carried through until the reunion of sorts.

TW: language and sex. The narrator did a good job at voice variation and character distinction. The pitch and flow allowed me to listen at 2x speed. This is a long read at over 400+ pages and the audio being 14 hours. Personally, my sweet spot is around 300 pages and less than 12 hours of audio. However, I do love McQuiston and will always give her book a try. It was a bit long for my liking and it could have been slimmed down in some areas, probably at the 75% mark. However, overall, this was an enjoyable book. Love the friends to lovers to enemies and back to lovers theme; I also love a good queer romance. I love how the story spans across the European countries on a trip that includes culture, food, drink, and beautiful scenes. Just because this book was not my favorite cup of tea, I do believe other readers will really enjoy it. I will always be a McQuiston fan. 😍

I’m always here for a queer read! I enjoyed the audiobook. But this one just didn’t top red white and royal blue for me. I enjoyed the story but I didn’t love the format. It was a sweet read and the spice!!! Yesssss.

(I got an early copy of this through Netgalley, but it’s out today.) I love how Casey McQuiston writes queer romances in a way that feel sincere and not forced or too trope-y. Theo and Kit were childhood best friends turned lovers who broke up and haven’t spoken to each other in years. Both were supposed to go on a big European tour together, and both got vouchers when they cancelled their trip when it was originally scheduled… and both end up on the trip together, four years later, right before those vouchers expire. Though they haven’t spoken at all in those four years, they strike up a tentative friendship again, and try to prove to each other that they’ve moved on by competing with each other over who can hook up with the most people while they’re on their tour. Now, this couldn’t possibly make either of them jealous, could it? I liked this story, but it felt a little bit long – it switched POVs about halfway through, and that made it feel like it dragged a bit to me.

I love Casey McQuiston books -- though I don't think anything will ever top Red, White, and Royal Blue in my heart, I enjoy everything that Casey writes. I also appreciated the bisexual representation, an identity that I don't think is nearly represented in contemporary romance books, even within other LGBTQIA books.

Oh my god. I had no expectations going into this book as it is my first read from Casey McQuiston but I knew early on that this was going to be a five star read for me. I enjoyed the dual POV narration, even though I didn’t love how it was split up. I usually prefer alternating chapters, but I understood why it was written this way. I loved both of the narrators. I thought they did a great job. I could really feel the emotions coming through their inflection.
This book made me FEEL so much. My heart hurt for Theo and Kit. I felt like I was in the middle of their relationship. I was able to relate to Theo in a way that I haven’t experienced before. McQuiston did a spectacular job exploring gender and love in all of its forms. For me, this was so different from a lot of the contemporary romance books that are available right now and I think that is part of what makes it very special. I enjoyed dissecting and learning about the layers of Kit and Theo’s friendship and relationship. The flashbacks that were sprinkled in throughout the book were helpful in understanding them even more deeply.
My only caveat going into this book is that it was MUCH steamier than I had anticipated. I’m not complaining. I just had no idea what a large role sex was going to play in the book.
I wish I could read about Kit and Theo forever. I fell in love with them both while listening to this audiobook. It was over too soon. I can’t wait to read more books from Casey McQusiton. Thank you so much to Netgalley and the Macmillan audio influencer program for gifting me with this audiobook.

There's some definite appeal factors here with McQuiston's focus on conveying the sensory experiences of Theo and Kit's Eurotrip but unfortunately that lost out to my lack of investment in their relationship. When you've resolved your argument at the quarter mark and still take a couple hundred more pages to be together you simply lose me!

Um? No, I don’t think I enjoyed this at all actually? Likely should’ve DNFd and given up on it when I wasn’t vibing with the story initially

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the advance audiobook of this title in exchange for an honest review.

First, I acknowledge that I had already started reading the electronic version of this title when I was also approved for the audiobook. I did complete both versions before review.

Second, I love Casey McQuiston and would probably grab any of their titles without even reading the description.

I think this book is the sexiest book that they have published so far. This got me into a bit of trouble at home, as I was listening to it without headphones when my 20-something daughter came home.... So--if you're looking for PG romance, this book is probably not for you!

But it's not just smut--the descriptions of the food and wine and the trip throughout Europe are also very cool. I would definitely like to go out for dinner with Kit and Theo!

I had to DNF this book. It just wasn't for me. I was hopeful since it was a romp across Europe, but it was just way too sexual for me, and I am not squeamish about that stuff at all. This is was the first disappointment by Casey McQuiston for me.

A cute, fun read with good nonbinary representation. I appreciated the format of each section beginning with a wine pairing reflecting the character's interests and ultimately the arc of the book itself.

Thanks to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for early access to the audiobook of The Pairing in exchange for my honest opinion.
This review is way overdue - oops! The Pairing is a very spicy romance where childhood best friends whose dating history ended in a ugly breakup are unexpectedly reunited on a food and wine tour of Europe. It’s the very same tour which they were supposed to attend four years earlier. That time, however, the pair broke up on the flight en route to the tour. With the voucher to take the tour set to expire, both Kit and Theo have the same idea to take the trip anyway, putting them in the same place at the same time.
It took me a little while to get into the book, but the story made me HUNGRY and it made me want to gallivant around Europe, eating and drinking along with the main characters. I mostly listened to an early ALC, and the narrators were great. The plot involves the two exes competing in a hookup competition which rubbed me the wrong way. There were times when I was so frustrated that I wanted to bang the MCs' heads together, but that wasn’t the fault of the narrators at all! However, the final resolution was well done - but I wish the book had been a little shorter.

***4.0 Stars***

Overall,
This book took a little bit to get into, and boy was it a horny ride. Kit and Theo are adorable though and I actually truly enjoyed it. Eating, drinking and $%&^ through Europe, sounds like my idea of a great vacation. It is a second chance romance with a lot of queer love. At parts it felt a bit repetitive but honestly I was down for the ride. Both Kit and Theo were pining for each other so hard but could not trust it. I love Casey Mcquiston and will read anything they write. I would recommend this to anyone who loves queer romance. There is definitely adult material so I would say mature audiances only. A very fun read indeed.

I received an Audio Arc from Netgalley in exchange for my free and honest review.

Kit and Theo were childhood best friends, whose relationship finally developed into something more as adults. But after an ugly breakup, they went their separate ways and haven't seen eachother since. But after 4 years, their paths cross again and they're determined to see if they can rekindle their romance. This makes me sad to say but this was not McQuinston's best work. They usually write with more humor and I didn't feel especially attached to either main character. So, while it wasn't my favorite, it was still a good story.

I enjoyed this book. It was fun. This book mostly made me hungry and want to go to Europe. This is a second chance romance for Kit and Theo who reconnect on a European tour they were supposed to go on before their breakup.

I loved Kit’s POV but didn’t really enjoy Theo’s. This book was also much longer than it probably needed to be. The side characters were more compelling at times.

I enjoyed the audiobook a lot and the narrators fit their characters really well.


*Thank you St. Martin’s Press, Netgalley, and Macmillan Audio for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Casey McQuinston is an auto buy for me. This one was a little too spicy for me and the romance wasn’t all there. It wasn’t as witty as RW&RB but I still enjoyed it.

This book is a really hard one for me to rate, I loved elements of the story and I truly detested others. My biggest issues with the story overall is how it is structured in regards to the main characters relationship, they make head way and the two are almost to a point you think they’ll talk and work it out and then they run off and sleep with other people. Several times I want to scream at Theo in particular for nonsensical choices they make that not only harm kit but others in their orbit like their sister. Other elements I loved, I generally loved how kit talked about Theo and how he responded to Theo a confession from Theo, that as a person who has been in similar shoes to kit felt very real and authentic.


The sound mixing and narration was great and I would gladly listen to either of the narrators again.

I loved this book so much! The narrators did such a great job of capturing each character's quirks and that perfect voice for them. This story is so messy, and amazing, and addicting. I loved the twists and turns and how you learned little bots about each of them. Such a satisfying listen.

Another hit for Casey McQuiston. I loved the descriptions of the food and wine and scenery. It made me want to take a food and wine tour of Europe, too. Or maybe it gave me the chance to experience it in my mind. The romance is fun. The sex is over-the-top.
I read this first, then listened to the audiobook. I liked the narration. It was interesting that the book was told from one character's point of view for the first half and the other character's the second half.
The narrator switches from one half of the book to the other.

I could not get into this story. I appreciate that it will resonate for others, but it was not for me. The narrators felt right for it though.