Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5/5
What to Expect:
Fake Dating ✔️
Only One Bed ✔️
Reality TV Competition ✔️
Meet Cute ✔️


I finished Winging It With You by Chip Pons on April 7th, today is May 7th, (& honestly I didn’t know that but let’s call it fate). It’s been exactly one month & I STILL have not moved on from Theo & Asher.
Their love story was beautiful, natural, and funny. I absolutely loved it.
It’s hard to put into words what this book did to me but in the most simplest of ways, it reminded me of LOVE.
“But it’s a ROMANCE book, Thalia!!!”
Yes, yes I know that! But this was MORE.
Winging It With You is one of best romances I’ve read in a long time and I cannot WAIT until you all get to experience Theo & Asher for the very first time.

“Winging it with You” by Chip Pons ✈️💙
pub date: 06.10

I have been waiting over two years for the next Chip Pons book. y’all better believe this book has become my entire obsession 😍

Theo & Asher are my tender, spicy, loveable, horndogs…my adorable, passionate, clumsy, wingtips…my perfect, amazing, scrumptious mozzarella sticks 😭🫶 I love their entire relationship, how unique and magical their meet cute is, how healing and spontaneous their friendship blossoms, and how tender and electrifying their romance ignites! 🤩🙌

everything about this book makes you feel loved and accepted and helps you better love and accept others. it’s an emotional roller coaster that will satisfy you in every way 🥹🥰

if you’re like me and have been chomping at the bit for the next Chip Pons book after You and I, Rewritten left a blank space in your heart…I promise Winging It With You has written its name! it was entirely worth the wait: its magic, madness, heaven, sin, saw us there like oh my gosh you should see our faces 🤭🩵

thank you so much for the ARC!!!!

4.5 stars 

Pub date: 6/10/25

If you are looking for a queer romance to add to your TBR be sure to put this one on the top!! This is Chip Pons second book but first traditionally published novel and I absolutely loved it. In this MM romance we get to follow Asher & Theo as they race around the world on a reality TV show. Oh... and they just met. Oh... and everyone thinks they are dating. 

Read if you like:
- memorable meet cute (seriously one of my favorites ever)
-fake dating
-steamy moments
-dual POV 

This book is truly so fun & full of adventure! As someone who grew up watching TV shows like The Amazing Race and Fear Factor I loved the reality TV show aspect and seeing all the various tasks that Asher and Theo had to complete. The romance that blossomed between these two was both steamy and swoon worthy. I loved the sheer joy I experienced while reading this book. Chip Pons is an auto-buy author for me and I look forward to reading future books by him.

I have never read anything by this author, but I will be looking out for other books they write in the future. I really enjoyed the story as well as the pacing of the story.

I really enjoyed Asher & Theo 🥹

Asher and his ex are at the airport about to head off on a 3 week adventure for a reality tv show. My poor baby Asher gets dumped at the terminal & he ends up at TGI Fridays…

*insert hot pilots*

Asher has to figure out how to bring a second person that can fake being his boyfriend for the competition. Here comes one of the hot pilots who’s perfectly flirty. There’s a little bet placed for the mozzarella sticks and suddenly Asher is boarding a plane with a stranger ✨

I really loved how Asher and Theo went from strangers to friends to lovers. Sharing one bed while trying to stick to “rules” about each other was perfect. My heart did hurt for everything they’ve both been through. Honorable mention, Theo’s family is amazing.

Can’t wait to read more from Chip! Thank you NetGalley, Penguin Publishing & Chip for this gifted earc in exchange for an honest review.

Really enjoyed this one! Asher and Theo’s relationship was so sweet, and I loved the backdrop of the reality competition show.

This is so cute. The perfect romcom. I mean… fake dating in a reality show? Theo and Asher are like strangers? Love it!

Thank you to Negalley and the publisher for the arc.

I absolutely devoured this book! Forget life. Forget responsibilities. I was experiencing all of the emotions with Asher and Theo.

Within moments of meeting Asher, I had the thought, 'We are so much alike! 😍.' And then as I continued reading, I discovered... oh boy, we are so much alike 🤦‍♀️. Despite possessing so many similar qualities, both positive and unfortunately not so positive, I adored Asher. There were a few moments that caused some self reflection 😬, but he felt so real, and I loved that. Now... Theo 😍🥵🫠!!!! I love this man. Sign me up. He is charming and amazing and also flawed in a way that almost makes him even more appealing.

I love a fake dating story. I love those moments where you watch their story turn and the characters struggle to find out what is real. This story has that in spades. While their love story is wonderful, there is also a beautiful story of family (both real and found), as well as personal growth. This is a fantastic read. it will make you laugh 🤣, it will make you rage 🤬, it will make you... 🥵🥵, it will make you swoon 🫠 and you may even get a few tears 🥺🥹 of both varieties 😉.

This queer romcom was so good! Both Asher and Theo were easy to like, and getting with of their points of view really made me love them more! This was my first book by Chip Pons and I was not disappointed!

The book starts out with a bang of heartbreak, so instantly you start rooting for Asher to show his ex that he’s better off without him. The reality television aspect along with fake dating was super fun as well! I’ve never read a book that was about people filming a TV show, so this was a fun experience. The friendships they form while filming as well as watching the feelings blossom between Theo and Asher were so good and felt extremely genuine. And the spice was spicing! Easy 5 star read for me!

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for giving me the opportunity to read an eARC of Winging it with You by Chip Pons in exchange for my honest review.

DNF. The author’s writing style is not for me—the first chapter was quite unbelievable in my opinion, and I didn’t enjoy the dialogue.

This book was fun and heartfelt and hard to put down! Asher and Theo deserve every good thing. And now I want mozzarella sticks, thanks Chip!!

OH. MY. HEART.

I wasn’t entirely sure what I was getting into with this one, but wow! I was hooked. The cover immediately caught my eye (yes, I do judge a book by its cover sometimes), and once I read the description: an Amazing Race style reality show plus fake dating?! Say less. I knew I was about to devour this book. AND LET ME TELL YOU I DEVOURED. IT.

From the very first chapter, I was locked in. Then came the mozzarella sticks meet-cute (yes, mozzarella sticks!) right after a bit of delicious drama, and I knew I wasn’t putting this down.

Asher and Theo? Utterly adorable. Their chemistry crackles off the page! Asher’s the slow-to-warm, slightly guarded type, while Theo is more of a charming, go-with-the-flow guy and together? Magic. Their dynamic was the perfect blend of sweet, swoony tension and natural connection. I was grinning like a fool every time they interacted.

But what I really loved is that this book isn’t just fluff and flirting, it’s got depth. Amidst the banter and laugh-out-loud moments, there’s genuine vulnerability and self-growth. Theo is juggling that tricky work/life balance, while Asher is on a journey to realize he deserves someone who truly sees and celebrates him. Those emotional beats added such richness and heart to the story.

Chip Pons knocked it out of the park with this one. It’s fun, heartfelt, and absolutely charming from beginning to end. A total delight!

What do you do when Mr. Definitely Wrong dumps you before a reality competition set around teams? You find Mr. Right for Right Now. Then you dive headfirst into the competition and….falling in love. This story was a sweet love story filled with self-reflection, growth, and finding the best of each other and those around you. A fun and easy read!

winging it with you | chip pons

3.5⭐️

This was a fun book!

The premise (two strangers pretending to be boyfriends to compete in a reality adventure competition!) was unique, the destination settings were fun, and I loved the characters.

Something was missing for me in their connection and the growth of their relationship, which is why the three stars, but l'd still recommend if you're looking for a fun spicy adventure romcom!

THINGS TO LOVE:
+ reality adventure TV
+ airport meet cute
+ mozzarella sticks
+ forced proximity
+ fake dating
+ forced proximity
+ spicy spicy
+ softies

Super fun, cute and fast read! I loved their character development and the side characters were equally fun to hang out with. Great amount of spice to go along with the insta-lust!

“I’ve been thinking about how many chances to step outside my comfort zone I’ve said no to…how much of my life I haven’t been living.”

I can’t tell you how excited I am that I have a new book by Chip Pons to gush about. This book is perfect from start to finish, and the journey that Asher and Theo go on is as adventurous as it is life-changing.

I’m a sucker for fake dating, and here Asher and Theo have to do it on television which adds to the overall pressure. While it’s awkward at first, it’s clear from the moment they meet that there is an underlying attraction. They have to sell it for the cameras, but the more they open up to each other the more real their feelings become. But the way their relationship grows is so beautiful. They share these incredible experiences that start to shape them as people.

The growth in this story is nothing short of outstanding. Asher realizes how much of himself he changed in his precision relationship. How much he stopped living. And being with Theo makes him realize how much he wants to change that. Theo’s made work his whole life, neglecting himself and his family. He’s a precious baby angel and when he finally goes home to his family, it made me emotional. It’s just so beautifully written.

Everything about the reality show is also done so well that I could picture exactly what was happening. It also adds so much to the overall story, and the balance between the show moments and the romance is perfect. The show takes them to incredible less where they get experience so much together, and I think that works to bring them together. And don’t even get me started on the elephants.

“But isn’t that what you do when you’re madly in love? Throw yourself headfirst into each other with everything you’ve got?”

It was so easy to fall in love with Asher and Theo, and even easier to root for them. They’re relatable and genuine, and seeing them both realize that they’re not pretending just made me giddy. I loved this so much, it’s almost hard to put into words.

"...I know without any reservation or nagging uncertainty that if you're lucky, home can be a person."

What can I say, Chip Pons has done it again! I read his self-published debut a few years ago and have been so excited for his trad pub debut! Happy to report that it did NOT disappoint.

Asher and Theo's story has all the tropes I love: fake dating, forced proximity, one bed... as someone who doesn't read a lot of romance, I could tell from the get-go that I would love this one. How better to create tension than putting two strangers together, pretending to to be boyfriends while competing on the world's biggest reality TV show?

I loved both Asher and Theo as characters. They both had trauma to overcome (a favorite of mine when it comes to character development) and they managed to find answers in each other. Their relationship developed so beautifully, and so did their relationships with the little found family they gathered throughout the book. I loved Theo especially, but what can I say? I'm a sucker for a gentle giant.

If you're looking for a book with a high-stakes meet cute, fake dating, yummy spice, a competition a la The Amazing Race, a golden retriever boyfriend, and two soulmates learning to love themselves again, I highly recommend Winging It with You!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC copy in exchange for an honest review.

5 stars for sure! I fell in love with the two main characters quickly and pretty much devoured this book. The premise was fantastic and it was executed wonderfully. It was the perfect mix of sweet and steamy and I fully bought into this love story. I only wish I could have more Theo and Ash in my life!

Thank you Netgalley and publishers for this advanced copy.

I just really enjoyed this book overall. I wasn’t familiar with Chip Pons, I’ve never watched Amazing Race, but none of that mattered. I was instantly drawn in to the two main characters and the circumstances that set them up to partner for the reality show. Were there some situations that required a little suspension of belief? Of course! But it’s fiction and it held my attention so that didn’t matter.

This isn’t a book about travel, so the destinations were mostly a backdrop. It was more about the characters and how they were each stuck in a personal rut, how they got there, and how they helped each other get unstuck. There were also some well-written side characters that added to the story. This was sweet, funny, romantic, with a couple of very steamy scenes thrown in. I’ll definitely check out more by this author.

Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for the eARC!

Asher and Theo are so perfect together. I loved how a series of unfortunate or rather fortunate events brought them on the journey to self discovery and true love. This was such a lighthearted and wonderful story.