Full disclosure: I DNF'ed this. I got about 47% in before I finally bailed, although I did rapidly skim the rest of the book just to see if it would pull me back in: it didn't. It was a long, unpleasant slog to that 47%. I wanted to like this so badly, I absolutely loved RWRB and OLS and had high hopes for this from the blurb but it didn't live up to expectations.

I found this far too pretentious and redundant. The cast felt shallow and one dimensional and I just found the whole traipse through Europe thing so banal. Theo was insufferable, Kit wasn't much better, and I hated their interactions. The background and exposition were also incredibly hard to push through. There were a lot of descriptions of things that didn't really further the plot, and the plot itself was just... boring.

The writing is fairly strong, as always with McQuiston but the story itself was a major letdown. I wish I liked this more. I'm giving it 2* instead of 1, because I didn't finish it the full way through and maybe it managed to better somewhere that I missed.

2.5 stars, but I've rounded up to 3.

I'm sad to say I wasn’t the biggest fan of this book. I found it quite longwinded and boring at times, I much preferred the second half when it was through Kit’s pov, but there wasn’t really anything to keep me hooked. Though I did love Kit’s reaction when Theo told him something big, I thought it was very sweet.

Oh god this book is so good! The voice is so confident. The writing is so evocative of place, time, smells, all of the senses. The characters are likeable, even all the side characters. And it's SO damn sexy. Did I mention it's sexy as hell? It's McQuiston's most accomplished book to date.

dnf at 55%

I really did try to like it but there’s no plot. It’s so repetitive and it just drags and drags on. The romance is so not there, both main characters have sex 24/7 with different people due to a bet. There’s so much of it there that it literally makes the book so boring and hard to read. The characters both are nearly 30 but act as horny teenagers.

Theo is an insufferable person to read from. He’s a nepo baby who wants no help from his family like he’s there struggling with bills knowing that he’s in the position where he’s able to get help financially from his family and he just doesn’t take it. Most of his pov is him complaining about his troubles.

The romance wasn’t there at all, their miscommunication that led to the breakup in the first place was overall dumb. Don’t take me wrong I did really enjoy Kit but by the time U reached to his pov, I just didn’t have it in me to care for the story anymore. Also the whole dividing the book in half with first half Theo pov and the second Kit was honestly so stupid. It should’ve just been a normal dual pov which probably would’ve made it so much easier to read.



Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

As someone who's adored the Casey McQuiston's previous novels, I was very excited for a new one. However, The Pairing wasn't quite for me. I didn't dislike it, but didn't love it either.

On the one hand, the author's writing is always absolutely beautiful and evocative. At times, I could barely stop reading because I was so drawn into their words. They never fail to amaze me with the way they can create magic with words.

On the other hand, I wasn't sold on the story itself. I understand where it wanted to go, but I felt it was too much, too pushed on the erotic and extravagant, turning everything in Europe into a chance of seducing and having sex with someone new. The spicy scenes were beautifully written, but often felt out of place, and the romance felt more like pure physical attraction than any other feeling. Second chance romances can work, but I didn't feel this one enough. I also wish the side characters were a bit more fleshed out, as there were interesting premises there but everyone was left without any depth.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to read The Pairing as an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was the perfect dose of romance that I was after - with enough depth to make me really care about the characters, enough angst to keep me on my toes and a beautiful love between two people.

Casey McQuiston writes characters so well; I started the book feeling so sorry for Theo and really rooting for them. I disliked everything that had been done to them by Kit and just wanted them to have a chance to be happy. But then the second half of the book totally threw me through a loop when we switched to Kit’s perspective and all was not quite as it seemed.

The backdrop of the romance is gorgeous, I love that we got to tour through Europe with them and a small group - were there some stereotypes thrown in for good measure? Sure there were, but did I care? Not even a tiny little bit.

All the talk of food and drink did get a bit dull for me in places but I get that it was about adding context to the characters so it didn’t bother me too much.

The ending of this book was just lovely.

Such a gorgeous book.

I loved, loved, loved this book. From the very first line until the end I was swept up in the story. The imagery created throughout the book was so delicious and sexy. The food descriptions! It was funny and tender and sweet and as McQuiston promised, very horny. I really liked that it was split in two and so the first half was from Theo's perspective and then the second half was from Kit's, it really added an extra layer to it for me. Did I mention that it made me very hungry almost the entire time. And made me want to go on a European tour. But mostly it made me fall in love with Theo and Kit and then getting their second chance.

Terribly disappointed by this book, especially after what fun Red, White, and Royal Blue was. But I will give it one star for McQuistion's incredible research skills, and for the non-binary main character. I loved how the pronouns changed midway.

But the book...well. It has no plot, two terribly pretentious and privileged main characters, and the narrative style of a mediocre travel memoir. There were repetitive phrases and ideas that started to grate, like how familiar the beings and bodies of Theo and Kit were for each other; how whole and pure their relationship was; and the rinse-and-repeat drama being played out at each stop of the European tour, including its extremely attractive and sexual inhabitants.

I must have skipped about 40% of the book, jumping to the end. Looks like I missed absolutely nothing.

(Review copy from NetGalley)

dnf. okay exes to lovers?? the trope of all time. i loved the yearning. the angst. the flashbacks. but this book was personally too rich white american tourists in fancy europe vibes for my taste lol. 75% of this book is just drinking and hooking up and i felt myself skimming so many parts. and i KNOW i shouldve gotten used to this by now and i know the author is making fun of people on instagram for saying this but there was wayyy too much smut for my taste that turned me off lmao. massive downgrade from shara wheeler jsfkhgdjfkh

I loved the unique perspective of a protagonist who's non-binary and bi. And the descriptions of the places we see on the tour made me wish I could travel literally anywhere. Especially because of the descriptions of food. They're mouth-watering, well-researched descriptions.

Plot-wise, I loved watching these idiots fall back in lust, and eventually love. Watching them make dumb mistakes whilst being aware, as a reader, that there's only one way this can end, and it's with them back together again.

And then when we swapped to Kit as a narrator and found out just how insanely in love he is and always has been with Theo - just plain old adorable. The book really picked up with the second half, told from Kit's POV.

I did, however, spend large portions of my time reading wishing that I could bang their heads together because they just would not talk about their feelings and realise they both love each other. And they just kept keeping secrets from each other - mostly Theo with their struggles in life and lack of money but refusal to take money from their sister, and their gender identity - but then Kit kept a phone call secret at one point, so Theo can't be entirely blamed.

The whole book is just so rich and indulgent in its descriptions of everything, from food, to architecture, to art, to sex, to wine. I've never wanted to travel so much because of a book before.

Amazing amazing amazing,
I've honestly said the words "this is a life changing read" multiple times whilst reading the pairings.
Wonderfully paced, horny in all aspects. deliciously done. I don't want to leave them!
Who wants to go on a food and wine tour of Europe with me!

2.5/5 stars

The Pairing is a new queer romance from Casey McQuiston following two bisexual exes who go on a romp across Europe. Their and Kit were once childhood best friends turned lovers turned stranger exes. Four years after breaking up, they accidentally go on the same three-week European food and wine tour. To cope, they wager on who can pull the most locals in a hook-up competition.

This book was a disappointment. It didn’t offer anything that could hook me so I just wasn’t ever invested in the romance. And normally, the romance should be able to carry me through subjects I have no interest in (like the sports in sports romances), but this wasn’t the case here. I was just painfully bored and found myself skimming through paragraph after paragraph of descriptions of food, wine, art, and architecture that just went on and on with each tour stop. I really couldn’t appreciate any of it. And for a book about sexual conquests, it wasn’t particularly sexy (except for that almost threesome and that one mutual spicy scene).

The story is told initially from Theo’s perspective then switches to Kit’s perspective halfway through. And my god is Theo such pain of a character who you could not get me to root for. They are nonbinary (FtNB) with a huge nepo baby complex, tendency to self-sabotage, and poor coping skills. And every flaw people put on them I just agreed with completely, so that can’t be good. I did actually like Kit, who is just so helplessly and hopelessly in love. He’s got golden retriever energy for someone who doesn’t deserve him. And the only reason I eventually wanted them to be together was just so Kit could actually be happy because he wants it so much and not because of anything Theo had to offer.

The book didn’t have any tension or stakes because you could tell from the get go where the story was going. They were so obviously going to get together because Theo states it in their perspective and Kit was so blatant. I really didn’t get why they were still carrying on with the pretext of the competition by the time they were hooking up again. And I just rolled my eyes at the no kissing or pelvic contact while they were at it. The only part I really liked was the ending, which was indeed romantic, but the getting there was a struggle.

The Pairing is not as fun, sexy, nor romantic as it was promised to be.

This is definitely Casey’s sexiest book and I am HERE FOR IT.

I loved exploring all the different European places on the food tour the pair take together. If you love good food, sex and Casey’s writing this is a match made in heaven.

3.75 stars *

i love the way in which casey writes characters they're so beautiful in every possible way!

i can't lie i did read this during my slump era, so my critique is biased from that

i enjoyed the characters and the way they were around each other but im not a wine and food girlie so a lot of those terms flew right past me.

i would defo recommend this book to my friends, especially those who want queer representation

REVIEW
cw: mentions of grief, abandonment issues, imposter syndrome

Theo(dora) (they/them) and Kit (he/him) have been best friends since childhood and eventually became a couple. But four years ago they broke up and never spoke again. Now, these two bisexual exes accidentally book the same European food and wine tour and challenge each other to a hookup competition to prove they're completely over each other. Except they're not. At all.

Like Theo and Kit, I went on quite the journey with this book. To be upfront and honest, I almost gave up on it several times in the first third, and I still can't quite put my finger on why. I liked all of the characters immediately. The story's first half is told through Theo's POV and the second from Kit's. I liked Theo a lot, and their insecurities about themselves in comparison with their successful family members were well-written. I also appreciated Theo's self-exploration of their identity and loved the way they explained this to Kit and how he responded.
Theo and Kit's little game of pointing out attractive people was fun to begin with, but I began to struggle with the way Europe, and by extension, Europeans were portrayed. In this story every single person they met living in Spain, France, and Italy was hedonistic, bi, beautiful, and DTF with these two virtual strangers. I understand that was the purpose of their competition, but it never felt like either had ever faced a single rejection, and it felt a little unbelievable. No man, woman, or peach was safe. Still, somewhere around 40%, something finally clicked, and I really began to root for both of them. It was so clear that both were still carrying feelings for the other. Kit's pining was sublime agony. I absolutely ADORED how utterly gone he was for Theo. And he was such a cinnamon roll. I ADORED his description of their night together in Chianti. As for Palermo. It was perfetto. The intimacy between them made me swoon, and I loved their banter and the good-humoured snark that can only come from knowing each other intimately and for a very long time.
The other passengers were wonderfully eclectic, but by far my favourites were the Calums. I loved their little 'polygon' dynamic, and the revelations in Chianti left me as surprised as Kit. Meanwhile, I absolutely ADORED Fabrizio the tour guide, and he gave the BEST advice. I was a shocked as Theo and Kit at his secret, but it was heartwarming.
I appreciated the amount of research the author clearly must have done for the many descriptions of food and wine, although I sometimes found myself skimming over them as the book progressed. But that's on me. I'm starting to understand from this and other similar books that I'd much rather eat than read about eating! That said, though I've travelled extensively in Europe, and actually lived in Barcelona, the descriptions of the art, architecture, and culture made me desperate to travel again.
I'm SO glad I didn't give up on this book. I absolutely ADORED the second half and will always love Theo and Kit.

Overall Rating: ❤️❤️❤️❤️
Heat Rating: 🔥🔥🔥

*Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book. All opinions are my own. The Pairing is published on 6th August in the UK*

Casey McQuiston never disappoints and The Pairing was no exception. Truly, they've outdone themself this time. I loved RWRB and OLS - both 5 star reads for me - but honestly after finishing The Pairing I might have to give it the top spot of the three. In fact, The Pairing might just have already taken spot for my top release of 2024.

There were so many things about this book that I loved. Theo and Kit were both characters that I loved instantly, I really enjoyed getting to see some small glimpses of what they were like at the start of their relationship, to where they were post-break up, to how they're evolving now. 10/10 on the character growth and self-awareness, love that!

I'm also a big fan of the writing style in this book, the POV switch was interesting and I liked the placement of it. Everything we saw after switching to Kit's POV felt very much like events we needed to see through his eyes.

The romance, the fun sluttiness of it, comedy - ahhh, all of it was so well balanced. The book is defintely spicier than their other 2 adult novels, and I personally loved the way it was done in this book.

Even outside of the characters and the romance plot, I loved loved loved the subplot of the food and wine tour. I am a big fan of any travel content and this just hit the spot! I would love to go on some sort of culinary tour like Theo and Kit did so I was happily living vicariously through them. The descriptions of the cities and the culture and the vibes was immaculate, really good job on the immersion

Theo's entire gender journey and how they was woven into their relationship - wow. Incredibly well done, had me feeling so many feelings.

Casey - thank you for writing this story. Thank you for writing Theo Flowerday into existence and making me feel seen in ways I never even knew I needed.

I could gush about this book for hours, and I've probably missed 100 more things I loved but honestly, it was just that good.

I felt so many emotions over the course of this book - I laughed, I cried, I awwww'd. I felt a deep connection with characters in way I haven't felt reading a book in a week.

Massive thank you to Pan Macmillian and of course Casey for giving me an ARC copy to review!

I can only describe this book as ‘incredibly horny’. It's a fun romp around Europe that samples all of the great wine, food, culture–and the locals. I get the sense that McQuiston really enjoyed writing this. It has a different, more grown up vibe to their previous books, and it's unapologetically queer, which I loved so much.

Theo and Kit are exes who end up on the same coach holiday, and instead of letting themselves realise they're still in love with each other, start up a competition to see who can hook-up with the most people on the trip. Whilst it's very obvious to the reader that they're both harbouring feelings for the other, the pacing felt good and I enjoyed their gradual reconciliation. The second half of the book, which is from Kit's POV, was especially enjoyable.

However, I'm not a huge fan of reading a book’s love interests sleeping with other people, and that might be a squick for others as well, so be warned.

It's a perfect summer read that will make you crave wine and fine pastries (and has me tempted to book a trip to southern France myself).

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

Very different to Casey's other work. The first half of the book is essentially a food, wine and s*x tour of Europe. Two bisexuals challenge each other to sleep with as many people as they can. Its fun and flirty don't get me wrong. But just feels a little odd when they are so clearly into each other. It also wasn't that exciting really, after the first place or two it was very samey.
Also between this and Red, White and royal blue i think McQuiston should stop writing about Europe. Its all incredibly stereotypical. I think if you're not from Europe you might love it, as it fits that image in your head but if you are, it might grate on you a little.
The second half of the book greatly improved for me. We switch POVs to Kit and its clearly the love story half. And honestly I'm not sure we needed the full first half. It was much sweeter and nicer to see Kit's feelings and depth of love.
However ultimately, it felt a bit light on the fun romcom side, there just wasn't that witty banter, or funny events to give it lightness, just a lot of alcohol and s*x. Not a bad book just maybe not what I expected and I didn't gel with it.

I absolutely adored this. The attention to detail when describing the locations and food were lovely and really transport you to where the characters are! Kit and Theo are such glorious characters, explored in all their flaws. Would highly recommend!

I’m not really sure what to say about this book. I enjoyed it in parts but overall I can’t say I loved it.

I’ll start with the characters. I liked Kit a lot more than Theo. There was something about Theo that I just couldn’t warm to. She was pretty insufferable at times. Her actions, her attitude and her responses were immature and because of that I preferred the second half of the book to the first, as it was from Kit’s point of view instead of Theo’s. Kit felt much more genuine and likeable to me.

I enjoyed the rich descriptions of the gorgeous locations and the delicious food and drink, they helped me imagine being there myself. I didn’t love the stereotypical European character depictions though, this felt like a way to avoid having to put any effort into creating interesting side characters and as such as didn’t feel much towards any of them.

Whilst I’m glad there was so much queer representation in this book, it started to feel vapid when everyone they met on the trip was young, beautiful, single, queer and up for anything. It didn’t feel realistic that both Kit and Theo were irresistible to everyone they interacted with. Their competition initially sparked some interest with me but this unrealistic approach soon turned me off the whole idea.

The Pairing is a second chance, slow-burn romance packed full of queerness, food, drink and travel. I wanted to love it so much but sadly I didn’t.

2.5 ⭐️⭐️💫 rounded up.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher, Pan Macmillan, for my early copy.