Thank you, NetGalley, for access to this book.

I was absolutely delighted by this book. It made me laugh, gasp and tear up.
Gwen, Arthur, Gabriel and Bridget all felt like fully formed characters who I found myself rooting for throughout the entire book, even when their decisions made me want to shake them by the shoulders. I also love a good bad guy reveal and this book had that.

"Nobody else is ever going to care as much as you do about the things that you want, Gwendoline. So it's up to you -- you can put them aside forever, if you can live with that, or you can put on your big-girl girdle and demand more for yourself."
As someone who suffers from "oldest daughter syndrome," I especially connected with Gwen and her struggles with wanting things for herself rather than because it was expected of her. I rooted for her growth the entire book and was completely satisfied with it by the last page.

This book is perfect for someone who, like me, is dipping their toes into romance but doesn't want something too cliche or spicy. It's sweet, well-paced and full of laughs and surprises.

This book was a perfect read for a Sunday afternoon. Royalty, adventure, comedy and plenty of queer love!

3.5/5 stars. I really wanted to love this - I mean something dubbed as a medieval queer rom-com…yes please. Sadly, while I enjoyed the story, it was only ok for me with no real wow factor nor anything that truly engaged me the way I had hoped.

The characters were kind of cookie-cutter in a way and not very endearing or well developed. I mean honestly my favorite character was Bridget and she wasn’t technically a MC so much as the sapphic love interest. Gwen (female MC) was just a spoiled selfish princess for most of the story; and Art (male MC) was barely tolerable for the first half.

I’m sorry it wasn’t better for me personally but I’d still recommend this as a medieval rom-com for a younger audience. It was fun - it just was a bit too juvenile in execution for me.

I was provided an eARC of this by NetGalley and St. Martin’s Publishing. All opinions expressed are my own.

I loved Heartstopper and have been smitten with Arthurian legend since I was a kid, so this book was an easy yes for me. But I didn't expect it to surprise me so much.

Yes, it's a dual love story. Yes, the characters talk like actual young adults. Yes, there are stolen swoony kisses. But, the book is so much more than that, with a fully fleshed out world and complicated characters who are impossible not to root for.

I loved that people in their time refer to people who believe in the King Arthur legend as "cultists," and that this faction plays a surprisingly important role in the plot. I love that Gwen and Gabe and not just wrestling with new feelings, but also balancing that with their responsibilities as royalty, and ask some very compelling questions about love and expectations. I loved their relationship as brother and sister, too. In fact, I loved ALL of the couples, especially the bro-tastic relationship between Art and Sid.

Not to knock YA romances, but in some the characters are a little one dimensional, or they have TWO dimensions -- they're in love, and there is one obstacle standing in the way of that love. This book blew that model out of the water. It's messy, complicated, touching, philosophical, with some good old fashioned dueling for fun.

Speaking of fun, that's perhaps my only quibble. Arthur is THE BEST, clearly the most fun/funny/endearing character in the book. The story sings whenever he's in the scene. Gwen is a bit more of wet blanket. This makes her evolving friendship with Art more interesting, but it also means the book slows down a bit then the lens is merely on her. (Thank goodness she has a bad ass love interest to make up for it!)

Overall, this was a delightful surprise and a highly enjoyable read. Thank you to the author and NetGalley for granting me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this. It was very funny and I adored the characters and their relationships, especially Gwen and Arthur's friendship and how close they become and how their platonic relationship is centered in the narrative and they very clearly say they love each other and go to each other for support and are physically affectionate! I liked the side relationships (friendships and romances!) as well, especially Gwen/Gabriel, Arthur/Sidney, and Arthur/Gabriel. and I love how the six of them (Gwen, Arthur, Gabriel, Sidney, Bridget, and Agnes) all became sort of a group who would go to each other individually in varying combinations (even if some were less common) to give and receive support and cared about each other. I also enjoyed all the character arcs.

The world was not super developed, but I cannot impress enough how little that mattered. I think it just added to the lighthearted tone and how the book was able not to take itself too seriously and therefore could do what it wanted with characters and relationships! (Which it did, excellently.) I appreciated it. That said, after how more or less fluffy the first 70% was, I don't think the shift to violence and more serious consequences was totally out of line, even though it startled me; I think it worked.

Overall, an excellent read I stayed up late to finish. I deeply, deeply loved the relationships, and the humor of the writing style was perfect for the story.

Honestly, I got about 40 pages in and knew this wasn’t for me. The premise was promising but the writing is too modern for the setting and a bit childish

I could see this being a very cute Netflix romcom. The characters were endearing and the storyline intriguing. Pulling in the history of King Arthur, while modernizing it but still keeping within the medieval age was a cool perspective. Highly recommend!

Thank you to NetGalley and Wednesday books for this eARC!

Gwen and Art Are Not in Love is a quick and jaunty story about friendship, courage, and family — the kind we’re born with, and the kind we find. Equal parts funny and heartfelt, this YA romcom comped as “Heartstopper meets A Knight’s Tale” is every bit as delightful as promised, although a good deal bloodier; if you’re particularly squeamish, you might wanna brace yourself.

For the record, this is not a retelling — Arthurian legend is the setting of the story, not the plot. And it works. The characters and their struggles are relatable and moving, even if the average reader is not a princess in medieval England. The book’s strongest point by far, however, is the relationships between the characters: Gwen, Arthur, Gabriel, Sidney, Agnes, and Bridget are a (mostly queer) found family for the ages.

All in all, Gwen and Art Are Not in Love is a joy to read. If you like queer women with swords, main characters who are not love interests, bookish princes, pop culture references, cats and crows, this one is for you.

This book was nothing like I expected, but everything I ever wanted.

Sapphic? Check. Gay? Check. Enemies to friends? Check. Swords? Check.

The way that Lex was able to weave in the traditional story with a modern, gay twist is everything. This book is so much fun. The characters are hilarious and the plot line is engaging. 1000/10 would recommend to a friend. I can't wait for a physical copy.

This was so cute! This fun take on King Arthur mythology follows Princess Gwen and her brother Prince Gabriel. Gwen is betrothed since childhood to noble/jerk Arthur. When Gwen finds out that Arthur is gay, she plans to out him to her father to cut off the engagement. He finds out and blackmails her with her own childhood diaries detailing her crush on the famed lady knight of the court. They agree on a friends without benefits truce.

I loved this writing style; fun, smart, and refreshing. I always love a romance with a great cast of characters. I'm looking forward to reading more of Croucher's work!

First, thanks to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for the ARC!!

Like any good queer, I am 1000% here for Arthurian legends and this one is GAY??? I ate this up and will be asking for seconds please. It is a queer, slow burn, found family, romance with some cloak and dagger politics thrown in for good measure.

First, Arthur and Sydney are the chaotic bros every polycule needs to keep things interesting. Arthur is Mal in the bar fight in the episode of Firefly when the guy is bad mouthing Browncoats and Mal confronts the guy and says he did it just so he would face him and Sydney is Zoe standing behind him to deck him. Their friendship is everything and I love them.

Bridget is the soft butch dyke of my dreams and I want every good thing for her in life.

Gwen and Gabriel, y’all are adorable and traumatized together but you needed this wacky found family in ways I can’t begin to describe. They taught Gwen that she can use her voice and stand on her own and taught Gabriel that he can be true to himself and still be a good man, the two can be synonymous.

The political aspect got a little lost in the middle as it doesn’t really come into play until the end, but I understood why it was mentioned in the beginning to lay the foundation. It just might’ve helped to sprinkle it throughout more so it doesn’t seem like it comes almost out of left field when there’s all of a sudden huge conflict with 15% of the book left.

All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed this story and can’t wait to get my hands on a physical copy!!

This book was a fantastic read! I loved the relationship development between the main characters that created that sense of found family. The POV switch between Gwen and Art worked really well and made them equally endearing to the reader. I requested this book expecting the traditional queer rom com and got something that was much deeper and emotional, in a good way! The pacing was great and kept me hooked the whole time!

I am not a romcom fan or a historical fiction fan, HOWEVER! This was absolutely perfect. New comfort read for me, I will be grabbing a physical copy as soon as I can and I hope you do the same!

The comedy in this book is amazing, and does so much for the relationships between the characters. Almost every comedic moment is an opportunity that these characters use to become closer friends. Each moment of banter or teasing between characters flows so smoothly, and solidifies the importance of these characters’ friendships to the story.

The comedy is perfectly balanced by serious and emotional moments that had me sobbing and putting the book down because I couldn’t read through the tears, and then picking the book back up because I needed to know what was going to happen as soon as I possibly could. The serious topics that come up in this book are written with so much care, and I appreciate how much work must have gone into writing those moments in such a thoughtful way.

I’m so glad I was able to read this beautiful and heartfelt story! Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher!

Enjoyable, great pacing, exciting settings kept me hooked. Fun novel that will be the perfect to lose yourself in. Thank you Net Galley for ARC in exchange for my honest opinion

This is a book I had high hopes for, so it is with a heavy heart that I give it three stars. Maybe it was all the hype and the excellent reviews I'd seen of this one, and my expectations for it were too high, but I had really hoped it would be an instant new favorite.

In many ways, this was an excellent book. It was character-driven, and from a character standpoint, it was excellent. The two main characters were fleshed out and interesting, and their enemies-to-friends arc was beautiful. The side characters were interesting, even if a few of them were two dimensional. The banter was exceptional, and the dialogue and conversations were masterfully written. The prose was beautiful. Overall, there was a lot to love in this book.

But I struggled with the world building, which was both expansive and too vague to really feel centered in the setting. It takes place in an alternative history Britain, but there was nothing to tell the reader what time period this took place in. In addition, the story opens with a really uncomfortable scene in which Gwen's brother walks in on her naked, and she promptly makes a joke about incest. There are some really strange undercurrents throughout the novel that hint toward incest in some really strange ways. Like when Art and Gwen kiss, and then ten minutes later, Art kisses Gabe (Gwen's brother), and immediately tells Gabe that he literally just kissed his sister. I think this book might have been a five-star read if it wasn't for how uncomfortable some of this made me.

Although my biggest gripe with this book is: it isn't a romance. There are romance subplots, but the story isn't about the romance. The romances are underdeveloped, and Gwen and Art don't even really interact with their romantic counterparts until 35% of the way through the story. The book is really about Gwen and Art's platonic relationship. And, as the title suggests, they are not in love. This isn't a rom-com. It's a coming-of-age queer fantasy about found family and sexuality. There's nothing wrong with that... but don't advertise it as a queer rom-com.

Overall, if you're looking for a good, character-driven story about found family, forging friendships, and exploring sexuality, this is a great read. But if you're looking for a rom-com that will give you all the romantic feels, I don't think this is the book you're looking for.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC! All views reflected are my own.

A gay medieval rom-com? Sign me up! I love a silly little romance and this one was just so much fun! Told from the alternating POVs of Gwen and Art, a princess and a noble betrothed to be married, we get two separate love stories as they agree to convince everyone that they are falling in love so that they can actually pursue their own love interests. Both these two characters and their respective relationships were so sweet and I had such a good time reading about them. Despite being a rom-com at its core, Gwen and Art Are Not in Love also manages to flesh out each character and really make the reader feel for them and root for their successes.

My only real issue with this book was the world building. While it didn’t hinder my enjoyment of the book, the end kind of came out of nowhere for me, because despite brief mentions of unrest elsewhere, the main conflict throughout lies more internally with our main siblings and how they are coming to terms with their own identities and figuring out how they fit in to the lives they are expected to lead. To have the book end with this big battle just felt a little out of place for me but I do also understand what it did for each characters arc when all is said and done.

All that being said, I think this is the perfect read for anyone looking for a short, sweet romance. It was so much fun and definitely worth the read.

A slow start - but I'm glad I stuck with it.
Arthur and Camelot plus Romeo and Juliet in terms of Camelot, knights and tournaments plus ill fated love.
I enjoyed Gwen and Arthur - they attempts to even tolerate each other while remaining true to themselves. The self discovery, pushing for a life to be themselves. Somewhat innocent but with lots of reality.
Great story, loved the characters and do recommend!

I am a SUCKER for anything to do with the legend of Arthur even if it’s not exactly a traditional retelling. And this book was no exception. I love a historical retelling that’s queer af. All of the characters are very loveable and charming in their own way. This is an unconventional Royal romance with heartwarming moments. Art and his bodyguard and their banter were laugh out loud funny.

“What I’m trying to say is, you knew, and it made perfect sense to you even when it didn’t to me. I didn’t have to try to justify it to you, or beg for your understanding—it wasn’t something that even needed explaining. I had no idea how much that would mean to me. When I talked to you about it, even when you were being a bit of a nightmare, you always made me feel like it was . . . completely ordinary. Something I should be allowed to want and to have, without question.”

This book made me laugh and cry and touched my heart. It was an unflinchingly honest exploration of what it means to discover yourself and come into your own, with all the pitfalls and setbacks, humor and moments of joy that accompany this journey. It’s a story of being queer without being consumed by the “coming out” portion of the story, where queer characters could laugh and discover what it means to want without this being the only aspect of their characterization.

I loved each and every character and their messy, multifaceted selves, and loved watching their hard won self growth throughout the book. The relationships were hard won and we get to watch them build and falter and grow back stronger.

The backdrop of Camelot reborn (did someone say lady knights!!) was done very well and I feel it added a lot to the story without feeling anything like a retelling. Overall, the writing, the plot, and the characterization were all fantastic — I can’t recommend this enough.

Anyways, all this to say forget enemies to lovers, it’s all about enemies to lavender marriage now!

I have been in a bit of a slump for a while with not a single book able to hold my attention for more than a chapter or two - until Gwen & Art Are Not in Love! I can't recall the last time a book made me laugh quite this much while reading it. If you were a fan of the Swan Princess animated film growing up - in particular the "This Is My Idea" song in the beginning - then this is absolutely the book for you. Arthur, Gwen, Sidney, Gabriel, Bridget are all so fantastic, the dialogue equal parts hilarious and heartbreaking at times, with plenty of twists and surprises to keep the reader on their toes.

Arthur and Gwen might not be in love but I certainly am. I cannot wait to have this one on my bookshelf. Honestly, I wouldn't mind a sequel! Which is saying a lot because I was actually excited that it was a standalone originally. It ends quite nicely but I am not ready to say goodbye to this dramatic and lovable cast of characters (especially my favorite Art)!