fun book, something to enjoy if you're bored. loved the way the lgbtq aspect was written, definitely a breath of fresh air. but i didn't have any sort of attachment, to the characters or the plot. the story was a bit boring and dry.

thank you netgalley for the arc tho!!

Gwen and Art are Not In Love is a charming twist on Arthurian stories that picks up generations after King Arthur with royal siblings Gwen and Gabriel. Gwen is engaged to the seemingly vapid and rakish Arthur, and Gabriel has eyes for nothing but his books as he prepares to one day be king of England. When Gwen and Arthur are forced to get to know each other better, they find that pretending to grow close will give cover as Arthur pursues handsome men and Gwen the dashing woman who steals her heart as the only female knight in the tournaments.

There’s something charmingly lighthearted and Shakespearean in the humor of this book, and though at times it included injury or a bloody battle, it still felt reassuring and safe to read. Ultimately, it was funny, warm, and powerful, and I adored in particular the conversations both Gwen and Gabriel have with Arthur about honoring their authentic identity, and not apologizing for who they love.

I also particularly loved the very end of this; there’s a little nod that feels like it ties the re-envisioned Arthurian story and all its twists nicely together.

I haven't read anything like this and I truly don't know what I was expecting but this was so good! I am so glad I was able to read this book and would recommend it to many others. Thank you NetGalley!

This is my first book by Lex Croucher and after this, I will be seeking out the rest of their backlog! The utter joy I felt reading this book was unmatched. This is a book I wish I’d had as a queer teen but it warmed my heart as an adult. A true delight!


Thank you Wednesday Books and NetGalley for the ARC!

This book was a cozy and fun fantasy that felt both engaging and low-stakes. I read this mostly while on vacation and this book suited that vibe perfectly. Is the romantic chemistry and political intrigue going to blow anyone’s mind? No. But the book was fun and sweet and sometimes that is enough! I think the biggest weakness of this book for me is the pacing and conflict. Almost all of the action was jammed into the last 10% of the book which felt confusing and out of nowhere. Meanwhile, all of the tension and conflict set up during the first 90% of the book is either waived away or magically fixed. I would have liked for the resolutions to feel a little more earned. I think the book’s strength lies in its characters. Gwen, Arthur, and Sydney were delightful and I enjoyed spending time with these characters.

Thank you to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for my eARC in exchange for my honest review.

4.5/5

There was something so comforting while reading this book that I hadn't gotten in a while. This started off as an arranged marriage of two characters, Gwen and Art, but it becomes convenient as both promise to help each other as Gwen finds Arthur kissing a man and Arthur finds her spying on a woman. This is definitely a character-focused WLW and MLM romance novel with a very slight King Arthur "retelling", as Art is a descendant and Gwen is the princess of Camelot.
I loved the two perspectives we got from the main characters but still gave light to the side characters. (Sidney <3). My favorite character is definitely Arthur, I loved the way Lex Croucher wrote Arthur and his personality with the relationship with his vicious father.
Throughout the book, there are themes of acceptance: Gwen and her own brother Gabriel struggle to accept themselves but their love interests, who have already accepted who they are, help them see it.
Overall, I loved this book a lot and honestly did not want to finish it and wished it was a series so I could be with these characters more!!



Reviewed also on goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5418617313

Gwen & Art Are Not in Love is the most I’ve had while reading all year!! A Camelot rom-com, this is a very loose retelling of King Arthur where everything is fun and everyone is queer. Future Lord Arthur is in love with Princess Gwen’s brother, and while Gwen is in love with the kingdom’s only female knight. This book is silly, cozy, and heartwarming. It’s been compared to Heartstopper, and I have to admit this absolutely scratched that itch. The characters are all so likeable and I loved reading about everyone’s relationships and shenanigans. Please make this a series!

ARC provided by NetGalley.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

When I read the description of this book, I knew I had to read it. A King Arthur retelling where Gwen and Arthur are queer? Sign me up!

This isn't a retelling, exactly. This Gwen and Art are descendants of the original king and queen of Camelot trying to find their own way. Arthur and Gwen have hated each other since they first met as children and are unfortunately betrothed. Gwen sees Art kissing a boy and thinks she has an easy out of the marriage until Art steals Gwen's diary and reads all about her feelings for a female knight and they end up forming an alliance to basically be each others beards. 90% of this book is just banter, and it is glorious. It is a slow paced, character driven novel with snatches of the overall plot thrown in, but the dialogue between everyone is just so hilarious you don't really even care. But Arthur... that dude throws in so much wisdom in his sarcasm it's unreal. He is almost always the (drunken) voice of reason and is the reason for the majority of the character growth, even his own. I have already started recommending this to everyone because it is just so well done. 4.5 / 5 stars.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. I really enjoyed this new YA fantasy romance novel from Lex Croucher. It explored the life of two royal siblings who exist in the time after the legendary King Arthur (note, this is not a retelling, which I liked) and how they navigate being who they are when they’re expected to be everything they’re not.

The writing and dialogue was well-paced and realistic, and I felt that every piece of the story made sense and drove forward the character development and respective romance plots. Croucher also did a great job of balancing the romance with the very real political conflict that culminated at the end of the story.

I particularly liked how the romances developed. It felt very realistic and not at all forced, as each couple wasn’t immediately in love because that suited the story. Even by the end, the couples were honest about their attraction, but still working on figuring things out and getting to know each other better, which I felt was so much more satisfying than the “insta-love” you see in other romances.

I did wish for a bit more around the misunderstanding between Gwen and Arthur, and would have liked a scene where they talked about their differences and perceptions of the other, and really hashed it out. They slowly grew to like each other and understood the other more over time, but it happened more as a side effect of their story and I would have liked to see their friendship more purposely strengthened.

I would absolutely recommend this as a fun and engaging YA read. You don’t need to understand or like the King Arthur legend and stories to enjoy this book, and if you’re looking for a fresh and easygoing read, this is a great choice!

Fun relationships and banter but overall I was thrown by the combination of the modern language and behavior of the characters and the historical setting. However, I always appreciate when authors write the book that they want to write and this author clearly did that!

This was a cute and fun read!! I think we should make all of history gay lol.

Gwen & Art Are Not In Love was pretty predictable, but the last few chapters hooked me in! i want more of Bridget please 👀 I also appreciate that the author made multiple characters people of color without it being a big scandal.

Thank you to NetGalley & Wednesday Books for the eARC of Gwen & Art Are Not In Love!

Gwen & Art Are Not in Love is my new favorite Arthurian love story. Its a book full of self-discovery, a bit of trauma recovery, with just a hair of action thrown in at the end. Gwen and Arthur are set up to bring about the 2nd coming of King Arthur and want nothing to do with how life is suppose to be despite what their parents want. Starting off as enemies they come to an uneasy truce to work towards the life they want for themselves. The characters are all dynamic and draw you in. It reads at a decent pace though I do wish there was an epilogue that tied things up a bit more than what was done. It was still a happy for now ending but I need more.

I will be posting my review to Amazon up release. It is currently available on Goodreads, Bookbub, and TikTok.

This is a fun and loose retelling of Arthurian legend that isn’t totally for me, but I enjoyed it enough and know other readers will gobble it up.

This was the medieval royalty, coming-of-age, self discovery, YA, queer romcom I didn’t know I needed!

I love love loved all the characters. Each one, even side and minor characters, are beautifully written and you can’t help but love every one of them. Gwen and Art going from enemies to friends was probably my favorite part and I loved their banter!

I wasn’t sure what to expect from this book. I’ve always been intrigued by the legend of King Arthur, so I knew I would enjoy this at least a little bit. Even though this isn’t a retelling, I liked how parts of Arthurian legend were incorporated into the story and how the character used the history to shape their own stories.

My first Lex Croucher but definitely not my last!

(Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the arc!!)

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for sharing this ARC!

I think this is a perfect example of right book, wrong time. I really wanted to love this book, and the first 25% showed great promise, but then the plot stalls and nothing happens until literally the last 15%. Don't get me wrong, the writing is exceptional and I loved the banter between all of the characters. I actually feel that this might have been better if the book was Adult instead of YA, and had been able to explore the relationships between the characters further. This book will still appeal to younger demographics that enjoy historical romance but want it to feel more contemporary.

If you are looking for a coming of age story/queer historical romance, I would absolutely still recommend this book!

I can’t stop smiling and giggling. This book blew me away. It was one of my most anticipated reads of the year for a reason. I don’t have a single bad thing to say about this book. The plot was great, I adored every single character, and the writing had me laughing and gasping out loud. What a perfect book that I would give six stars if I could.

(3.5) This was cute and a great time, but I didn’t love the pacing of the plot.
The characters shine in this book—I loved them all and I really wanted the best for them. There’s a lot of good interaction and development of friendships and relationships throughout the story.
My only real issue with this book was that I thought the beginning was nice and pretty slow-to-medium paced and I enjoyed spending time with the characters, but then it tries to fit way too much in the last little bit and I found it harder to stay interested.
I’d still highly recommend this book; it’s charming and has an interesting setting!
Thanks to NetGalley for an eARC!

This was a very sweet YA queer romance! I absolutely loved all of the characters, especially Arthur, and enjoyed the found family aspects of it. My only complaint is that the plot seemed to drag a bit at times, specifically towards the end, but I adored the characters so much that I still found this to be a highly enjoyable read. I would definitely recommend for anyone wanting a light and fun medieval-type queer romance!

A queer Arthurian inspired YA rom com? Yes please! This book from the start made me laugh, so many of my annotations are proof to this (lol) this book was incredibly sweet and I enjoyed it from start to finish!

I know this book is a rom com, but I have to say the found family aspect was my favorite part. Watching all the characters evolve and come out of their shells was so cute and heartwarming, if found family is one of your favorite tropes like me, I definitely recommend this books!

The plot happens mostly in the background until it smacks you in the face in the last 20% of the book, but I like character driven books so I didn't mind at all!

Overall, this book was so sweet and heartwarming, I loved it so much!

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

What a delightfully fun story, with many laughs and lots of heart.

Gwen & Art Are Not In Love by Lex Croucher is set in Camelot, several hundred years after Arthur, Merlin & company, but still in jolly OLD England. Gwen, the Princess, is betrothed to Arthur, a descendant of his name-bearer. The problem? They hate each other. Oh, and Art likes boys (and eventually Gwen’s brother, Gabriel), while Gwen is infatuated with a female knight. They agree to ‘play nice’ in order to keep each other’s secrets, and also end up stumbling upon some political intrigue.

I had a lot of fun reading this. I’m pretty sure I had a smile on my face almost the entire time. Gwen, Art, Gabriel, as well as Art’s bodyguard Sid, and the female knight, Bridget, are SO likable! Despite their many faults, you can’t help but fall in love with these characters. And the banter! Lex Croucher really perfected the witty, snide comebacks and remarks. No, the language obviously isn’t representative of the actual language of the time, but I did not care. At all. I chuckled the entire way through. While there was a plot of sorts, it was the relationships between these characters that was the star of the story. And central to that, was the witty back-and-forth of the characters. I simply loved it. I rooted for all these characters, and cheered at their quest for queer love in a time that notion was deeply frowned upon. And the relationships these characters formed with one another -and altogether - was just heartwarming. An adorable found family, which is one of my absolute favourite things.

The political intrigue plot was embedded somewhat throughout the book, though I found it sped up too much in the last quarter or so to reach its conclusion. This did not detract from my enjoyment of the book, though. It just felt like the action was sort of clumped together in one spot.

For me, Gwen & Art Are Not In Love is a story I thoroughly enjoyed and will likely pick up a physical copy when it becomes available. I fell in love with these characters and want to revisit them on days I need a smile. Totally recommend for those who love quick wit and character-driven stories.

Thank you Wednesday Books and NetGalley for the ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.