Such a cute book. I was alittle worried since I DNF’d one last spot for its pacing issues but I felt like this book fixed it!

THE PAIRING is Casey McQuiston at their steamiest and most unapologetic and it is 5/5 stars so good, the perfect escape.

This story follows Theo and Kit, exes who end up on the same culinary tour of Europe. What follows is a sexploration of France, Italy, and Spain, full of Casey McQuiston’s beautiful descriptions of settings and food and emotion. I read this on my way to Germany and it was exquisite to be reading about the magic of traveling while actually traveling - swipe for an early passage I loved!

The reason I say this is Casey McQ’s most unapologetic work is because there’s a lot that shouldn’t work here (which you can find details of in Goodreads reviews if you’re curious). RED WHITE & ROYAL BLUE feels near-perfect to me in its character development, its build of emotion, its somehow-realistic plot despite the premise; whereas THE PAIRING lounges in its imperfections, its literary/romance “rule” breaking, its blatant ~miscommunication~ issues. And yet I loved it!

It was interesting to read this after ALL FOURS because both books have a focus on pleasure but are (obviously) very different. I love the exploration of escapism both have at their core, the question of, “What if I just said “fuck it” and genuinely did what feels good for me, despite long-lasting impact, despite the status quo?”

This book is two things: hungry and horny.

If you like beautiful descriptions of probably delicious food, you will get more enough here. That part was just fine for me. I don't care that much about reading about meals.

Now, the horniness. Theo and Kit, who haven't seen or even communicated with each other since their break-up, are quite surprised to see each other on this tour. Kit is a bit more happy about it than Theo, who generally seems like they want to crawl into a hole and hide at all times. And that was the main problem I had with this book -- Theo's point of view is so hard to read. Theo is incredibly frustrating. I can buy a lot of things about this story, like everyone is somewhere on the bi spectrum and hooking up with beautiful strangers is just *the* thing to do on vacation in Europe, but I could not buy that Theo was at all pleasant to be around. When the POV switches to Kit, it was a breath of fresh air, though then we also get him dealing with the frustration of Theo.

I was hoping this would have the magic of McQuiston's other books, but it just wasn't there for me.

I know this galley doesn’t have sprayed edges, or fancy art. But you know what does? The physical copy I bought the minute it hit the shelves. This book is a crowning glory of queer literature. I suggest it to everyone all the time. Exes trapped on a trip together? Hijinx ensue what could be better? I absolutely adored this book.

Casey in fantastic and always an auto-buy. I think their books sell themselves! But I will still absolutely be book talking this one and adding to lists now that the marketing boycott is concluded.

This was such a beautiful story. The journey and love story flowed well. I enjoyed the dual perspectives!

The Pairing follows Theo and Kit, childhood best friends turned ex-lovers, who find themselves on a food and wine tour through Europe years after a devastating breakup. What was meant to be a once-in-a-lifetime trip is now a reunion neither expected. To ease the tension, they create a playful game—competing to see who can hook up with the most people. But as the tour takes them through the stunning backdrops of France, Spain, and Italy, it becomes clear their connection runs far deeper than any competition.

McQuiston masterfully blends humor, heartbreak, and chemistry, bringing Theo and Kit’s complex relationship to life in a way that feels raw and real. The journey through Europe was beautifully written, with rich descriptions of food and culture that made me feel like I was right there. The unique POV shift halfway through that is unlike any other romance I’ve read, letting us see their love from a new angle. If you're a fan of second-chance romances, this one will steal your heart!

I recommend for fans of spicy contemporary romance, especially those who love travel, found family, and a bit of emotional chaos.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press/St. Martin's Griffin for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

I think I have two caveats to this review. 1 is I hate second chance romance. 2 is I love Casey McQuiston. Lucky for me, Casey’s writing made me love this second chance romance. Theo and Kit are my new book boyfriends (I think Theo wouldn’t mind that distinction). I loved the use of dual narrator, I’ve never read a book where the first half was in one POV and the second half was in the other. I think it was very effecting to get me to fall in love with the characters in real time. I felt like I knew Theo and Kit, they felt like friends before the book was 1/4 of the way done. I also LOVED the food and travel content. I now must go to San Sebastián and while Barcelona was already on my list, it has skyrocketed to the top. This is now in my romance novel hall of fame next to Red White and Royal Blue. Highly recommend

This book was another great publication from Casey McQuiston. It was interesting, thoughtful, and full of great characters.

3.5/5 stars

Admittedly, I went into this book with very high expectations. Both RWRB and OLS were 5 star books for me, and my favorite books of the year when I read them, so naturally I was pretty hyped for this book. I think something I’ve learned is that I shouldn’t overhype things in my head, because ultimately I think that caused me to like this book less. While this book had a lot of great things to offer, I also didn’t connect with it the way I have their other adult books. Let’s unpack my thoughts!

Pros:
- This book is wonderfully queer! Both MCs are bisexual, and one MC is non-binary, plus there’s a good chunk of queer side characters and even open relationships!
- Casey’s writing never fails tbh. Every time I pick up one of their books, I’m totally engrossed in what’s happening because of their superior knack for telling stories, and this book was no exception. Casey always finds a way to make me literally laugh out loud and I love that about their writing.
- The vibes throughout this book were IMMACULATE. I mean, a food and wine tour throughout Europe with two main characters that work in the industry? Fuck yeah, sign me up.

Cons:
- Something I loved about RWRB and OLS was not only the intriguing MCs, but also the fun side characters. However, I felt like this book was really missing that. What side characters we had didn’t seem very fleshed out unlike their past books, and I wish we had gone deeper, as the potential for some great characters seemed there. In fact, some of the side characters just felt like an accessory to Theo and Kit’s weird sexcapades during their travels with not much more depth besides that.
- I realllllllly disliked how multiple POVs were handled here. Now, I do love POV switching, especially in a romance novel. However, in this book, we basically read from Theo’s POV during the first half, then switch to Kit’s halfway through. While I can sort of see what the intent was with this, it honestly felt more like whiplash than anything, and made it hard to make that adjustment.
- The plot felt very…repetitive in the first third or so. It just felt like “visit new city -> eat and drink -> go out to look for a hookup -> rinse and repeat.” That’s all well and fine, but this felt like it went on for SO LONG before things finally started getting switched up. Tbh if the book had glossed over some of that and shortened the book by like 50-100 pages or so, I think it would have packed a bigger punch.

All in all, I DID have a good time reading this, especially Kit's chapters, but I think I've learned not to overhype things too much in my head. I will ALWAYS pick up Casey's new books because I love them as an author, but even our faves don't crank out perfect reads for us sometimes and that's okay.

Thank you to St. Martin's Griffin and NetGalley for the ARC of this novel. I have adored McQuiston since I got Red, White & Royal Blue as an ARC print years ago. I also really liked this book but does not compare to that. This is, however, great in its own right. Hearing all about the different locations was amazing and the switch of narrator halfway through was well-earned. Kit and Theo are evolving people and the story of them coming back together was enjoyable. Another great addition to my collection. 4 stars.

I was so so excited to receive a Casey McQuiston ARC! I've read all their recent big hits so I was super excited to receive this one and I think this might be a favourite of theirs for me. I loved Theo and Kit and I'm just such a sucker for a they broke up and now they might get back together but what if it just repeats history and also they think theyve grown but not as much as they can but its okay because they will! Great book

The Pairing follows Theo and Kit as they unintentionally take the same European food tour that they broke up on 4 years prior. On this tour they must contend with their long past as childhood friends to lovers to strangers, their explosive breakup years ago, and their still just under the surface feelings and attraction to one another. To help distract them from all these feelings they form a wager--who can sleep with the most people on their European Tour. If they're sleeping with other people they won't possibly sleep with each other right?

The Pairing is great for those who love Second Chance romance, miscommunication, queer love, and just steamy eroticism.
This book is HOT and filled with almost painful sexual tension and longing.

What a joy to read! Thank you to the publisher for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.
Spoilers ahead!!
Casey McQuiston manages to balance a fun, slutty Euro Summer with the heartbreak and longing of a missed love. Typically, I do not like second-chance romances because I can tell the characters are going to break up for the exact same reason that they originally did. However, McQuiston found a way to grow not only the characters but also the ways in which they interact with each other. Four years apart allowed Kit and Theo to grow, find themselves, and become ready for the relationship they always wanted. Not only was the sexual tension between them off the charts, but the emotional tension was even better. I felt the yearning in my chest!
McQuiston also explores Theo's gender identity beautifully. The change in perspective was a pleasant surprise and enhanced their coming out for me.
All in all, this is my favourite work of Casey McQuiston's so far!

Thank you to Macmillan Audio for the ALC. I was not a fan of this book. I have enjoyed McQuiston's prior works but found this one to be a slog to get through for multiple reasons. I did not appreciate the perpetuation of harmful bisexual stereotypes nor the overall plot of using others for a sex competition. I found this in poor taste and while I loved the setting I didn't love the story.

I loved this. I read it in one sitting (on a plane, to be fair, I didn't have anywhere else to be) and barely looked up from it the entire time. Probably my two favorite romance tropes are friends to lovers and second chance romance and The Pairing is BOTH of those. I loved Kit and I loved Theo and I just wanted the best for them, even when they may not have known that the best for them was each other, I certainly did, and I rooted for it the whole time. Even the fact that their initial breakup was the result of a miscommunication - something I normally hate - didn't even bother me too much here. And the travel! The food! The interesting and fun side characters! I loved everything about this book.

I think the book accomplishes what it says it does which is smutty romcom, but I don't feel as though it dived too deep past that. Overall an okay read but nothing truly spectacular or special.

I'm a huge fan of Casey McQuiston's writing, and I think this is my favorite book yet. I absolutely loved all the descriptions of food and scenery throughout Europe -- it made me picture the locations I'd never been to just as well as the ones I had. Both eroticism and queerness permeate this book in such an intentional and meaningful way. Paired with the setting and imagery, the whole book evokes a lush and delicious story about experiencing the world and everything it has to offer as your authentic self, and how that authenticity ultimately enriches everything, including interactions with other people. This book is open, shameless in the best way, fun, sexy, and affirming. Absolutely loved it!

Main character Theo leads the first half of the book with such a fun and quirky personality. Because of their passion for food and their job as a sommelier, their descriptions of different dishes and drinks were mouth-watering and really helped me feel immersed in the story. I loved following their development as a main character and it was so easy to fall in love with their honesty and courageousness.

The second half of the book is narrated by handsome MMC Kit. As an art lover, I thoroughly enjoyed reading his meticulous descriptions of architecture and mini-history lessons. Seeing Theo through his eyes was such a squeal-inducing experience, and he had so many beautifully romantic thoughts I found myself highlighting all over the place.

I love how the two characters really dive into bisexuality and how their sexualities are reflected in their personalities. I loved rooting for Theo and Kit through intense character growth, hilarious moments, and forced proximity.

Casey McQuiston's storytelling is phenomenally unique. I love the way she plays with language to really get into the headspace of her characters. Her worlds are always full of vivid vitality, and I loved getting to immerse myself in the picturesque vacation destinations on Kit and Theo's food and wine tour. This is such a perfect book for the summertime.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review of this book.

Five out of five stars.

This book was an indulgent, descriptive masterpiece and I can’t wait for people to devour it the way I did. It is SO fun to read. a triumphant celebration of food, travel, romance, sex, and queer joy in so many forms. Yes, it is Slutty! But also just captivating and exploratory and hilarious and at times heartbreaking. A lot of introspection. A lot of yearning 😵‍💫 so much self-discovery for our main pairing, both as individuals and as a couple. You will be rooting for them the entire time 🥲

The descriptions of food!!!! had me wishing I was tasting everything alongside Theo and Kit, and at times it felt like I was — there is a quote from the book where Kit says, “Everywhere we go, I want to experience it entirely. all the way out to its edges. I want to touch it, taste it, drink it, eat it, climb it, swim in it.“ reading this book felt like this — like I was on the tour too, fully experiencing it, a feast for all five senses. Theo and Kit are always dropping obscure but delicious knowledge (about food and wine, yes, but also about the places they visit and their various interests). It was so charming and fascinating for someone like me; I love hearing people talk about their passions. These characters wormed their way into my soul, I love them and I love their love.

Casey’s thorough research, descriptive writing, and tour diary posts + character profiles + other fun stuff leading up to the book’s release had me completely absorbed in the story and the settings while reading. Truly an immersive experience. CMQ ur a genius and a legend 💞

Anyway flowerfield 4ever and now I wanna book a European food and (mocktail bc I don’t drink) tour.