Loved Theo and Kit’s dynamic and really made me want a european tour romance. The slow burn was slow burning and the emotions with each pov were literally oozing out of my screen. 4/5!

If you love to travel, if you are a foodie or a wine/drink connoisseur, of you've always wanted to indulge in travel, food, anything, everything or anyone, this story will delight you. Red, White, and Royal Blue was an amazing story, and I wanted a story that topped that. This is close. Much more evocative and intimate (trying to use words that won't get me flagged, lol)if you know what I mean. Casey brings us love in many different iterations, whether it is about food and wine "pairings" or lover "pairings." Beautifully descriptive of areas I just returned from (London & Paris) and countries I look forward to visiting like Spain and Italy. It is a story about finding yourself and being your best self and accepting the hand that wants to help you become that which you are meant to be.

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC. I have read all of McQuiston’s books to date and was thrilled to receive this to review. Overall, it was a very readable story of an indulgent in all meanings of the word vacation. Definitely a lot of spice - I actually had to turn my kindle off while riding the Long Island railroad home because I was too embarrassed for my seat mates to look over my shoulder.

I would love to be a participant on this tour and I was rooting for Theo and Kit, but it did seem to run a bit long and repetitive to me with another hookup in every city. Overall a totally enjoyable read but I think I ultimately prefer One Last Stop or Red White and Royal Blue for the plots. That said, this is a great vacation read and people are going to love it.

4.5 stars! The Pairing was better than I was expecting and really had me rooting for the MCs to get together. Theo and Kitt were childhood best friends who ventured into a loving/sexually adventurous relationship in their early twenties. While on the way to Europe, they break up mid flight then don't see each other for 4 years. They accidentally meet up again on a European food tour they booked together years ago before the break up. The readers get to follow along on mending their friendship.

I love how the author took us on a journey through their relationship and how they changed since the break up. The details of the tour were fun and I loved the focus on food/drinks. I'm not a non-binary or bisexual expert but I think the author did a great job on handling the complexities with care.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

I will forever and ever be a Casey McQuiston fan. This book, sadly, will be lowest in my rankings from them. The premise is fantastic. Two exes go on a wine and food tour of Europe four years after their split. I am here for the second-chance romance. What I'm not a fan of is the lack of communication about their real feelings and waiting so long to talk about what happened that fateful day 4 years ago. That being said, the sex positivity is great and I love the unapologetic queerness in the book. I do wish there wasn't as much hooking up with other people during the tour but that is most likely just a personal choice. I have a hard time wrapping my brain around "I love you but I'm going to go do this with them over there." The queerness, though, and the discussions around how they both changed was everything and the reason this book was saved for me. If you are a foodie, you will salivate at all the descriptions of their meals and snacks throughout their journey. It felt very European throughout, providing the best escape from my own couch here in the States. The personalities of all the characters on the tour were so much fun!

Overall, this wasn't a top read for me but I still enjoyed it and loved certain aspects. I will always be wanting the next Casey McQuiston. One of my favorite things about their books is how very different (and yet fantastic) each one is. I cannot wait to see what's next.

I am fully, truly, absolutely in love with this book.

what starts as 2 exes winding up on the same European food & wine tour turns into a hookup competition to see if they can *really* prove that they're over each other

& surprise - it gets really messy, really steamy, and really, really fun to read

some of my fav things:
🤍 Kit & Theo are so quirky, definitely flawed, & have amazing chemistry
🤍 the rep, yet again (thank you, Casey), is amazing with bi & non binary main characters
🤍 the dual POV is such a fun surprise - my jaw actually DROPPED when I got to the 2nd POV
🤍 the writing & descriptions of all the food & wine actually had me attempting to book a flight and recreate their trip because WOW
🤍 so much amazing self-discovery
🤍 2nd chance romance with SO much pining & a good dash of miscommunication (again, it's messy and they are flawed)

I was so excited to jump into this one. The synopsis had me excited for an adventure between exes that end up on the same European food and wine tour. I appreciated all of the travel content, I really felt like I was in these locations with them. But some parts were too detailed and made me lose interest, however I’m admittedly not much of a foodie. The story between Kit and Theo was complicated for me. I liked the premise but am not a fan of the miscommunication trope. This was also very spicy, maybe too much for me. I very much appreciated the topics discussed, I learned a lot. This might not have been the right time for me to read this or just not the book for me as it felt very long and I was ready for it to end. However, I liked the ending so I’m glad I stuck with it! Read this if you like travel, food/wine, and forced proximity with an ex. Overall, 3 stars. Thank you to St. Martin’s Press for this eARC via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

First off I want to say, I love Casey McQuiston's books, and each of them has been a 5-star read for me. I was really disappointed I didn't love this as much as I wanted to. The side characters didn't feel as fleshed out as they normally do in their books which I missed in this one. Also, I'm not a "foodie" in any form, so all the food and drink descriptions dragged the book down for me, I just found myself wanting to skim over those parts. I think it picked up a lot in the second half with the switch to Kit's POV making me wish the POVs had alternated throughout the book. While this isn't my favorite book of theirs, I still enjoyed the ending, and I will be looking forward to their next book.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for the digital arc of this book!

I love seeing bisexual main characters. I love seeing sex positive journeys. I love descriptions of Europe, particularly Italy. I like Casey McQuiston’s writing.

So why on earth didn’t The Pairing really work for me?

Probably because I couldn’t STAND Theo and was just ok with Kit. I like when MCs aren’t perfect and constantly sympathetic. But Theo’s abrasive personality really put me off, and I also didn’t understand why (no matter how much Kit waxed poetic) everyone she met wanted to hook up with her. It’s a shame because I don’t see a lot of bisexual representation or bisexual couples in books, but maybe I also need to branch out more. Their sex competition didn’t bother me because they weren’t actively trying to hurt anyone, but it was just so immature. And I can’t stand the lack of communication trope, especially considering in this case it lasted for 4 years!

I love food and culinary descriptions, and I get why there was a focus considering Theo and Kit’s careers, but it just started getting boring after a while. Their 2 week excursion felt like forever while reading it. I thought Good lord they’re still traveling?! towards the 75% point.

It was well written and there will be lots of people who love it, but it was just kind of a meh read for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and St Martin’s for providing this arc in exchange for my honest review.

I loved this book so much I went out and bought a special edition! Sexy and fun ride with really great characters. Highly recommend!

As an enthusiastic fan of Casey McQuinston’s Red, White & Royal Blue, I was eager to get my hands on The Pairing. This was, by far, my most anticipated book of 2024. However, I found myself sorely disappointed.

*The Pairing* is a second-chance romance novel following ex-lovers Theo Flowerday and Kit Fairfield through a chance encounter at the very same wine-and-dine vacation tour they missed four years prior.

The Romance:
I’ll be the first to admit I struggled reading this novel. The writing provided little reason to believe the main romance beyond an empty promise of past chemistry. As for the emotional beats expected of Romance genre fiction, they were tacky and misplaced. Neither character felt ready for a successful relationship and I couldn’t bring myself to ignore the significant red flags from both parties.

“Is that all this has been to them, with me? Self-destruction?
I don’t know what difference it would make if it was. Does it matter if Theo is fucking me to destroy themself, if I’m destroying myself to fuck Theo?”

In the end, I could not root for Theo and Kit and dreaded that they would give their relationship a second chance at all.


The Plot:
While the writing seemed to sacrifice romance for plot, there was no real conflict or drive to begin with. Between erotic material that made little attempt at a narrative, the constant barrage of food and wine descriptions, and a lack of emotional payoff, I had long stopped caring about the hook-up competition or the characters, and very little remained after that. By the time Kit’s POV brought a besotted freshness to the writing, I was beyond exhausted and soon, that too became frustrating.

*The Pairing* felt like a wonderful concept badly executed. Left and right, characters outside of Theo and Kit dropped everything for the tourists’ pleasure and needs. Outside of their convenience as attractive bodies to use, transport, or timely advice, the side characters seemed to exist for little else. For a select few, a scarce attempt was made at character development, but this came near the end of the novel. In a way, that accurately summarises many of the plot devices and developments—badly-timed—and perhaps the novel’s meandering pace would’ve benefitted from being shortened.

This rendition of a painfully Americanised Europe makes for good summer escapism. I was seeking something with a little more depth. A lot of research clearly went into the various settings; however, the overwhelming paragraphs of food and wine detail had me skimming more often than not.

In its celebration of hedonistic culture, this novel featured explicit content nestled in YA tropes, with grown adults whose behaviour seemed to conflict with their age. This wasn’t personally for me and I was somewhat expecting this read to be more mature.


Theo & Kit:
I must say, however, that my experience of this novel wasn’t all doom and gloom. If you can look beyond the lack of realism, there were certainly moments of charismatic humour and some brilliant prose and dialogue.

“Here, now, under a shower of sparks, he looks like just the person who would have missed me, the one who wouldn’t have left.
The truth is, I never stopped loving that person. I only stopped believing he existed.”

McQuinston’s expression of Theo's gender identity is masterfully planned and executed. Several craft decisions such as the order of Theo and Kit’s POVs and their stylistic choice of withholding Theo’s pronouns in the first half of the novel produced quite a profound effect.

When Kit’s POV—unaware of Theo’s nonbinary identity—addresses them incorrectly and leans toward feminine impressions of them, the deep wrongness felt as a reader was rather stark. I came to read this novel already aware of Theo’s gender identity. Beyond that head knowledge, it was something else to experience the discomfort of being misgendered and the deep satisfaction after Theo’s pronouns were corrected.

Outside of this, I found the characterisation of Theo and Kit to be flat. Theo’s nepo-baby complex irritated me throughout the novel and I did not see the purpose of it—the late 20s unease and guilt of accepting financial assistance could have been equally communicated without the odd sympathy for Theo’s voluntary poverty. As for Kit, his POV orbited wholly around Theo. It quickly dawned that Kit did not seem to exist without them; his hero-worship was either concerningly obsessed or shallow.


The Bottom Line:
On many occasions, I should have chosen to DNF this book; however much I wished otherwise, this read was not for me. The genuine characterisations and emotional arcs that I came to love from Red, White & Royal Blue were dearly missed and most of all, I finished this novel frustrated at not having come to know any of the characters.

On the other hand, there are definitely readers this novel will appeal to. I appreciate how well McQuinston’s fresh experimentation with writing form expressed Theo’s nonbinary identity.

For these reasons, I have rated *The Pairing* 1.3/5 stars, rounded down.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for sending this Advanced Reader Copy in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for letting me read this ARC!

I tried so hard to finish this book. I picked it back up several times and just could not get into it. I found myself not caring about the characters. Maybe it was the old lovers coming back together that I didn’t care for but overall this book was not for me.

"Casey's first novel Red, White & Royal Blue has been my go-to recommendation for friends since 2019, and I'm so glad they delivered another equally brilliant novel full of rich characters and visceral experiences. The Pairing follows Theo and Kit, two bisexual ex-lovers who reconnect on a European tour four years after their devastating split.

What follows is a sensual and spicy feast for the senses, as the pair taste and smell and touch and thoroughly enjoy themselves across the continent, all while realizing the importance of being known, exactly for who you are."

This is hands down one of the best books of the year I've read. This epic love story soans decades. Casey McQuistion delicately addresses learning disabilities, fear, the struggle of self worth and acceptance. When 2 souls are meant to be the tale is woven beautifully and is absolutely exquisite.

Queen Casey!!!!

I was not surprised that I enjoyed this one, but wow didn’t expect it to be so spicy! wooo. chile. I enjoyed this one a lot though. following two bisexual exes in a european setting, this story was so well written, plus I was laughing so hard. her books have the funniest one liners that will make you laugh out loud!!

really the only deduction for me, was i’m not a huge second chance romance kind of gal. & it usually always affects my rating in a way. not by much this time around because truly Casey is a beautiful writer & I get lost in her books. they are clever & fun & unputdownable truly!

LGBTQ books are becoming a favorite of mine to read. I love the authenticity it brings & shows throughout. I can picture it & it’s just like a vivid color art in my head & casey does an amazing job with it in her writing. she’s quickly becoming a favorite author of mine.

- MM romance (both bisexual)
- Second chance romance
= Travelling across Europe

What to expect in The Pairing:
- Travel descriptions to fuel your wanderlust and food descriptions to fuel your hunger. You don't want to read this on an empty stomach!
- Possibly the horniest book Casey has written!
- Great character development and depth, diving deep into topics like gender identity and worthiness as they reconnect and rediscover each other.
- Switching POVs halfway through so we get to understand them both.
- Casey's signature witty and banter-filled writing style.

Prior to their newest release, I had read two of Casey McQuiston’s books and loved both. I was excited to read their third adult novel, The Pairing, out this week.

This one is a second chance romance between two childhood best friends, Kit and Theo, who had dated before a bad breakup four years ago. On the cusp of taking a European food tour, they went their separate ways and never spoke again. But they both had vouchers to take the tour within 48 months, and both happen to have booked it now at the same time. Kit and Theo will have to spend a few weeks together. Awkward due to their breakup… but maybe a chance to mend things and become friends again. Or a chance to have a sex competition, whatever! But is that all a distraction from the feelings they still have for each other?

Tropes & Narrative Devices:
- Second chance romance
- Childhood best friends to lovers to exes to lovers
- Forced proximity
- First-person POVs (both Theo and Kit)

What I Liked:
- Settings in England, France, Spain, and Italy. I love travel and any books set in other countries. (Especially Spain, since I lived there for a year!) I enjoyed following the main characters on a tour across these countries, seeing the sights, taking in the culture, and practicing the languages.
- Food! Did I mention that it was a food tour they’re on? There are plenty of descriptions of local cuisines, desserts, and drinks that will make your mouth water.
- Bisexual characters. Both Kit and Theo are bisexual, and they have insightful conversations about their sexualities. They also have a lot of fun with their sex competition, sometimes going after the same people.
- One of the characters is nonbinary. This is revealed later in the book, so sorry for the slight spoiler. Regardless, I don’t read nonbinary main characters often, and it’s nice to see the representation here, as well as the characters’ discussions about gender identity.

What Didn’t Work for Me:
- So much drinking. I don’t drink so I can’t relate.
- Kind of too much sex? I’m not a prude, and I like my spicy romances, but this book sometimes feels a bit too hyper-fixated on the characters’ horniness and constant need for sex. It could have used more breathing room from that to balance it out.
- Slightly juvenile? All of Casey McQuiston’s books have a certain youthfulness to them that makes them feel somewhat New Adult as opposed to just Adult. Not a problem at all, but not quite what I usually want from otherwise adult characters.

Final Thoughts
The Pairing is a great book that will appeal to foodies and people who like wine, anyone who loves travel and likes books set in Europe, and fans of second chance romances. It has a youthful energy, and with the sex competition between Kit and Theo, it’s on the spicier end of spectrum. I liked the characters and overall enjoyed the whole story, even if some elements weren’t entirely to my taste (pun intended).

Such a cute, second chance at love book! I honestly wish more queer books explored the second chance at love trope, it’s just so sweet to read.

Theo and Kit are great characters to watch as they grow and them finding each other on a good tour of Europe is so on brand and incredibly adorable. Being a die hard Red, White and Royal Blue fan, I was so excited to see another adult fiction book from Casey. Highly recommend for people who want to try some new tropes, loves queer romances, and some spice.

This book seemed to be filled with unnecessary vulgarity. I don’t tend to read or request spicy books, so perhaps my expectations were skewed but I thought that a very intriguing plot was hard to connect with due to too much smut.

I appreciated how Theo’s pronouns transitioned from she/her to they/them halfway through that novel. Using plural pronouns to refer to a singular entity is very difficult for me, so I found this to be great exposure.

Thank You to NetGalley for providing an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to SMP Romance for the advanced reader copy and to Macmillan Audio complimentary audiobook. These opinions are my own.

The Pairing is a second chance romance between Theo and Kit. They were originally childhood best friends who became lovers. The two broke up right before taking a culinary tour of Europe together. And now, they have somehow both managed to rebook for the same trip years later just as their vouchers would expire.

What I loved about the book was the amazing food descriptions. This story made me want to travel through Europe, eating all of the amazing food at the same amazing sites. The chapters were fairly long, with each named for and lasting as long as the tour stop.

I love seeing a book that is bi for bi, but for me, this one leaned into bisexual stereotypes too much. It seemed to play up the idea of promiscuity that I find far too commonly used as an insult. And that regularly took me out of being able to enjoy the story.

The writing was fantastic, and I appreciated that the dual POVs were split between the front and back half. And I appreciated the author's essay about their approach.

There was great narration by professional narrators, Emma Galvin and Max Meyers. I didn't appreciate the interludes from Casey McQuiston, as they were a much faster speaking rate. I prefer fiction to always be narrated solely by professionals.

3.75 stars rounded up